Heriot-Watt University

Role: Applications Developer

Grade and Salary: Grade 7, £36,924 - £46,485 per annum

FTE and working pattern: 1 FTE, 35hrs per week, Monday - Friday

Holiday Entitlement: 33 days annual leave plus 9 buildings closed days (and Christmas Eve when it falls on a weekday)

Purpose of Role

Reporting to the Software Development Manager or Applications Development Manager, the Applications Developer will work with colleagues within the Applications and Data Team, within the Global Information Services and across the University to help support and develop a range of software systems. Some of these are bespoke applications; others are off-the-shelf systems requiring extensive customisation/configuration. We also spend considerable time developing and maintaining system-to-system integrations using services in Microsoft Azure.

Working as part of a small team, you will have strong knowledge of C# and ASP.NET, and databases (Oracle and PL/SQL are a plus). Ideally you will also have good web front-end coding skills, and knowledge of the Angular framework would be particularly helpful. Training will be given as required, including a LinkedIn Learning subscription for on-the-job training. A helpful, friendly manner when working with end-users is essential. This is a fantastic opportunity to develop your software skills as part of a small, dynamic team.

Key Duties & Responsibilities

1. Carry out the following hands-on development tasks:
2. Understand requirements for new use cases.
3. Plan and estimate work required.
4. Plan technical work to allow new use cases to be implemented.
5. Write unit tests.
6. Implement new use cases.
7. Liaise with users to test implementation of use cases.
8. Deploy finished code to production environment.
9. Contribute to maintaining and running the University’s production software systems, including legacy systems.
10. Help to fix bugs, enhance existing code etc.
11. Keep up to date with and investigate relevant technologies and approaches that could enhance the University's software or working practices.
12. Enhance product quality through activities such as pairing, mentoring, coaching, code-review, and identifying development needs and opportunities.
13. Liaise with third-party developers where a decision has been made to out-source particular development tasks, to ensure code quality is maintained and technical guidelines followed.

Please note that this job description is not exhaustive, and the role holder may be required to undertake other relevant duties commensurate with the grading of the post. Activities may be subject to amendment over time as the role develops and/or priorities and requirements evolve. 

Essential & Desirable Criteria

Essential

1. A first degree in Computer Science (or related discipline) or equivalent practical experience in the workplace
2. Proven relevant experience of working as a software developer on complex software systems, preferably web-based which will have been acquired over a number of years, with a basic understanding of the relevant theory i.e. experience of domain-driven design, experience of writing unit tests, experience of Agile development, experience of the full development lifecycle, from requirements gathering through testing to deployment.
3. Good knowledge and understanding of relevant legal, statutory and governance frameworks, particularly GDPR and accessibility requirements, and turning them into good practice.
4. Excellent interpersonal, influencing and presentation skills, able to understand and communicate complex issues effectively
5. Demonstrable excellent customer service 
6. Experience of working closely with stakeholders across all levels of the organisation 
7. Ability to work effectively both independently and as part of a team, ability to understand wider business context, willingness and ability to help end users.
8. Excellent knowledge of C#, ASP.NET and database technologies.

Desirable

1. Experience of working in Higher Education 
2. Knowledge of Oracle databases and PL/SQL
3. Training in requirements gathering and Agile software development
4. Good knowledge of HTML, CSS and JavaScript. Good knowledge of ASP.NET MVC, NUnit, JQuery, Angular or other JavaScript frameworks.
5. Experience with RESTful systems.
6. Knowledge of messaging- based systems (e.g. using RabbitMQ or Azure Service Bus).
7. Knowledge of performance profiling and tuning.
8. Experience of customising/configuring complex off-the-shelf software systems.
9. Experience of reviewing others' code and making constructive suggestions for improvement.
10. Experience of mentoring other developers.

How to Apply

Applications can be submitted up to midnight (UK time) on Sunday 2nd March 2025.

Please submit your CV via the Heriot-Watt on-line recruitment.

We welcome and will consider flexible working patterns e.g., part-time working and job share options.

Heriot-Watt University is committed to securing equality of opportunity in employment and to the creation of an environment in which individuals are selected, trained, promoted, appraised, and otherwise treated on the sole basis of their relevant merits and abilities. Equality and diversity are all about maximising potential and creating a culture of inclusion for all.

Heriot-Watt University values diversity across our university community and welcomes applications from all sectors of society, particularly from underrepresented groups. For more information, please see our website https://www.hw.ac.uk/uk/services/equality-diversity.htm and also our award-winning work in Disability Inclusive Science Careers https://disc.hw.ac.uk/ .

Use our total rewards calculator: https://www.hw.ac.uk/about/work/total-rewards-calculator.htm to see the value of benefits provided by Heriot-Watt University.

About the Team

The Global Information Services directorate provides a range of services to support, promote and supply information, information skills and infrastructure to support a modern research-intensive university in a global setting. This straddles academic library provision alongside a range of technical services and systems such as IT and AV services, systems and support for learning & teaching, research & enterprise, and operational effectiveness.

It is an integrated global service, providing services to students, staff, applicants, alumni, and external users across all five campuses.

The Applications and Data team is part of Global Information Services, and this role will focus on the student digital experience, and the related staff systems. Right now, we are working on a major programme to redevelop these systems. This will improve the student’s online experience, and support a range of new offerings from the University including fully online programmes, short courses, and a wider range of on-campus offerings.

About Heriot-Watt University

At Heriot-Watt we are passionate about our values and look to them to connect our people globally and to help us collaborate and celebrate our success through working together. Our research programmes can deliver real world impact which is achieved through the diversity of our international community and the recognition of creative talent that connects our global team.

Our flourishing community will give you the freedom to challenge and to bring your enterprising mind and to help our partners with solutions that can be applied now and in the future. Join us and Heriot Watt will provide you with a platform to thrive and work in a way that also helps you live your life in balance with well-being and inclusiveness at the heart of our global community.