Senior Level Director of Research and Evaluation Jobs
Senior level director of research and evaluation jobs place experienced professionals in charge of setting research agendas, owning evaluation outcomes, and leading the teams and projects that drive organizational learning. Openings are concentrated across Electronics & Hardware, Biotechnology & Pharmaceuticals, and Education, with a mix of on-site, remote, and hybrid settings, and employers like Apple, MTSI, and Nuro hiring at this level now.
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Imagine what you could do here. At Apple, new ideas have a way of becoming great products, services, and customer experiences very quickly. Bring passion and dedication to your job and there's no telling what you could accomplish. The AIML Evaluation org works with teams across Apple to build platforms, create methodologies, and enable partners to measure, understand, and proactively improve their products. At the heart of this mission is the Instrumentation Platform team, which provides the frameworks, tools, and processes that enables engineers to build rich, structured information about features and intelligent experiences — with velocity, confidence, and privacy at the forefront. We are seeking a Senior or Staff-level Platform Engineer to help shape and scale this platform. You will leverage your expertise in software development on Apple platforms (iOS, macOS) and large-scale systems to drive technical strategy and deliver capabilities that empower engineers to instrument, measure, and improve intelligent features across Apple's products that reach hundreds of millions of users.
Description
In this role, you will own the design and delivery of mission-critical platform capabilities that sit at the intersection of system development, data engineering, and AI/ML. You will collaborate closely with feature teams to deeply understand their needs and translate them into elegant, reusable platform solutions built to scale. You thrive in environments with high ambiguity and rapidly shifting priorities. You bring clarity where others see complexity. You lead with technical credibility, communicate with precision across audiences of varying technical depth, and have a proven track record of building durable software systems that others depend on. You understand that privacy is not a constraint to work around, but a design principle to build toward. This is a high-impact role on a team where your work will directly influence the intelligence and quality of experiences across Apple's product ecosystem.
Minimum Qualifications
- 8+ years of experience in platform, systems, or framework software engineering, with a BS or MS degree in Computer Science or equivalent professional experience.
- Strong proficiency in Swift, Objective-C, or C++, with a deep understanding of OS internals, concurrency, and memory management, and proven ability to test, debug, and productize at scale.
- Demonstrated experience designing and shipping developer-facing APIs and software frameworks, with a strong command of software architecture principles including modularity, fault tolerance, and scalability.
- Proven ability to operate effectively under ambiguity, drive clarity, and make well-reasoned technical decisions.
- Excellent written and verbal communication skills, with the ability to adapt technical messaging for varied audiences.
Preferred Qualifications
- Experience designing and developing systems that are efficient in resource constrained environments.
- Experience with telemetry, analytics, or observability systems.
- Familiarity with structured and privacy-preserving data collection techniques, including on-device processing patterns.
- Familiarity with ML systems and techniques, including how instrumentation and feature logging inform model development and evaluation.
- Prior experience as a tech lead, with demonstrated influence over cross-team technical direction.
At Apple, base pay is one part of our total compensation package and is determined within a range. This provides the opportunity to progress as you grow and develop within a role. The base pay range for this role is between $184,700 and $324,800, and your base pay will depend on your skills, qualifications, experience, and location.
Apple employees also have the opportunity to become an Apple shareholder through participation in Apple’s discretionary employee stock programs. Apple employees are eligible for discretionary restricted stock unit awards, and can purchase Apple stock at a discount if voluntarily participating in Apple’s Employee Stock Purchase Plan. You’ll also receive benefits including: Comprehensive medical and dental coverage, retirement benefits, a range of discounted products and free services, and for formal education related to advancing your career at Apple, reimbursement for certain educational expenses — including tuition. Additionally, this role might be eligible for discretionary bonuses or commission payments as well as relocation. Learn more about Apple Benefits
Note: Apple benefit, compensation and employee stock programs are subject to eligibility requirements and other terms of the applicable plan or program.
Apple is an equal opportunity employer that is committed to inclusion and diversity. We seek to promote equal opportunity for all applicants without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability, Veteran status, or other legally protected characteristics. Learn more about your EEO rights as an applicant
At Apple, we believe accessibility is a fundamental human right. You’ll find that idea reflected in everything here — in our culture, our benefits and our digital tools. By welcoming as many perspectives as possible, we help you build a career where you feel like you belong.
Learn about accessibility in Apple’s workplace
Learn about reasonable accommodations for job applicants
Apple accepts applications to this posting on an ongoing basis.
Imagine what you could do here. At Apple, new ideas have a way of becoming great products, services, and customer experiences very quickly. Bring passion and dedication to your job and there's no telling what you could accomplish. The AIML Evaluation org works with teams across Apple to build platforms, create methodologies, and enable partners to measure, understand, and proactively improve their products. At the heart of this mission is the Instrumentation Platform team, which provides the frameworks, tools, and processes that enables engineers to build rich, structured information about features and intelligent experiences — with velocity, confidence, and privacy at the forefront. We are seeking a Senior or Staff-level Platform Engineer to help shape and scale this platform. You will leverage your expertise in software development on Apple platforms (iOS, macOS) and large-scale systems to drive technical strategy and deliver capabilities that empower engineers to instrument, measure, and improve intelligent features across Apple's products that reach hundreds of millions of users.
