Data Scientist

Senior Search Engineer

Location: This position has the ability to work hybrid, remote or onsite. Please list which the candidate prefers in the write up.

Clearance Level: Must have an active clearance (Secret/Top Secret, etc.) in order to be considered for this position due to the nature of the work being done.

At Aquila Technology, you will see our team’s passion every day, whether we are building a robust, policy-compliant IT system or stress-testing a system to identify gaps and security vulnerabilities. To own the advantage, we ensure our team owns results and gets the work done right the first time by deploying smart, purposeful solutions that work. Aquila is the right people with the right skills driving the right outcomes. We call this the Aquila Advantage.

Aquila Technology is seeking a Senior Search Engineer to join our team in supporting one of the country’s premier defense research organizations. We are seeking an experienced Senior Search Engineer to join our team and lead the design, development, and optimization of our search infrastructure. The ideal candidate will augment our existing search team, bring significant outside expertise, and help us significantly improve our existing search offering. They will have deep expertise in Apache Solar and semantic search technologies, with a proven track record of building and scaling high-performance search solutions using vector embeddings, hybrid search approaches, and modern similarity matching techniques.

Must Have

• Degree Level: Bachelor’s Degree
• Cleaarance Level: Currently holds a Secret Clearance (OR a higher clearance)
• 5 years – Data Analysis
• 5 years – R, Python, SQL, and Machine Language Algorithms and Data Analysis.
• 5 years – Quantitative relevancy analysis and tuning
• 5 years – Vector embeddings semantic search
• 5 years – C/C++, Java, Python, Bash, SQL, Java Script / HTML / CSS, Matlab
• 5 years – Apache Solar and creating data pipelines for search products

Nice to Have:

• Data/Reporting
• Databases and Data Engineering for Big Data
• Elasticsearch
• Statistical Methods

Key Responsibilities include but not limited to:

• Design, implement, and maintain enterprise-scale search solutions using Apache Solr
• Develop and optimize semantic search capabilities using vector embeddings and neural search models
• Build custom indexers and indexing pipelines that support vector embeddings alongside traditional text fields
• Implement and tune Approximate Nearest Neighbor (ANN) algorithms for efficient similarity search at scale
• Design and optimize similarity functions (cosine, dot product, Euclidean) for various search use cases
• Build hybrid search systems that combine traditional keyword-based search with vector-based semantic search
• Perform traditional relevancy engineering including query analysis, field weighting, boosting strategies, and result tuning
• Conduct relevancy analysis using quantitative metrics and qualitative evaluation methods
• Monitor search performance metrics and implement continuous improvements
• Work cross-functionally with product, engineering, and data teams to define search requirements

Required Qualifications

• 5+ years of hands-on experience with Apache Solr or Lucene in production environments
• Strong expertise in traditional relevancy engineering including query parsing, field boosting, function queries, and relevance tuning
• Proven experience conducting relevancy analysis using both automated metrics and manual evaluation techniques
• Strong expertise in vector embeddings and their application to semantic search
• Proven experience building hybrid search systems that combine keyword and vector-based approaches
• Knowledge of search relevance metrics (NDCG, MRR, precision/recall)
• Excellent problem-solving and analytical skills
• Strong communication skills and ability to work in collaborative environments

Nice to Have:

• Databases and Data Engineering for Big Data
• Elasticsearch
• Statistical Methods

Benefits and Perks:

Aquila team members experience the opportunity to be part of a fast-paced, customer-focused, and technically innovative work environment. Aquila strives to deliver the best of the best in technical services to our customers. Candidates that possess a love for technical challenges, a desire to constantly learn, and the desire to establish themselves as critical players within a team will enjoy calling Aquila Technology home.

Our Perks Include:

PTO – 15 days (vacation/sick) 10 paid holidays – 6 standard (New Year’s, Memorial Day, Independence Day, Labor Day, Thanksgiving, and Christmas) – 4 floating holidays prorated based on your day of hire:

• 1.5 paid days, or 12 hours, for approved volunteer work
• 1 week of paid maternity/paternity LOA after 1 year of Full-time employment

Tuition & Training Reimbursement– 5K annually for pre-approved, Eligible full-time team members who have completed a minimum ofsix (6) monthsof employment may apply for tuition reimbursement for approved, job-related courses taken through an accredited college or university. Team members must achieve a grade of “B” or better to qualify for reimbursement.Aquila will reimburse up to $5,000 per fiscal year for tuition expenses only. Expenses related to training programs, certifications, books, materials, meals, transportation, or other non-tuition costs are not eligible under the Tuition Reimbursement Program. All tuition reimbursement requests must be submitted to and approved by the team member’s Manager prior to course registration. Reimbursement will be issued upon successful course completion and submission of final grades and proof of payment.

401K with Fidelity – Eligible to participate following 90 days of employment. Company match on employee contribution:

• $1/$1 up to 3%, then .50 cents / $1 for 4th and 5th %s
• Fully vested from day one
• Company match does not apply to catch-up contribution

Cell Phone & Internet Reimbursedup to $150 monthly to cover cell phone, data, and home internet expenses. Aquila Technology will reimburse team members who work from home ONLY for cell phone/mobile device fees for work-related communications and/or operations each month. Employees eligible for this benefit must work remote 2 days a week or more to qualify.

Buy Your Own Device (BYOD) – Team members are eligible for reimbursement of up to $1,500 every three (3) years for the purchase of electronic equipment used to access corporate services. To qualify for this benefit, employees must have completed a minimum of six (6) months of employment and must agree to and sign the Device Minimum Configuration Form prior to reimbursement. Electronic devices eligible under the Buy Your Own Device (BYOD) program are limited to cell phones, laptops, and tablets.

Clearance Level: Candidates should have an active clearance (secret/top secret, etc.) in order to be considered for this position due to the nature of the work being done.

Work Location: This position has the ability to work hybrid, remote or onsite. Please list which the candidate prefers in the write up.

Interview Process: 1st round interview will be a Zoom with the hiring manager. 2nd round interview will be a Zoom with additional team members as needed.

We are an Equal Opportunity Employer.