Senior Data Engineer

As the Senior Data Engineer, you will help build, maintain, and optimize the data infrastructure that powers our decision-making and product development. You'll work with modern tools like Snowflake, Metabase, Mage, Airbyte, and MySQL to enable data visualization, data mining, and efficient access to high-quality insights across our Grad Guard ecosystem. This is a key opportunity for someone with around five years of experience who's passionate about turning data into impact.

This position is based in Phoenix, AZ.

• Design, build, and maintain scalable data pipelines and architectures using Mage (or similar orchestrators) and Airbyte for ELT processes.
• Ensure efficient and reliable data ingestion, transformation, and loading into Snowflake.
• Perform data mining and exploratory data analysis to uncover trends, patterns, and business opportunities.
• Ensure the quality, consistency, and reliability of the underlying data.
• Promote best practices and quality standards for the data engineering team.
• Partner with Data Science, Business Intelligence, and Product teams to define data needs and ensure data infrastructure supports strategic initiatives.
• Optimize SQL queries and data models for performance and scalability.
• Contribute to improving data standards, documentation, and governance across all data systems.
• Help ensure compliance with data security, privacy, and regulatory requirements in the insurance domain.

• 5+ years of experience as a Data Engineer, Data Analyst, or similar role.
• Experience leading and mentoring a data engineering team.
• Proficient with SQL for data transformation, querying, and performance optimization.
• Proficiency with Python or other languages like Java, JavaScript, and/or Scala.
• Proficiency in connecting with APIs for data loading.
• Hands‑on experience with:
  • Snowflake (Data Warehousing). Beyond basic SQL, you must understand Snowflake’s unique architecture and features which includes:
    Data Warehouse Design, Performance Optimization, and Data Loading. Knowledge of advanced Snowflake feature is nice‑to‑have.
  • Mage (Data Pipeline Orchestration) or experience with other orchestration.
  • Airbyte (ELT Processes) or experience with ELT tools.
  • Metabase (Data Visualization & Dashboards) or familiarity with other visualization BI tools.
• Comfort with data modeling, ETL/ELT best practices, and cloud‑based data architectures (preferably AWS).
• Excellent problem‑solving skills, attention to detail, and ability to work cross‑functionally.
• Prior experience working in an insurance, fintech, or highly regulated industry is a plus.

• A competitive salary.
• Opportunity to enroll in comprehensive health, dental, and vision insurance. We pay 100% of employee premiums and 75% of your family’s premiums.
• A lifestyle spending account where you can receive up to $400 in reimbursements for wellness activities.
• 401(K) retirement plan with company matching up to 5% of compensation deferred. Employee and employer contributions are 100% vested.
• Student loan and education assistance, after one year of employment ’re learners and embrace education.
• Unlimited PTO after completing the 30‑day introductory period. Plus, 12 paid holidays and paid parental leave.

As the leader in college tuition and renters insurance, Grad Guard serves more than 1.7 million students across 1,900+ institutions.

Our national technology platform embeds innovative insurance protections into the enrollment processes of over 650 institutional partners, empowering schools to increase college completion rates and reduce the financial impact of preventable losses.

Grad Guard supports College Life Protected, a social purpose entity that promotes research, professional development, and best practices that strengthen campus communities, families, society and the economic competitiveness of our nation.

Grad Guard was recognized as one of the Top 100 Financial Technology Companies of 2024 by The Financial Technology Report, a RISE Internship Award winner, and a Phoenix Business Journal best Places to Work finalist, Grad Guard remains committed to innovation, excellence, and supporting students and families.

Hear from our students, families, and partners:

• Make it happen by turning challenges into opportunities.
• Do the right thing even when it’s difficult.
• Demand excellence from yourself and others.
• Learn for life and stay curious.
• Enjoy the journey, not just the results.

Grad Guard is an equal opportunity employer. We celebrate diversity and are committed to creating an inclusive environment for all employees.