Senior Full Stack Developer

Position Overview

St. Thomas University seeks a highly skilled Senior Full Stack Developer to lead the production deployment, ongoing development, and technical evolution of Bobcat Pathway360™, the University's next-generation Student Success Operating System and Student Information System (SIS).

Bobcat Pathway360™ is a university-designed platform that unifies student success, academic advising, retention analytics, financial wellness, family engagement, and administrative compliance into a single integrated ecosystem. The platform serves as the operational backbone for monitoring and supporting the student journey from enrollment through graduation.

The successful candidate will transform an advanced prototype into a secure, scalable, enterprise-grade application capable of supporting thousands of students, faculty, advisors, administrators, and authorized family members while maintaining strict FERPA compliance and institutional security standards.

This position requires expertise across modern frontend development, backend engineering, relational databases, artificial intelligence integration, cloud deployment, and enterprise security architecture.

About Bobcat Pathway360™

Bobcat Pathway360™ consists of several integrated operational modules:

Integrated Academics & Mentorship

• Degree Pathway Engine
• Academic Advising Center
• Student Journey Mapping

• Academic Milestone Tracking
• Mentorship Coordination

Financial Integrity Command Centre

• Student Account Monitoring
• Financial Clearance Tracking
• Work-Study Management
• Earnings Threshold Monitoring
• Financial Literacy Modules

Early Outreach & Predictive Retention

• Student Risk Detection
• Retention Analytics
• Intervention Workflows
• Academic Performance Monitoring
• Financial Stress Indicators

FERPA-Compliant Family Academy

• Authorized Parent Access
• Academic Achievement Monitoring
• Student Support Checklists
• Family Communication Tools
• Care Package Logistics Management

Administrative & Compliance Systems

• Registrar Console
• Administrative Control Center
• Audit Management
• Student Record Change Tracking
• Compliance Monitoring

Essential Responsibilities
Full Stack Application Development

• Design, develop, test, and maintain production-grade application features across frontend and backend systems using incremental delivery.
• Convert prototype functionality into scalable enterprise architecture.

• Build reusable application components and services.
• Maintain code quality through documentation, testing, and peer review.
• Optimize system performance and reliability.

Frontend Engineering

• Develop advanced user interfaces using React and TypeScript.
• Create responsive experiences for students, advisors, faculty, parents, and administrators.
• Implement robust state management strategies.
• Prevent rendering issues, state synchronization failures, and performance bottlenecks.
• Maintain accessibility standards and ADA compliance.
• Develop responsive layouts utilizing Tailwind CSS and modern frontend architecture.

Backend Development

• Design and maintain APIs and backend services.
• Build secure authentication and authorization systems.
• Implement business logic supporting academic, financial, and retention workflows.
• Develop integrations with institutional and third-party systems.
• Maintain application logging, monitoring, and auditing functionality.

Database Architecture & Security

• Design and maintain relational database structures.
• Develop efficient SQL queries and database optimization strategies.
• Implement Row-Level Security (RLS) policies to ensure proper data segregation.
• Enforce student-level access controls preventing unauthorized record access.
• Support audit trails and compliance reporting requirements.

Artificial Intelligence Development

• Design and implement AI-powered features that support student success and institutional operations.
• Integrate Large Language Models (LLMs) into advising, retention, and administrative workflows.
• Develop intelligent recommendation engines and AI-assisted student support systems.
• Implement Retrieval-Augmented Generation (RAG) architectures and institutional knowledge search capabilities.
• Support future AI initiatives including predictive student success analytics and advisor copilots.

Security & Compliance

• Implement FERPA-compliant data governance controls.

• Support GDPR and privacy-by-design principles.
• Maintain zero-trust security architecture.
• Ensure secure transmission and storage of sensitive information.
• Apply encryption standards for data in transit and at rest.
• Participate in security reviews and compliance audits.

Systems Integration

• Build secure integrations with institutional systems and external vendors.
• Develop server-side API proxy architectures.
• Protect sensitive credentials using environment-based configuration management.
• Integrate modern AI services and enterprise applications.

Required Qualifications
Education

Bachelor's degree in Computer Science, Software Engineering, Information Systems, or a related field.

Equivalent professional experience may be considered.
Experience:

• Minimum 5 years of professional full-stack development experience.
• Experience deploying and supporting production applications.
• Experience building applications that manage sensitive or regulated data.
• Experience working within enterprise software environments.

