Distributed Systems Engineer Jobs
Distributed Systems Engineer jobs are open across cloud infrastructure, fintech, healthtech, and enterprise software, from new-grad to principal and staff engineer, with specializations in consensus protocols, fault-tolerant architectures, and large-scale data pipelines. Find a role that fits from the openings below and apply directly.
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Job Posting Title:
Distributed Systems Architect / Systems Engineering Lead (ES)-
Hiring Department:
Applied Research Laboratories-
Position Open To:
All Applicants-
Weekly Scheduled Hours:
40-
FLSA Status:
Exempt from FLSA-
Earliest Start Date:
Immediately-
Position Duration:
Expected to Continue-
Location:
PICKLE RESEARCH CAMPUS-
Job Details:
Purpose
The Space and Geophysics Laboratory (SGL) delivers capabilities to government customers for various applications, from real-time data-intensive network operations spanning geographically distributed sites to standalone remote field systems.
We are seeking a distributed systems architect to lead the design of mission-critical systems that span multiple nodes, sites, and networks. They will serve as a technical leader within the laboratory in the areas of distributed systems architecture, fault tolerance, scalability, and design.
As a key member of a team of engineers, you will be responsible for eliciting systems scope from stakeholders, guiding the development of requirements, translating requirements into systems designs, guiding the decomposition of those systems into components of actionable units of work, and advising all stakeholders throughout the life-cycle, from systems definition to implementation.
Responsibilities
Elicit system scope and requirements from stakeholders for use in systems designs
Lead the development and evaluation of the distributed systems architecture and design, including scope, requirements, components, interactions, and interfaces
Communication of work process, products, and results, including documentation, written reports, and briefs presented to stake-holders
Participate in Agile process, backlog management, and project decomposition into components and actionable units of work
Coordinate with and provide support to stakeholders throughout the life-cycle of the systems definition, design, implementation, integration, and deployment;
Perform engineering estimates, guide project schedules, and identify dependencies
Conduct engineering evaluations, such as trade studies, reliability analysis, functional analysis, risk analysis assessments
Mentoring of junior engineering staff, technicians and students
Other related functions as assigned.
Required Qualifications
Bachelor's degree, in science, applied science, or engineering
Three years of relevant professional work experience, including architecting and/or design of distributed, large-scale networked, real-time, or high-availability systems
Demonstrated experience designing systems for fault tolerance, high availability, and horizontal scalability across multiple nodes or sites
Experience with distributed systems concepts including consensus, replication, partitioning, messaging, and eventual/strong consistency models
Experience in designing/maintaining formal APIs and Interface Specifications
Demonstrated ability to design, develop, evaluate, and support the development of large and complex systems.
Strong verbal and written communication skills, including demonstrated ability to communicate technical detail to staff and stakeholders of varying backgrounds and experiences.
Demonstrated ability to work effectively, both independently and collaboratively, with a strong commitment to contribution and enabling the entire team.
Demonstrated ability to make architectural decisions balancing performance, reliability, and operational complexity
US Citizen. Applicant selected will be subject to a government security investigation and must meet eligibility requirements for access to classified information at the level appropriate to the project requirements of the position.
Preferred Qualifications
Post-graduate degree in systems engineering, engineering management, engineering mechanics, operations research, industrial engineering, or related field;
Twelve or more years of relevant professional work experience, including eight years or more years in the architecting and/or design of distributed, large-scale networked, real-time, or high-availability systems
Immediate or previous eligibility to classified information.
Experience with containerization and orchestration (e.g. Docker, Kubernetes), infrastructure as code, and cloud platforms (e.g. AWS)
Experience with streaming/messaging systems (e.g. Pulsar), real-time data streams, and TCP/IP networking at scale;
Work experience specific to GNSS observation and navigation data;
Demonstrated experience participating in an Agile project management using Jira or similar Agile management tools;
Experience with model-based systems engineering (MBSE) tools and techniques (experience with Structurizr is a plus);
Demonstrated experience in software development using C++/Python;
Cumulative GPA of 3.0
General Notes
An agency designated by the federal government handles the investigation as to the requirement for eligibility for access to classified information. Factors considered during this investigation include but are not limited to allegiance to the United States, foreign influence, foreign preference, criminal conduct, security violations, drug involvement, the likelihood of continuation of such conduct, etc.
