Research Engineer – AI/ML
Applied Research Associates, Inc. · Raleigh, NC
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Jul 27, 2026
Raleigh, NC
Jul 28, 2026
What this job asks for AI summary
A research engineering role at an employee-owned defense and intelligence contractor, focused on designing and implementing AI/ML algorithms across areas such as computer vision, physics-based modeling, simulation, optimization, and intelligent agents. The position involves taking problems from initial concept through prototype to production-ready software, working within a multidisciplinary team serving DoD and intelligence community programs. It suits candidates with a strong math/science foundation who enjoy hands-on algorithm development and applied research.
Mid level · 2+ years · Bachelor's required · Secret clearance · Full-time
“or” means any one of them counts — you don't need all of them.
We read this from the posting text with AI. Skim the description below before ruling yourself out.
How this req sits in the market our data
Rare in this occupation — lead with these, and say what you built with them.
Most people in this occupation already list these. Still required — just not what gets you shortlisted.
What the occupation pays Median $138,970 (middle half $107,524–$175,762).
Estimated from BLS employment for this occupation and area, per-skill prevalence across our listing corpus, and published wage benchmarks — as of Jul 28, 2026. It is a model, not a headcount.
Why we read it this way (9)
No work location is specified in the posting; ARA has offices across the US and Canada, so the metro and state fields are left blank.
The clearance requirement is framed as eligibility to obtain a US security clearance rather than holding an active clearance at hire; the nature of the work (intelligence community and DoD) implies at minimum a Secret-level investigation.
Python is listed alongside Java and C++ with 'and/or' language, so Java and C++ are captured as alternatives rather than separate hard gates.
The experience requirement is stated as '2-4 years'; total years minimum is set to 2 (the lower bound of the range).
Machine learning is listed as one of several experience areas under requirements, but given the role title and primary focus it is treated as a hard gate; the remaining technical domains (computer vision, physics-based modeling, etc.) are listed as alternatives within that same requirement block and are captured as preferred since only 'one or more' is required.
Generative AI, agentic AI, and LLMs appear under the Preferences section and are marked preferred accordingly.
SOC classification is Medium confidence: the role blends software development (algorithm/tool building) with applied research and data science (ML, probabilistic modeling, statistics); 15-1252 was chosen because the primary deliverable is software and algorithms, but 15-2051 is a credible alternative.
Ignored 2 non-technology phrase(s) as skills (responsibilities/concepts, not named tools): Physics-based modeling, Surrogate modeling.
Requires a Secret clearance — the cleared population is a small fraction of this occupation, so the real candidate pool is materially smaller than the estimate below, which does not model clearance.
Read the full posting
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