The University of Chicago

Department

PSD Data Science: Systems Administration

About the Department

The Data Science Institute (DSI) executes the University of Chicago’s bold, innovative vision of Data Science as a new discipline. The DSI seeds research on the interdisciplinary frontiers of this emerging field, forms partnerships with industry, government, and social impact organizations, and supports holistic data science and AI education. The staff in the Data Science Institute support the University’s students and scholars, their shared ideals, and the core values that make the University a singular intellectual destination.

Job Summary

The Data Science Institute (DSI) Tech staff is responsible for the design, operation, and security of all computing infrastructure within the Data Science Institute, including research computing systems, workstations, servers, storage, networking, and audiovisual environments. The Systems Administrator 3 is a mid-level systems professional who operates with minimal supervision and serves as a core technical contributor to the Institute’s IT operations.

This role is responsible for independently administering, maintaining, and improving DSI’s full IT environment, with a strong focus on high-performance computing (HPC) infrastructure. The Systems Administrator 3 collaborates closely with senior technical staff, faculty, researchers, and external partners, and is expected to take ownership of complex systems, lead projects, and contribute to architectural decisions.

The Systems Administrator 3 plays a key role in ensuring system reliability, performance, security, and scalability across the Institute’s computing resources.

Responsibilities

• Independently administer and maintain Linux-based servers, storage systems, and workstations supporting research, teaching, and administrative workloads.
• Serve as a maintainer of the DSI HPC cluster, including compute nodes, scheduling infrastructure, storage, and supporting services.
• Design, implement, and maintain configuration management and automation using tools such as Ansible and/or Puppet.
• Plan and execute system upgrades, migrations, and large-scale infrastructure projects with minimal guidance.
• Administer and troubleshoot storage systems (such as ZFS) and parallel or networked filesystems such as pNFS and Lustre.
• Monitor system health, performance, and capacity; analyze logs and metrics to proactively identify and remediate issues.
• Manage core infrastructure services including DNS, DHCP, TCP/IP networking, authentication, and access control.
• Support and troubleshoot networking infrastructure, including switches and related hardware.
• Administer Linux operating systems across multiple distributions, including Ubuntu and Red Hat–based systems.
• Support endpoint management solutions such as SimpleMDM and manage macOS, windows and Linux workstation environments.
• Provide technical leadership and mentoring to junior staff and assist with operational best practices.
• Support and maintain audiovisual systems, including Zoom Rooms, displays, digital signage, and assembly or conference room technology.
• Collaborate with faculty, researchers, students, and staff to gather requirements and deliver technical solutions that support research workflows.
• Participate in incident response, disaster recovery planning, backups, and security remediation activities.
• Maintain documentation for systems, procedures, and infrastructure.
• Successfully collaborate and communicate with other system administrative team members and non-technical staff
• Utilize virtualization and containerization technologies such as Docker, Nomad or Podman.
• Configures, installs, upgrades, and maintains server applications and hardware. Works to safeguard the integrity of computer software. Implements operating system enhancements to improve the reliability and performance of the system.
• Administers operating systems, maintains security, and implements backup procedures for the organization's information systems and peripheral equipment, such as servers, desktops, printers, and storage devices.
• Perform other related duties as needed.

Minimum Qualifications

Education:

Minimum requirements include a college or university degree in related field.

Work Experience:

Minimum requirements include knowledge and skills developed through 5-7 years of work experience in a related job discipline.

Certifications:

Preferred Qualifications

Education:

• Bachelor's degree in computer science or a related field.

Experience:

• Significant hands-on experience administering Linux systems in production environments.
• Deep knowledge of command line tools and systems.
• Experience operating or supporting HPC or related systems, including computer clusters, schedulers, and research workflows.
• Strong experience with configuration management (Ansible, Puppet, or similar tools).
• Proficiency in Python and Bash scripting for automation and systems tooling.
• Experience with distributed and high-performance storage systems, including ZFS, pNFS, and Lustre.
• Familiarity with containerization tools such as Nomad, Docker and Kubernetes.
• Experience managing multi-platform environments including Linux and macOS.
• Working knowledge of enterprise networking concepts, including routing, switching, and troubleshooting.
• Experience supporting A/V systems and institutional collaboration technologies.

Preferred Competencies

• Ability to operate independently and take ownership of complex technical systems.
• Strong troubleshooting and investigative skills in large, heterogeneous environments.
• Ability to plan, execute, and deliver large technical projects.
• Strong communication and organizational skills and an ability to work with both technical and non-technical staff.
• Strong attention to detail and commitment to operational excellence.
• Integrity and discretion when working with sensitive systems and data.
• Ability to mentor others and contribute positively to a collaborative team environment.
• Capacity to balance research-driven flexibility with institutional reliability and security requirements.

Working Conditions

• This position is eligible for a partially remote work schedule.

Application Documents

• Resume (required)
• Cover Letter (preferred)
• References (preferred)

When applying, the document(s) MUST be uploaded via the My Experience page, in the section titled Application Documents of the application.

Job Family

Information Technology

Role Impact

Individual Contributor

Scheduled Weekly Hours

37.5

Drug Test Required

No

Health Screen Required

No

Motor Vehicle Record Inquiry Required

No

Pay Rate Type

Salary

FLSA Status

Exempt

Pay Range

$100,000.00 - $115,000.00

The included pay rate or range represents the University’s good faith estimate of the possible compensation offer for this role at the time of posting.

Benefits Eligible

Yes

The University of Chicago offers a wide range of benefits programs and resources for eligible employees, including health, retirement, and paid time off. Information about the benefit offerings can be found in the Benefits Guidebook.

Posting Statement

The University of Chicago is an equal opportunity employer and does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender, gender identity, or expression, national or ethnic origin, shared ancestry, age, status as an individual with a disability, military or veteran status, genetic information, or other protected classes under the law. For additional information please see the University's Notice of Nondiscrimination.

Job seekers in need of a reasonable accommodation to complete the application process should call 773-702-5800 or submit a request via Applicant Inquiry Form.

All offers of employment are contingent upon a background check that includes a review of conviction history. A conviction does not automatically preclude University employment. Rather, the University considers conviction information on a case-by-case basis and assesses the nature of the offense, the circumstances surrounding it, the proximity in time of the conviction, and its relevance to the position.

The University of Chicago's Annual Security & Fire Safety Report (Report) provides information about University offices and programs that provide safety support, crime and fire statistics, emergency response and communications plans, and other policies and information. The Report can be accessed online at: http://securityreport.uchicago.edu. Paper copies of the Report are available, upon request, from the University of Chicago Police Department, 850 E. 61st Street, Chicago, IL 60637.

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