Entry Level Cloud Engineer Jobs in Washington (NOW HIRING)

540 is seeking an Associate Solutions Architect to support a mission-critical federal health data modernization initiative. The team is building a modern data platform that integrates information from diverse defense and federal systems through scalable pipelines, APIs, and reusable data products.

You'll work alongside architects, engineers, technical leads, and customer stakeholders to support solutions across Databricks, AWS, Microsoft Azure, Oracle Cloud, and on-premises environments. This is an entry-level opportunity for a recent graduate or early-career professional who wants to develop technical breadth, learn modern architecture practices, and contribute to an important federal health mission.

Location: Remote within the continental United States. Periodic travel may be required
Citizenship & Clearance Requirement: per client requirements, candidates must be U.S. Citizens with an active DoW Secret (or higher) clearance
Education Requirement: Bachelor's Degree in Computer Science, Engineering, or a related technical field
540 Internal Thrive Level: Associate Solutions Architect

WHY 540?

540 is a forward-thinking company that the government turns to in order to #getshitdone. We don't just talk about innovation – we deliver it. We break down barriers, build impactful technology, and solve mission-critical problems.

HOW YOU'LL DRIVE IMPACT

• Support the design of data and technology solutions spanning cloud, on-premises, and government-hosted environments
• Work with architects and engineers to understand mission needs and translate them into clear technical requirements and designs
• Assist with documenting current systems, data flows, integrations, constraints, and modernization opportunities
• Create and maintain architecture diagrams, interface documentation, decision records, and other technical materials
• Research technologies and technical approaches and summarize findings, benefits, risks, and tradeoffs
• Learn and apply established reference architectures, integration patterns, technical standards, and engineering practices
• Participate in technical discovery sessions, design discussions, demonstrations, and customer meetings
• Collaborate with Data Engineers and Technical Leads to resolve questions and keep implementation work aligned with solution designs
• Communicate progress, questions, technical concepts, and recommendations clearly to technical and nontechnical audiences
• Represent 540 as a thoughtful, dependable, and curious technical partner while building trusted relationships across the customer ecosystem

REQUIRED SKILLS & EXPERIENCE

• Bachelor's Degree in Computer Science, Engineering, Information Systems, Data Science, or a related technical field
• 0-3 years of relevant professional experience
• Foundational understanding of software, data, cloud, systems, or application architecture concepts gained through coursework, internships, research, personal projects, or professional experience
• Strong written and verbal communication skills, including the ability to explain technical ideas clearly and ask thoughtful questions
• Demonstrated ability and willingness to learn new technologies, tools, domains, and technical concepts
• Strong analytical and problem-solving skills with careful attention to detail
• Ability to organize technical information and produce clear, accurate documentation
• Ability to collaborate effectively, receive feedback, and contribute within a multidisciplinary team
• Initiative to investigate unfamiliar problems, seek guidance when needed, and follow work through to completion
• Ability to operate professionally in a customer-facing environment and navigate evolving requirements and priorities

NICE TO HAVE SKILLS & EXPERIENCE

• Internship, academic, research, military, or project experience involving software development, data engineering, systems engineering, cloud computing, or technical architecture
• Familiarity with Python, SQL, Java, or another programming language
• Exposure to AWS, Microsoft Azure, Oracle Cloud, or another cloud platform
• Familiarity with APIs, databases, data pipelines, data modeling, or distributed systems
• Exposure to Databricks, Apache Spark, Tableau, or similar data and analytics platforms
• Experience using Git or other version-control and collaborative development tools
• Interest in Defense Health, federal technology modernization, or secure and regulated data environments
• Exposure to AI/ML concepts or LLM-based tools

BENEFITS & PERKS

• Flexible PTO + all Federal holidays off
• Health, dental and vision insurance plans
• Flexible Spending Account (FSA)
• 401k with employer match
• Company-sponsored life insurance, short- and long-term disability
• Professional development (training, certifications, conferences)
• Paid cloud developer accounts
• Referral bonuses
• HQ office perks (parking / metro reimbursement, nitro coffee & lunches)
• Annual social events (540 Week, hackathon, charity golf tournament, etc.)
• Access to 540's Washington Capitals & Nationals tickets

EQUAL EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITY (EEO)

540's policy is to provide equal employment opportunity to all employees and applicants for employment and prohibits discrimination and harassment of any type without regard to race, color, religion, age, sex, national origin, disability status, genetics, protected veteran status, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, or any other characteristic protected by federal, state or local laws.

This policy applies to all terms and conditions of employment, including recruiting, hiring, placement, promotion, termination, layoff, recall, transfer, leaves of absence, compensation and training.