Senior Software Developer (NLP)

We harness the power of innovation so that you can change the world and help our customers solve their most complex challenges

Maryland
Office
R181676
Software Development
Secret
Additional posting locations:
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In a world of possibilities, pursue one with endless opportunities. Imagine Next!

 

At Parsons, you can imagine a career where you thrive, work with exceptional people, and be yourself. Guided by our leadership vision of valuing people, embracing agility, and fostering growth, we cultivate an innovative culture that empowers you to achieve your full potential. Unleash your talent and redefine what’s possible.

 

Job Description:

Parsons is seeking a Senior Software Developer to support our cutting-edge Drone Armor counter-unmanned aerial systems (C-UAS) program. The Senior Developer will design and implement logical, functional software code across multiple programming languages, make informed technology choices for different environments, rapidly diagnose and correct complex software issues in mission-critical systems, and help design, integrate, and optimize natural language processing (NLP) capabilities in support of operational missions.

What You'll Be Doing

Advanced Software Design & Development

  • Create logical and functional software code in a variety of programming languages to support Drone Armor capabilities
  • Lead the design and implementation of software components, services, and interfaces based on system and mission requirements
  • Ensure solutions are robust, secure, maintainable, and aligned with program architecture and coding standards
  • Design and implement services and pipelines that incorporate NLP models and text processing components into C-UAS workflows (e.g., analysis of communications, reports, or operator inputs)

NLP Integration & Applied AI

  • Collaborate with data scientists and ML/NLP engineers to integrate NLP models into production systems
  • Implement and optimize NLP pipelines for tasks such as classification, entity extraction, summarization, translation, or intent detection, as required by mission needs
  • Integrate large language models and other NLP components via APIs or model-serving infrastructure, ensuring performance, reliability, and security
  • Work with stakeholders to translate mission and operational requirements into concrete NLP features and user-facing capabilities

Technology Evaluation & Trade-Offs

  • Understand and articulate the benefits and risks associated with different coding languages and frameworks in various functional environments
  • Recommend appropriate languages, tools, and design patterns based on performance, security, maintainability, and integration needs
  • Evaluate and recommend NLP libraries, frameworks, and platforms (e.g., transformer-based toolkits, vector databases, or text analytics services)
  • Provide technical guidance to developers on language and framework selection, coding practices, architectural decisions, and NLP integration strategies

Troubleshooting, Debugging & Quality

  • React to software problems quickly and effectively, correcting code and related configurations as necessary
  • Debug complex issues across multiple layers (application, service, interface, data) and environments (development, integration, field)
  • Diagnose and resolve issues specific to NLP-enabled features, including latency, accuracy, unexpected outputs, and integration failures
  • Support and refine unit, integration, and system-level tests, including tests for NLP components (e.g., input validation, model behavior checks, regression tests on text datasets) to validate functionality and prevent regressions

Leadership & Collaboration

  • Serve as a senior technical resource within the development team, mentoring junior and mid-level developers
  • Coach team members on best practices for integrating NLP capabilities into existing architectures and workflows
  • Collaborate with systems engineers, test engineers, data scientists, NLP/ML engineers, and field personnel to resolve issues and improve system performance
  • Contribute to technical reviews, design walkthroughs, and continuous improvement of development and AI/NLP integration practices

What Required Skills You'll Bring

Education

  • Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science, Electronics Engineering, or other engineering or technical discipline is required with 5 years of experience OR
  • 8 years of relevant software development experience may be substituted for education

Experience

  • Experience creating logical and functional software code in multiple programming languages
  • Experience understanding and clearly articulating the benefits and risks of different coding languages in different functional environments
  • Experience reacting to software problems and correcting programs as necessary in complex or mission-critical systems
  • Experience integrating or supporting NLP or text-analytics capabilities in production or mission-focused software systems

