Job Title: Senior Software Engineer

Salary: £49,00 - £60,000

Location: Cambridge/Hybrid

Contract: Permanent

We are recruiting for a Senior Software Engineer who will play a crucial hands-on role in the design, development, and improvement of cutting-edge AI-driven solutions. You'll be working on internal tools that leverage AI to solve complex business problems, initially focused on improving our learning and assessment content generation and management processes.

We are Cambridge University Press & Assessment, a world-leading academic publisher and assessment organisation and a proud part of the University of Cambridge.

About the role

As a core member of our content tools software development team, you will:

• Manage the complete software engineering lifecycle for the software solutions owned by the team, ensuring exceptional quality and performance standards.
• Contribute to the strategic evolution and improvement of our critical, production-ready internal application, identifying and implementing technical improvements.
• Act as a technical mentor to more junior engineers, sharing expertise and fostering their growth.
• Implement and integrate AI technologies and platforms, with a strong focus on Large Language Models (LLMs) and prompt engineering techniques.
• Work with low-code/no-code platforms like Retool and workflow automation tools like n8n.
• Collaborate closely with the Team Lead, Product Owner, and Subject Matter Experts to translate business requirements into technical specifications.

We have a progressive approach to AI-driven software engineering. We embrace cutting-edge technologies and best practices that help us deliver quality solutions, including automated testing, cloud infrastructure, and production-ready applications. Our ways of working are always evolving; if something's not working, we change it.

The key to our work is our colleagues, whose shared commitment enables us to have an ever-greater impact. We are a united, vibrant, and respectful global community of people, and we ensure that every individual is recognized, listened to, and cared for. And because our impact is amplified when our people are empowered, we give everyone the opportunity to develop in their own way. Whether you want a career that's linear, or want to follow your own path, we'll support you and help give you the resources and training you'll need to be bold and take ownership of what you do.

About you

We're looking for an experienced Senior Software Engineer with extensive expertise in AI and machine learning technologies. While experience with our specific tech stack would be ideal, your proven track record in delivering production-ready AI solutions and ability to lead technical initiatives is essential. We value strong problem-solving skills, excellent communication, technical mentoring abilities, and the capacity to drive complex projects from conception to delivery.

Your experience includes

• Lead the full software engineering lifecycle for team-owned solutions, ensuring high-quality standards and reliable performance.
• Deliver strategic improvements to critical, production-ready internal applications by identifying and implementing technical enhancements.
• Build, deploy, and manage production-level applications powered by LLMs, leveraging expertise in prompt engineering and AI technologies.
• Mentor and guide junior engineers, sharing technical knowledge and fostering their professional development within the team.
• Work hands-on with low-code/no-code platforms (such as Retool) and workflow automation tools (like n8n) to accelerate development.
• Utilise cloud infrastructure services, especially AWS (including S3, RDS, Bedrock), and integrate with identity providers like Okta.
• Translate business requirements into technical specifications through close collaboration with cross-functional stakeholders.
• Ensure solutions meet rigorous standards for scalability, security, and maintainability by applying best practices and conducting code reviews.
• Stay current with industry trends, troubleshoot complex technical issues, and communicate project progress and challenges clearly to stakeholders.

If you would like to know more about this opportunity and what will make you successful, please see the full job description attached to the bottom of this vacancy on our careers site.

Rewards and benefits

We will support you to be at your best in work and to live well outside of it. In addition to competitive salaries, we offer a world-class, flexible rewards package, featuring family-friendly and planet-friendly benefits including:

• 28 days annual leave plus bank holidays
• Private medical and Permanent Health Insurance
• Discretionary annual bonus
• Group personal pension scheme
• Life assurance up to 4 x annual salary
• Green travel schemes

We are a hybrid working organisation, and we offer a range of flexible working options from day one. We expect most hybrid-working colleagues to spend 40-60% of their time at their dedicated office or location. We will also consider other work arrangements if you wish to work more flexibly or require adjustments due to a disability.

Ready to pursue your potential? Apply now.

We review applications on an ongoing basis, with a closing date for all applications being 4th September 2025 Interviews are scheduled to take place as applications are received.

Please note that successful applicants will be subject to satisfactory background checks including DBS due to working in a regulated industry.

Cambridge University Press & Assessment is an approved UK employer for the sponsorship of eligible roles and applicants under the Skilled Worker visa route. Please refer to the gov.uk website for guidance to understand your own eligibility based on the role you are applying for.

Why join us

Joining us is your opportunity to pursue potential. You'll belong to a collaborative team that's exploring new and better ways to serve students, teachers and researchers across the globe – for the benefit of individuals, society and the world. Sharing our mission will inspire your own growth, development and progress, in an environment which embraces difference, change and aspiration.

Cambridge University Press & Assessment is committed to being a place where anyone can enjoy a successful career, where it's safe to speak up, and where we learn continuously to improve together. We welcome applications from all candidates, regardless of demographic characteristics (age, disability, educational attainment, ethnicity, gender, marital status, neurodiversity, religion, sex, gender identity and sexual identity), cultural, or social class/background.

We believe better outcomes come through diversity of thought, background and approach. We welcome applications from people from all backgrounds and communities, actively seeking to employ people from a wide range of different communities.

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