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About This Role
Summary
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The VA Puget Sound Healthcare System is recruiting for one Supervisory Pain Management Physician to perform duties and render care primarily at the VA Medical Center in Seattle, WA. This Supervisory Pain Management Physician position is located at VA Puget Sound, a two divisional university\-affiliated teaching and research Medical Center with Pain Clinic locations at Seattle and American Lake in Tacoma, but also serves our outlying Community Based Outpatient Clinics (CBOCs).
Learn more about this agency
This job is open to
-----------------------
### The public
U.S. Citizens, Nationals or those who owe allegiance to the U.S.
### Internal to an agency
Current federal employees of the hiring agency that posted the job announcement.
### Clarification from the agency
All qualified candidates encouraged to apply. Open to U.S. Citizens but non\-citizens may be appointed when it is not possible to recruit qualified citizens. NOTE: The 2\-page Resume requirement does not apply to this position. For more information, refer to Required Documents below.
Duties
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The Pain Medicine Specialist is responsible for meeting access, quality, efficiency, satisfaction and other standards of performance. The incumbent will consistently make and implement sound and reasonable patient care and consulting decisions and provide leadership within the pain care team. Duties will include, but are not limited to, all aspects of evaluation of current medical problems; assisting in the development and implementation of new Pain Clinic programs, patient care, education, research programs, functional rehabilitation programs; administrative duties; and educational support as detailed below.
Duties may include but are not limited to:
- Completes detailed history and physical exams, as well as health inventories, orders and interprets diagnostic studies and prescribes appropriate medication and other treatment modalities.
- Develops, evaluates and manages medical treatment plans intended to achieve defined outcomes that improve the patient's quality of life as part of a coordinated multidisciplinary treatment team focused on safe and sustainable chronic pain care and functional restoration of patients living with chronic pain.
- Demonstrates expertise in diagnosing and treating complex chronic pain problems and Opioid Use Disorder (OUD). Consistently makes and implements sound and reasonable decisions and has responsibility for patient outcomes.
- Provides care management that includes timely, thorough, and efficient documentation \& coordination.
- Orders, performs, reviews, analyzes and follows up on appropriate diagnostic/laboratory test results, including any registries necessary to monitor and support the patient's medication therapy, and communicates findings to patients and other providers, including additional surveillance and/or testing requirements necessary as per VA policy.
- Initiates consults as appropriate, follows the treatment plan of care, coordinates and discusses plan with other care providers and specialists as needed.
- Establishes and maintains contact with other care providers, specialists, pharmacy and ancillary staff as necessary within the facility and the private sector.
- Review non\-VA records and updates CPRS and/or other electronic health records with outside records.
- Provides care in outpatient, inpatient and residential program settings and participates in the physician call pool.
- Provides consultation service locally and regionally (VISN) for providers working with complex chronic pain care.
- Performs suicide and opioid risk screenings and assessments.
- Treats inpatients and outpatients with chronic pain and provides opioid reduction, harm reduction, and opioid safety/Medication Assisted Treatment (MAT) services as needed.
- Works collaboratively with the Pain Section Chief, hospital leaders, Service Line Leaders, and others in the planning and implementation of patient\-centered, pain management \& integrative/Whole Health initiatives and programs.
- Assists in the development, coordination and implementation of Pain Clinic workflows, programs, initiatives, and therapies.
- Provides supervision and training to rotating pain medicine and psychology trainees and newly hired staff.
- Completes, compiles, and reports records/data required by the facility, VISN, and others as requested. Aggregates and analyzes information for decision making as requested.
- Supports the Pain Clinic's clinical research and other scholarly endeavors.
VA offers a comprehensive total rewards package. VHA Physician Total Rewards.
Pay: Competitive salary, annual performance bonus, regular salary increases
Paid Time Off: 50\-55 days of paid time off per year (26 days of annual leave, 13 days of sick leave, 11 paid Federal holidays per year and possible 5 day paid absence for CME)
Retirement: Traditional federal pension (5 years vesting) and federal 401K with up to 5% in contributions by VA
Insurance: Federal health/vision/dental/term life/long\-term care (many federal insurance programs can be carried into retirement)
Licensure: 1 full and unrestricted license from any US State or territory
CME: Possible $1,000 per year reimbursement (must be full\-time with board certification)
Malpractice: Free liability protection with tail coverage provided
Contract: No Physician Employment Contract and no significant restriction on moonlighting
Work Schedule: Monday\-Friday, 7:30am\-4:00pm
Requirements
----------------
### Conditions of employment
- U.S. Citizenship; non\-citizens may only be appointed when it is not possible to recruit qualified citizens in accordance with VA Policy.
