Learning Systems Data Engineer
OpenAI · New York City Metropolitan Area
- On site
- Full-time
- $150,000 / year
- New York City Metropolitan Area
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Job highlights
- Build AI learning infrastructure for global access.
- Develop adaptive learning and progress tracking systems.
- Design data pipelines for educational insights.
- Empower educators with user-friendly tools.
- Impact millions of learners worldwide.
About the role
About The Team
The Education team at OpenAI is building systems that help make ChatGPT a highly effective learning partner. As AI progress continues to accelerate, our goal is to design learning capabilities that help individuals, developers, educators, and organizations move from curiosity to mastery with the help of AI tools.This team works at the intersection of AI systems, learning science, and large-scale platforms to build the infrastructure for AI-native learning experiences globally.
About The Role
OpenAI is seeking a Learning Systems Engineer to help build the infrastructure behind AI-native learning experiences. This role sits at the intersection of backend systems, learning science, research, and product.You will translate pedagogical goals into production systems: learner models, progress tracking, adaptive feedback loops, formative assessments, and analytics to measure whether people are actually learning.
Your work will help ensure that millions of people around the world can learn effectively and build real capability with AI.
What You'll Work On
- Build AI-Native Learning Infrastructure: Develop core systems for AI education, including dynamic experiences, progress tracking, and assessments.
- Enable Adaptive Learning: Develop capabilities that allow learning experiences to dynamically adapt to learners’ knowledge, goals, and behaviors over time.
- Design Data Systems for Insights: Build data pipelines and analytics systems to help educators understand learner outcomes, engagement patterns, and skill development.
- Empower Educators: Build systems that allow non-engineers to design, configure, and experiment with learning experiences without requiring direct engineering support.
What Success Looks Like In The First 12 Months
- Help launch new AI learning experiences that reach a broad set of learners.
- Refine infrastructure that allows educators to deliver adaptive learning and assessments.
- Validate the learning analytics pipeline to provide deeper insights into AI driven learning.
- Empower education teams to use AI tools to build and iterate at scale.
Core Qualifications
- 5–10+ years of experience in software, data, or learning engineering.
- Experience building data systems or infrastructure that support education & training.
- Experience working with learning data, analytics pipelines, or educational metrics.
- Comfort translating learning or pedagogical goals into technical systems.
Strong Additional Qualifications
- Background in learning science, instructional design, or education research.
- Experience building LMS platforms or training infrastructure.
- Experience with learning analytics, learner data models, or educational measurement.
- Experience building systems that incorporate AI models into educational workflows.
- Experience with credentialing, certification systems, or competency frameworks.
- Experience building platforms used by non-technical educators or curriculum teams.
Relevant Backgrounds
- Education technology engineering.
- Learning analytics or educational data systems.
- Instructional technology platforms.
- Training platforms for technical products.
- AI tutoring systems or adaptive learning platforms.
Why This Role Matters
AI will fundamentally transform how people learn, work, and create. This role is essential for building the systems that ensure the benefits of AI are accessible to all, enabling learners worldwide to develop meaningful capability with this foundational technology.About OpenAI
OpenAI is an AI research and deployment company dedicated to ensuring that general-purpose artificial intelligence benefits all of humanity. We push the boundaries of the capabilities of AI systems and seek to safely deploy them to the world through our products. AI is an extremely powerful tool that must be created with safety and human needs at its core, and to achieve our mission, we must encompass and value the many different perspectives, voices, and experiences that form the full spectrum of humanity.We are an equal opportunity employer, and we do not discriminate on the basis of race, religion, color, national origin, sex, sexual orientation, age, veteran status, disability, genetic information, or other applicable legally protected characteristic.
For additional information, please see OpenAI’s Affirmative Action and Equal Employment Opportunity Policy Statement.
Background checks for applicants will be administered in accordance with applicable law, and qualified applicants with arrest or conviction records will be considered for employment consistent with those laws, including the San Francisco Fair Chance Ordinance, the Los Angeles County Fair Chance Ordinance for Employers, and the California Fair Chance Act, for US-based candidates.
