Ontologist; BFO/CCO
Listed on 2026-10-12
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IT/Tech
Machine Learning/ ML Engineer, AI Engineer (Applied/Software), Data Scientist, Data Engineering
Basis Path is seeking a highly skilled Ontologist to join our semantic technology team in support of enterprise knowledge representation, data integration, and AI-enablement initiatives. The ideal candidate will have deep expertise in formal ontology development grounded in Basic Formal Ontology (BFO 2020) and operational knowledge of the Common Core Ontologies (CCO). This role involves designing, extending, and curating ontological models to enhance semantic interoperability, enable knowledge graph construction, and support reasoning over complex, multi-domain datasets.
The ideal candidate will have deep expertise in formal ontology development grounded in Basic Formal Ontology (BFO 2020) and operational knowledge of the Common Core Ontologies (CCO). This role involves designing, extending, and curating ontological models to enhance semantic interoperability, enable knowledge graph construction, and support reasoning over complex, multi-domain datasets.
Basis Path, a rapidly growing woman and veteran-owned small business, is actively seeking talented candidates to support our expanding business commitments. We offer a comprehensive benefits package, including signing bonuses, relocation assistance, expense reimbursement, 100% paid health insurance, competitive compensation, growth opportunities, profit sharing, relevant training, and generous PTO.
At Basis Path, we prioritize our employees' well-being and professional development. Join us and become part of our dedicated team!
Key Responsibilities:Design and maintain formal ontologies using BFO-compliant structures and CCO.
Extend existing ontological frameworks by modeling domain-specific content using realist ontology principles.
Align and map external ontologies, taxonomies, and schemas to BFO and CCO structures to ensure semantic integration.
Collaborate with data engineers, knowledge graph architects, and subject matter experts to translate domain knowledge into ontological models.
Develop OWL ontologies and SHACL constraints to enforce data validation and reasoning.
Contribute to ontology documentation, naming conventions, and governance artifacts.
Participate in cross-agency ontology working groups, providing authoritative input on alignment, best practices, and formalization.
Support use cases in AI/ML explainability, decision support, and automated reasoning.
Master’s or PhD in Philosophy, Computer Science, Information Science, Cognitive Science, or a related field.
3+ years of experience in applied ontology development.
Strong knowledge of BFO 2020
Familiarity with the CCO suite
Proficiency in OWL, RDF, Protégé, and ontology modeling tools.
Demonstrated ability to design ontologies for mission-aligned use cases.
Strong communication skills, particularly in explaining ontological concepts to non-experts.
Experience integrating ontologies into knowledge graphs
Background in IC/DoD data modeling or participation community governance working groups.
Experience developing competency questions, SPARQL queries, or semantic rule sets.
Familiarity with ontology-based reasoning engines or semantic AI systems.
Hybrid or remote, depending on program needs.
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