- All applicants tentatively selected for VA employment in a testing designated position are subject to urinalysis to screen for illegal drug use prior to appointment. Applicants who refuse to be tested will be denied employment with VA.
- Selective Service Registration is required for males born after 12/31/1959\.
- Must be proficient in written and spoken English.
- Subject to background/security investigation.
- Selected applicants will be required to complete an online onboarding process. Acceptable form(s) of identification will be required to complete pre\-employment requirements (https://www.uscis.gov/i\-9\-central/form\-i\-9\-acceptable\-documents). Effective May 7, 2025, driver's licenses or state\-issued dentification cards that are not REAL ID compliant cannot be utilized as an acceptable form of identification for employment.
- Must pass pre\-employment physical examination.
- Participation in the seasonal influenza vaccination program is a requirement for all Department of Veterans Affairs Health Care Personnel (HCP).
- You may be required to serve a probationary period.
- Complete all application requirements detailed in the "Required Documents" section of this announcement.
### Qualifications
To qualify for this position, you must meet the basic requirements as well as any additional requirements (if applicable) listed in the job announcement. Applicants pending the completion of training or license requirements may be referred and tentatively selected but may not be hired until all requirements are met. Currently employed physician(s) in VA who met the requirements for appointment under the previous qualification standard at the time of their initial appointment are deemed to have met the basic requirements of the occupation.
Basic Requirements:
- United States Citizenship: Non\-citizens may only be appointed when it is not possible to recruit qualified citizens in accordance with VA Policy.
- Degree of doctor of medicine or an equivalent degree resulting from a course of education in medicine or osteopathic medicine. The degree must have been obtained from one of the schools approved by the Department of Veterans Affairs for the year in which the course of study was completed.
- Current, full and unrestricted license to practice medicine or surgery in a State, Territory, or Commonwealth of the United States, or in the District of Columbia.
- Residency Training: Physicians must have completed residency training, approved by the Secretary of Veterans Affairs in an accredited core specialty training program leading to eligibility for board certification. (NOTE: VA physicians involved in academic training programs may be required to be board certified for faculty status.) Approved residencies are: (1\) Those approved by the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME), b) OR
\[(2\) Those approved by the American Osteopathic Association (AOA),OR
(3\) Other residencies (non\-US residency training programs followed by a minimum of five years of verified practice in the United States), which the local Medical Staff Executive Committee deems to have provided the applicant with appropriate professional training and believes has exposed the physician to an appropriate range of patient care experiences.
Residents currently enrolled in ACGME/AOA accredited residency training programs and who would otherwise meet the basic requirements for appointment are eligible to be appointed as "Physician Resident Providers" (PRPs). PRPs must be fully licensed physicians (i.e., not a training license) and may only be appointed on an intermittent or fee\-basis. PRPs are not considered independent practitioners and will not be privileged; rather, they are to have a "scope of practice" that allows them to perform certain restricted duties under supervision. Additionally, surgery residents in gap years may also be appointed as PRPs.
- Proficiency in spoken and written English.
Additional Requirement:* Must be board certified by primary specialty (e.g., the American Board of Anesthesiology), and Board Certified in Pain Medicine; or board eligible in the above.
- Active DEA license; candidates must already possess an active, unrestricted license or obtain prior to start date
- Basic Cardiac Life Support (BCLS) certification is required. If selected for this position, per VHA Directive 1 177, you must possess current BCLS certification as you will provide direct clinical care to patients in this position. Advanced Cardiac Life Support (ACLS) certification is also required if you will direct moderate sedation for pain procedures to a small subset of pain clinic patients.
Preferred Experience:
- Additional Board Certification in Addiction Medicine is strongly preferred; specialized experience in opioid use disorder/opioid safety without board certification may be considered.
- Strongly prefer experience with buprenorphine and other Medication Assisted Treatment modalities for opioid use disorder.
- 2\+ years of clinical experience as a Pain Medicine Specialist after graduation from an ACGME\-accredited pain fellowship.
- 2\+ years of experience in a multidisciplinary pain clinic setting.
- Significant Pain\-related academic experience involving learners/trainees.
- Quality Improvement/clinical research experience.
