Junior Network Engineer Jobs in Santa Rosa, CA (NOW HIRING)

Join NERSC at Berkeley Lab and help engineer the high-performance network platform powering some of the nation's most advanced scientific computing. As a Network Engineer, Platform, Automation & HPC/AI, you'll work at the intersection of network engineering, automation, and software development while helping advance AI-driven network operations. Our team manages 1 Tb/s of border connectivity to ESnet and an 800G/400G data center network backbone supporting the NERSC-9 and NERSC-10 supercomputers, multi-tier storage, archive, and edge services. Your work will help improve the performance, scalability, automation, and reliability of scientific workflows serving more than 10,000 users.

Our mission is to bring science solutions to the world. We welcome candidates from all backgrounds, including those with non-traditional paths. We value a growth mindset and believe skills and experience are transferable. If you're eager to learn and meet the qualifications below, we encourage you to apply. Join our team where your work can have a high impact for an organization associated with 17 Nobel Prizes... and counting.

This position may be filled at Level 3 or Level 4. Level 3 is intended for experienced engineers who independently solve complex networking and automation challenges. Level 4 is intended for senior technical leaders who architect solutions, lead modernization efforts, and establish new technical approaches for complex HPC and data center environments.

Network Engineer Level 3 will:

• Implement, operate, maintain, and improve network automation and observability solutions.
• Contribute to Data Center modernization efforts and NERSC's Smart Facility initiative.
• Support efforts to design and deliver network services to address emerging needs (e.g., American Science Cloud, new Edge services).
• Continuously monitor and optimize network performance, focusing on reducing latency, maximizing throughput, and improving fault tolerance.
• Create and maintain comprehensive network documentation, including physical and logical topology diagrams.
• Collaborate with the Security Group to implement security measures for data integrity and privacy, ensuring high availability and reliability through redundancy and failover mechanisms.
• Share on-call rotation with colleagues and serve as an escalation contact for service incidents.
• Work on and resolve complex issues where analysis of situations or data requires an in-depth evaluation of multiple variables.
• Exercise judgment in selecting methods, techniques and evaluation criteria for obtaining results.
• Build effective working relationships with technical partners and stakeholders across disciplines.
   

In addition to the above, the Senior Network Engineer Level 4 will: 

• Architect, develop, and establish technical direction for network automation, observability, and self-healing capabilities.
• Lead Data Center modernization efforts in support of NERSC's Smart Facility initiative and emerging needs e.g., American Science Cloud
  Design, develop, and maintain automation frameworks, infrastructure-as-code, and software solutions to manage, optimize, and self-heal the HPC and data center network.
• Build and integrate AI/ML-driven observability, predictive analytics, and automated remediation capabilities into network operations.
• Independently develop technical approaches to complex and novel networking problems.
• Exercise significant technical judgment when evaluating architecture, tools, and implementation approaches.
• Establish methods and technical practices for new or ambiguous assignments.
   

Network Engineer Level 3 will have:

• Typically requires a minimum of 8 years of related experience with a Bachelor's degree; or 6 years and a Master's degree; or equivalent experience.
• 5+ years of IP networking experience in Data Center or LAN environments.
• 2+ years of experience with network automation and/or network performance optimization.
• Project management experience in developing technical project scope, schedule and budget.
• Strong written, verbal, listening, and presentation skills; effective collaboration skills with technical peers, vendors, and customers.
• Ability to resolve complex issues in creative and effective ways.
• Ability to network and collaborate with key contacts outside their own area of expertise.
• Demonstrated ability to work effectively as part of a cross-disciplinary team.
   

Senior Network Engineer Level 4 will have: 

• Typically requires a minimum of 12 years of related experience with a Bachelor's degree; or 8 years and a Master's degree; or equivalent experience.
• 10+ years of IP networking experience in Data Center or LAN environments.
• 4+ years of experience with network automation and/or network performance optimization.
• Demonstrated project management expertise, specifically, in leading the development of technical project scope, schedule and budget.
• Excellent written, verbal, listening, and presentation skills; excellent communication and collaboration skills with technical peers, vendors, and customers.
   

