Junior Software Developer

Job Title: Junior Software Developer Location: McLean, VA (Hybrid) Company: BLN24 About Us: We find strength in teamwork-a better you is a better us BLN24 is an award-winning Management Consulting Firm that supports the U.S. Federal Government in successfully achieving their mission and goals. Our service and solutions delivery start with understanding each client’s end-state, and then seamlessly integrating within each Agency’s organization to improve and enhance strategic and technical operations and deployments. Job Overview: BLN24 is seeking a Junior Software Developer to support NOAA's modernization of mission-critical weather and data dissemination systems. Working as part of an Agile development team and with mentorship from senior engineers, the developer will help review legacy weather applications, which typically ingest, route, and deliver weather products, and convert them into secure, event-driven, cloud-native applications on AWS in support of the National Weather Service. The ideal candidate is eager to learn modern cloud technologies, enjoys solving technical challenges, and thrives in a collaborative environment delivering solutions that improve NOAA's capabilities. Role and Responsibilities: Develop and maintain backend services and REST APIs (primarily Python) that carry forward legacy application workflows, including administrative and subscription-management functions. Build and update user-facing features using modern front-end technologies (e.g., React) that work across a wide range of browsers and devices. Develop event-driven, message-processing components on AWS (e.g., Lambda, SQS, S3) and the data-access layer for relational databases. Study legacy code and documentation to understand how existing systems behave, and help write design documents, API contracts, and workflow diagrams that preserve that behavior in the cloud version. Add structured logging, audit trails, and correlation-ID tracing so issues can be followed across components. Write automated tests, test simulators, and mocks, and contribute to CI/CD pipelines, including security-scan gates. Fix security findings and vulnerable dependencies, following least-privilege access practices and government security requirements. Contribute to application deployments and AWS infrastructure under the guidance of senior engineers. Collaborate with teammates, QA, DevSecOps, and government stakeholders, and participate in demos and knowledge-transfer sessions. Learn additional applications in the portfolio over time, with mentorship, as program priorities evolve. Required Skills/Abilities, Experience Education and experience: Bachelor’s degree or Bachelor’s degree in-progress in Computer Science, Software Engineering, or a related field Back-end development: Experience building backend services or APIs in Python, or in another server-side language (e.g., Java or C#/.NET) with the ability to learn Python quickly. Databases: Working knowledge of SQL and relational databases (e.g., PostgreSQL, SQL Server, or MySQL). Testing: Experience writing automated unit tests (e.g., pytest or similar). Tools and processes: Experience with Git and familiarity with agile development practices. Cloud: Exposure to AWS or another cloud platform through work, coursework, personal projects, or certification. U.S. Citizenship Required: Proof of U.S. Citizenship and eligibility for Public Trust clearance. Other Desired Skills/Abilities, Experience Front-end experience with JavaScript (ES6+), HTML5, and CSS3, and a modern framework (e.g., React, Angular, or Vue.js). Hands-on experience with AWS services such as Lambda, S3, SQS, ECS, EC2, or RDS. AWS certification (e.g., Cloud Practitioner or Developer – Associate). Familiarity with Python web and data frameworks (e.g., FastAPI, SQLAlchemy). Experience with database design and query optimization in PostgreSQL or SQL Server. Experience with integration testing and CI/CD pipelines. Familiarity with Infrastructure as Code (e.g., Terraform, CloudFormation). Familiarity with Docker and containerized environments (e.g., ECS or Kubernetes). Experience reading and modernizing legacy code (e.g., Java, C/C++, or C#/.NET). Experience with application security practices such as vulnerability remediation and secrets management. Experience with logging and observability tools and practices. Familiarity with federal government environments. Experience using AI-assisted development tools (e.g., GitHub Copilot, Claude, ChatGPT) responsibly, within security and data-handling policies. What BLN24 brings to the Game: BLN24 benefits are game changing. We like our team to play hard and that means they need to be taken care of — physically, financially, and emotionally. We make sure to keep them in the game by giving them access to generous medical, dental, and vision plans. You can join one of the fastest growing companies headquartered in the Washington DC Metro Area.  We give you the opportunity to work in different sectors, so you have the chance at variety while maintaining stability. Flexibility at BLN24 allows each individual the opportunity to balance quality work and their personal lives. Depending on projects, we allow remote working opportunities so you can always be in the game no matter where you call home. BLN24 is an Equal Opportunity Employer. We believe people are our strength and understand diverse talents are key to our success. We are an equal opportunity employer and place a high value on diversity and inclusion at our company. We do not discriminate on the basis of any protected attribute, including race, religion, color, national origin, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, age, marital or veteran status, pregnancy or disability, or any other basis protected under applicable law. In accordance with applicable law, we make reasonable accommodations for applicants' and employees' religious practices and beliefs, as well as any mental health or physical disability needs.