Reference: For more information on this qualification standard, please visit https://www.va.gov/ohrm/QualificationStandards/.
Physical Requirements: Light lifting (under 15 pounds), light carrying (under 15 pounds), use of fingers, both hands required, walking (\<1 hour), standing (1 hour), repeated bending (\<1 hour), ability for rapid mental and muscular coordination simultaneously, near vision correctable at 13" to 16" to Jaeger 1 to 4, far vision correctable in one eye to 20/20 and to 20/40 in the other, both eyes required, depth perception, ability to distinguish basic colors, hearing (aid may be permitted).
### Education
Degree of Doctor of Medicine or an equivalent degree resulting from a course of education in allopathic medicine or osteopathic medicine. The degree must have been obtained from an institution whose accreditation was in place for the year in which the course of study was completed. Approved schools are:
- Schools of medicine accredited by the Liaison Committee on Medical Education (LCME) for the year in which the degree was granted, or
- Schools of osteopathic medicine approved by the Commission on Osteopathic College Accreditation of the American Osteopathic Association for the year in which the degree was granted.
- For foreign medical graduates not covered in (1\) or (2\) above, facility officials must verify with the Educational Commission for Foreign Medical Graduates (ECFMG) that the applicant has met requirements for certification, and must obtain a copy of the ECFMG certificate, if claimed by the applicant. \[If the applicant does not claim an ECFMG certificate, facility officials must still confirm that the medical school meets (or met) ECFMG eligibility requirements for the year the candidate graduated.]
NOTE: The Under Secretary of Health or designee in the VHA Central Office may approve the appointment under authority of 38 U.S.C. 7405 of a physician graduate of a school of medicine not covered above if the candidate is to be assigned to a research, academic, or administrative position with no patient care responsibilities. The appointment will be made only in exceptional circumstances where the candidate's credentials clearly demonstrate high professional attainment or expertise in the specialty area.
### Additional information
This job opportunity announcement may be used to fill additional vacancies.
It is the policy of the VA to not deny employment to those that have faced financial hardships or periods of unemployment.
This position is in the Excepted Service and does not confer competitive status.
VA encourages persons with disabilities to apply. The health\-related positions in VA are covered by Title 38, and are not covered by the Schedule A excepted appointment authority.
If you are unable to apply online or need an alternate method to submit documents, please reach out to the Agency Contact listed in this Job Opportunity Announcement.
Under the Fair Chance to Compete Act, the Department of Veterans Affairs prohibits requesting an applicant's criminal history prior to accepting a tentative job offer. For more information about the Act and the complaint process, visit Human Resources and Administration/Operations, Security, and Preparedness (HRA/OSP) at The Fair Chance Act.
Candidates should be committed to improving the efficiency of the Federal government, passionate about the ideals of our American republic, and committed to upholding the rule of law and the United States Constitution.
Benefits
========
A career with the U.S. government provides employees with a comprehensive benefits package. As a federal employee, you and your family will have access to a range of benefits that are designed to make your federal career very rewarding. Opens in a new windowLearn more about federal benefits.
Review our benefits
Eligibility for benefits depends on the type of position you hold and whether your position is full\-time, part\-time or intermittent. Contact the hiring agency for more information on the specific benefits offered.
How you will be evaluated
-----------------------------
You will be evaluated for this job based on how well you meet the qualifications above.
Your application, resume, C.V., and/or other supporting documentation will be verified. Please follow all instructions carefully. Errors or omissions may affect consideration for employment.
NOTE: A formal pay\-setting process will be used to determine your salary. The salary may be at any point in the range listed for this vacancy.
Experience refers to paid and unpaid experience, including volunteer work done through National Service programs (e.g., Peace Corps, AmeriCorps) and other organizations (e.g., professional; philanthropic; religions; spiritual; community; student; social). Volunteer work helps build critical competencies, knowledge, and skills and can provide valuable training and experience that translates directly to paid employment. You will receive credit for all qualifying experience, including volunteer experience.
The Department of Veterans Affairs performs pre\-employment reference checks as an assessment method used in the hiring process to verify information provided by a candidate (e.g., on resume or during interview or hiring process); gain additional knowledge regarding a candidate's abilities; and assist a hiring manager with making a final selection for a position.