Please mark "yes" on the application question that asks if additional materials are required. Failure to attach all additional materials listed below may result in a delay in application processing.
Visit our website (www.arlut.utexas.edu) for additional information about Applied Research Laboratories.
- 100% employer-paid basic medical coverage
- Retirement contributions
- Paid vacation and sick time
- Paid holidays
Salary Range
$104,000-$174,000+/negotiable depending on qualifications
Working Conditions
Standard office conditions
Repetitive use of a keyboard at a workstation
Use of manual dexterity
Some weekend, evening and holiday work
Possible interstate/intrastate travel
Required Materials
Resume/CV
3 work references with their contact information; at least one reference should be from a supervisor
Letter of interest
Unofficial college transcripts
Important for applicants who are NOT current university employees or contingent workers: You will be prompted to submit your resume the first time you apply, then you will be provided an option to upload a new Resume for subsequent applications. Any additional Required Materials (letter of interest, references, etc.) will be uploaded in the Application Questions section; you will be able to multi-select additional files. Before submitting your online job application, ensure that ALL Required Materials have been uploaded. Once your job application has been submitted, you cannot make changes.
Important for Current university employees and contingent workers: As a current university employee or contingent worker, you MUST apply within Workday by searching for Find UT Jobs. If you are a current University employee, log-in to Workday, navigate to your Worker Profile, click the Career link in the left hand navigation menu and then update the sections in your Professional Profile before you apply. This information will be pulled in to your application. The application is one page and you will be prompted to upload your resume. In addition, you must respond to the application questions presented to upload any additional Required Materials (letter of interest, references, etc.) that were noted above.
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Employment Eligibility:
Regular staff who have been employed in their current position for the last six continuous months are eligible for openings being recruited for through University-Wide or Open Recruiting, to include both promotional opportunities and lateral transfers. Staff who are promotion/transfer eligible may apply for positions without supervisor approval.-
Retirement Plan Eligibility:
The retirement plan for this position is Teacher Retirement System of Texas (TRS), subject to the position being at least 20 hours per week and at least 135 days in length.-
Background Checks:
A criminal history background check will be required for finalist(s) under consideration for this position.
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Equal Opportunity Employer:
The University of Texas at Austin, as an equal opportunity/affirmative action employer, complies with all applicable federal and state laws regarding nondiscrimination and affirmative action. The University is committed to a policy of equal opportunity for all persons and does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, national origin, age, marital status, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, disability, religion, or veteran status in employment, educational programs and activities, and admissions.
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Pay Transparency:
The University of Texas at Austin will not discharge or in any other manner discriminate against employees or applicants because they have inquired about, discussed, or disclosed their own pay or the pay of another employee or applicant. However, employees who have access to the compensation information of other employees or applicants as a part of their essential job functions cannot disclose the pay of other employees or applicants to individuals who do not otherwise have access to compensation information, unless the disclosure is (a) in response to a formal complaint or charge, (b) in furtherance of an investigation, proceeding, hearing, or action, including an investigation conducted by the employer, or (c) consistent with the contractor’s legal duty to furnish information.
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Employment Eligibility Verification:
If hired, you will be required to complete the federal Employment Eligibility Verification I-9 form. You will be required to present acceptable and original documents to prove your identity and authorization to work in the United States. Documents need to be presented no later than the third day of employment. Failure to do so will result in loss of employment at the university.
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E-Verify:
The University of Texas at Austin use E-Verify to check the work authorization of all new hires effective May 2015. The university’s company ID number for purposes of E-Verify is 854197. For more information about E-Verify, please see the following:
- E-Verify Poster (English and Spanish) [PDF]
- Right to Work Poster (English) [PDF]
- Right to Work Poster (Spanish) [PDF]
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Compliance:
Employees may be required to report violations of law under Title IX and the Jeanne Clery Disclosure of Campus Security Policy and Crime Statistics Act (Clery Act). If this position is identified a Campus Security Authority (Clery Act), you will be notified and provided resources for reporting. Responsible employees under Title IX are defined and outlined in HOP-3031.
The Clery Act requires all prospective employees be notified of the availability of the Annual Security and Fire Safety report. You may access the most recent report here or obtain a copy at University Compliance Services, 1616 Guadalupe Street, UTA 2.206, Austin, Texas 78701.