For unincorporated Los Angeles County workers: we reasonably believe that criminal history may have a direct, adverse and negative relationship with the following job duties, potentially resulting in the withdrawal of a conditional offer of employment: protect computer hardware entrusted to you from theft, loss or damage; return all computer hardware in your possession (including the data contained therein) upon termination of employment or end of assignment; and maintain the confidentiality of proprietary, confidential, and non-public information. In addition, job duties require access to secure and protected information technology systems and related data security obligations.
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We are committed to providing reasonable accommodations to applicants with disabilities, and requests can be made via this link.
OpenAI Global Applicant Privacy Policy
At OpenAI, we believe artificial intelligence has the potential to help people solve immense global challenges, and we want the upside of AI to be widely shared. Join us in shaping the future of technology.
Key skills/competency
- Learning Systems Data Engineer
- AI Education Infrastructure
- Adaptive Learning Systems
- Learning Data Pipelines
- Educational Metrics
- Pedagogical Goals Translation
- LMS Platforms
- Learning Analytics
- AI Integration
- Non-technical User Systems
Skills & topics
- Learning Systems Data Engineer
- Data Engineering
- AI Education
- Learning Analytics
- Adaptive Learning
- Backend Systems
- Data Pipelines
- Educational Technology
- Software Engineering
- OpenAI
How to get hired
- Tailor your resume: Highlight experience in data engineering, learning systems, and AI education, aligning with OpenAI's focus.
- Showcase impact: Quantify achievements in building data systems or infrastructure for education and training.
- Demonstrate technical skills: Emphasize experience with data pipelines, learning analytics, and translating pedagogical goals.
- Research OpenAI's mission: Understand their commitment to AI safety and benefiting humanity to tailor your answers.
- Prepare for technical and behavioral questions: Expect deep dives into your engineering experience and alignment with OpenAI's values.
Technical preparation
Master data pipeline tools (e.g., Spark, Kafka).,Practice SQL for complex data analysis.,Build projects involving educational data.,Familiarize with AI/ML concepts in education.
Behavioral questions
Describe a complex system you designed.,How do you translate non-technical goals?,Share an experience with educational data.,How do you ensure AI benefits all users?
Frequently asked questions
- What specific data engineering skills are most important for the Learning Systems Data Engineer role at OpenAI?
- For the Learning Systems Data Engineer position at OpenAI, strong skills in building and maintaining robust data pipelines, experience with learning data and analytics, and the ability to translate pedagogical goals into technical systems are crucial. Proficiency in designing and implementing systems for progress tracking, adaptive feedback, and formative assessments is also highly valued.
- How does OpenAI ensure that AI benefits all of humanity, and how does this role contribute to that mission?
- OpenAI's mission is to ensure general-purpose AI benefits all of humanity. The Learning Systems Data Engineer contributes by building AI-native learning experiences that make AI education accessible and effective globally, enabling more people to develop capabilities with this powerful technology.
- What is the typical team structure for the Education team at OpenAI?
- The Education team at OpenAI likely comprises a mix of AI researchers, learning scientists, software engineers, data engineers, and product managers. This interdisciplinary approach allows them to integrate AI systems, learning science, and large-scale platforms to create effective AI-native learning experiences.
- Can candidates with a background in instructional design or education research apply for the Learning Systems Data Engineer role?
- Yes, candidates with a background in learning science, instructional design, or education research are strongly encouraged to apply. These backgrounds, combined with technical skills, are highly valuable for translating pedagogical goals into effective learning systems.
- What kind of learning data will a Learning Systems Data Engineer at OpenAI work with?
- A Learning Systems Data Engineer at OpenAI will likely work with diverse learning data, including learner progress, engagement patterns, assessment results, and feedback data. This data is used to build learner models, refine adaptive learning systems, and provide insights into educational outcomes.
- How does OpenAI approach the safety and ethical considerations of AI in educational products?
- OpenAI emphasizes safety and human needs at the core of AI development. For educational products, this means ensuring fairness, accessibility, and effectiveness, likely involving careful consideration of data privacy, algorithmic bias, and the pedagogical soundness of AI-driven learning experiences.
- What are the opportunities for professional growth in a Learning Systems Data Engineer role at OpenAI?
- This role offers significant growth opportunities at the forefront of AI and education. You'll work with cutting-edge AI technology, contribute to foundational learning systems, and have the chance to impact millions of users globally, fostering deep expertise in a rapidly evolving field.