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Research Assistant Position (Data Engineer)
Position Summary:
The Centre for Media, Technology and Democracy at McGill University is seeking applications for a part-time Research Assistant position with expertise in data and software engineering. The candidate will be joining the Centre at a stimulating time of growth and expansion and will help drive a growing research agenda by writing web scrapers and assisting with bringing code to ‘production’ level, as well as offering advice on choosing between various backend technologies.
The successful applicant will have:
- facility with Python, SQL, and the Linux command line (bash)
- experience with at least one traditional RDBMS database management (such as PostgreSQL, MySQL, MariaDB, or similar solutions)
- experience with at least one message-queue (job-queue) system, such as Kafka, RabbitMQ, ActiveMQ, etc.
- experience with cloud computing, including provisioning and running a server (AWS EC2 or equivalent)
- experience with web scraping, particularly by automating browsers (Selenium or an equivalent solution)
- willingness to learn and explore new technologies on the job
- familiarity with version control (Git) and effective communication skills to develop code in tandem with others
The successful applicant may have:
- experience with NoSQL or NewSQL databases, such as MongoDB, Cassandra, Druid, CockroachDB, etc.
- experience with Docker, Kubernetes, and the process of containerizing code and using serverless architectures in the cloud, and/or familiarity with scheduling jobs in computing clusters using Slurm
- experience working with social media data, or even have published in the area of misinformation, disinformation, and information ecosystem studies, and be familiar with the academic publishing process
- familiarity with MLOps, or training ML classifiers
- the ability to communicate effectively in French
Specific duties:
Under the Direction of the Centre for Media, Technology and Democracy leadership, the
successful candidate will be expected to fulfill the following duties:
- Offer advice on choosing between database and message queue technologies
- Advise on converting procedural code to object-oriented code, and in some cases perform the conversion
- Advise on software engineering best practices
- Help write scrapers for social and news media sites
Contract Details
This position is a part-time contract position for four (4) months, with possibility of
renewal.
Salary
The salary will be commensurate with experience and education level.
Education
Post-secondary degree in computer science or commensurate experience
The following supporting documents are required:
Curriculum vitae and/or Github profile
We thank all applicants for their interest, however, only applicants selected for an interview will be contacted
Hourly Salary:
$28.44
Hours per Week:
40 (Part time)
Location:
Sherbrooke 680
Supervisor:
Academic Associate
Position Start Date:
2023-05-17
Position End Date:
2023-09-30
Deadline to Apply:
McGill University hires on the basis of merit and is strongly committed to equity and diversity within its community. We welcome applications from racialized persons/visible minorities, women, Indigenous persons, persons with disabilities, ethnic minorities, and persons of minority sexual orientations and gender identities, as well as from all qualified candidates with the skills and knowledge to productively engage with diverse communities. McGill implements an employment equity program and encourages members of designated groups to self-identify. Persons with disabilities who anticipate needing accommodations for any part of the application process may contact, in confidence, [email protected] .