Dunedin, home to the University of Otago and a number of technology driven businesses, has a unique and vibrant IT sector. While the size of the industry is no match for larger hubs like Wellington or Auckland, Dunedin offers a tight knit and collaborative tech scene, but with a work life balance to match.

The IT job market in Dunedin is steadily growing, with a mix of opportunities in education, large enterprises, and smaller product start ups. Primarily, it's a great location for those looking to make a large impact in a small team, or those looking to enjoy more of life outside of a 9 - 5 grind.

Common IT Roles in Dunedin

Roles in Dunedin are very much a mixed bag thanks to a unique blend of university driven roles, large established enterprises, and small product startups innovating on a global level. While there is almost always a role for anyone, it is worth nothing that job hopping is not as common due to the small sector size.

Here are some of the most common types of jobs we see in the Dunedin market:

• Software Developers: Fullstack, backend, and frontend developers are consistently in demand—especially those familiar with modern web frameworks, mobile development, or cloud-native apps. Languages are quite varied and can span your usual Microsoft .NET centric technology stacks, but also Python, Ruby on Rails, Vue, and even PHP/Laravel.
• DevOps Engineers: DevOps engineers are highly sought after across all IT industry types in Dunedin. Skills in Azure/AWS, Docker/Kubernettes, and CI/CD pipelines are all in demand.
• Business Analysts & Product Owners: While two distinct roles, BA and PO get thrown into the same bucket as the same sort of IT professionals fill the role in different companies. The education and enterprise sector seek BAs, but startup product companies are always looking for POs.
• UX/UI Designers: With several user-centric products being built locally, designers who can prototype, test, and iterate quickly are always valuable. Figma, user research, and accessibility standards are common requirements.
• Data Analysts & Data Scientists: Dunedin's education and health sectors lean heavily on research and data. Python, R, SQL, and data visualization tools like Power BI and Tableau are common in job descriptions.

While Dunedin has fewer contract roles compared to major hubs like Auckland or Wellington, there is still a mix of contract and permanent positions, especially within health tech and university-affiliated projects. Many local roles are long-term and offer strong professional development.

Common Tech Stacks in Dunedin

Again, Dunedin has two sides to the tech stack conversation. Tech stacks for the education and enterprise sector, and then tech stacks that are in heavy use in the product startup world:

• Python : Python is heavily used for not only data science, but is seeing a lot of use with product startups coming out of university. Especially around IOT or agritech.
• C# .NET : C# is always very popular and sees use across both startups and enterprises.
• React / Vue : React and Vue are always popular and see good use in Dunedin. It is somewhat rare for Angular roles to be heavily advertised, but you can see them pop up every now and again.
• AWS & Azure: Cloud adoption is strong with enterprises opting for Azure, and startups opting for AWS. GCP and other clouds are much less popular.

Things to Consider

Working in Dunedin's IT industry offers unique lifestyle and professional advantages:

• Smaller Ecosystem: Dunedin's tech scene is very small, meaning networking and meeting other professionals is easy. However, it also means fewer job openings at any one time so often patience is needed when looking for a new role.
• Work/Life Balance: One of the major draws to Dunedin is the lifestyle. Less traffic, lower cost of living, and access to nature all make it an attractive alternative to Auckland or Wellington.
• Academic Influence: The University of Otago plays a big role in local innovation, offering opportunities in research, bioinformatics, health tech, and education technology.

In Summary

Dunedin may be smaller than other tech hubs in New Zealand, but it punches above its weight in innovation, community, and quality of life. If you're looking to step away from the the big city grind without giving up your tech career, Dunedin could be exactly what you're looking for.