Veterans' Preference Note: Preference eligible candidates and other Veterans will be given preference when qualification of candidates are approximately equal for Title 38 positions in VHA. When applying for Federal Jobs, eligible Veterans should claim preference for 5pt (TP), 10pt (CP/CPS/XP), or for Sole Survivor Preference (SSP) in the questionnaire. You must provide a legible copy of your DD214(s) which shows dates and character of service (honorable, general, etc.). If you are currently serving on active duty and expect to be released or discharged within 120 days you must submit documentation related to your active duty service which reflects the dates of service, character of service (honorable, general, etc.), and dates of impending separation. Additionally, disabled veterans and others eligible for 10\-point preference (such as widows or mothers of eligible Veterans) must also submit an SF\-15 "Application for 10 Point Veteran Preference" with required proof as stated on the form. Documentation is required to award preference. For more information on Veterans' Preference, please visit Feds Hire Vets \- Veterans \- Job Seekers \- Veterans' Preference.
Required Documents
----------------------
To apply for this position, you must submit a C.V. and/or resume. Other documents may be requested later in the process if needed.
Special Note for Applications: To complete your application, please use the following link https://vacareers.va.gov/wp\-content/uploads/sites/5/Resume.docx to download the standard Clinical Resume Document. This one\-page document does not need to be modified and must be uploaded into the two\-page restricted 'Resume' document upload field.
Your full resume/CV may be uploaded without page limitation into the 'Other' document upload field.
How to Apply
----------------
- To begin, click Apply Online to create a USAJOBS account or log in to your existing account. Follow the prompts to select your USA JOBS resume and/or other supporting documents and complete the occupational questionnaire.
- Click Submit My Answers to submit your application package.
To apply for this position online, complete steps 1 and 2 above by 11:59 PM (ET) on 04/13/2026 to receive consideration. Please note, this announcement may close prior to the closing date indicated if the position is filled through other means. If you are unable to apply online before the closing date click here and include the CBSV\-12925615\-26\-ML in the Notes field.
During the application process you may have an option to opt\-in to make your resume available to hiring managers in the agency who have similar positions. Opting in does not impact your application for this announcement, nor does it guarantee further consideration for additional positions.
Veterans and Transitioning Service Members: Please visit the VA for Vets site for career\-search tools for Veterans seeking employment at VA, career development services for our existing Veterans, and coaching and reintegration support for military service members.
### Agency contact information
Melody Laughlin
Phone
253\-583\-1173
Melody.Laughlin@va.gov
Address
*VA Puget Sound Health Care System*
*1660 South Columbian Way*
*Seattle, WA 98108*
*US*### Next steps
Once your online application is submitted you will receive a confirmation notification by email. We will review applications to ensure qualification and eligibility requirements are met. After the review is complete, a referral certificate(s) is issued, and applicants will be notified of their status by email. Referred applicants will be notified as such and may be contacted directly by the hiring office for an interview. All referred applicants receive a final notification once a selection decision has been made.
You may check the status of your application at any time by logging into your USA Jobs account and clicking on Applications. Information regarding your application status can be found in the USAJobs Help Center.
NOTE: Participation in the seasonal influenza program is a condition of employment and a requirement for all Department of Veterans Affairs Health Care Personnel (HCP). It is a requirement that all HCP to receive annual seasonal influenza vaccination or obtain an exemption for medical or religious reasons. Wearing a face mask is required when an exemption to the influenza vaccination has been granted. HCP in violation of this directive may face disciplinary action up to and including removal from federal service. HCP are individuals who, during the influenza season, work in VHA locations or who come into contact with VA patients or other HCP as part of their duties. VHA locations include, but are not limited to, VA hospitals and associated clinics, community living centers (CLCs), community\-based outpatient clinics (CBOCs), domiciliary units, Vet centers and VA\-leased medical facilities. HCP include all VA licensed and unlicensed, clinical and administrative, remote and onsite, paid and without compensation, full\- and part\-time employees, intermittent employees, fee basis employees, VA contractors, researchers, volunteers and health professions trainees (HPTs) who are expected to perform any or all of their work at these facilities. HPTs may be paid or unpaid and include residents, interns, fellows and students. HCP also includes VHA personnel providing home\-based care to Veterans and drivers and other personnel whose duties put them in contact with patients outside VA medical facilities.
Overview
------------
Accepting applications
Open \& closing dates
04/03/2026 to 04/13/2026
Salary
$338,949 \- $381,107 per year
Education and length of practice are considered through a formal pay\-setting process to determine a final compensable salary (Base Pay \+ Market Pay)
Pay scale \& grade
VM 15
Location
1 vacancy in the following location:
Seattle, WA
1 vacancy
Remote job
No
Telework eligible
No
Travel Required
25% or less \- You may be expected to travel to other nearby VA facilities (i.e. American Lake VA or outlying CBOCs) for this position.
