At a Glance
- Tasks: Build innovative data pipelines and lead AI projects to enhance higher education.
- Company: Join the Office for Students, a dynamic regulator of higher education in England.
- Benefits: Competitive salary, flexible working, and a supportive culture focused on development.
- Other info: Enjoy a collaborative environment with opportunities for career growth.
- Why this job: Be part of a transformative data journey that impacts students' lives.
- Qualifications: Strong Python skills and experience with Azure Databricks are essential.
The predicted salary is between 60000 - 72000 £ per year.
Principal Data Engineer role at Office for Students. Base pay range up to £72,000. 12 months fixed term contract. Location: Bristol.
About us: We are the independent regulator of higher education in England. We aim to ensure that every student, whatever their background, has a fulfilling experience of higher education that enriches their lives and careers. We’re proud of our people, our culture and the benefits we offer. We care about supporting and developing our staff. At the OfS we want to create a welcoming and engaging working environment which is free from discrimination.
The analytics & data engineering team are a newly formed team in the OfS. The team is there to make sure the analyst team and subsequently the business has the right information to carry out the functions of the organisation.
Why work for the OfS: The OfS's Data function is currently undergoing an exciting and major transformation and we’re looking for a talented data engineer to help lead the change. We’re moving away from a legacy on-premises platform to an Azure Databricks platform, unlocking new possibilities for automation and innovation. This is your opportunity to help develop new robust data products from the ground up, set best practice and introduce AI into the organisation to improve how we support the higher education sector and the needs of students.
Key responsibilities:
- Building and developing reusable pipelines for analytics and AI projects.
- Pushing for innovation within the platform to enable great efficiencies and detailed insights and outputs.
- Leading key relationships between IT and Data to grow the platform and release new capabilities.
- Deploying production AI models with automated monitoring from the data pipeline to the model runs and outputs.
- Extracting, Loading & Transforming (ELT) data sets from a variety of data sources across the OfS enterprise technology stack.
- Monitoring the execution of data workflows, including identifying and mitigating risks, setting service level indicators and configuring alerts.
- Adopting data governance best practice when processing raw data to develop, test and maintain datasets.
- Developing coding standards for Python programming to be used across the Data function.
- Supporting continuous data quality improvements across the organisation.
- Applying dimensional data modelling concepts and practices across the OfS data.
- Advocating and supporting an evidence-led culture across the organisation.
Essential experience & skills:
- Strong Python programming knowledge, ideally PySpark.
- Strong knowledge of the Azure Databricks platform and associated functionalities.
- Adaptable, with a willingness to work flexibly as the needs of the organisation evolve.
- Working well within a team, and able to work closely with internal and external stakeholders.
- An ability to take a logical and analytical approach, and to take a pragmatic, collaborative approach to solving problems.
- Adept at communicating technical concepts to a non-technical audience.
- Awareness of the modern data stack and associated methodologies.
Working for us: The OfS regulates the higher education sector on behalf of all students. We value diversity and the wealth of perspectives, experience and ideas that it brings to our work, and we strive to embed equality of opportunity in everything we do. We recruit based on fair and open competition and welcome applications from candidates regardless of age, disability, race and ethnicity, gender reassignment, marriage and civil partnership, pregnancy and maternity, religion or belief, sex or sexual orientation.
Flexibility is important to the OfS, as we recognise that it can enable people to work more effectively. A set of organisation-wide principles shape our approach to flexible and hybrid working, which our teams then use as guidance on how they deliver their business goals. This would usually mean working from the office for two days in a typical week. To attract the widest possible field of qualified applicants, flexible working, for example job share and part time working apply to this role.
Important dates:
- Closing date for applications: 8th September 2025
- Interviews: From 15 September 2025
Principal Data Engineer employer: Office for Students
The Office for Students (OfS) is an exceptional employer, offering a dynamic work environment in Bristol where your analytical skills can directly impact the higher education sector. With a strong commitment to diversity, flexible working arrangements, and a focus on employee development, the OfS fosters a collaborative culture that empowers staff to thrive while ensuring every student has access to high-quality education. Join us to be part of a meaningful mission that shapes the future of higher education in England.
StudySmarter Expert Advice🤫
We think this is how you could land Principal Data Engineer
✨Get Involved in Data Science Meetups
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Join professional bodies related to data science, like the Data Science Society or similar organisations. Getting involved can lead to mentorship opportunities and insider knowledge about full-time positions at companies like Office for Students.
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We think you need these skills to ace Principal Data Engineer
Some tips for your application 🫡
Show Off Your Projects:In the world of data science, your projects can speak volumes about your skills. Make sure to showcase a few key projects in your CV or portfolio, especially those that highlight your ability to work with data sets, build models, or use relevant tools like Python, R, or SQL. Don’t forget to include links to any GitHub repositories if applicable!
Quantify Your Achievements:Employers love numbers! When drafting your CV, highlight your achievements with quantifiable results. For instance, mention how your data analysis led to a certain percentage increase in efficiency or revenue at a previous job or project. These details can really make your application pop!
Craft a Tailored Cover Letter:For a full-time role at Office for Students, your cover letter should reflect your passion for data science and your excitement about the specific projects or values of the company. Dive into why you’re a good fit, how your skills align with their needs, and any unique perspectives you can bring to the team.
Stand Out with Relevant Courses and Certifications:Although experience talks, relevant courses or certifications can be your ticket to impressing hiring managers at Office for Students. Mention any standout courses you've completed that equipped you with essential skills, such as machine learning certifications or data visualisation courses. This shows your commitment to continuously developing your skills in the field!
How to prepare for a job interview at Office for Students
✨Brush Up on Your Statistics
For a data science role, we need to seriously sharpen our statistics skills. Get ready to tackle technical questions on probability distributions, hypothesis testing, and regression analysis. These are often the bread and butter of data science interviews, so don't just skim over them!
✨Showcase Your Projects
Prepare a killer portfolio showcasing your data science projects. We should include details about the datasets used, the tools and techniques applied, and the impact of your findings. If we can walk them through a particularly challenging project or a cool visualisation that had real-world implications, it’ll really make us stand out!
✨Get Comfortable with Python and R
Most data science positions require us to be proficient in programming languages like Python and R. We should practice common libraries like pandas, NumPy, and scikit-learn, and be ready for live coding exercises or algorithm questions. Showing off our coding chops can really impress the interviewers at Office for Students!
✨Prepare for Case Studies
Expect to encounter real-world case studies during the interview. We might be asked how we’d approach a data problem or analyse a dataset to extract insights. It's essential to think out loud and demonstrate our problem-solving process so that the interviewer can see our logical thinking in action.
