HPC Optimization Specialist
To support teaching, research and knowledge transfer, the IT Services (ITS) of ETH Zurich are working as a service organization in a large and complex IT environment. Scientific IT Services (SIS - a section with ITS) aims at bridging the gap between computational research and IT services and infrastructure provisioning. We are working closely together with ETH researchers to offer services and solutions in the wide area of scientific computing from the provisioning of HPC resources, over scientific data analysis and management to research software engineering.
SIS is currently seeking to hire an HPC Optimization Specialist. The objectives of this position are twofold: on the one hand, to extend our HPC user support to help researchers to run their applications and HPC workloads as efficient as possible on ETH's HPC infrastructure; on the other hand, to strengthen our efforts in the utilization of our HPC resources to their full potential given the ever-growing demand as well as in view of ETH's sustainability strategies.
The position is located in Zurich, though occasional travel to other Swiss cities will be required. The position is limited to one year. An extension may be possible subject to budgetary considerations.
Job description
First and foremost, you will need to get a thorough understanding of the various HPC use cases and workload patterns, collect and analyze job metrics and usage statistics, identify inefficiencies on different levels (CPU/GPU, I/O patterns, etc.) and provide corresponding reports. You will work closely with researchers and HPC users and provide expertise on optimizing codes and HPC workloads, conduct scaling analyses by means of performance / profiling tools, identify bottlenecks and develop strategies for optimization. You will inspect codes to take full advantage of multi-core processors, GPUs/accelerators and memory hierarchies (cache, memory, storage) for data throughput, optimize task scheduling to improve load balancing and resource utilization, adapt or modify algorithms to run more efficiently and consult, train and support our users on best practices along those directions. You are expected to take a holistic approach considering various options and defining the most cost-effective solutions for optimization and for increased sustainability. You will coordinate between our customers (i.e., researchers / HPC users) and other members of SIS (e.g., HPC systems engineers, data scientists, research software developers) and external collaborators.
Profile
- a PhD or equivalent in Computational or Computer Science, Engineering, Physics, or a related field;
- proficiency with the command line and the Linux compute environment;
- working knowledge in collecting / analyzing job metrics from various data sources and derive useful information from such data;
- hands-on experience in scaling up and/or parallelizing codes on HPC systems using languages such as e.g., C/C++, Fortran, Python;
- solid knowledge of parallel programming models (e.g., MPI, OpenMP, CUDA) and good understanding of hardware used in large scale HPC clusters such as hybrid CPU+GPU systems, memory hierarchies and file systems;
- experience with job schedulers (e.g., Slurm, FLUX) and cluster resource management;
- familiarity with profiling and debugging tools (e.g., gprof, valgrind, Intel VTune, perf, CUDA profiler);
- experience in applying best practices in scientific computing (e.g. automated testing and version control using Git).
In addition to the above technical skills, this position demands strong problem-solving abilities, the curiosity of learning new things quickly and put them into practice and a detail-oriented attitude with a focus on accuracy and efficiency. A strong interest and willingness to work collaboratively with ETH's HPC user community are required to understand and address their computing needs. Furthermore, very good communication skills in English (German is an asset) to convey complex technical concepts and a service-oriented attitude are necessary to effectively and successfully enable research and scientific collaboration with ETH researchers and their partners.
We offer
This position is driven by our mission to provide first-class HPC services to our customers and offers a unique blend of working opportunities and challenges at the interface of scientific computing and research software engineering at the forefront of technology and within the diverse academic environment of ETH Zurich.
Scientific IT Services provides a stimulating work environment for knowledge sharing and exchange and possibilities for engagement around a vast spectrum of areas in computational science and scientific IT as well as opportunities for further education.
IT Services are committed to flexible and family-friendly working models and a healthy work-life balance. ETH Zurich supports a policy of diversity as well as inclusion and we particularly encourage qualified female candidates to apply.
We value diversity
In line with
our values, ETH Zurich encourages an inclusive culture. We promote equality of opportunity, value diversity and nurture a working and learning environment in which the rights and dignity of all our staff and students are respected. Visit our
Equal Opportunities and Diversity website to find out how we ensure a fair and open environment that allows everyone to grow and flourish.
Curious? So are we.
We look forward to receiving your online application with the following documents:
- Motivation letter;
- CV;
- Diplomas and work certificates;
- Contact information of at least two references.
Please note that we exclusively accept applications submitted through our online application portal. Applications via email or postal services will not be considered.
Further information about Scientific IT Services can be found here. Questions regarding the position should be directed to Dr. Thomas Wüst at twuest@ethz.ch (no applications).
We would like to point out that the pre-selection is carried out by the responsible recruiters and not by artificial intelligence.
For recruitment services the GTC of ETH Zurichapply.
ETH Zurich is one of the world’s leading universities specialising in
science and technology. We are renowned for our excellent education,
cutting-edge fundamental research and direct transfer of new knowledge
into society. Over 30,000 people from more than 120 countries find our
university to be a place that promotes independent thinking and an
environment that inspires excellence. Located in the heart of Europe,
yet forging connections all over the world, we work together to
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