Junior Network Engineer - FTTH & ISP Infrastructure

Position Overview

The Junior Network Engineer will be responsible for planning, deploying, operating, and optimizing fiber broadband networks supporting extensive FTTH initiatives, specifically for BEAD-funded projects. The role requires collaboration with engineering, construction, operations, and vendor teams while handling routing, switching, optical access, IP addressing, and network automation tasks. This position suits candidates excited about building networks from the ground up within ISP or telecommunications settings.

Primary Responsibilities

• Design and implement ISP network architectures tailored for FTTH rollouts.
• Create comprehensive IP addressing schemes and routing designs.
• Configure and maintain carrier-grade routers and switches to ensure network reliability.
• Deploy and manage XGS-PON based infrastructure.
• Troubleshoot and set up BGP, OSPF, MPLS (preferred), VLANs, VRFs, and Layer 2/3 network services.
• Design networks emphasizing redundancy and high availability.
• Collaborate with transport providers to enable Layer 2 and Layer 3 connectivity.
• Support the design of aggregation, distribution, and core network layers.
• Develop engineering documentation and implementation standards.
• Coordinate closely with field teams during network construction phases.
• Conduct capacity planning and detailed analysis of network performance.
• Support operation of network monitoring tools and management platforms.
• Participate in scheduled maintenance and major incident management.
• Research emerging technologies and offer recommendations to enhance network infrastructure.
• Assist in vendor assessments and technical evaluations.
• Contribute to BEAD compliance documentation and engineering standards adherence.

Required Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree or equivalent experience in Computer Science, Network Engineering, Telecommunications, or related fields.
• 2 to 3 years of relevant ISP or telecommunications network engineering experience.
• Hands-on experience in FTTH network deployment and operations.
• Profound knowledge of IPv4 and IPv6 protocols.
• Practical experience with dynamic routing protocols BGP and OSPF.
• Advanced expertise in routing and switching technologies.
• Experience designing networks prioritizing high availability and redundancy.
• Familiarity with VLANs, QinQ, DHCP, DNS, CGNAT, and Quality of Service (QoS) mechanisms.
• Working knowledge of optical networking and fiber infrastructure components.
• Understanding of carrier Ethernet services and standards.
• Strong troubleshooting capabilities.
• Willingness and ability to travel to various deployment locations as necessary.

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience working with Calix access platform equipment.
• Hands-on familiarity with Juniper, Extreme Networks, Cisco, or Nokia network devices.
• Knowledge of XGS-PON technology architectures.
• Exposure to network automation tools and scripting languages such as Python, Ansible, and APIs.
• Understanding of MPLS and EVPN-VXLAN technologies.
• Experience using network monitoring systems like LibreNMS, Grafana, or Zabbix.
• Awareness of BEAD-funded broadband project requirements.
• Experience with GIS tools, network documentation practices, and fiber management systems.

Technical Skills

• BGP
• OSPF
• MPLS (preferred)
• IPv4 and IPv6 protocols
• Carrier Ethernet
• XGS-PON
• FTTH
• Routing and Switching
• Quality of Service (QoS)
• CGNAT
• DHCP
• DNS
• VLANs and VRFs
• Network Monitoring Tools
• Python (preferred)