University of Cambridge
Senior Research Software Engineer
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Are you ready to drive innovation at the intersection of advanced software engineering and sustainable aviation research?
The Aviation Impact Accelerator (AIA) at the University of Cambridge is seeking a Senior Research Software Engineer to join our team at Whittle Laboratory in West Cambridge.
As part of this team, you will lead efforts to develop the scientific software, infrastructure and interactive tools that underpin our research and communicate its findings to government, industry and the public.
About the Role
This is a broad senior engineering role which is technically demanding and intellectually engaging spanning new tool development, support for analyst-led projects, cloud infrastructure, data pipelines and public-facing web applications. We are particularly interested in candidates with an engineering or physical-science background, an understanding of low-order physical systems modelling, and experience deploying and operating web services, ideally using AWS.
About the AIA
The AIA combines physics-based and data-driven modelling to study aviation as an interconnected system. Our software includes modern, typed Python modelling toolboxes and Bilt, an in-house framework for building a causal, composable and unit-aware engineering models, which are deployable to JAX. Much of our development is greenfield, giving team members significant influence over software architecture, engineering practices and technical direction.
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Responsibilities
- Lead the development of scientific software, infrastructure and interactive tools.
- Support analyst-led projects.
- Manage cloud infrastructure and data pipelines.
- Develop public-facing web applications.
- Mentor students and colleagues.
- Contribute to reports and publications.
- Engage with external partners and software contractors.
Qualifications
- Engineering or physical-science background.
- Understanding of low-order physical systems modelling.
- Experience deploying and operating web services, ideally using AWS.
Opportunities
- Opportunities to deepen expertise in scientific and data-intensive software.
- Significant influence over software architecture, engineering practices and technical direction.
Application Details
Fixed-term: The funds for this post are available for 12 months in the first instance.
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Applications are welcome from internal candidates who would like to apply for the role on the basis of a secondment from their current role in the University.
Click the 'Apply' button below to register an account with our recruitment system (if you have not already) and apply online.
Please ensure that you upload your Curriculum Vitae (CV) and a covering letter in the Upload section of the online application.
The closing date for applications is Monday 24 August 2026.
Informal Enquiries
Informal enquiries are welcomed and if you have any queries regarding either the vacancy or the application process, please contact the HR Office in the first instance on hr-office@eng.cam.ac.uk or 01223 332615.
Please quote reference NM50695 on your application and in any correspondence about this vacancy.
The University actively supports equality, diversity and inclusion and encourages applications from all sections of society.
The University has a responsibility to ensure that all employees are eligible to live and work in the UK.
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