Junior Software Developer

About Cogent Infotech
Cogent Infotech is a global IT consulting and technology solutions company headquartered in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. We help organizations solve complex business challenges through innovative and scalable technology solutions across AI/ML, analytics, cloud, cybersecurity, application development, workforce solutions, and public-sector services.
With more than two decades of experience, Cogent has completed 10,000+ projects, supports 150+ U.S. government contracts, and works with 70+ Fortune 500 companies. Our focus is on delivering technology-driven solutions that help organizations modernize, operate efficiently, and build future-ready capabilities.

Job Title: Junior Software Developer
Experience: 2+ Years
Location: Lafayette, LA or Knoxville, TN | Hybrid
Salary: $52k–$123k per annum

Job Summary
We are seeking a Junior Software Developer to join an Agile software development team building and modernizing services-based web applications. The ideal candidate will contribute to the design, development, testing, and continuous improvement of modern enterprise applications using a Java-focused development stack and cloud-native technologies.
This role provides an opportunity to work across the software development lifecycle, develop technical and leadership skills, collaborate with cross-functional teams, and gain hands-on experience with technologies including Java, Spring Boot, Angular, Kubernetes, Docker, AWS, and AI-assisted development tools.

Key Responsibilities

• Help define and develop application architecture and ongoing software development using modern engineering practices.
• Develop and organize application code using best practices while contributing technical knowledge and learning from experienced team members.
• Participate in all phases of the Agile software development lifecycle, including requirements gathering, design, estimation, coding, code reviews, and software testing.
• Develop and review web application code using AI-assisted paired programming techniques with Angular, Java, JavaScript, and related technologies.
• Deploy applications to Kubernetes environments.
• Apply knowledge of data structures, including JSON and YAML, problem-solving, algorithm design, and algorithm analysis.
• Develop applications using the Spring Framework, including Spring Boot, Spring Batch, and Spring Data.
• Build and enhance RESTful systems with a focus on API design.
• Participate in daily team discussions, technical collaboration, and code reviews to support continuous progress.
• Participate in client, industry, and end-user discussions and provide technical input on application capabilities.
• Contribute to technical design sessions, sustainable and high-performing features, estimates, and development timelines.
• Continuously improve development tools, processes, and technologies.
• Create and maintain automated testing scripts for applications.
• Contribute to improvements in system architecture and application performance.
• Develop a general understanding of database design and optimize application access to backend data.

Required Qualifications

• Minimum 2 years of directly related software development experience.
• Experience working in an Agile software development environment.
• At least 2 years of experience with HTML, CSS, JavaScript, and Java development across front-end and back-end applications.
• Experience with AI-assisted paired programming tools.
• Exposure to modern Java development tools and environments such as Maven, Git, Tomcat, Eclipse, Bamboo, and Hibernate.
• Experience with Kubernetes, Docker, or similar container technologies.
• Ability to work independently and collaboratively in a dynamic development environment.
• Ability to consistently deliver quality code for team review and product owner demonstration.
• Strong communication skills with internal team members and customers.
• Positive, can-do attitude and willingness to contribute across a wide range of team activities.
• Ability to research, learn, and apply emerging software development technologies quickly.

Desired Qualifications

• Java/JEE, Spring Framework, Spring Boot, Spring REST/JAX-RS, Web Services, Security, Controllers/Services, and Spring Data ORM using Hibernate/JPA 2.
• JSON and modern web application development.
• AWS Serverless Services including SQS, SNS, SES, Step Functions, and Lambda.
• AWS Analytics services including Glue, Redshift, EMR, OpenSearch, Athena, SageMaker, and QuickSight.
• Event streaming technologies such as Kafka.
• Web and application servers such as Apache and JBoss EAP.
• Open-source frameworks and libraries including commons-* libraries, Ehcache, Velocity, AOP Alliance, Mail, Swagger, and related technologies.
• User authentication and authorization technologies such as ForgeRock OpenAM, SecureAuth, and Okta.
• UI/UX technologies including Angular and Bootstrap.
• Databases including AWS RDS for Oracle and PostgreSQL.
• Log management and monitoring tools such as Datadog, Google Analytics, and New Relic.
• CI/CD and engineering tools including Jenkins, SonarQube, Nexus, and Selenium.
• Load testing using JMeter.
• Code management tools including Git and GitHub.
• Collaboration and project tools such as JIRA, Confluence, Bitbucket, and SourceTree.
• Consulting experience.
• Exposure to AWS AI services and application development involving artificial intelligence.

Education
Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science, Computer Engineering, or another technical discipline preferred.

Key Skills
Application Development, Back-End Development, Java, JavaScript, HTML, CSS, Spring Boot, Spring Framework, REST APIs, Angular, Artificial Intelligence, AI-Assisted Development, AWS, Kubernetes, Docker, Maven, Git, GitHub, Hibernate, CI/CD, Automated Testing.

Equal Opportunity Employer
Cogent Infotech is committed to providing equal employment opportunities and maintaining an inclusive workplace. Employment decisions are made without discrimination based on any characteristic protected by applicable law.