Database Infrastructure Engineer (IT-DA-DB-2026-174-LD) — CERN
- Location
- Genève
- Contract
- full-time
- Posted
- Yesterday
Role overview
Introduction
You will play an active role in the support and evolution of the database systems that underpin the LHC experiments, accelerator operations, and CERN's support services.
In addition to general database administration, you will focus on the engineering, operation, and modernisation of orchestrated High Availability (HA) infrastructures.
- Introduction:
- You will play an active role in the support and evolution of the database systems that underpin the LHC experiments, accelerator operations, and CERN's support services.
Application process
- Provision of technical expertise and troubleshooting support to application development teams.
- Share domain and technical expertise, and provide technical mentorship and training to peers.
- Master's Degree or equivalent relevant experience in the field of Computing Science, or a science discipline (e.g., Physics) with significant computing content, or a related field. Experience:
- Demonstrated experience operating production relational database services, preferably PostgreSQL, in environments where reliability, availability, backup, recovery and service continuity are critical.
- Strong troubleshooting skills in database operations, including performance analysis, query optimisation, replication, clustering, partitioning, upgrades and incident resolution.
- Solid understanding of high-availability and disaster-recovery concepts for relational databases; practical experience with PostgreSQL HA tooling such as Patroni, Consul, HAProxy or PgBouncer would be a strong asset.
- Technical and troubleshooting skills with open-source database clustering and automated failover tools, with experience in Patroni and Consul being a strong asset.
- Solid SQL knowledge with the ability to write and troubleshoot stored procedures, functions, tables, indexes, and constraints, and to support application teams in diagnosing database-related issues.
Company and context
- Diversity has been an integral part of CERN's mission since its foundation and is an established value of the Organization.
- Employing a diverse workforce is central to our success.
- Work during nights, Sundays and official holidays, when required by the needs of the Organization.
- Stand-by duty, when required by the needs of the Organization. Job grade: 6-7 Job reference: IT-DA-DB-2026-174-LD Field of work: Software Engineering and IT Benchmark Job Title: Computing Engineer Global Benefits
- A competitive salary (tax free), increasing in line with your years of relevant experience.
- 30 days of paid leave per year plus 2 weeks annual closure.
- Coverage by CERN’s comprehensive health insurance scheme (for yourself, your spouse and children), and membership of the CERN Pension Fund.
- Family, child and infant monthly allowances depending on your individual circumstances.
- A relocation package (installation grant, removal, travel expenses) depending on your individual circumstances.
- Possibility to extend your contract up to 8 years + eligibility for indefinite contract tenure.
Additional details
- A hands-on engineering role focused on the reliability, automation and evolution of CERN’s PostgreSQL and relational database platforms, with a particular focus on high availability, resilience and service continuity for mission-critical scientific and organisational services.
- Definition and evolution of database architecture, resilience, disaster recovery, and service continuity strategies.
- Master's Degree or equivalent relevant experience in the field of Computing Science, or a science discipline (e.g., Physics) with significant computing content, or a related field.
- Ability to work collaboratively with infrastructure and application teams, document operational procedures, share knowledge and contribute to the continuous improvement of database services. Technical competencies:
- Architecture and design of ICT systems: ability to design resilient, distributed infrastructure components supporting high availability, failover, traffic routing and service continuity. Behavioural competencies:
- Learning and Sharing Knowledge: keeping up-to-date with developments in own field of expertise and readily absorbing new information.
- Spoken and written English, with a commitment to learn French. Eligibility and closing date:
- This vacancy will be filled as soon as possible, and applications should normally reach us no later than 02.09.2026 at 23:59 CEST. Employment Conditions:
- Subject to certain conditions, holders of limited-duration contracts may apply for an indefinite position. Working Hours: 40 hours per week Job Flexibility: Hybrid This position involves:
- Stand-by duty, when required by the needs of the Organization. Job reference: IT-DA-DB-2026-174-LD Field of work: Software Engineering and IT Benchmark Job Title: Computing Engineer
Notes and original content
- Experience:
- Ability to work collaboratively with infrastructure and application teams, document operational procedures, share knowledge and contribute to the continuous improvement of database services.
- Technical competencies:
- Architecture and design of ICT systems: ability to design resilient, distributed infrastructure components supporting high availability, failover, traffic routing and service continuity.
- Behavioural competencies:
- Language skills:
- Spoken and written English, with a commitment to learn French.
- Eligibility and closing date:
- This vacancy will be filled as soon as possible, and applications should normally reach us no later than 02.09.2026 at 23:59 CEST.
- Employment Conditions:
Questions about this listing
What salary does CERN offer for this role?
CERN lists CHF 60'500 - 91'500 gross per year for this position in Genève. This is the salary published in the original listing (or, when the employer omits a figure, a realistic estimate for the role and sector) — the calculator on this site converts it to your actual net take-home once cross-border tax and social contributions are applied.
Is this a full-time role, and what type of contract does CERN offer?
This listing is a full-time position. The contract type shown here comes directly from the employer's original posting; always confirm exact hours, notice period and probation length with CERN during the application process, since these details can vary by role even within the same contract category.
Do I need a cross-border work permit for a role in Geneva?
EU/EFTA residents living in the border zone of the country adjoining Canton Geneva can apply for a G permit; the Swiss employer files it with that canton's migration office after the contract is signed. Border-zone rules and processing times vary by neighbouring country and canton, so confirm the specifics with Geneva's cantonal migration office or with HR during the application.
How do I apply for this position at CERN?
Use the "Apply now" button on this page — it links directly to CERN's original listing at jobs.smartrecruiters.com, so your application goes straight to the employer's own applicant-tracking system. Frontaliere Ticino does not collect or forward applications itself.