Relocation expenses reimbursed
No
Appointment type
Permanent
Work schedule
Full\-time
Service
Excepted
Promotion potential
None
Job family (Series)
- 0602 Medical Officer
Supervisory status
Yes
Security clearance
Other
Drug test
Yes
Position sensitivity and risk
Non\-sensitive (NS)/Low Risk
Trust determination process
- Credentialing
- Suitability/Fitness
Financial disclosure
No
Bargaining unit status
No
Announcement number
CBSV\-12925615\-26\-ML
Control number
863839000
Salary Context
This $338K-$381K range is above the 75th percentile for AI/ML Engineer roles in our dataset (median: $100K across 15465 roles with salary data).
View full AI/ML Engineer salary data →Role Details
About This Role
AI/ML Engineers build and deploy machine learning models in production. They work across the full ML lifecycle: data pipelines, model training, evaluation, and serving infrastructure. The role has evolved significantly over the past two years. Where ML Engineers once spent most of their time on model architecture, the job now tilts heavily toward inference optimization, cost management, and integrating LLM capabilities into existing systems. Companies want engineers who can ship production systems, and the experimenter-only role is fading fast.
Day-to-day, you're writing training pipelines, debugging data quality issues, setting up evaluation frameworks, and figuring out why your model performs differently in staging than it did on your dev set. The best ML engineers are obsessive about reproducibility and measurement. They instrument everything. They know that a model is only as good as the data feeding it and the infrastructure serving it.
Across the 26,159 AI roles we're tracking, AI/ML Engineer positions make up 91% of the market. At US Department of Veterans Affairs, this role fits into their broader AI and engineering organization.
Demand for AI/ML Engineers has been strong and consistent. Unlike some AI roles that spike with hype cycles, ML engineering is a foundational need. Every company deploying AI models needs people who can keep them running, and the gap between research prototypes and production systems keeps growing.
What the Work Looks Like
A typical week might include: debugging a data pipeline that's silently dropping 3% of training examples, running A/B tests on a new model version, writing documentation for a feature flag system that lets you roll back model deployments, and reviewing a junior engineer's PR for a new evaluation metric. Meetings tend to be cross-functional since ML touches product, engineering, and data teams.
Demand for AI/ML Engineers has been strong and consistent. Unlike some AI roles that spike with hype cycles, ML engineering is a foundational need. Every company deploying AI models needs people who can keep them running, and the gap between research prototypes and production systems keeps growing.
Skills Required
Python and PyTorch dominate the requirements. Most roles expect experience with cloud platforms (AWS, GCP, or Azure) and familiarity with ML frameworks like TensorFlow or JAX. RAG (Retrieval-Augmented Generation) has become a top-3 skill requirement as companies integrate LLMs into their products. Docker and Kubernetes show up in about a third of postings, reflecting the production focus of the role.
Beyond the core stack, employers increasingly want experience with experiment tracking tools (MLflow, Weights & Biases), feature stores, and vector databases. Fine-tuning experience is valuable but less common than you'd think from reading Twitter. Most production LLM work is RAG and prompt engineering, not fine-tuning. If you have both, you're in a strong position.
Companies that are serious about AI/ML hiring tend to post specific infrastructure details in the job description: the frameworks they use, their model serving stack, their data pipeline tools. Vague postings that just say 'ML experience required' without specifics are often companies that haven't figured out what they need yet.
Compensation Benchmarks
AI/ML Engineer roles pay a median of $166,983 based on 13,781 positions with disclosed compensation. Mid-level AI roles across all categories have a median of $131,300. This role's midpoint ($360K) sits 116% above the category median. Disclosed range: $338K to $381K.
Across all AI roles, the market median is $184,000. Top-quartile compensation starts at $244,000. The 90th percentile reaches $309,400. For comparison, the highest-paying categories include AI Engineering Manager ($293,500) and AI Architect ($292,900). By seniority level: Entry: $76,880; Mid: $131,300; Senior: $227,400; Director: $244,288; VP: $234,620.
US Department of Veterans Affairs AI Hiring
US Department of Veterans Affairs has 23 open AI roles right now. They're hiring across AI/ML Engineer. Positions span Baltimore, MD, US, Fargo, ND, US, Corpus Christi, TX, US. Compensation range: $65K - $400K.