Required Technical Skills

Frontend Technologies

• React
• TypeScript
• JavaScript (ES6+)
• HTML5
• CSS3
• Tailwind CSS
• Responsive Design
• State Management Patterns

Backend Technologies

• Node.js
• REST APIs
• Authentication & Authorization Frameworks
• Server-Side API Development
• Environment Variable Management
• Secure Application Architecture

Database Technologies

• PostgreSQL
• Relational Database Design
• SQL Query Optimization
• Database Security
• Row-Level Security (RLS)
• Data Modeling

AI & Intelligent Systems

• OpenAI API Integration
• Anthropic API Integration
• Prompt Engineering
• Retrieval-Augmented Generation (RAG)
• AI Workflow Design
• Conversational Interfaces
• AI Security & Governance

Security & Compliance

• FERPA
• GDPR
• ADA Accessibility Standards
• TLS/SSL Encryption
• Secure Coding Practices
• Zero-Trust Security Principles

Development & DevOps

• Git
• GitHub
• CI/CD Pipelines
• Application Monitoring
• Logging Frameworks
• Cloud Deployment Workflows

Preferred Qualifications

• Master's degree in Computer Science, Information Systems, or related field.
• Experience in Higher Education technology environments.
• Experience with Student Information Systems (SIS).
• Experience with Ellucian Colleague, Banner, or similar higher education platforms.
• Experience developing student success and retention applications.
• Experience with Supabase.
• Experience with Next.js.
• Experience with Vercel deployment environments.
• Experience with Docker and containerized applications.
• Experience implementing predictive analytics and machine learning solutions.

Success Factors

The successful candidate will:

• Lead the transition of Bobcat Pathway360™ from prototype to production.
• Establish a scalable technical foundation supporting future university growth.
• Implement FERPA-compliant security and governance controls.
• Deliver highly responsive user experiences across desktop and mobile devices.
• Build AI-enabled capabilities that improve student outcomes and operational efficiency.
• Maintain high system availability, security, and performance standards.

Required Qualifications

Education

Bachelor's degree in Computer Science, Software Engineering, Information Systems, or a related field.

Equivalent professional experience may be considered.

Experience

• Minimum 5 years of professional full-stack development experience.
• Experience deploying and supporting production applications.
• Experience building applications that manage sensitive or regulated data.
• Experience working within enterprise software environments.

Required Technical Skills

Frontend Technologies

• React
• TypeScript
• JavaScript (ES6+)
• HTML5
• CSS3
• Tailwind CSS
• Responsive Design
• State Management Patterns

Backend Technologies

• Node.js
• REST APIs
• Authentication & Authorization Frameworks
• Server-Side API Development
• Environment Variable Management
• Secure Application Architecture

Database Technologies

• PostgreSQL
• Relational Database Design
• SQL Query Optimization
• Database Security
• Row-Level Security (RLS)
• Data Modeling

AI & Intelligent Systems

• OpenAI API Integration
• Anthropic API Integration
• Prompt Engineering
• Retrieval-Augmented Generation (RAG)
• AI Workflow Design
• Conversational Interfaces
• AI Security & Governance

Security & Compliance

• FERPA
• GDPR
• ADA Accessibility Standards
• TLS/SSL Encryption
• Secure Coding Practices
• Zero-Trust Security Principles

Development & DevOps

• Git
• GitHub
• CI/CD Pipelines
• Application Monitoring
• Logging Frameworks
• Cloud Deployment Workflows

Preferred Qualifications

• Master's degree in Computer Science, Information Systems, or related field.
• Experience in Higher Education technology environments.
• Experience with Student Information Systems (SIS).
• Experience with Ellucian Colleague, Banner, or similar higher education platforms.
• Experience developing student success and retention applications.
• Experience with Supabase.
• Experience with Next.js.
• Experience with Vercel deployment environments.
• Experience with Docker and containerized applications.
• Experience implementing predictive analytics and machine learning solutions.

Why Join St. Thomas University?

This role offers a unique opportunity to help architect and build a next-generation Student Success Operating System from the ground up. The successful candidate will directly influence how students, advisors, faculty, administrators, and families engage with the University while leveraging modern technologies including AI, advanced analytics, secure cloud architecture, and enterprise-scale application development.

You will be building technology that directly impacts student success, retention, graduation outcomes, and institutional transformation.