Software Developer/Engineer

AI/Software Developer — Nursing Simulation Platform (Part-Time Contract, UT Austin) Remote-friendly | Part-time contract, 8-12 hrs/week About Project HAPINES Project HAPINES (History and Physicals in Nursing Education Systems) is an AI-powered clinical simulation platform that teaches nurse practitioner students how to take a patient history, reason through differential diagnoses, and write competency-mapped assessments and plans — aligned to the AACN/NONPF Essentials. Built at UT Austin in partnership with CHITA (Center for Health Innovations and Technology Advancements), HAPINES is an online nursing simulation platform. This position is funded through a Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board (THECB) Nursing Innovation Grant Program award. Contract renewal beyond each 3-month term is contingent on continued work. The Role We're looking for a coding expert to work directly with our small research team to optimize and extend the HAPINES platform — someone who's comfortable with both traditional software engineering and applied AI/LLM work, and who wants to build something real that's already in use with students. What You'll Do Optimize performance, reliability, and cost-efficiency of the existing AI patient-simulation and grading engine Work with LLM APIs (e.g., Claude, OpenAI) to improve conversational realism, scoring consistency, and prompt reliability Improve and extend the faculty dashboard and competency-mapping/analytics features Debug, refactor, and document existing code as the platform scales to more students and institutions Collaborate closely with the PI, CHITA's technical team, and other student developers on architecture and feature decisions Help evaluate hosting/infrastructure choices (AWS) for cost and performance What We're Looking For Strong software engineering fundamentals — comfortable across backend, frontend, and databases Real experience working with LLM/AI APIs and prompt design, not just theoretical familiarity Ability to read and improve an existing codebase, not just build from scratch Self-directed — this is a small team; you'll need to work well with limited day-to-day oversight Comfortable working within an academic/research environment and timeline Nice to Have Experience with healthcare, EdTech, or simulation/training platforms Familiarity with FERPA or other student-data privacy considerations Experience with LMS integrations (Canvas, LTI) or SSO Interest in health professions education or nursing/clinical workflows Contract Details Hours: 8-12 hours/week Structure: Initial 3-month contract, with the option to renew in 3-month increments for up to 24 months total, contingent on performance Start date: September 15, 2026 Compensation: $100-150/hour 8-12 hours/week Location: Remote-friendly; occasional availability for team check-ins with UT Austin-based collaborators via Zoom Reports to: Dr. Amanda Alvarado (PI) Funding source: Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board (THECB) Nursing Innovation Grant Program Work product/IP: This is a work-for-hire arrangement — code and materials developed under this contract are owned by UT Austin and THECB, consistent with standard university and state-grant IP terms. How to Apply Apply here:https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSfGZpGumdGNlp1ieZF3-53W3eJhFoLB5SzKDwPKjfISxHBREQ/viewform?usp=sharing&ouid=109051454239780326409 Please include your availability starting September 15 and any scheduling constraints for the 8-12 hrs/week commitment. Pay: $100.00 - $150.00 per hour Work Location: Remote