Data Scientist (TS/SCI)

Who is Recruiting from Scratch:

Recruiting from Scratch is a premier talent firm that focuses on placing the best product managers, software, and hardware talent at innovative companies. Our team is 100% remote and we work with teams across the United States to help them hire.

About the client:

Title of Role: Data Scientist (TS/SCI Clearance Required)

Location: Washington, DC (Hybrid – SCIF access required)

Company Stage of Funding: Series C Venture-Backed

Office Type: Hybrid (Primarily remote with 1+ day per week onsite at SCIF)

Salary: $150,000 – $220,000 + Equity

Company Description

Our client is a mission-driven, AI-powered technology company transforming how government and defense organizations tackle complex operational challenges. Backed by a decade of research from a top-tier academic institution and key partnerships in the national security space, this venture-backed startup (Series C) is redefining readiness and decision-making with cutting-edge machine learning and data visualization tools. Their growing team blends technical depth with real-world impact in a fast-paced, collaborative environment.

This is an opportunity to be part of a nimble, ambitious team working at the intersection of AI, cybersecurity, and defense innovation—building AI systems that matter.

What You Will Do

Design and deploy machine learning models to solve high-impact problems across national security and defense use cases.

Leverage a proprietary AI platform to rapidly develop solutions in areas like cyber analytics, readiness assessment, and operational efficiency.

Work with structured and unstructured data—transforming raw datasets into powerful, actionable insights.

Interface directly with clients and stakeholders, contributing to projects that typically run for 6+ months.

Collaborate with cross-functional teams to integrate models into production environments, many of which require access to secure SCIF facilities.

Travel occasionally to customer sites or HQ (Pasadena, CA) as needed.

Ideal Candidate Background

Security Clearance: Must hold an active TS/SCI clearance.

Experience:

4+ years of hands-on experience with Python-based data science or data engineering.

1+ year deploying machine learning models in a production environment.

Experience leading development efforts within SCIFs or other security-sensitive environments.

Education: Degree in Computer Science, Engineering, or a related technical field from a top-tier university.

Skills:

Python (pandas, numpy, sklearn, tensorflow/pytorch, matplotlib)

Git for version control

SQL/NoSQL databases (Elasticsearch, graph DBs, etc.)

Docker and/or Kubernetes

Cyber analytics tools (e.g., PCAP analysis, CVEs, network monitoring)

Distributed computing frameworks (Spark, Dask, Kafka, Snowpark)

Workflow orchestration (e.g., Airflow, Celery, Prefect)

Web development experience with Flask or Django

Preferred

Prior experience at a defense tech startup, cybersecurity company, National Lab, or aerospace/AI enterprise.

Familiarity with mission-critical systems or real-time data environments.

Strong client-facing communication and problem-solving skills.

Demonstrated ability to contribute quickly on fast-paced technical projects.

Compensation, Benefits & Other Info

Base Salary: $150,000 – $220,000

Equity: 5,000 shares

Work Schedule: 40-hour work week with flexible hours (core hours 10am–4pm)

Work Environment: Hybrid – candidates must be local to the DC/NoVA area and able to access secure government facilities as required

Travel: Occasional travel to HQ or customer sites

Join a team that blends technical excellence with national purpose. This is a chance to build tools that have a real-world mission impact—apply your skills where they count most.