Description
In this role, you will own the design and delivery of mission-critical platform capabilities that sit at the intersection of system development, data engineering, and AI/ML. You will collaborate closely with feature teams to deeply understand their needs and translate them into elegant, reusable platform solutions built to scale. You thrive in environments with high ambiguity and rapidly shifting priorities. You bring clarity where others see complexity. You lead with technical credibility, communicate with precision across audiences of varying technical depth, and have a proven track record of building durable software systems that others depend on. You understand that privacy is not a constraint to work around, but a design principle to build toward. This is a high-impact role on a team where your work will directly influence the intelligence and quality of experiences across Apple's product ecosystem.
Minimum Qualifications
- 8+ years of experience in platform, systems, or framework software engineering, with a BS or MS degree in Computer Science or equivalent professional experience.
- Strong proficiency in Swift, Objective-C, or C++, with a deep understanding of OS internals, concurrency, and memory management, and proven ability to test, debug, and productize at scale.
- Demonstrated experience designing and shipping developer-facing APIs and software frameworks, with a strong command of software architecture principles including modularity, fault tolerance, and scalability.
- Proven ability to operate effectively under ambiguity, drive clarity, and make well-reasoned technical decisions.
- Excellent written and verbal communication skills, with the ability to adapt technical messaging for varied audiences.
Preferred Qualifications
- Experience designing and developing systems that are efficient in resource constrained environments.
- Experience with telemetry, analytics, or observability systems.
- Familiarity with structured and privacy-preserving data collection techniques, including on-device processing patterns.
- Familiarity with ML systems and techniques, including how instrumentation and feature logging inform model development and evaluation.
- Prior experience as a tech lead, with demonstrated influence over cross-team technical direction.
At Apple, base pay is one part of our total compensation package and is determined within a range. This provides the opportunity to progress as you grow and develop within a role. The base pay range for this role is between $184,700 and $324,800, and your base pay will depend on your skills, qualifications, experience, and location.
Apple employees also have the opportunity to become an Apple shareholder through participation in Apple’s discretionary employee stock programs. Apple employees are eligible for discretionary restricted stock unit awards, and can purchase Apple stock at a discount if voluntarily participating in Apple’s Employee Stock Purchase Plan. You’ll also receive benefits including: Comprehensive medical and dental coverage, retirement benefits, a range of discounted products and free services, and for formal education related to advancing your career at Apple, reimbursement for certain educational expenses — including tuition. Additionally, this role might be eligible for discretionary bonuses or commission payments as well as relocation. Learn more about Apple Benefits
Note: Apple benefit, compensation and employee stock programs are subject to eligibility requirements and other terms of the applicable plan or program.
Apple is an equal opportunity employer that is committed to inclusion and diversity. We seek to promote equal opportunity for all applicants without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability, Veteran status, or other legally protected characteristics. Learn more about your EEO rights as an applicant
At Apple, we believe accessibility is a fundamental human right. You’ll find that idea reflected in everything here — in our culture, our benefits and our digital tools. By welcoming as many perspectives as possible, we help you build a career where you feel like you belong.
Learn about accessibility in Apple’s workplace
Learn about reasonable accommodations for job applicants
Apple accepts applications to this posting on an ongoing basis.
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- Electronics & Hardware
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- Education
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Senior Level Director of Research and Evaluation Jobs: Frequently Asked Questions
How do I get a senior level director of research and evaluation job?
Employers at this level look for candidates who have led multi-year research programs or evaluation cycles from design through dissemination, not just contributed to them. A strong portfolio of published findings, program impact reports, or policy briefs carries significant weight. Demonstrated ability to manage cross-functional teams, secure or manage grants, and translate complex data into executive-level recommendations gives candidates a clear edge over those with narrower technical backgrounds.
Which companies hire senior level director of research and evaluations?
Companies hiring senior level director of research and evaluations right now include Apple, MTSI, and Nuro, based on current listings on Migrate Mate as of November 2026. At this level, hiring tends to come from large nonprofits, government contractors, research institutions, healthcare systems, and foundations with dedicated evaluation or learning functions.
Are there remote senior level director of research and evaluation jobs?
Yes, though availability varies by organization type and sector. About 17% of senior level director of research and evaluation openings are remote or hybrid as of November 2026, reflecting broader flexibility in research-focused roles that center on analysis, stakeholder communication, and reporting rather than on-site program delivery.
What makes a director of research and evaluation role senior level?
Senior level roles are defined by scope, autonomy, and leadership responsibility. At this stage, the expectation is not just executing research or evaluation plans but setting them, allocating resources, and owning results across the organization. Senior directors typically oversee staff or consultants, advise executive leadership, and are accountable for the quality and strategic relevance of all research and evaluation output, not individual projects.
Which industries hire the most senior level director of research and evaluations?
Senior level director of research and evaluation roles concentrate in Electronics & Hardware, Biotechnology & Pharmaceuticals, and Education, based on current listings on Migrate Mate as of November 2026. These sectors drive hiring because they depend on rigorous, ongoing evaluation to demonstrate program effectiveness, meet funder requirements, or inform evidence-based decisions at scale.