Location Context
AI roles in Seattle pay a median of $223,600 across 678 tracked positions. That's 22% above the national median.
Career Path
Common paths into AI/ML Engineer roles include Data Scientist, Software Engineer, Research Engineer.
From here, career progression typically leads toward ML Architect, AI Engineering Manager, Principal ML Engineer.
The fastest path into ML engineering is through software engineering with a self-directed ML education. A CS degree helps, but production engineering skills matter more than academic credentials. Build something that works, deploy it, and measure it. That portfolio project is worth more than a Coursera certificate. For career growth, the fork comes around the senior level: go deep on technical complexity (staff/principal track) or move into managing ML teams.
What to Expect in Interviews
Expect system design questions around ML pipelines: how you'd build a training pipeline for a specific use case, handle data drift, or design A/B testing infrastructure for model deployments. Coding rounds typically involve Python, with emphasis on data manipulation (pandas, numpy) and algorithm implementation. Take-home assignments often ask you to build an end-to-end ML pipeline from raw data to deployed model.
When evaluating opportunities: Companies that are serious about AI/ML hiring tend to post specific infrastructure details in the job description: the frameworks they use, their model serving stack, their data pipeline tools. Vague postings that just say 'ML experience required' without specifics are often companies that haven't figured out what they need yet.
AI Hiring Overview
The AI job market has 26,159 open positions tracked in our dataset. By seniority: 2,416 entry-level, 16,247 mid-level, 5,153 senior, and 2,343 leadership roles (Director, VP, C-Level). Remote roles make up 7% of the market (1,863 positions). The remaining 24,200 roles require on-site or hybrid attendance.
The market median for AI roles is $184,000. Top-quartile compensation starts at $244,000. The 90th percentile reaches $309,400. Highest-paying categories: AI Engineering Manager ($293,500 median, 28 roles); AI Architect ($292,900 median, 108 roles); AI Safety ($274,200 median, 19 roles).
Demand for AI/ML Engineers has been strong and consistent. Unlike some AI roles that spike with hype cycles, ML engineering is a foundational need. Every company deploying AI models needs people who can keep them running, and the gap between research prototypes and production systems keeps growing.
The AI Job Market Today
The AI job market spans 26,159 open positions across 15 role categories. The largest categories by volume: AI/ML Engineer (23,752), AI Software Engineer (598), AI Product Manager (594). These three account for the majority of open positions, though smaller categories often have higher per-role compensation because of specialized skill requirements.
The seniority mix tells a story about where AI teams are in their maturity. Entry-level roles (2,416) are outnumbered by mid-level (16,247) and senior (5,153) positions, reflecting that most companies are past the 'build a team from scratch' phase and need experienced engineers who can ship production systems. Leadership roles (Director, VP, C-Level) total 2,343 positions, representing the bottleneck between technical execution and organizational strategy.
Remote work availability sits at 7% of all AI roles (1,863 positions), with 24,200 requiring on-site or hybrid attendance. The remote share has stabilized after the post-pandemic correction. Senior and specialized roles (Research Scientist, ML Architect) are more likely to be remote-eligible than entry-level positions, partly because experienced hires have more negotiating power and partly because these roles require less hands-on mentorship.
AI compensation is structured in clear tiers. The market median sits at $184,000. Top-quartile roles start at $244,000, and the 90th percentile reaches $309,400. These figures include base salary with disclosed compensation. Total compensation (including equity, bonuses, and sign-on) runs 20-40% higher at companies that offer those components.
Category matters for compensation. AI Engineering Manager roles lead at $293,500 median, while Prompt Engineer roles sit at $122,200. The spread between highest and lowest-paying categories reflects the premium on specialized technical skills versus broader analytical roles.
The most in-demand skills across all AI postings: Rag (16,749 postings), Aws (8,932 postings), Rust (7,660 postings), Python (3,815 postings), Azure (2,678 postings), Gcp (2,247 postings), Prompt Engineering (1,469 postings), Openai (1,269 postings). Python dominates, appearing in the vast majority of role descriptions regardless of category. Cloud platform experience (AWS, GCP, Azure) is the second most common requirement. The newer entrants to the top skills list (RAG, vector databases, LLM APIs) reflect the shift from traditional ML toward generative AI applications.
Frequently Asked Questions
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