Backend Full Stack Engineer Jobs in Silver Spring, MD

Unissant, Inc. delivers innovative capabilities to the agencies that keep our nation healthy and safe. We apply our domain expertise, data acumen, and technology know-how to achieve breakthrough results for our clients. Working collaboratively, we advance missions and careers through a focus on honesty, integrity, and dependability. We continuously look for talent, excited to join that effort. To learn more about our exciting organization, please visit Unissant.

We are seeking a Full Stack Engineer to join our team and support our Department of War customer on research and development initiatives. In this role, you will design your own systems from the ground up, owning architecture, data models, application frameworks, and tooling decisions rather than inheriting someone else's build. You will operate in a true greenfield environment, shaping how disconnected processes and research data become integrated, automated, and usable across STEM and R&D missions.

The ideal candidate is a hands-on engineer who is energized by building first-of-a-kind solutions, comfortable making independent technical choices, and skilled at turning high-level client needs into practical, secure, and scalable systems. This role requires strong client-facing communication and the ability to explain technical approaches, tradeoffs, and system decisions clearly to both technical and non-technical audiences.

Essential Duties and Responsibilities

• Own end-to-end technical delivery across data engineering, application development, front-end interfaces, APIs, and back-end services that support analytics, reporting, operational workflows, and mission delivery.
• Design, build, maintain, and optimize data pipelines, workflows, and application components in greenfield environments where few or no legacy systems, schemas, or reusable technical assets exist.
• Perform discovery and requirements development for disconnected, manual, or undocumented processes that must be digitized, integrated, and automated.
• Lead enterprise system engineering activities including discovery, requirements definition, architecture, data modeling, system design, software development, integration, testing, and implementation.
• Build new systems that bring together academia, industry, research, data, and innovation ecosystems to enhance capabilities for Department of War agencies engaged in STEM and R&D missions.
• Integrate structured and unstructured data from disconnected sources, defining schemas, data models, metadata approaches, and governance practices where none currently exist.
• Translate vague or evolving client requests into buildable specifications, technical roadmaps, MVP definitions, and implementation plans in partnership with PMO and UX support functions.
• Design and develop data-driven applications and user-facing tools that present complex information in ways that are intuitive and meaningful for non-technical users.
• Select tools, frameworks, BI platforms, and architecture approaches independently, with clear reasoning tied to mission needs, maintainability, security, compliance, and speed to value.
• Prepare data for downstream reporting, dashboards, analytics, and decision support, including support for federal reporting formats and mission-driven outputs.
• Maintain strong documentation discipline across architecture decisions, system flows, schemas, technical assumptions, integrations, and operational procedures in a small-team environment.
• Apply secure engineering practices across data and application development efforts, with practical consideration for compliance expectations such as CMMC and NIST 800-171.
• Support DevSecOps and CI/CD practices for engineering deliverables, including version control, testing, deployment, and environment management.

Work Experience and Job Skills

• 5–8 years of experience spanning both data engineering and full stack software development, including front-end and back-end engineering.
• Demonstrated experience building greenfield or build-from-scratch systems, with stronger emphasis on new solution development than on maintaining existing systems.
• Strong experience with Python, SQL, and modern data integration and transformation techniques.
• Experience building ETL/ELT pipelines and working with relational and non-relational data stores.
• Experience developing modern web applications, APIs, and back-end services to support data-driven workflows and user-facing applications.
• Ability to move effectively between data engineering priorities and front-end/application development priorities based on mission needs.
• Experience performing technical discovery, requirements shaping, and solution architecture in environments with incomplete documentation or undefined processes.
• Strong ability to convert high-level stakeholder input into technical requirements, implementation plans, and deliverable solutions.
• Familiarity with cloud-based data and application environments and orchestration tools is preferred.
• Experience with research, patent, intellectual property, or technology-transfer data is strongly preferred.
• Understanding of data quality, governance, metadata, and secure handling of sensitive information.
• Practical exposure to CMMC, NIST 800-171, or related federal security/compliance frameworks is preferred.
• Familiarity with federal reporting formats, deliverables, and communication expectations is preferred.
• Ability to troubleshoot technical issues, improve system and data performance, and work effectively in an agile delivery environment with minimal oversight.
• Experience supporting analytics, machine learning data preparation, or operational reporting use cases is a plus.

Education

Bachelor's Degree is required. Preferred fields of study include Computer Science, Information Technology, Information Systems, Data Science, Engineering, Mathematics, or a related field. MBA/Master's Degree in a relevant field of study is preferred.

Certificates, Licenses and Registrations

Relevant Cloud, Data Engineering, or Software Engineering certification is preferred. Security+ or related certification is a plus based on program requirements.

Communication Skills

Excellent verbal and written communication skills, including the ability to lead client-facing technical solution discussions. Ability to communicate complex technical concepts, data issues, architectural decisions, and implementation approaches clearly to both technical and non-technical stakeholders. Ability to write clear, concise, and well-structured documentation and content in a highly confidential environment.

Clearance Requirements

Ability to obtain and maintain a Secret clearance is required; higher clearance may be required based on customer assignment.

Travel

Hybrid role based in Herndon, VA, with occasional local travel for customer meetings, workshops, and program reviews.

Environmental Requirements

• Mainly a routine office environment.
• May be required to lift up to ten (10) pounds.
• Flexible in working extended hours.

The above statements are intended to describe the general nature and level of work being performed by the individual(s) assigned to this position. They are not intended to be an exhaustive list of all duties, responsibilities, and skills required. Unissant management reserves the right to modify, add, or remove duties and to assign other duties as necessary. In addition, where applicable and available, reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform essential functions of this position.

Please note: Candidate(s) will be required to go through pre-employment screening.

Unissant, Inc. is a proud Equal Opportunity Employer! (EOE; M/F/Disability/Vets)