Scientific Software Consultant (m/f/d)

Our climate needs bright minds! The Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research (PIK) addresses crucial scientific questions in the fields of global change, climate impacts and sustainable development. It is one of the world's leading research institutions in its field and offers natural and social scientists from around the world an inspiring environment for excellent interdisciplinary research. Research at PIK is supported by state-of-the-art high-performance computer (HPC) systems, which are used for scientific calculations based on classical numerical methods along with novel applications from the fields of Deep Machine Learning and Big Data Analytics. All computer systems of the institute are being operated by the IT-Services Department on-site at the Telegrafenberg in Potsdam. In order to strengthen the support for scientific modeling at the interface between HPC operations and science, the IT-Services Department of PIK is seeking a

Scientific Software Consultant (m/f/d)

(Position number: 06-2023 Software Consultant)

with a focus on high performance computing starting as soon as possible. The offered position is permanent and will be remunerated - depending on the personal qualifications of the applicant - up to salary group E14 in accordance with the German public tariff scheme (TV-L Brandenburg). This is a full-time position with a weekly working time of 40 hours. This position can be filled on a part-time basis. Is working with scientific applications the norm for you? Do you enjoy sharing your knowledge, solving complex problems and are you fascinated by modern computer technology in general? Are you looking for an employer you can rely on? Then apply for a job with us! 

Key responsibilities

• Advise our scientists on how to efficiently make use of current and future HPC systems of the institute. This covers advice on modern development tools and programming libraries as well as answering questions on software engineering in general.
• Provide and maintain a set of software tools and programming libraries for scientific modelling on HPC systems of the institute.
• Configure and monitor the job management system of the HPC systems of the institute. This covers general troubleshooting and job accounting.
• Support modellers from time to time with debugging and optimizing scientific code.
• Support infrastructure for software project management.
• Prepare and update documentation for scientific programmers.

Basic Qualifications

• Successfully completed master’s degree related to computer science or a comparable qualification.
• Very good knowledge of modern programming techniques and paradigms as well as good practical programming skills.
• Good practical and relevant knowledge of script languages.
• High proficiency with Linux operating systems and tools.
• Relevant knowledge of modern collaborative software development environments and tools.
• Proficient oral presentation and writing skills in English and ideally basic knowledge of German, or intent to gain proficiency.

Preferred Qualifications

• Practical experience in scientific computing on modern HPC systems.
• Experience in developing open-source software.
• Programming skills on distributed memory computer systems and the use of MPI libraries in particular.
• Good practical and applicable knowledge of Python.
• First experience with GPU based computing.
• Experience with HPC job management systems or workload managers.
• Practical and applicable knowledge of the management of Gitlab, Mattermost, JupyterHub.

We expect

• Structured and goal-oriented thinking.
• The ability to work independently and on your own initiative.
• A methodical and systematic approach to deliver results.
• Capacity to familiarize yourself quickly with new topics.
• Creativity and openness to new approaches.
• Reliability and a high level of motivation.

We offer

• An organization that greatly values your contribution to our common success.
• Ample room for contributing and implementing your own ideas.
• The chance to be part of a creative, interdisciplinary team.
• A stimulating working environment in an internationally recognized research institute on Potsdam's beautiful, historic Telegrafenberg campus, a short commuting distance from Berlin.
• Flexitime and mobile working from home-office (up to 40% of hours).
• A collective pay scheme and associated benefits as well as a subsidized travel card.

PIK values equality and diversity. We encourage applications without photo. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment regardless of ethnic and social origin, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability, care responsibilities, or age. PIK seeks to increase the share of women in scientific positions and therefore explicitly encourages women to apply. In cases of equal qualification and within the given legal scope, women will be given preference. PIK also encourages applications by parents returning from parental leave.

Please apply by 26.03.2023 directly using our application form.

If you hold an international higher education qualification, please also submit the Statement of Comparability from the Central Office for Foreign Education (ZAB) with your application. In the case that you do not yet have a ZAB Statement of Comparability for your qualification, please be aware that you will need to request this if your application is successful. You can find further information on this website: 

https://www.kmk.org/zab/central-office-for-foreign-education.html

For further information or to discuss the position please contact Karsten Kramer, Head of IT-Services via Telephone ++49 (0)331-288-2605 or Email: kk@pik-potsdam.de.