UX/Human Factors Engineer

MIT Lincoln Laboratory Assistant Staff provide critical support for domain-level innovative research supporting the Laboratory's national security mission. They prototype state-of-the-art technology solutions and engage in many steps of a program lifecycle. As an Assistant Staff member, you will work with multidisciplinary project teams assisting with solutions to complex to moderately complex problems through research and technology development activities. In this highly contributory role, you will develop and grow your understanding of the Laboratory and the work we do for our research sponsors and on behalf of the nation while taking on defined research and technical assignments. Depending on the level, you will complete clearly scoped assignments with guidance or apply established methods with limited oversight while taking greater ownership of defined technical work.

As a successful candidate, you will bring a strong technical foundation, curiosity, and an aptitude for technical growth. You will develop or deepen expertise within a primary technical domain, broaden your awareness of adjacent areas, and support activities such as hardware and software development, systems analysis, data analysis, component fabrication, system integration, testing, and documentation.

Our group is seeking a highly motivated UX/Human Factors Engineer to join our diverse and multi-functional team. In this role, you will support qualitative user research and contribute to the iterative design and prototyping of our group's growing set of data science enabling platforms and AI-enabled decision support tools for meeting the needs of the US Government. You will partner with key stakeholders to understand end user needs, translate findings into workflows and low-fidelity designs, and help offload research and design tasks across the team. This role is grounded in qualitative research and is well suited to someone who is detail-oriented, curious, and able to synthesize input across multiple parties, from end users to stakeholders. Given the multidisciplinary nature of our projects, you will also have opportunities to contribute to broader analytical efforts that extend beyond traditional UX research and design, directly informing human-centered design of complex systems in a mission-driven environment.

The research and design activities would include planning and conducting qualitative user research, translating findings into user workflows, developing wireframes and low-fidelity designs, conducting user testing, synthesizing findings into research-supported recommendations, and communicating those findings and recommendations to multi-disciplinary research and development teams.

• Support design, development, data analysis, programming, testing, troubleshooting, modeling, simulation, and documentation of systems or prototypes.
• Apply basic or established technical practices, tools, and procedures to complete defined tasks and solve routine technical problems.
• Contribute to data collection, documentation, and component- or subsystem-level deliverables supporting broader research and mission-focused efforts.
• Learn and apply relevant mission context, technical standards, systems, platforms, and project processes.
• Communicate progress, technical results, assumptions, risks, and questions clearly and incorporate feedback into technical work products.
• Depending on level, identify small process improvements and assist new hires, interns, or less experienced staff.
• This is an onsite position.

Candidates will be considered for the appropriate level based on their education, experience, demonstrated technical capabilities, and the scope and complexity of their prior work.

Level 1 - Assistant Staff

• Bachelor's degree in a STEM discipline or other relevant technical field, or equivalent relevant experience.
• Typically, no technical experience or relevant research experience required.
• Foundational understanding of research principles, analytical methods, and structured problem solving.
• Ability to learn and apply technical tools, systems, standards, and procedures within a team environment.
• Effective written and verbal communication skills, including the ability to document work clearly, ask clarifying questions, and interact respectfully with colleagues, sponsors, and other stakeholders.
• Demonstrated collaboration, curiosity, attention to detail, and willingness to receive and apply feedback.

Level 2 - Assistant Staff

• Bachelor's degree in a STEM discipline or other relevant technical field, or equivalent relevant experience.
• Typically, 1+ years of relevant research, engineering, or other technical experience; a Master's degree may be considered.
• Demonstrated ability to apply concepts and technical methods to routine problems.
• Working knowledge of relevant tools, systems, standards, and documentation practices used in project execution.
• Ability to complete assigned tasks accurately, manage time effectively, and communicate progress and risks.
• Collaborative working style with an emerging ability to support others, contribute to team learning, and interact respectfully with colleagues, sponsors, and other stakeholders.

• Bachelor's degree in Human Factors, UX Research, Engineering Psychology, or a related discipline.
• Demonstrated experience in qualitative user research, including behavioral, ethnographic, or comparable methods for generating end user insights.
• Proficiency in engaging with stakeholders to gather and understand user needs and conduct user evaluations.
• Experience producing low-fidelity deliverables, including wireframes and user workflows.
• Ability to think critically, be intellectually curious, and problem solve by iterating
• The ability to ask insightful questions, navigate ambiguous or novel challenges, and iteratively develop and refine solutions.
• Proficiency with core UX/UI tools such as Figma, Sketch, or similar.
• Excellent written and oral communication skills.
• Portfolio of work that demonstrates experience contributing to or leading behavioral research (end user, stakeholder, or both).

• Experience with quantitative research or data analysis.
• Experience organizing, analyzing, and synthesizing complex datasets or information from multiple sources.
• Ability to produce polished high-fidelity UI designs.
• Experience developing or contributing to design systems or component libraries.
• Basic front-end development skills.