Senior Software Engineer

Are you an experienced software engineer ready to shape the future of digital services at scale?

Join The Open University as a Senior Software Engineer and play a key role in designing, building, and evolving innovative, high‑impact systems that support learning and transformation across the organisation.

We are recruiting multiple Senior Engineers across different teams. These roles sit in teams delivering a range of business‑critical digital products, typically involving .NET‑based systems hosted on Azure and operating in a modern Dev Ops environment.

While the core expectations are consistent across all roles, the specific context will vary: most positions will work within product teams delivering and evolving user‑facing services, while at least one role will operate in an integration‑focused context, where the Senior Engineer will work on the design, development, and support of API‑based services using C# and a modern Azure‑based technology stack, enabling secure access to institutional data for consumption by other systems across the University.

Candidates are not expected to have experience across all contexts, and role‑specific focus and technologies will be discussed during the recruitment process.

As a Senior Software Engineer (known internally as a Senior Engineer
), you will lead the design, development, and delivery of innovative software solutions that drive our organization forward. Collaborating with product managers, designers, and other engineers, you will create scalable systems that meet user needs and support our growth.

You’ll be responsible for driving technical excellence, making key architectural decisions, and ensuring best practices across all projects. Leveraging your extensive experience, you will mentor junior engineers, provide technical leadership, and solve complex problems to build secure, efficient, and high‑performing systems.

We’re looking for a proactive and passionate engineer who thrives in a dynamic environment and is committed to continuous improvement. If you’re excited about exploring emerging technologies and making a significant impact, this is your opportunity to advance your career and contribute to meaningful projects.

Join our agile engineering team and help shape the integration of cutting‑edge solutions across a diverse technology stack, including both on‑premises and cloud platforms like AWS and Microsoft Azure. We embrace Dev Ops practices, supporting seamless development pipelines and deployments as part of our commitment to innovation and professional growth.

The role may be applied across teams operating in different technical contexts, delivery models, and technology stacks, with emphasis varying according to team and service needs.

At The Open University, we never stand still. Be part of our journey to push the boundaries of technology and make a real difference.

• Lead Software Development Projects
  :
  Guide the design, development, and implementation of software solutions, ensuring they are robust, scalable, and aligned with The Open University objectives. Provide technical leadership and mentorship, and may include line management, to junior team members.
• Architect and Design Systems
  :
  Develop and refine system architectures and software designs that meet requirements and technical specifications. Ensure that all designs are maintainable, secure, and optimized for performance, and systems are designed to be observable, supportable, and resilient in live operation, with appropriate monitoring, alerting, and operational documentation in place.
• Drive Technical Excellence
  :
  Champion best practices in software development, including coding standards, TDD and automated testing approaches (e.g. unit and integration), and version control, to ensure the delivery of high‑quality, scalable and maintainable software products.
• Oversee System Integration
  :
  Manage the integration of multiple software components, ensuring seamless interaction and functionality across the system.
• Data Management and Analysis
  :
  Lead efforts in data modelling, database design, and business intelligence to support data‑driven decision making and improve…