Platform Engineering Intern

Job Description

Platform Engineering Intern | Software Engineering Institute (SEI)

The Tone:
This is an internship at Software Engineering Institute (SEI), located in Pittsburgh, PA. SEI is at the forefront of evolving modern warfare through software, transitioning from traditional DevSecOps to Platform Engineering. This role focuses on building resilient, automated, and secure developer and operational platforms for the Department of War. Your work will directly contribute to creating the digital foundries that enable the nation’s most critical programs to deploy secure code quickly at the tactical edge.

The TL;DR
• Role: Internship
• Type: Full time
• Location: In-person, Pittsburgh, PA

• Team: DevSecOps Innovation Team
• Mission: Bridge the gap between complex software engineering and operational reality, contributing to resilient, automated, and secure platforms for defense programs.
• Tech Stack: Kubernetes, Terraform, GitOps, Docker

What You’ll Actually Do
• Architect Platforms: Assist in designing and maintaining robust CI/CD pipelines and cloud-native ecosystems that prioritize security and developer experience.
• Collaborate & Consult: Work alongside SEI experts to analyze customer requirements and translate them into actionable engineering workflows.
• Automate Everything: Use tools like Kubernetes, Terraform, and GitOps to ensure our systems are repeatable, scalable, and resilient against sophisticated threats.
• Innovate: Research and demonstrate new techniques in software supply chain security and automated system recovery.
• Operationalize Resilience: Help government programs move past “checkbox security” to automated, continuous Authority to Operate (ATO) processes.

The Must-Haves
• Background: Enrolled in a degree granting program, a passion for Platform Engineering and a “systems thinking” mindset.
• Experience: Familiarity with the DevSecOps lifecycle (Code, Build, Test, Release, Deploy, Monitor), and exposure to containerization (Docker/Kubernetes) and cloud environments.
• Skills: Strong communication skills—you can explain the why behind the how.
• Bonus: A desire to apply high-level engineering to protect and support those in the field.