Java Developer Location: McLean, VA Duration: 12+ Months Rate: $ DOE
Required Experience & Education
710 years of professional software development experience.
Bachelor's degree in Computer Science or a related field (or equivalent experience).
Must-Have Qualifications
7+ years of hands-on Java development experience.
Strong expertise in Java 8+ with preference for Java 21 and experience upgrading or migrating applications across Java versions.
Strong hands-on experience with relational databases (RDBMS).
Experience building enterprise backend applications and RESTful APIs.
Proven experience with Spring Framework and Spring Boot.
Preferred experience with Snowflake, Python, AI research, and financial services domain.
Core Technical Skills
Strong professional experience in Java backend development.
Expertise in Java including I/O, multithreading/concurrency, collections, generics, lambda expressions, and modern Java features.
Experience designing, developing, and consuming RESTful API web services.
Strong knowledge of Spring Framework, Spring Boot, and Dependency Injection.
Proficiency with build and testing tools including Maven, Gradle, JUnit, Mockito, and FitNesse.
Proven ability to perform AI-driven research and development, including evaluating AI-assisted approaches, rapid prototyping, prompt engineering, model/tool evaluation, and integrating AI capabilities into applications and workflows.
Excellent analytical, troubleshooting, and problem-solving skills.
Strong verbal and written communication skills with the ability to explain technical concepts to both technical and non-technical stakeholders.
Database & Data Skills
Strong experience with relational databases and data modeling.
Advanced SQL skills for reporting, troubleshooting, and data analysis.
Experience working with structured and semi-structured data formats including XML and JSON.
Experience with Snowflake is preferred.
DevOps / SDLC / Tools
Understanding of Docker containers and containerized development.
Understanding of Software Development Lifecycle (SDLC) and Application Lifecycle Management (ALM).
Experience using CI/CD pipelines and tools such as Jenkins and Jira.
Experience with Git and collaborative source control workflows.
Java 21 Migration & Preferred Skills
Experience upgrading or migrating enterprise applications to Java 21 or other recent Long-Term Support (LTS) versions.
Experience performing dependency and build upgrades using Maven or Gradle.
Experience conducting compatibility testing and resolving migration-related issues.
Knowledge of Java performance tuning and runtime optimization.
Python experience, particularly for AI/ML development, automation, and scripting.
Financial services industry experience is preferred.
Soft Skills
Flexible and adaptable, with the ability to work effectively across multiple projects and changing priorities.
Self-motivated with strong ownership and accountability.
Strong collaboration and teamwork skills.
Ability to quickly learn new technologies and contribute in fast-paced environments.