High-Performance Computing System & Server Administrator, College of Science and Mathematics

High-Performance Computing System & Server Administrator, College of Science and Mathematics

Working Title: High-Performance Computing System & Server Administrator, College of Science and Mathematics

State Role Title: N/A

Position Type: Administrative & Professional (Non-teaching Faculty)

Position Status: Full-Time

FLSA Status: Exempt: Not Eligible for Overtime

College/Division: College of Science and Mathematics

Department: 100129 - Dean - College of Science and Math

Pay Band: N/A

Pay Rate: Commensurate with Experience

Beginning Review Date: 4/18/2026

General Information:

The College of Science and Mathematics (CSM) is seeking a full-time High-Performance Computing (HPC) System and Server Administrator to support primarily Linux-based research computing environments. The CSM has a wide range of computational needs, with faculty spread across five departments, including new, interdisciplinary data science programs, which add to the variety of the college's HPC requirements. This position represents an opportunity to manage existing on-premises server and computational infrastructure to support current and future efforts related to servers and HPC. CSM server and storage resource management and maintenance would be in collaboration with JMU's central IT; HPC duties would be in collaboration with JMU's central IT and an external vendor.

The JMU College of Science and Mathematics High Performance Computing cluster is a relatively new Linux cluster built on RHEL, managed by Bright Cluster Manager and leverages the SLURM workload manager. It consists of approximately 20 nodes, including both CPU and NVIDIA GPU nodes. Additionally, The CSM maintains enterprise computing infrastructure consisting of 20+ servers/devices. This includes various storage devices (TrueNAS, Synology), web servers and Windows file/print/terminal servers.

Duties and Responsibilities:

• Install and maintain server hardware including vendor coordination. Installation includes lifting and racking of servers.
• Install and maintain HPC software and operating system infrastructure.
• In consultation with vendor resources, maintain 2-5 year plan for the HPC cluster. Work with PIs and The CSM leadership to allocate resources in line with this plan as funding becomes available.
• Coordinate HPC users' access to an external vendor for HPC consulting, and assist collaboration between users and vendor in these consultations.
• Develop training, documentation, and informational resources for faculty and students on use of the HPC system. This would include documentation of support structures and hardware and software systems to improve research community (faculty, staff, and student) access and workload efficiencies.
• Work with administration, JMU IT, faculty, and students to maintain and expand existing HPC resources, and facilitate research projects while balancing HPC system use.
• Work with university IT and administration to ensure security, connectivity, and disaster recovery, and to build future capacity as needed for the university's research needs.

Qualifications:

Bachelor's Degree in a related field and a minimum of two-three years of work experience as an HPC or Linux administrator, or an equivalent combination of education and experience. Knowledge of scientific programming languages such as C/C++, Fortran, Python, R, etc. Working knowledge of software related to cluster computing and servers, such as Flex, Slurm, PBS/TORQUE, OpenMP, CUDA, OpenMPI/MPICH, VMWare, etc. Experience using and administering Linux and Windows systems. Ability to liaise effectively with faculty and external HPC vendor for trouble-shooting. Ability to utilize and develop tools within the technology field. Willingness to work with and train undergraduate students and faculty researchers; experience with training/instruction of HPC software and hardware preferred.

Additional Posting Information:

JMU's Dual Career and Community Resources Program is available for candidates that will be relocating to the area. For more information, please visit https://bit.ly/2OTF1NG.

Conditions of Employment:

Employment is contingent upon the successful completion of a criminal background check.

E-Verify Notice: After accepting employment, new hires are required to complete an I-9 form and present documentation of their identity and eligibility to work in the United States. James Madison University uses the E-Verify system to confirm identity and work authorization.