Associate Software Engineer - Direct College

Department:

Technology

Our Company Promise

We are committed to provide our Employees a stable work environment with equal opportunity for learning and personal growth. Creativity and innovation are encouraged for improving the effectiveness of Southwest Airlines. Above all, Employees will be provided the same concern, respect, and caring attitude within the organization that they are expected to share externally with every Southwest Customer.

Job Description:

Our Technology Direct College Hire Program is a pathway for recent college graduates and individuals who are early in their technology careers to begin their professional growth journey. Through this program, we aim to help you develop lasting relationships while creating a meaningful career through on-the-job mentorship, professional development, and networking opportunities. Candidates will be selected to join one of the following Teams:

• Data & Governance
  :
  As an Associate Software Engineer on the Data & Governance Team at Southwest Airlines, you'll ensure enterprise data is secure, compliant, and accessible for business and technology partners. You'll configure governance tools, automate processes, and create dashboards to provide visibility into compliance and usage. The role requires collaboration across teams to optimize data governance strategies and accelerate delivery while protecting sensitive information.
  • Preferred: Experience with AWS services such as Data Lake, Redshift, S3, Lambda, VPC, and API Gateway; familiarity with SaaS solutions.
  • Preferred:
    Knowledge of security/privacy scanning and access control configuration.
  • Preferred:
    Proficiency with Tableau and Alteryx for data analysis and reporting.
  • Preferred:
    Strong coding knowledge in Java, Python, and SQL.
• Technical Operation
  :
  As an Associate Software Engineer on the Technical Operations Team at Southwest Airlines, you'll build and modernize software tools that support aircraft maintenance operations, moving legacy applications from on-prem to cloud-native solutions. The role is 100% software development with a full-stack focus-designing, coding, testing, deploying, and monitoring applications that enable predictive maintenance and operational efficiency. Candidates should be passionate about coding, adaptable to new technologies, and eager to work on AI-enabled systems in a highly collaborative environment.
  • Preferred:
    Experience with AWS, cloud-native development, and CI/CD pipelines (including one-click deployments).
  • Preferred:
    Proficiency in Java, Python, Node.js, and Type Script.
  • Preferred:
    Familiarity with Angular (current) and React (future) front-end frameworks.
  • Preferred:
    Knowledge of Bedrock and AI-centric approaches for predictive solutions.
• Air Ops - Crew Scheduling & Application Support
  :
  As an Associate Software Engineer on the Crew Scheduling & Application Team at Southwest Airlines, you'll support and modernize applications that manage crew scheduling for Pilots and Flight Attendants, ensuring operational continuity and recovery. The role combines analytical skills with engineering capabilities to troubleshoot incidents, restore services, and contribute to planned development work. You should be comfortable working in a high-visibility production support environment, collaborating across agile Teams, and leveraging modern tools and technologies.
  • Preferred:
    Proficiency in Java, JavaScript, and Python.
  • Preferred:
    
    Experience with SQL and No
    
    SQL databases (e.g., Dynamo
    
    DB, Mongo
    
    DB).
  • Preferred:
    Strong knowledge of Git (clone, commit, push, pull, branching) and Git Lab workflows.
  • Preferred:
    Understanding of pipeline functionality, preferably using Git Lab.
  • Preferred:
    Familiarity with AWS fundamentals.
  • Preferred:
    Experience with Spring Boot for REST API development and Kafka for messaging.
• Airline Products - Revenue Management
  :
  As an Associate Software Engineer on the Airline Products - Revenue Management Team at Southwest Airlines, you'll support revenue management technology by transforming legacy fare data into cloud-native solutions using AI. This role focuses on digesting and migrating data to AWS, ensuring code accuracy during transformation, and contributing to projects that optimize fare strategies and profitability. You should be passionate about software development, eager to learn AI-driven processes, and comfortable collaborating in an agile environment.
  • Preferred:
    Proficiency in Python and Java.
  • Preferred:
    Experience with AWS, including migration and development.
  • Preferred:
    Knowledge of coding, QA, regression testing, and familiarity with SAFe methodology.
• Crew Scheduling & Recovery
  :
  Join Southwest Airlines as an Associate Software Engineer on our Crew Scheduling & Recovery Team, where you'll design, code, test, and implement solutions that keep our operations running smoothly. You'll troubleshoot issues, contribute to Agile team discussions, and ensure high-quality code that meets business needs. With opportunities to learn new technologies and support critical scheduling systems, no two days…