Senior Search Engineer (Enterprise Search)

Description
Are you passionate about building high-quality search experiences that help users quickly find the information they need?

Do you enjoy working hands‑on with search technologies while also shaping architecture and guiding technical direction?

If so, we're looking for someone like you to join our team at APL.

We are seeking a

Senior Search Engineer

to help lead the design and evolution of our enterprise search capabilities. In this role, you will operate as a hands‑on technical expert‑designing, building, and improving search solutions across SharePoint, legacy systems, and modern platforms—while helping guide architecture, standards, and best practices.

As a Senior Search Engineer, you will...

Design, implement, and enhance enterprise search solutions across multiple platforms

Lead the technical design of search architecture, balancing long‑term direction with practical implementation

Configure, administer, and tune enterprise search platforms, including SharePoint search

Improve search relevance, ranking, and overall user experience through iterative tuning and analysis

Define and implement metadata models, taxonomies, and managed properties

Qualifications
You meet our minimum qualifications for the job if you...

Possess a Bachelor's degree in Computer Science, Information Systems, or related field (or equivalent experience)

Have 6+ years of experience in software engineering or application development

Have strong experience working across the full software development lifecycle

Have hands‑on experience with enterprise search platforms (e.g., SharePoint search or similar)

Demonstrate strong understanding of search fundamentals (indexing, ranking, relevance, metadata)

Have experience with web technologies (e.g., JavaScript, REST APIs, .NET or similar frameworks)

Have experience supporting and troubleshooting production systems

Are comfortable working both independently and collaboratively with engineering teams

Demonstrate strong problem‑solving and communication skills

Are able to obtain Secret level security clearance. If selected, you will be subject to a government security clearance investigation and must meet the requirements for access to classified information. Eligibility requirements include U.S. citizenship.

You’ll go above and beyond our minimum requirements if you...

Have experience with Microsoft Search, or hybrid search architectures

Have exposure to modern search platforms (e.g., Elasticsearch, Solr, or similar)

Have experience improving search relevance and tuning ranking models in production systems

Have worked with metadata strategy, taxonomy design, and information architecture

Have experience modernizing or stabilizing legacy platforms

Have worked in environments with strong governance, security, or compliance requirements

Have exposure to emerging search approaches (e.g., semantic or vector‑based search)

Minimum Rate
$105,000 Annually

Maximum Rate
$290,000 Annually

Equal Employment Opportunity
All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, creed, color, religion, sex, gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, national origin, age, physical or mental disability, genetic information, veteran status, occupation, marital or familial status, political opinion, personal appearance, or any other characteristic protected by applicable law. APL is committed to providing reasonable accommodation to individuals of all abilities, including those with disabilities. If you require a reasonable accommodation to participate in any part of the hiring process, please contact Accessibility@jhuapl.edu.

#J-18808-Ljbffr