Technical Competencies

  • Proficiency in one or more modern programming languages (e.g., Python, C++, Java, C#, Go, or similar), with working knowledge of others
  • Strong grasp of software engineering best practices, including design patterns, code reviews, version control, and CI/CD workflows
  • Demonstrated ability to troubleshoot and resolve complex software defects efficiently
  • Familiarity with NLP concepts and tools such as tokenization, embeddings, transformer models, and vector search, and with common NLP frameworks or libraries
  • Strong analytical and communication skills, capable of explaining technical and NLP-related trade-offs to both technical and non-technical stakeholders

Security & Citizenship

  • Must be a US Citizen
  • SECRET security clearance

What Desired Skills You'll Bring

Advanced Education & Certifications

  • Bachelor’s or higher degree in Computer Science, Computer Engineering, or related discipline
  • Relevant certifications in software architecture, cloud platforms, AI/ML, or DevSecOps

Specialized Experience

  • Experience supporting DoD, defense, or C-UAS-related software systems
  • Experience with distributed, real-time, or high-availability systems
  • Experience applying NLP in operational, defense, or intelligence contexts (e.g., processing reports, chat/voice transcripts, or multilingual text sources)

Additional Technical Skills

  • Experience with containerization (Docker), orchestration (Kubernetes), and cloud-native development
  • Experience with NLP/ML ecosystems and tools (e.g., transformer-based frameworks, vector databases, or LLM APIs) and related deployment patterns
  • Familiarity with Agile/Scrum methodologies and modern issue tracking/ALM tools

Security Clearance Requirement:

An active Secret security clearance is required for this position.​

This position is part of our Federal Solutions team.

The Federal Solutions segment delivers resources to our US government customers that ensure the success of missions around the globe. Our intelligent employees drive the state of the art as they provide services and solutions in the areas of defense, security, intelligence, infrastructure, and environmental. We promote a culture of excellence and close-knit teams that take pride in delivering, protecting, and sustaining our nation's most critical assets, from Earth to cyberspace. Throughout the company, our people are anticipating what’s next to deliver the solutions our customers need now.

Salary Range: $103,500.00 - $181,100.00

We value our employees and want our employees to take care of their overall wellbeing, which is why we offer best-in-class benefits such as medical, dental, vision, paid time off, Employee Stock Ownership Plan (ESOP), 401(k), life insurance, flexible work schedules, and holidays to fit your busy lifestyle!

Parsons is an equal opportunity employer, and all qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, national origin, disability, veteran status or any other protected status.

We truly invest and care about our employee’s wellbeing and provide endless growth opportunities as the sky is the limit, so aim for the stars! Imagine next and join the Parsons quest—APPLY TODAY!

Parsons is aware of fraudulent recruitment practices. To learn more about recruitment fraud and how to report it, please refer to https://www.parsons.com/fraudulent-recruitment/.

COMPETITIVE BENEFIT OFFERINGS

Financial Wellness

We care about your financial wellbeing. Parsons offers competitive pay and retirement plans to help you build wealth for the future while giving you the flexibility to diversify your investments.

Work Life Harmony

Balance in life is important and time away from the office is imperative to allow you to refresh and focus your attention on the things that matter to you. Parsons supports your time away by providing paid time off and paid flexible holidays.

Career Development

We are committed to fostering the personal and professional growth of our employees. Develop and advance yourself though our comprehensive training, educational and mentorship programs.

Veteran Support

We provide Industry leading benefits to support veterans and active-duty members to provide security for you and your family by offering robust leave and benefits; including paid active-duty military leave and paid time off when transitioning back to civilian life.

Mind & Body

At Parsons we inspire healthier habits, heathier minds, and a healthier you through our wellness program. Participate in our weekly Meditation Mondays and Wellness Wednesdays. Wellness, at Parsons, is more than just your annual checkup.

Health

Health is not a one size fits all. At Parsons, we offer a robust Employee Assistance Program as well as comprehensive medical, dental and vision plans through large, national carriers with the choice of regional PPO, HDHP, or HMO networks.

Want to learn more about the benefits eligible for the Parsons’ location you are interested in? Click below to find out more!
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