OPT AI Solutions Engineer Jobs
AI Solutions Engineer jobs on OPT typically fall under STEM-designated CIP codes in computer science or engineering, giving you access to the 24-month STEM OPT extension. These roles combine deep technical skills with client-facing work, and many employers at consulting firms, cloud providers, and enterprise software companies actively hire OPT candidates.
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Department: Information Technology Services, Enterprise Systems
Reports To: Chief Technology Officer (or designated Enterprise Systems Director upon hire)
FLSA Status: Exempt
Employment Type: Full-Time
Location: On-Premise, Hybrid, Fully Remote - all considered
Position Summary
The AI Solutions Developer designs, builds, tests, and supports modern software solutions that use AI, web, and cloud technologies to meet the needs of faculty, staff, and students. This includes building AI-enabled applications, assistants and agents; integrating third-party tools with the University's ecosystem; and maintaining or modernizing existing custom applications. The role works closely with analysts, developers, database administrators, and infrastructure and security staff to solve institutional business and academic challenges and is expected to deliver an exceptional level of customer service, communicate status clearly, and work effectively both independently and as part of a team. The AI Solutions Developer will help shape the University’s AI capabilities by evaluating, configuring, integrating, and extending enterprise AI platforms and cloud AI services such as Microsoft Copilot, Claude, ChatGPT, Boodlebox, and Workday. Where institutional needs exceed the capabilities of commercial platforms, the role will design agent-based architectures, retrieval-augmented generation (RAG) solutions, and custom AI workflows. This position will help establish the University’s AI architecture, guide the adoption of emerging technologies, and deliver secure, scalable solutions that improve the experience of faculty, staff and student’s user experience and create operational efficiencies. The University takes a platform-agnostic approach to AI and selects the tool best suited to each need. Because Workday is the University's system of record for ERP and SIS and supports the majority of institutional transactions, the role will prioritize automation and AI solutions that integrate with Workday, associated data lakes and will extend into Workday's native development and agent platforms (such as Workday Extend) as the University adopts them.
Key Responsibilities
AI Agent and Chat Development:
- Develop AI-powered assistants, chat capabilities, and agents that help faculty, staff, and students complete daily tasks
- Build and maintain the infrastructure and pipelines needed to support real-time AI interactions in production
- Prototype new AI-enabled features, evaluate their performance against defined criteria, and refine them based on user feedback
Application and Integration Development:
- Design, build, and integrate AI-enabled applications, APIs, microservices, and automation workflows across cloud and on-premise environments
- Extend the functionality of Workday and integrate third-party tools with the broader university ecosystem
- Maintain and modernize existing custom applications, including legacy Java and .NET systems
- Evaluate emerging AI models, cloud services, and automation tools through proof-of-concept work, and share recommendations with the team
- Establish reusable patterns and standards for agents, applications, and integrations to support scalability, security and long-term maintainability
Delivery, Quality, and Collaboration:
- Gather, refine, and validate technical and functional requirements in partnership with university stakeholders through the ITS PMO intake process
- Create development estimates and schedules that support predictable, on-time delivery
- Troubleshoot and debug applications, maintain code quality, and keep documentation current
- Participate in design and code reviews, including review of AI-generated code, to maintain consistent development standards
- Provide day-to-day peer support and collaborate across development, infrastructure, and security teams to resolve complex issues
- Use AI-assisted development tools (e.g. Claude Code, GitHub Copilot, Cursor) to improve development productivity, testing and debugging
Cloud, Security, and Operations:
- Deploy and operate services on AWS and/or Azure, including environment management, reliability, and observability
- Build and maintain CI/CD pipelines using cloud provider tooling (AWS, Azure, or GCP)
- Apply security, privacy, and governance practices to AI systems, including authentication, access controls, and handling of sensitive data
- Provide operational support for critical applications, including monitoring, incident response, and performance tuning
Required Qualifications
- Bachelor's degree in Computer Science, Information Technology, or a related field, or equivalent professional experience
- 3-5 years of hands-on software development experience, including building cloud-native and AI-enabled applications
- Proficiency in Python and/or JavaScript, TypeScript, Java, or similar languages
- Experience building and consuming REST APIs and microservices
- Experience with Git-based version control and CI/CD pipelines
- Experience deploying and operating services on AWS and/or Azure
- Understanding of secure-by-design practices, including identity management, access controls, and handling of sensitive data
- Experience integrating with an enterprise ERP or student information system through APIs or integration tools; Workday experience strongly preferred
Preferred Qualifications
- Experience with LLM APIs, prompt engineering, and AI agent or chat development
- Familiarity with agent orchestration patterns and tools such as LangChain, LangGraph, or MCP-based integrations
- Experience with vector databases, semantic retrieval, or real-time data pipelines
- Experience with Docker, Kubernetes, or equivalent container orchestration
- Familiarity with Microsoft Power Platform, Azure DevOps, or AWS Bedrock
- Experience with legacy Java or .NET applications
- Experience with tools used across Fairfield's environment, such as Workday, Freshservice, BoodleBox, Snowflake, Tableau, or Qualtrics
- Experience working across hybrid Windows and Linux environments
The expected wage range for this position is $80,000-$120,000.
