[Hiring] Android Systems Engineer @Imagine Worldwide

Role Description

The Android Systems Engineer will play an instrumental role in carrying out Imagine’s mission, to design, test, and scale tablet-based learning solutions that enable children to become literate and numerate. They will join a highly committed and collaborative team working to empower every child, everywhere to achieve their full potential. They will work directly with the Head of Technology, Director of Product, software engineers, device manufacturers, and external technical partners to build, maintain, and improve the Android tablet platform that supports Imagine’s programmes. They will report into the Head of Technology.

Over the next six years, Imagine’s goal is to serve more than 10 million children in at least four countries, ultimately achieving three times the typical level of literacy and numeracy outcomes of national education systems in Africa. Building a reliable, secure, and maintainable Android device platform is key to achieving this goal while delivering the programme at less than $5 per child per year.

This is a systems engineering role with a primary focus on Android firmware, bootloader/BSP work, device configuration, and long-term device maintainability across tablet hardware variants. The role will also contribute to Android application development and diagnostics tooling where close integration with the device platform is required. A major near-term priority will be supporting component changes in Android tablets, including MediaTek-based devices, while preserving a safe and consistent software experience for existing and future deployments.

Qualifications

• A Bachelor’s degree or higher in a relevant field such as Computer Science, Electrical Engineering, Computer Engineering, Mathematics, or a related discipline is of advantage but not required.
• A minimum of 5 years working experience in Android systems, embedded Linux, firmware, or related software engineering roles is required.

Requirements

• 5+ years of experience in Android systems engineering, embedded Linux engineering, firmware engineering, or related roles.
• Hands-on experience with Android BSPs, Android Open Source Project concepts, vendor Android builds, bootloaders, Linux kernel configuration, and device trees.
• Experience with MediaTek / MTK Android platforms, including early boot components, vendor BSPs, kernel/vendor images, flashing tools, and production image workflows.
• Experience diagnosing hardware/software compatibility issues on Android devices, ideally including DDR/LPDDR memory changes or other significant component substitutions.
• Experience developing Android applications or device-side tools in Kotlin and/or Java.
• Comfort working across Android application code, platform configuration, system services, kernel, and bootloader boundaries.
• Experience with secure boot, Android Verified Boot, signing processes, OTA updates, factory flashing, and safe rollback/recovery strategies.
• Experience using UART logs, adb, fastboot, vendor flashing tools, crash logs, kernel logs, and device test tools to diagnose low-level issues.
• Experience writing clear technical documentation for engineering, manufacturing, operations, and support audiences.

Benefits

• Salary is competitive and commensurate with experience.

Location

The role is fully remote. The Android Systems Engineer is preferably based on the African continent with a preference for the countries that Imagine is already operating in. Regional travel to field sites or manufacturers may be required at least once every year.

Applications are reviewed on a rolling basis.

Imagine Worldwide is proud to be an equal opportunity employer. All applicants will be considered for employment without attention to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, veteran or disability status.