Distributed Systems Engineer Jobs by Experience Level
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Who's Hiring



Top Industries Hiring
- Technology & Software25
- Media & Entertainment5
- Electronics & Hardware4
- Science & Research3
- Consulting & Professional Services3
What Employers Look For
The qualifications that appear most often in distributed systems engineer jobs.
- Bachelor's or master's degree in computer science or a related engineering field
- Production experience designing and operating distributed systems at scale
- Proficiency in Go, Java, C++, or Rust for systems-level programming
- Hands-on experience with consensus protocols such as Raft or Paxos
- Familiarity with distributed messaging platforms like Kafka or Pulsar
- Experience with containerized infrastructure using Kubernetes and cloud platforms
Tips for Your Distributed Systems Engineer Job Search
Tailor your resume to system scale
Distributed systems roles care about the scale you've operated at. Quantify the size of clusters you've managed, the throughput of pipelines you've built, or the latency targets you've hit. Generic backend experience won't stand out without those specifics.
Highlight CAP theorem trade-off decisions
Hiring teams want evidence you've reasoned through consistency versus availability trade-offs in real production systems. Describe a specific decision you made and why. That signals engineering judgment, not just familiarity with distributed concepts.
Filter openings by stack before applying
Distributed systems roles vary widely by technology. A Kafka-heavy data-platform role and a Raft-based storage systems role need different preparation. Match your strongest stack to the job description before you apply, not after.
Apply early to roles that fit
Migrate Mate lists distributed systems engineer openings from across the United States in one place, so you can find roles that match and apply directly to each listing.
Prepare for distributed systems design interviews
Expect at least one open-ended system design question focused on failure modes, replication, and partition handling. Practice designing systems like distributed locks, leader election, or geo-replicated stores out loud, not just on paper.
Negotiate equity by evaluating vesting cliffs
Offers for distributed systems roles at growth-stage companies often front-load equity. Ask for the vesting schedule, cliff date, and whether the company has a refresh policy before comparing total compensation across offers.
Distributed Systems Engineer Jobs: Frequently Asked Questions
Which companies are hiring the most distributed systems engineers?
The companies hiring the most distributed systems engineers right now include Netflix, CVS Health, and Apple, with the largest share of openings in California, New York, and Texas, based on current listings on Migrate Mate as of August 2026. Demand is concentrated in companies running large-scale cloud infrastructure, fintech platforms, and real-time data systems.
How many distributed systems engineer jobs are remote?
About 48% of distributed systems engineer openings are fully remote or hybrid as of August 2026, reflecting strong demand for experienced engineers regardless of location. Sub-areas like distributed storage, consensus systems, and infrastructure platform engineering tend to skew most remote, while roles embedded in hardware-adjacent or low-latency trading environments more often require on-site presence.
How do you become a distributed systems engineer?
Start by building a strong foundation in operating systems, networking, and concurrent programming, then move into studying how distributed systems handle failures, replication, and consistency. Contribute to or build open-source distributed tools to develop practical experience. Progress from backend engineering roles that touch service-to-service communication, then take on larger-scope infrastructure projects that require you to reason about partition tolerance and fault recovery in production.
How do you get hired as a distributed systems engineer with little experience?
Focus on demonstrating systems thinking rather than just distributed systems credentials. Build and document a personal project that tackles a real distributed challenge, such as a replicated key-value store or a distributed job scheduler. Study how production systems at companies like Cockroach Labs or Confluent are designed, then speak to those patterns in interviews. Entry-level roles on infrastructure or platform teams are the most accessible starting point.
What does the distributed systems engineer interview process look like?
The process typically starts with a recruiter screen, followed by a technical phone interview covering fundamentals like consistency models and clock synchronization. On-site or virtual rounds usually include a distributed systems design session, one or two algorithm and concurrency coding problems, and a behavioral interview. Some companies add a take-home design document or architecture review, especially for senior and staff-level roles.
Where can I find and apply to distributed systems engineer jobs?
You can find and apply to distributed systems engineer jobs on Migrate Mate, which lists current openings from across the United States. Search the roles available, find the ones that match your background and target stack, and apply directly to each listing.
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