Category
ITS - Admin
Performs such other duties, responsibilities, and activities as required by supervisor and as departmental/University needs indicate.
Disclaimer
The above information indicates the general nature and level of work performed by employees within this classification. It is not designed to contain and should not be interpreted as a comprehensive inventory of all duties, responsibilities, activities, and/or qualifications required or expected of employees assigned to this job. Duties, responsibilities, and activities may change and new ones may be assigned at any time, with or without notice. All offers of employment are contingent upon a satisfactory background check.
Fairfield University provides equal employment opportunities to all employees and applicants for employment and prohibits discrimination and harassment of any type without regard to race, color, religion, age, sex, national origin, disability status, genetics, protected veteran status, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, or any other characteristic protected by federal, state or local laws. This policy applies to all terms and conditions of employment, including recruiting, hiring, placement, promotion, termination, layoff, recall, transfer, leaves of absence, compensation and training. Eligible employees may receive health, dental, retirement, paid time off, tuition benefits, and other benefits according to institutional policy.
Load a resume or CV first, then upload supporting documents including a cover letter at the bottom of the third page under the "My Experience" section where it says to upload a Resume/CV. You will be able to upload up to 5 other documents in this section. You will be unable to edit your application, so please have all documents available before applying.
Faculty Positions: If you need to upload more than 5 documents, please either combine them to upload or email the additional documents to the applicable contact in the job description.
Staff positions: If you need to upload more than 5 documents, please either combine them to upload or email them to hr@fairfield.edu**
Job Description
Department: Information Technology Services, Enterprise Systems
Reports To: Chief Technology Officer (or designated Enterprise Systems Director upon hire)
FLSA Status: Exempt
Employment Type: Full-Time
Location: On-Premise, Hybrid, Fully Remote - all considered
Position Summary
The AI Solutions Developer designs, builds, tests, and supports modern software solutions that use AI, web, and cloud technologies to meet the needs of faculty, staff, and students. This includes building AI-enabled applications, assistants and agents; integrating third-party tools with the University's ecosystem; and maintaining or modernizing existing custom applications. The role works closely with analysts, developers, database administrators, and infrastructure and security staff to solve institutional business and academic challenges and is expected to deliver an exceptional level of customer service, communicate status clearly, and work effectively both independently and as part of a team. The AI Solutions Developer will help shape the University’s AI capabilities by evaluating, configuring, integrating, and extending enterprise AI platforms and cloud AI services such as Microsoft Copilot, Claude, ChatGPT, Boodlebox, and Workday. Where institutional needs exceed the capabilities of commercial platforms, the role will design agent-based architectures, retrieval-augmented generation (RAG) solutions, and custom AI workflows. This position will help establish the University’s AI architecture, guide the adoption of emerging technologies, and deliver secure, scalable solutions that improve the experience of faculty, staff and student’s user experience and create operational efficiencies. The University takes a platform-agnostic approach to AI and selects the tool best suited to each need. Because Workday is the University's system of record for ERP and SIS and supports the majority of institutional transactions, the role will prioritize automation and AI solutions that integrate with Workday, associated data lakes and will extend into Workday's native development and agent platforms (such as Workday Extend) as the University adopts them.
