Part-Time Online Course Facilitator: AI/ML Technology and Architecture

Department Summary

eCornell delivers expertly crafted online certificate programs designed by Cornell University faculty. Our facilitators play a central role in creating dynamic, engaging, and highly interactive learning experiences. We are committed to providing an exceptional student experience through live interactions, meaningful feedback, and authentic engagement.

The Opportunity

We are seeking experienced professionals to join our team as Course Facilitators in our AI/ML Technology and Architecture portfolio. Facilitators are not course authors or adjunct faculty but are vital to ensuring the effective delivery of content created by Cornell faculty.

In this role, you will complement our asynchronous course content by:

• Leading engaging live sessions that engage students in discussion of machine learning, natural language processing, large language models (LLMs), and the design of AI-powered applications and agents.
• Providing personalized and constructive feedback (written and recorded video) on discussion boards, assignments, Python coding projects in Jupyter notebooks, and written analyses, such as model training and evaluation, text-analysis pipelines, LLM fine-tuning, retrieval-augmented generation (RAG) systems, AI agents, and AI opportunity and governance assessments.
• Coaching learners to troubleshoot their code and connect AI/ML techniques, architectural trade-offs, and responsible AI practices to real-world business and technical settings.
• Fostering meaningful connections with students in a highly interactive online environment.

To be considered for this position, please include a cover letter with your application materials.

Cover letter instructions [IMPORTANT]

As part of the Course Facilitator position at eCornell, video interaction with students is a key component of the role. Facilitators are expected to engage with students through live video sessions and in response to project submissions. Video interactions allow facilitators to better engage with students, provide real-time feedback, and create an inclusive and personable learning experience.

As such, we encourage applicants to submit a video response to the question below using Loom. While submitting the video is optional, it is highly encouraged.

• Answer the following question in a short video (3 minutes max):

What excites you most about facilitating at eCornell, and how would you bring that enthusiasm into your interactions with students?

• Record your response using Loom (free service).
• Copy and paste the video link into your cover letter.

Program-Specific Focus

Facilitators will support AI/ML Technology and Architecture certificate programs, which help working professionals move from using AI to building with it through hands-on Python work.

The ideal candidate has 8+ years of professional experience in one or more of the following areas, with the ability to explain these concepts to working professionals:

• Applied machine learning, from data preparation and feature engineering through training, evaluating, and improving common models such as regression, decision trees, and ensembles.
• Natural language processing, including text preprocessing, vectorization and embeddings, document classification, topic modeling, clustering, and sentiment analysis.
• How large language models work, including tokenization, embeddings, attention and transformer architectures, and fine-tuning.
• Building LLM-powered applications, including prompt and context engineering, retrieval-augmented generation (RAG), and AI agents.
• AI strategy, governance, and ethics, including evaluating AI opportunities, human oversight, AI security, and bias and fairness.

Key Responsibilities:

• Engage Students: Lead dynamic live discussions that foster interaction and deepen understanding.
• Provide Feedback: Deliver clear, constructive, and authentic feedback on student submissions, including recorded video responses.
• Facilitate Effectively: Manage online discussions, respond promptly to student inquiries, and track student progress.
• Commitment: Facilitate a minimum of 1-2 courses per month with consistent engagement and preparation.
• Onboarding and Training: Complete an in-depth onboarding program, including shadowing live courses, participating in debrief sessions, and mastering the assigned certificate program.
• Continuous Improvement: Engage in ongoing training and professional development to stay current with emerging learning methodologies, educational technologies, and best practices in online facilitation.

Required Qualifications:

• Has 8+ years of relevant professional experience, or an equivalent combination of education and experience. Graduate degree in computer science, data science, statistics, information science, or a related field preferred.
• Brings substantial professional experience as a data scientist, machine learning engineer, NLP engineer, AI engineer, or AI/software architect, with a track record of building and deploying ML or AI solutions that deliver business value.
• Is proficient in Python and can quickly read, debug, and evaluate students’ code in Jupyter notebooks.
• Has hands-on experience with the tools used in the program, such as NumPy, pandas, scikit-learn, NLTK or spaCy, Hugging Face Transformers or PyTorch, commercial LLM APIs (e.g., OpenAI, Anthropic, Google Gemini), and frameworks such as LangChain, LangGraph, or the OpenAI Agents SDK.
• Can explain the math (probability and statistics, linear algebra, and gradient-based optimization) underlying ML models.
• Communicates complex technical concepts clearly to professionals with varied technical backgrounds and uses relevant industry examples to help learners apply course concepts.
• Is comfortable facilitating live online discussions, providing timely and impactful feedback to busy professionals.
• Possesses exceptional communication skills, both written and verbal.
• Is comfortable with technology for instruction
• Loom video submission with application
  

Preferred Qualifications:

• Brings 15+ years of progressive experience in data science, machine learning, NLP, AI engineering, or software and solutions architecture.
• Has held senior technical, architectural, or leadership roles in which they designed, deployed, or scaled ML, NLP, or generative AI systems in production, including making architecture, model selection, and build vs. buy decisions.
• Has hands-on experience fine-tuning LLMs (e.g., LoRA, DPO), working with open models from the Hugging Face Hub, building Model Context Protocol (MCP) servers, or developing autonomous and multi-agent systems.
• Has experience with SQL and relational databases, and with deep learning frameworks such as TensorFlow/Keras or PyTorch.
• Has led cross-functional teams and can share firsthand experience with AI opportunity assessment, AI governance and risk management, model evaluation in production, and the trade-offs involved in bringing AI solutions from prototype to deployment.
• Experience teaching, coaching, or mentoring technical professionals.

**Sponsorship for employment visa is not available for this position**

What We Offer:

• Comprehensive onboarding and training program to set you up for success.
• Access to ongoing professional development resources and periodic training updates.
• Opportunities to contribute to an exceptional online student experience.
• A collaborative and supportive facilitator community.

Additional Information

• This position is based in Ithaca, New York, however, the successful applicant may perform this role remotely anywhere within the United States.
• The New York Convenience of employer guidelines require New York State individual tax reporting and withholdings for this position. Additional individual state income tax filings may also be required if working temporarily outside New York State.

Important Notes

• eCornell will not store or download your video; it remains on your personal Loom account.
• Video submissions are assessed solely based on communication, clarity, and engagement—not on personal characteristics unrelated to job performance.

We look forward to learning more about you!

• Location: These positions are remote and open to candidates located anywhere within the U.S.
• Employment Type: Casual, non-benefits-eligible positions.
• Restrictions: No visa sponsorship or relocation assistance is available for these positions.

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If you’re an experienced semiconductor manufacturer and are passionate about helping professionals learn the theory and practices critical to the process, we’d love to hear from you. Apply today and become an integral part of the Cornell team!

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