Desired skills/knowledge:

• Expert-level capabilities in configuring, troubleshooting, and using IPv4/IPv6 routing protocols, preferably BGP, VXLAN, L3VPN, OSPF, and/or ISIS in a WAN or LAN environment.
• Strong software development skills in Python or Go and experience with network automation tools (Ansible, Terraform, eAPI, etc.).
• Demonstrated experience with AI-driven networking, intent-based networking, or ML-based network optimization.
• Demonstrated experience in leading network technology migrations or upgrades in high-performance computing environments.
• Demonstrated experience in automating the network's daily operational, deployment and monitoring tasks.
• Demonstrated experience with RDMA (Remote Direct Memory Access), InfiniBand, HPC Protocol, RoCE (RDMA over Converged Ethernet).
• Demonstrated experience working with Network Management platforms like Arista CloudVision, NVIDIA UFM, Dell SFM.
• Demonstrated experience in designing and implementing network security architectures, including segmentation (e.g., VRFs, micro-segmentation), access control (ACLs), encryption (IPsec/MACsec), and threat detection/mitigation in large-scale enterprise or HPC environments.
• Demonstrated experience in hybrid cloud networking, including connectivity models (VPN, Direct Connect/ExpressRoute), multi-cloud architectures, and integrating on-prem HPC or data center networks with public cloud environments.
   

Why join Berkeley Lab?

We invest in our employees by offering a total rewards package you can count on:

• Exceptional health and retirement benefits, including pension or 401K-style plans

• Opportunities to grow in your career - check out our Tuition Assistance Program 

• A culture where you'll belong - we are invested in our teams! 

• In addition to accruing vacation and sick time, we also have a Winter Holiday Shutdown every year.

• Parental bonding leave (for both mothers and fathers)

• Pet insurance

Additional information:

• Application date: Priority consideration will be given to candidates who apply by September 15, 2026. Applications will be accepted until the job posting is removed.

• Appointment type: This is a full-time, career appointment, exempt (monthly paid) from overtime pay.

• Salary range: 

  • Level 3: The expected salary for this position is $156,864 - $191,724, which fits into the full salary of $139,440 - $235,308 depending upon the candidate's skills, knowledge, and abilities. This includes education, certifications, and years of experience.

  • Level 4: The expected salary for this position is $178,644 - $218,364, which fits into the full salary of $158,808 - $267,996 depending upon the candidate's skills, knowledge, and abilities. This includes education, certifications, and years of experience.

• Background check: This position is subject to a background check. Any convictions will be evaluated to determine if they directly relate to the responsibilities and requirements of the position. Having a conviction history will not automatically disqualify an applicant from being considered for employment.

• Work modality: This position requires substantial on-site presence, but is eligible for a flexible work mode, and hybrid schedules may be considered. Hybrid work is a combination of performing work on-site at Lawrence Berkeley National Lab, 1 Cyclotron Road, Berkeley, CA and some telework. Individuals working a hybrid schedule must reside within 150 miles of Berkeley Lab. Work schedules are dependent on business needs. In rare cases, full-time telework or remote work modes may be considered.

• Multi-level Posting: This position will be hired at a level commensurate with the business needs and the skills, knowledge, and abilities of the successful candidate.

Want to learn more about working at Berkeley Lab? Please visit: careers.lbl.gov

Equal Employment Opportunity Employer: The foundation of Berkeley Lab is our Stewardship Values: Team Science, Service, Trust, Innovation, and Respect; and we strive to build community with these shared values and commitments. Berkeley Lab is an Equal Opportunity Employer. We heartily welcome applications from all who could contribute to the Lab's mission of leading scientific discovery, excellence, and professionalism. In support of our rich global community, all qualified applicants will be considered for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability, age, protected veteran status, or other protected categories under State and Federal law.

Misconduct Disclosure Requirement: As a condition of employment, the finalist will be required to disclose if they are subject to any final administrative or judicial decisions within the last seven years determining that they committed any misconduct, are currently being investigated for misconduct, left a position during an investigation for alleged misconduct, or have filed an appeal with a previous employer.