Key Responsibilities
AI Agent and Chat Development:
- Develop AI-powered assistants, chat capabilities, and agents that help faculty, staff, and students complete daily tasks
- Build and maintain the infrastructure and pipelines needed to support real-time AI interactions in production
- Prototype new AI-enabled features, evaluate their performance against defined criteria, and refine them based on user feedback
Application and Integration Development:
- Design, build, and integrate AI-enabled applications, APIs, microservices, and automation workflows across cloud and on-premise environments
- Extend the functionality of Workday and integrate third-party tools with the broader university ecosystem
- Maintain and modernize existing custom applications, including legacy Java and .NET systems
- Evaluate emerging AI models, cloud services, and automation tools through proof-of-concept work, and share recommendations with the team
- Establish reusable patterns and standards for agents, applications, and integrations to support scalability, security and long-term maintainability
Delivery, Quality, and Collaboration:
- Gather, refine, and validate technical and functional requirements in partnership with university stakeholders through the ITS PMO intake process
- Create development estimates and schedules that support predictable, on-time delivery
- Troubleshoot and debug applications, maintain code quality, and keep documentation current
- Participate in design and code reviews, including review of AI-generated code, to maintain consistent development standards
- Provide day-to-day peer support and collaborate across development, infrastructure, and security teams to resolve complex issues
- Use AI-assisted development tools (e.g. Claude Code, GitHub Copilot, Cursor) to improve development productivity, testing and debugging
Cloud, Security, and Operations:
- Deploy and operate services on AWS and/or Azure, including environment management, reliability, and observability
- Build and maintain CI/CD pipelines using cloud provider tooling (AWS, Azure, or GCP)
- Apply security, privacy, and governance practices to AI systems, including authentication, access controls, and handling of sensitive data
- Provide operational support for critical applications, including monitoring, incident response, and performance tuning
Required Qualifications
- Bachelor's degree in Computer Science, Information Technology, or a related field, or equivalent professional experience
- 3-5 years of hands-on software development experience, including building cloud-native and AI-enabled applications
- Proficiency in Python and/or JavaScript, TypeScript, Java, or similar languages
- Experience building and consuming REST APIs and microservices
- Experience with Git-based version control and CI/CD pipelines
- Experience deploying and operating services on AWS and/or Azure
- Understanding of secure-by-design practices, including identity management, access controls, and handling of sensitive data
- Experience integrating with an enterprise ERP or student information system through APIs or integration tools; Workday experience strongly preferred
Preferred Qualifications
- Experience with LLM APIs, prompt engineering, and AI agent or chat development
- Familiarity with agent orchestration patterns and tools such as LangChain, LangGraph, or MCP-based integrations
- Experience with vector databases, semantic retrieval, or real-time data pipelines
- Experience with Docker, Kubernetes, or equivalent container orchestration
- Familiarity with Microsoft Power Platform, Azure DevOps, or AWS Bedrock
- Experience with legacy Java or .NET applications
- Experience with tools used across Fairfield's environment, such as Workday, Freshservice, BoodleBox, Snowflake, Tableau, or Qualtrics
- Experience working across hybrid Windows and Linux environments
The expected wage range for this position is $80,000-$120,000.
Category
ITS - Admin
Performs such other duties, responsibilities, and activities as required by supervisor and as departmental/University needs indicate.
Disclaimer
The above information indicates the general nature and level of work performed by employees within this classification. It is not designed to contain and should not be interpreted as a comprehensive inventory of all duties, responsibilities, activities, and/or qualifications required or expected of employees assigned to this job. Duties, responsibilities, and activities may change and new ones may be assigned at any time, with or without notice. All offers of employment are contingent upon a satisfactory background check.
Fairfield University provides equal employment opportunities to all employees and applicants for employment and prohibits discrimination and harassment of any type without regard to race, color, religion, age, sex, national origin, disability status, genetics, protected veteran status, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, or any other characteristic protected by federal, state or local laws. This policy applies to all terms and conditions of employment, including recruiting, hiring, placement, promotion, termination, layoff, recall, transfer, leaves of absence, compensation and training. Eligible employees may receive health, dental, retirement, paid time off, tuition benefits, and other benefits according to institutional policy.
