Sr. System Administrator

Remote from: USA
Annual salary: Undisclosed
Salary information is not provided for this position. Check our Salary Directory to estimate the average compensation for similar roles.
Department: DevOps & Infrastructure
Employment type: Full Time,
Job posted: 10 Jun 2026
Apply before: 10 Jul 2026
Experience level: Senior
Views / Applies: 18 / 3

About ECS

Partnering with leading organizations to deliver powerful solutions for a complex world.

Actively Hiring

AI Summary

ECS is seeking a Sr. System Administrator to support scientific computing for NIH NIAID NEAT. This remote role involves maintaining infrastructure, managing accounts, and ensuring compliance in a high-performance computing environment. The ideal candidate has a bachelor's degree, a security clearance, and over six years of IT experience. They will supervise system configuration, optimize resources, and assist users. Experience with HPC, scientific instrumentation, and government IT environments is required.

Role DNA

Job Complexity

Easy Hard

Pace & Pressure

Relaxed Fast-paced

Autonomy Level

Guided Full Ownership

Communication Load

Independent Highly Collaborative

AI Insight The role requires advanced technical skills, security clearance, and experience with specialized scientific computing environments, making it challenging.

Salary Analysis

AI Insight The salary for this role is not specified, but based on market data for senior system administrators in the DC metro area, the median is around $110,000. Given the specialized scientific computing requirements, a competitive offer would fall between $100,000 and $120,000.

Key Skills

System Administration High Performance Computing Security Clearance FISMA ITIL Scientific Instrumentation Access Control Software Deployment Compliance Infrastructure Sustainment

Cover Letter Sample

Dear Hiring Manager,

I am writing to express my interest in the Sr. System Administrator position with ECS to support the NIH NIAID NEAT program. With over six years of experience in IT infrastructure and scientific computing, I bring a strong background in HPC, system security, and compliance in government environments.

In my previous role, I managed account provisioning, access control, and software deployment for a large-scale scientific research organization. I have practical experience with FISMA and ITIL processes, ensuring robust system authorization and operational continuity.

I am confident that my technical skills and commitment to excellence will make me a valuable asset to your team. I look forward to the opportunity to discuss my qualifications further.

Sincerely,
[Your Name]

Possible Interview Questions

Describe your experience with HPC environments and how you ensure optimal performance.

I have worked with HPC clusters for research, managing job scheduling, resource allocation, and monitoring system loads. I use tools like SLURM and PBS, and optimized performance by adjusting queue policies and collaborating with researchers to understand their computational needs.

How do you handle FISMA compliance and system authorization processes?

I follow NIST guidelines, implement security controls, and document system changes. I have prepared authorization packages, conducted risk assessments, and coordinated with ISSOs to achieve ATOs.

Can you explain your approach to account provisioning and access control?

I use Active Directory and LDAP for centralized management, implement role-based access, and automate provisioning with scripts. I conduct regular access reviews and ensure least-privilege principles.

Describe a time you supervised a team in infrastructure sustainment.

I led a team of 3 system administrators in maintaining a scientific computing environment. We established schedules for patching, backups, and monitoring. I mentored junior staff and ensured incident response procedures were followed.

How do you stay updated with best practices in ITIL and Agile methodologies?

I attend workshops and webinars, and I am ITIL certified. I apply Agile practices for project tasks and use ITIL for incident and change management, ensuring process improvement and efficiency.

ECS is seeking an experienced Sr. System Administrator to work remotely providing scientific computing support for the work performed under this contract for NIH NIAID Enabling and Advancing Technologies (NEAT). This engagement supports the Scientific Computing Services program area which includes Program Management, Scientific Instrumentation Support, and High Performance Computing.

Please Note: This position is contingent upon [contract win].

The NIAID NEAT Sr. System Administrator will support day-to-day infrastructure sustainment activities across the scientific computing environment.

Key Responsibilities:

Support account provisioning, access control management, operational maintenance, software deployment, endpoint coordination, compliance documentation, and backup validation across the Scientific Computing environment.
Supervise and manage the daily activities of configuration and operation of systems which may be mainframe, mini, or client/server based.
Plan and monitor the optimizing of system operation and resource utilization, and perform systems capacity analysis and planning.
Plan and monitor assistance to users in accessing and using business systems.

Qualifications

Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science, Information Security or related field.
Active Public Trust or higher security clearance.
Minimum 6 years experience supporting IT infrastructure, systems, and applications, including HPC environments, support teams, and ensuring quality of service operations.
Experience with scientific instrumentation and HPC and knowledge of working in a scientific research organization, with an emphasis on biomedical research.
Experience supporting commercial scientific instrumentation, and the integration of this instrumentation in a federal government IT environment.
Experience supporting infrastructure sustainment activities, software deployment, and activities of configuration and operation of systems.
Have documented experience with FISMA and system authorization processes.
Practical experience with industry best practices as articulated by, but not limited to, the Project Management Institute (PMI), Lean IT, Agile practices, DevOps and ITIL, as appropriate.
Reside within the Washington DC Metro area
Travel within the Washington DC Metro Area, and CONUS as needed.

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