Data Architect

By joining the National Student Clearinghouse, you can be sure that the work you do now will help shape the future of education and the workforce in the U.S. As the trusted source for higher education data since 1993, the Clearinghouse is the leading provider of transcript and data exchange services, automated enrollment and degree verifications, learner insights and research, and compliance solutions for schools, businesses, and learners nationwide. As a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, the Clearinghouse works with nearly 3,600 postsecondary institutions to meet their compliance needs and with thousands of high schools and districts to provide continuing collegiate enrollment, progression, and completion statistics about their alumni. In addition, the Research Center publications inform policymakers and business leaders about student educational pathways. Using our unique combination of data, analytics, and software to drive our mission, security and privacy is paramount. Join us as we continue to invest in our talent and new advanced technologies to unlock the power of data on behalf of all learners.

The Architect, Data is a member of the IT Enterprise Architecture team, and is responsible for the overall design, development and maintenance of the enterprise data architecture supporting all Clearinghouse products. The Architect works at the direction of the group manager to ensure industry standards and business logic rules are followed; that data is insourced, edited, transformed and delivered to the desired data repository in an efficient manner. The Architect is also an active participant in the delivery of data models and data services required to meet business needs and that they perform their job in accordance with company and departmental policies and procedures.

The Architect, Data works with Solution Architects, DBAs, application development teams and business partners in support of the data architecture, data models and data services required to establish and maintain the Clearinghouse transactional and analytic services. This position requires a successful background in database architecture and data modeling, a strong understanding of industry best practices for enterprise data architectures, and a proven ability to work with agile development teams.

Currently, this is a remote-first position, and this position may be required to periodically work on-site at our office and the frequency would depend on the department/division's requirements. Therefore, candidates must either reside within a reasonable distance to commute to our office or be willing to travel to our office in Herndon, when required.

• Demonstrate the Clearinghouse's core competencies: Customer Focus, Optimizes Work Processes, Collaborates, Communicates Effectively, and Be Open and Authentic.
• Continuously participate in the development of an enterprise-wide data architecture to meet the current and future business needs for a project or line of business.
• Partner with business and system stakeholders to understand current state capabilities, future requirements, and strategic objectives through interviews and working sessions.
• Design data architecture for projects or lines of business, and include factors such as business needs, performance, data quality, data security, data governance, risk mitigation, business intelligence needs, scalability, and adaptability. Ensure that the correct data structure (e.g., ODS, Data Mart, etc.) is deployed.
• Monitor and review data strategies to identify inefficiencies and issues in the current architecture and recommend steps to resolve them.
• Collaborates with the Stakeholders to drive the evolution of a target enterprise data architecture and integration strategies.
• Creates and maintains the necessary artifacts, including logical data models, documenting data element attributes, business rules, to meet enterprise architecture milestones.
• Write clear, concise, and accurate architecture documentation, and review ETL code to ensure it transforms data correctly and that all derived data is accurate.
• Actively participate in project level design reviews, Architecture Review Board (ARB) reviews, and provide feedback on design approaches being reviewed.
• Present architecture and recommendations to the ARB and other stakeholders.
• Follow prescribed governance processes to ensure corporate compliance with enterprise architecture and maintain learner and organizational data by following the Data Retention Policy.
• Mentor, coach, and support junior and newly onboarded staff.
• Develop a deep understanding of the functionality in each line of business to ensure that the structure/use of the data supports the functions and features of the application.

Position may be required to perform other duties as required. These essential functions are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the job. Reasonable accommodations will be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform these essential functions.

• Bachelors degree in Computer Science, Information Systems, or a related field. A combination of education and experience including military service will also be considered.
• 10 years of experience of hands-on technical work with data management, database technologies and applications and experience with Agile Enterprise Architecture practices.
• 5 years of technical leadership experience.
• Experience:
  
  
  
  • With OLTP and OLAP data architectures, enterprise data warehousing concepts, and industry recognized methodologies such as Kimball and Inmon.
  • Designing and implementing Data Lake and Lakehouse architectures, including open table formats, data catalogs, and query engines.
  • With enterprise data architecture, IT strategy, and technology planning.
  • Supporting business intelligence (BI), analytics, and data mining systems.
  • With data integration across multiple large scale, heterogeneous systems.
  • With Oracle and/or cloud based data warehouse platforms.
  • Designing and supporting multi tier, database driven application architectures.
  
  
  
  
• Strong experience with data modeling and database design, including enterprise data warehousing, metadata management, and master data management (MDM).
• Proven experience collaborating with business and technical stakeholders to gather requirements and translate them into enterprise data architecture solutions.
• Proficiency in:
  
  
  
  • Authoring required data architecture artifacts.
  • Establishing and leading architecture governance processes.
  
  
  
  
• Excellent communication skills, with demonstrated ability to present technical information to both technical and non-technical audiences.
• Demonstrates the Clearinghouse's core competencies: customer focus, optimizes work processes, communicates effectively, collaborates, and is open and authentic.
• Must live within a commutable distance to Herndon, VA or in one of the Clearinghouse's approved States for hiring purposes. Refer to our HR Policies Page, located on our Careers site at https://www.studentclearinghouse.org/careers/human-resource-policies/, for more details.
• Must be currently authorized to work in the United States on a full-time basis. We do not intend to sponsor external applicants for work visas, and may consider sponsorship only if no qualified candidates can be found who are authorized to work without sponsorship.
• Must be at least 18 years old.