Load a resume or CV first, then upload supporting documents including a cover letter at the bottom of the third page under the "My Experience" section where it says to upload a Resume/CV. You will be able to upload up to 5 other documents in this section. You will be unable to edit your application, so please have all documents available before applying.
Faculty Positions: If you need to upload more than 5 documents, please either combine them to upload or email the additional documents to the applicable contact in the job description.
Staff positions: If you need to upload more than 5 documents, please either combine them to upload or email them to hr@fairfield.edu**
See all 256+ OPT AI Solutions Engineer Jobs
Sign up for free to unlock all listings, filter by visa type, and get alerts for new OPT AI Solutions Engineer Jobs.
Get Access To All JobsTips for Finding OPT Sponsorship as an AI Solutions Engineer
Confirm your role qualifies for STEM OPT
AI Solutions Engineer positions almost always qualify for the 24-month STEM OPT extension, but confirm your degree CIP code matches an eligible STEM field before accepting an offer. Your DSO can verify this quickly.
Target employers with an established E-Verify account
STEM OPT extension requires your employer to be enrolled in E-Verify. Ask recruiters directly before investing time in interviews. Most large tech firms and consulting companies already participate, so this rarely eliminates top employers.
Lead with your technical stack, not your visa status
Hiring managers for AI Solutions Engineer roles prioritize candidates who can demonstrate LLM integration, cloud architecture, or ML deployment experience. Establish technical fit first, then address OPT work authorization when the recruiter asks.
Prepare a one-sentence OPT explanation for non-technical recruiters
Many recruiters outside major tech hubs are unfamiliar with OPT. Having a clear, confident explanation ready, such as noting your three-year authorized work period with STEM extension, reduces friction early in the hiring process.
Track your OPT end date and H-1B timeline together
AI Solutions Engineers are strong H-1B visa candidates given high employer demand. Map your OPT expiration against the April H-1B lottery so you know exactly how many application cycles you have before needing another status option.
Document your technical contributions for future visa petitions
Keep detailed records of AI projects, client outcomes, and performance reviews from day one. Strong documentation of specialized work in AI solutions engineering builds a compelling foundation for H-1B specialty occupation arguments and future green card petitions.
AI Solutions Engineer OPT: Frequently Asked Questions
Can I work as an AI Solutions Engineer on OPT?
Yes, provided the role relates directly to your degree field. AI Solutions Engineer positions typically align with computer science, software engineering, or information systems degrees, all of which are STEM-designated. That alignment also makes you eligible for the 24-month STEM OPT extension on top of your initial 12-month OPT period.
Do AI Solutions Engineer employers typically sponsor H-1B visas?
Many do. Employers at cloud providers, enterprise software companies, and AI-focused consulting firms regularly sponsor H-1B visas for this role because AI Solutions Engineers require specialized technical knowledge that supports specialty occupation classification. Migrate Mate filters job listings by sponsorship history, so you can focus on employers with a documented track record of filing.
How does the STEM OPT training plan requirement apply to this role?
During your 24-month STEM extension, your employer must sign a formal training plan (Form I-983) outlining how the role develops your STEM skills. For AI Solutions Engineers, this should document specific learning goals around AI architecture, model deployment, or systems integration. Your employer also needs to be enrolled in E-Verify for the extension to be valid.
What if my AI Solutions Engineer job is fully remote? Does that affect my OPT?
Remote work is generally permitted on OPT, but you must maintain a valid employer-employee relationship and your employer must still be E-Verify enrolled for STEM extension eligibility. Report any change in employment details to your DSO promptly. Prolonged gaps in employment can jeopardize your OPT status, so notify your school within 10 days of any change.
How long does OPT authorize me to work as an AI Solutions Engineer before I need another visa?
Your initial OPT gives you 12 months of work authorization. If your degree is in a STEM field and your employer is E-Verify enrolled, you can apply for a 24-month STEM extension, giving you up to 36 months total. That window covers three H-1B lottery cycles, which matters because AI Solutions Engineers are competitive candidates and may get selected on the first or second attempt.