Research Software Engineering Specialist

Te Whiwhinga mahi | The opportunity

This collaborative role within the Digital Research Innovation & AI group focuses on enhancing researcher capabilities through innovative digital methods. As a Research Software Engineering Specialist, you will work directly with researchers, providing expertise to ensure the effective use of high-performance computing, data, and AI platforms and services.

You will play a crucial role in helping researchers build their research and AI capabilities, with a particular emphasis on the biological and life sciences. This position is designed to complement existing team expertise across other fields of research, by bringing an essential perspective from areas such as biological and molecular sciences, computational biology, bioinformatics, bioengineering, biochemistry, and computational chemistry.

This opportunity is fundamentally about service, enablement, and partnering with researchers.

Key responsibilities include:

• Support the development and optimisation of reproducible computational workflows (AI, GPU, HPC, cloud) for researchers.
• Coach and enable researchers to develop essential computational skills and expertise, fostering self-sufficiency in AI, GPU, and HPC platforms.
• Lead and facilitate workshops and training on research software engineering, HPC, and AI practices.
• Maintain a high understanding of science goals and emerging developments, sharing this knowledge with research communities.
• Apply deep curiosity to science and research to understand models and algorithms and provide expert guidance

Please note this is a fulltime (37.5 hours/ week) permanent opportunity, with a salary range of $115,000 - $135,000 per annum depending on skills and experience.

For more detailed information please visit the Position Description.

Mō tō mātou rōpū | About the team

Digital Services, a key division within the University, is responsible for shaping and executing the digital strategy and supporting learning, teaching, research, and administration, with a cornerstone commitment to security and ethics.

The Digital Research Innovation & AI group, part of Digital Services, focuses on capability development in digital research and AI for research. We value working in partnership with research teams, contributing our expertise and growing researcher skills in applying powerful computational tools and methods. Our group has expertise in specialist research data platforms, AI for science, high performance computing (HPC), research cloud computing, and product engineering and emerging research-led product development.

He kōrero mōu | About you

We are seeking a highly curious and collaborative individual who is passionate about supporting and enabling cutting-edge research, particularly within the biological and molecular sciences. You will thrive on understanding complex scientific problems and translating them into effective computational solutions.

You will ideally bring:

• A PhD or Master's in a computational field of science and at least 7 years of related work experience in a research-intensive environment, providing software engineering and AI support to research teams.
• Demonstrated expertise in the design, development, or implementation of computational packages, analytical pipelines, or research software platforms, including debugging and optimizing software for HPC or GPU systems.
• Advanced programming skills across scientific, statistical, and AI platforms and parallelisation frameworks, especially those based in Python, R, and Julia.
• A proven track record of effectively transferring skills and building capability within multidisciplinary teams.
• Experience in the transformative opportunities emerging from AI for science.

Candidates with international experience, those returning from industry, or research technicians in software engineering are encouraged to apply. If you don’t feel you meet all these criteria though believe you have something to offer, we encourage you to apply.

Waipapa Taumata Rau | The University of Auckland

The University of Auckland is New Zealand’s leading university. We employ more than 5,400 academic research and professional staff to support over 41,000 students, making us one of NZ’s largest employers. 

Ngā āhuatanga kei a mātou | What we offer

The University of Auckland offers a stimulating and supportive environment that promotes a healthy work-life balance through:

• Five weeks’ annual leave per annum.
• Up to 6.75% employer superannuation contribution.
• A 37.5-hour working week and flexible employment practices.
• Additional parental leave payments and discounted onsite childcare, parking, and various leisure and recreation services.

Me pēhea te tuku tono | How to apply

Applications must be submitted online, by the closing date of 28th September 2025 to be considered. Please include your cover letter and your CV highlighting how you can meet the skills and experiences detailed above.

Please reach out to Lisa Matthews via [email protected] for any questions.. Please note we are happy to answer your questions, but we do not accept applications by email.

Equity

The University is committed to meeting its obligations under the Treaty of Waitangi and achieving equity outcomes for staff and students in a safe, inclusive, and equitable environment.  For further information on services for Māori, Pacific, women, LGBTQIATakatāpuiMVPFAFF+, people with disabilities, parenting support, flexible work and other personal circumstances go to www.equity.auckland.ac.nz