Additional Desired Qualifications

• Experience with Amazon Web Services (AWS) and cloud native data architecture patterns.
• Experience with AWS data and analytics services, such as: Amazon S3 (data lakes), AWS Glue (ETL, Data Catalog), Amazon Redshift (cloud data warehouse), Amazon Athena (query engine), Amazon EMR, AWS Lake Formation, and related services.
• Experience designing and implementing cloud based data lake and lakehouse architectures on AWS.
• Experience integrating AWS data services with enterprise data warehouses, BI tools, and downstream analytics platforms.
• Experience applying security, governance, and data management best practices within AWS environments.
• Experience supporting hybrid architectures spanning on premises and cloud platforms.
• AWS certifications preferred, such as: AWS Certified Data Analytics - Specialty Or AWS Certified Solutions Architect (Associate or Professional).

• Use of a computer for 8 or more hours a day.
• Use of a telephone and/or copy machine.
• Frequently required to sit for 7 or more hours per day.
• Occasionally required to use hands and fingers to operate, handle, and reach.
• Vision abilities include close vision and the ability to adjust focus.
• Must be flexible to do out-of-town assignments, and travel via car, train, and airplane occasionally when needed (up to 20%).
• May be required to provide on-call remote, or 24/7 technical support.

The National Student Clearinghouse provides a robust benefit program designed to help meet the needs of each employee and their family, both now and in the future. We offer comprehensive medical, dental, and vision insurance, as well as life and disability insurance benefits, for employees and their qualified dependents. Health care, dependent care, and limited purpose flexible spending accounts, as well as a health savings account with annual employer contributions of $300 for employees and $600 for employees who are enrolled with their spouse and/or dependents, voluntary supplemental health plans for Accident and Hospital Indemnity coverage, and infertility coverage are options available for employees to set aside pre-taxed dollars for certain qualifying expenses. We offer a very generous 401k matching contribution program with the opportunity to defer pre-tax and Roth contributions, as well as catch-up contributions for those who are eligible! We are proud to offer a competitive paid leave program consisting of vacation, sick, and personal time, as well as paid holidays, up to 3 weeks of paid parental leave during a 12-month period , and up to 5 days of paid military leave per calendar year . Vacation time will accrue based on length of service, and new full-time hires can accrue up to 13 days of vacation and up to 10 days of sick time per year. On an annual basis, new employees may use up to 32 hours of accrued sick time as personal time. Additionally, the Clearinghouse observes at least 15 paid holidays per year, including company year-end close between Christmas and New Years Holidays.

Another perk is that employees have the option to get reimbursed for basic wholesale company and roadside assistance memberships (e.g., Costco and AAA) and to request a buy back on portions of unused accrued vacation based on tenure and certain other qualifications. Employees can further their education and professional development by using our Employee Education Assistance Program, which establishes reimbursement for qualified education expenses upon successful completion of the program, and leveraging the enterprise-wide LinkedIn Learning subscription. There are additional employee benefits too, including but not limited to, mental health with up to eight free therapy sessions for employees and their family members and well-being reward benefits. With the Clearinghouse being an eligible 501(3)(c) nonprofit organization, employees are eligible for service credit towards the Public Service Loan Forgiveness program (PSLF). To find out more, please request a copy of our Benefits at a Glance!

Additionally, we reasonably believe that the salary range for this position is between $155,000 - $199,000.

The pay range listed above represents a general guideline and is not a guarantee of compensation or salary. The National Student Clearinghouse considers multiple factors when determining base pay for offers, including but not limited to the responsibilities and scope of the role, as well as a candidate's experience, education, knowledge, skills, abilities, internal equity, and alignment with market data.

Internal Candidates: If you feel you meet the qualifications for the role, we strongly encourage you to apply and focus on preparing for the application process. Finalist internal candidates will receive a compensation review prior to any offer being made. In accordance with the Clearinghouse's compensation and promotion guidelines, internal compensation practices will be applied first, which may result in pay that differs from the posted salary range.

This job announcement was posted to the National Student Clearinghouse's Careers site at www.studentclearinghouse.org/careers 4/1/2026 and the online application period will be open for at least 3 days. A completed online application is required to be considered for this opportunity.

Equal Opportunity Employer/Protected Veterans/Individuals with Disabilities: The National Student Clearinghouse is proud to be an Equal Opportunity Employer. Qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to actual or perceived race, creed, color, religion, alienage or national origin, ancestry, citizenship status, age, disability or handicap, sex, marital status, veteran status (or known to have a spousal, family, business, social or other relationship or association with a protected veteran), sexual orientation, genetic information, arrest record, natural hairstyle, or any other characteristic protected by applicable federal, state, or local laws. Our management team is dedicated to this policy with respect to recruitment, hiring, placement, promotion, transfer, training, compensation, benefits, employee activities and general treatment during employment.

Pay Transparency Notice: The National Student Clearinghouse is a federal contractor that abides by all applicable equal opportunity laws and regulations. Under these laws, companies doing business with the federal government must provide applicants and employees with certain policies, including the following information. The contractor will not discharge or in any other manner discriminate against employees or applicants because they have inquired about, discussed, or disclosed their own pay or the pay of another employee or applicant. However, employees who have access to the compensation information of other employees or applicants as a part of their essential job functions cannot disclose the pay of other employees or applicants to individuals who do not otherwise have access to compensation information, unless the disclosure is (a) in response to a formal complaint or charge, (b) in furtherance of an investigation, proceeding, hearing, or action, including an investigation conducted by the employer, or (c) consistent with the contractor's legal duty to furnish information. 41 CFR 60-1.35(c)