University Overview

The University of Pennsylvania, the largest private employer in Philadelphia, is a world-renowned leader in education, research, and innovation. This historic, Ivy League school consistently ranks among the top 10 universities in the annual U.S. News & World Report survey. Penn has 12 highly-regarded schools that provide opportunities for undergraduate, graduate and continuing education, all influenced by Penn’s distinctive interdisciplinary approach to scholarship and learning. As an employer Penn has been consistently ranked nationally on many occasions with the most recent award from Forbes who named Penn one of America’s Best Large Employers.

Penn offers a unique working environment within the city of Philadelphia. The University is situated on a beautiful urban campus, with easy access to a range of educational, cultural, and recreational activities. With its historical significance and landmarks, lively cultural offerings, and wide variety of atmospheres, Philadelphia is the perfect place to call home for work and play.

Posted Job Title

Web Application Developer, Jewish Studies (Temporary, Part-Time)

Job Profile Title

Temporary Employee - Non-Exempt

Job Description Summary

Footprints: Jewish Books Through Time and Place seeks to contract with a software developer to advance its online digital humanities relational database and improve data integrity.

The Developer will be responsible for designing, developing, and maintaining a rich client web-based application to support research and student learning. Under the supervision of the project directors and the technical director, the incumbent will utilize industry-standard frameworks to gather project requirements, write and test software, and generate technical documents. This primary software application includes GIS-based visualizations and extensive features to surface and interact with a large data set.

This position is not eligible for employer-sponsored visa support. This is also a Temporary position.

Job Description

Jewish Studies at Penn is an inter-disciplinary program, with faculty and students across various departments and groups in the School of Arts and Sciences. Our program reflects the full range and diverse dimensions of the Jewish experience as well as different approaches to studying Jewish life and culture. Students can major or minor in different tracks, or take courses as electives as part of other majors and minors.

Job Responsibilities and Duties:

The Developer will be responsible for designing, developing, and maintaining a rich client web-based application to support research and student learning. Under the supervision of the project directors and the technical director, the incumbent will utilize industry-standard frameworks to gather project requirements, write and test software, and generate technical documents. This primary software application includes GIS-based visualizations and extensive features to surface and interact with a large data set.

Qualifications:

Bachelor of Science and 2 to 3 years of experience or equivalent combination of education and experience is required. Ability to work from 9am-5pm Eastern Time.

Required skills:

• 2-4 years of related experience

• Comfort with full-stack development and unit testing

• Strong knowledge of web standards including HTML5, CSS, and AJAX/JavaScript/jQuery and browser-specific compatibility issues

• Fluency in secure dynamic scripting languages (Python), MVC web frameworks (Django), and modern front-end development (React)

• Excellent oral and written communication skills, comfortable working collaboratively and iteratively within project teams and providing regular status updates on progress.

• Good understanding of code versioning tools such as Git

• Experience gathering and responding to project requirements.

• Ability to work independently to produce polished, high-quality results

Preferred skills:

• Previous experience with digital humanities projects

• Familiarity with AI/ML frameworks as they relate to agentic AI architecture and implementation and data quality initiatives

• Basic knowledge of Hebrew

*For consideration, please submit a cover letter as well as a resume in the CV section of your application. In your cover letter, please identify/describe a feature of the website that you would optimize or improve and how you would go about addressing it (max 2 paragraphs).You can upload multiple documents to the "Resume/CV" section.

Job Location - City, State

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

Department / School

School of Arts and Sciences

Pay Range

$7.25 - $55.00 Hourly Rate

Salary offers are made based on the candidate’s qualifications, experience, skills, and education as they directly relate to the requirements of the position, and in alignment with salary ranges based on external market data for the job’s level. Internal organization and peer data at Penn are also considered.

Equal Opportunity Statement

The University of Pennsylvania is an equal opportunity employer. Candidates are considered for employment without regard to race, color, sex, sexual orientation, religion, creed, national origin (including shared ancestry or ethnic characteristics), citizenship status, age, disability, veteran status or any class protected under applicable federal, state or local law.

Special Requirements 
A background check may be required after a conditional job offer is made. Consideration of the background check will be tailored to the requirements of the job.

University Benefits

• Health and Life: Penn offers comprehensive medical, prescription, behavioral health, dental, vision, and life insurance benefits to protect you and your family’s health and welfare.
• Retirement: Penn offers generous retirement plans to help you save for your future. Penn’s Basic, Matching, and Supplemental retirement plans allow you to save for retirement on a pre-tax or Roth basis. Choose from a wide variety of investment options through TIAA and Vanguard.

Please note that benefit eligibility is determined/based on ACA guidelines.