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For Companies At a Glance
- Tasks: Lead DevOps initiatives, optimize processes, and ensure information security in a hybrid work environment.
- Company: Join REF, a key player in assessing UK higher education research quality and funding distribution.
- Benefits: Enjoy flexible working, 30 days annual leave, and access to a Civil Service Pension Scheme.
- Why this job: Be part of a mission-driven team that values professional development and innovation in technology.
- Qualifications: Experience with AWS, Terraform, databases, and strong scripting skills are essential.
- Other info: This is a fixed-term role concluding in December 2029, based in Bristol.
The predicted salary is between 45400 - 65900 £ per year.
REF SENIOR DEVOPS ENGINEER
SALARY: £56,745
HOURS: Full Time
CONTRACT TYPE: Fixed Term (Concluding Dec 2029)
LOCATION: Bristol (Hybrid)
CLOSING DATE: 19 Jan 25
ABOUT US
The Research Excellence Framework (REF) is the system for assessing the quality of research in UK higher education institutions, with the most recent exercise concluding in 2021. It is a peer review assessment process involving submissions from higher education institutions across the UK. Research England delivered REF 2021 on behalf of the four UK funding bodies and the results have driven the annual distribution of approximately £2 billion of research funding to UK universities.
MAIN OUTPUTS
Availability and capacity management
Ensure the correct implementation of standards and procedures, identifying capacity issues, stipulating the required changes and instigating these. You know how to initiate remedial action.
Development process optimisation
Analyse current processes, identify and implement opportunities to optimise processes, and lead and develop a team of experts to deliver service improvements. Help to evaluate and establish requirements for the implementation of changes by setting policy and standards.
Information security
You know about information security and can design solutions and services with security controls Embedded, specifically engineered as mitigation against security threats as a core part of the solutions and services.
Modern standards approach
You have a strong understanding of and can apply the most appropriate, modern standards and practices. You know how to take responsibility for coaching and guiding others.
Prototyping
You approach prototyping as a team activity, actively soliciting prototypes and testing with others. You can establish design patterns and iterate them. You can use a variety of methods of prototyping and choose the most appropriate ones.
Service support
You can demonstrate a breadth of understanding of service support. You can identify, locate and fix faults.
Systems integration
You can define the integration build. You can coordinate build activities across systems and understand how to undertake and support integration testing activities.
ASSESSMENT CRITERIA
- Experience of Securely building infrastructure within the AWS cloud using AWS technologies such as lambda, S3, EC2, ECS, IAM, EBS, Elastic Beanstalk, Route53, SES, RDS, Elasticache, Autoscaling, Load balancers, VPC, etc
- Building and configuring new server platforms and infrastructure, using IaC tools – Terraform (essential), Cloudformation, Ansible
- Working experience of databases, such as Oracle/PL/SQL, SQL Server, Postgres, MySQL, NoSQL (MongoDB, DynamoDB).
- Strong Scripting and language skills ie Ruby, Bash, Python, JS, Go
- Experience of core technologies such as containerization (docker), container orchestration (Kubernetes/ECS)
- Identification and development of resources to establish a sustainable internal capability for long term DevOps and hosting needs.
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION
DEVELOPING TALENT:
We are committed to developing employees in their roles throughout their career. Learning and development plans enable employees to continue their professional development through training and development opportunities such as E-learning, classroom training and on-the-job experiences. We encourage our employees to share their learning across teams and organisations.
BENEFITS:
UKRI can offer the successful candidate:
– Flexible Working
– 30 days annual leave + Public Holidays
– Access to Civil Service Pension Scheme
– Various everyday discounts through our dedicated provider
Visit our dedicated benefits webpage for more info: Benefits of working at UK Research and Innovation (UKRI)
REF SENIOR DEVOPS ENGINEER employer: Research England
Contact Detail:
Research England Recruiting Team
StudySmarter Expert Advice 🤫
We think this is how you could land REF SENIOR DEVOPS ENGINEER
✨Tip Number 1
Familiarize yourself with AWS technologies, especially those mentioned in the job description like Lambda, EC2, and S3. Having hands-on experience or projects showcasing these skills can set you apart during the interview process.
✨Tip Number 2
Demonstrate your understanding of Infrastructure as Code (IaC) tools, particularly Terraform. Consider creating a small project that showcases your ability to build and configure server platforms using IaC, as this is essential for the role.
✨Tip Number 3
Highlight your scripting skills in languages like Python, Ruby, or Bash. Prepare examples of how you've used these languages to automate processes or solve problems in previous roles.
✨Tip Number 4
Showcase your experience with containerization and orchestration tools like Docker and Kubernetes. If you have any relevant projects or contributions to open-source initiatives, be ready to discuss them during your interview.
We think you need these skills to ace REF SENIOR DEVOPS ENGINEER
Some tips for your application 🫡
Understand the Role: Make sure to thoroughly read the job description for the Senior DevOps Engineer position. Understand the key responsibilities and required skills, especially those related to AWS technologies and infrastructure management.
Tailor Your CV: Customize your CV to highlight relevant experience in building secure infrastructure using AWS and IaC tools like Terraform. Emphasize your scripting skills and any experience with containerization and orchestration technologies.
Craft a Compelling Cover Letter: Write a cover letter that connects your past experiences with the specific requirements of the role. Mention your understanding of information security and your approach to process optimization, as these are crucial for the position.
Highlight Continuous Learning: In your application, mention any ongoing professional development or training you have undertaken, especially in areas relevant to DevOps practices and cloud technologies. This aligns with the company's commitment to developing talent.
How to prepare for a job interview at Research England
✨Showcase Your AWS Expertise
Make sure to highlight your experience with AWS technologies during the interview. Be prepared to discuss specific projects where you've utilized services like Lambda, EC2, and S3, and how you addressed any challenges that arose.
✨Demonstrate Your Scripting Skills
Since strong scripting skills are essential for this role, come ready to share examples of scripts you've written in languages like Python or Bash. Discuss how these scripts improved processes or solved problems in your previous roles.
✨Discuss Your Approach to Security
Given the importance of information security in this position, be prepared to talk about how you've integrated security controls into your solutions. Share specific instances where you identified and mitigated security threats.
✨Emphasize Team Collaboration
This role involves a lot of teamwork, especially in prototyping and service support. Be ready to provide examples of how you've collaborated with others in past projects, and how you approach team activities to achieve common goals.
