Are you passionate about building secure, scalable AI solutions that make a real-world impact?

Deakin is looking for a Senior Specialist, AI Development to play a pivotal role in designing and delivering end-to-end AI-driven applications that enhance learning, research and operational excellence across the University.

This is your opportunity to contribute to enterprise AI platforms that are ethical, sustainable and built for scale.

Why work with us?

At Deakin University, you'll find more than a job - you'll find a community and a way of working that supports you to do your best work. Across our campuses in Geelong, Melbourne and regional Victoria, we offer an environment designed to help you thrive, with on-site childcare, gyms, medical centres, cafés, accessible public transport and convenient parking.

We support flexible and hybrid working, generous leave provisions - including extended parental leave and the option to purchase additional leave - and a wide range of staff benefits and discounts. Combined with our strong focus on health, wellbeing and professional development, Deakin offers a supportive, inclusive culture where leaders are trusted, people are valued and careers can grow.

About the role

Deakin isn't just adopting AI – we're building it. With Deakin GEM now live and our AI Factory, a multi-disciplinary squad, accelerating capability across the institution, ambitious work is underway across multiple streams.

As Senior Specialist, AI Development you will lead the technical design and implementation of production-ready AI solutions — spanning intuitive front-end interfaces through to robust back-end systems and ML integration. You'll help evolve shared AI platforms, reusable patterns and engineering standards, ensuring stability, lifecycle sustainability and long-term value.

This role blends deep hands-on technical capability with solution design leadership and stakeholder engagement.

As a senior hands-on engineering role, you will have accountability for the solution design and technical quality. You will act as a key technical authority for complex AI implementations, guiding approaches, supporting other engineers and developing and translating requirements into robust, production-ready solutions.

You will:

• Design and deliver advanced full-stack AI-enabled applications aligned to strategic priorities
• Embed security, privacy, accessibility and responsible AI principles by design
• Integrate ML, GenAI and vector database capabilities into scalable enterprise solutions
• Champion modern engineering, MLOps and data management practices
• Lead automation, CI/CD and operational practices to support stable production environments
• Translate complex business needs into intuitive, user-centred digital experiences
• Collaborate across engineering, data, product and operations teams to move solutions from prototype to production
• Provide technical guidance and code-level support to other engineers on architecture, implementation and troubleshooting
• Define and refine reusable patterns, reference implementations and technical standards

About you

You are an experienced AI or full-stack specialist who thrives in complex environments and enjoys solving meaningful problems. Most importantly, you combine technical depth with strong communication skills, enabling you to influence stakeholders and contribute to a culture of innovation, inclusion and continuous improvement.

You'll bring:

• Experience with cloud platforms and modern full-stack development
• Strong capability in Python and FastAPI for scalable APIs and microservices
• Experience integrating and deploying ML/GenAI models and working with vector databases
• Knowledge of RESTful APIs, GraphQL and WebSockets
• Experience with React (Vite and Material UI)
• Understanding of authentication and authorisation (OAuth2, JWT)
• A track record delivering secure, production-grade AI or data-driven applications
• Experience reviewing code, guiding design decisions and supporting other engineers in complex implementations
• Comfort acting as the primary technical problem-solver for difficult engineering challenges

To apply

Please submit your updated resume and a short cover letter outlining your skills and experience.

For a confidential discussion regarding this role, please contact Michael Heley – Associate Director, Enterprise Platforms via m***@***********

Applications close 11.55pm on Sunday, 15 March 2026

Are You Ready?

Deakin is a Victorian university with a global impact. We are an agile, dynamic, and innovative university committed to making a positive impact through our excellence in education, research and innovation and the contributions we make to the wider community.

We understand that our reputation has been built on the dedication and expertise of our staff and we offer a dynamic and diverse working environment with opportunities to grow and develop careers. We believe that a progressive, thriving culture will ensure that people choose to come, and stay at Deakin and contribute to our ongoing success.

We value diversity and aim to build an inclusive environment that champions, embraces and respects differences. We support and encourage applications from Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people, and people of all abilities, cultures, sexual orientation, and genders.