Expand your horizons, advance your career, and contribute to a secure future for generations. Northrop Grumman’s Space Sector invites you to bring your pioneering spirit to our collaborative teams. As an Electrical Ground Support Equipment Engineer – Level 4 located in Dulles, VA, you’ll be a linchpin in missions of paramount importance, defining the art of the possible from day one. This position is 100% onsite and cannot accommodate telecommute work.
In this role you will be responsible for developing hardware and software for automated ground support test equipment to validate flight hardware. You will work closely with expert hardware and software engineers to understand component and satellite designs and create test set solutions that effectively and efficiently test them. You will also interface with the subsystem engineers to obtain design requirements. Early on, there will software development work that requires scripting and automation of instruments to perform test sequences according to a test plan. The next phase will be spent in a lab performing integration with the UUT, and troubleshooting any problems with the automated test suites.
This position will work a 9/80 schedule, with every other Friday off.
Job responsibilities include, but are not limited to, the following:
- Working with the Cognizant Engineer and Test Engineer of the flight Hardware to obtain the Hardware Unit Under Test (UUT) Specification Requirements.
- Developing requirements for testing of space vehicle components or UUT
- Working closely with the spacecraft UUT Design Engineer to ensure the component test equipment (CTE)/ automated test equipment (ATE) system will validate the circuit cards and/or electronics box under all test environments
- Work with the Test Engineer to develop the test plan for the UUT hardware environmental requirements.
- Generate review material and support design reviews for the test equipment in development.
- Hardware design of component test equipment (CTE) and automated test equipment (ATE) to test space vehicle components
- Be responsible for ensuring that the technical requirements, cost, and schedule for the CTE/ATE system development is achieved
- As part of a design team, be responsible for the end-to-end design, debug, test, and certification of CTE/ATE system
- Have the responsibility for the documentation development and release of the CTE/ATE system
- Generate Certification Test Procedures
- Support of the test and debug for flight and non-flight spacecraft electronic circuit card assemblies (CCA) and boxes
- To be successful in this role you should have:
- Experience designing test hardware
- Fundamental understanding of electrical circuit schematics
- Working knowledge of Visio, CREO, and/or other mechanical design packages
- Good communication skills
- Experience working in a team
- Experience leading junior engineers
- Experience documenting and developing cable drawings/wiring diagrams
- Other duties as assigned
If this job description reads like it was written specifically for you, consider joining our team!
This position is contingent upon capturing program award(s) as well as obtaining and maintaining associated business and/or customer funding prior to start date.
Basic Qualifications:
- Bachelor’s degree with 8 years of professional experience – OR – Master’s degree with 6 years of professional experience – OR – PhD with 4 years of professional experience.
- No clearance required to start
- US Citizenship
- Proficiency in an industry standard Programming Language (LabVIEW, C/C++LabWindows CVI, etc.) Position will require being able to create/code projects independently.
Preferred Qualifications:
- Active TS/SCI security clearance
- Experience developing instrument drivers and test scripts for use in ATE/CTE
- Strong programming skills using LabVIEW, and LabWindows CVI and/or C/C++
- Experience developing test application software to interface with test equipment COTS along with instrument drivers
- Experience in the test and debug of hardware and software systems
- A fundamental understanding of general and specialized test equipment to include Signal Generators, Logic Analyzers, Oscilloscopes, DMMs, switching matrices, loads and Power equipment.
- Experience working in an AGILE/SCRUM environment and adherence with meeting schedule commitments
Curious about all the exciting developments with the Northrop Grumman Space Sector? Click the link below:
https://www.northropgrumman.com/space
Working at Northrop Grumman is more than just a paycheck. We offer a comprehensive Total Rewards and benefits package designed to help you thrive at work and in life. For more information on our Total Rewards package, please visit our Total Rewards site.
Northrop Grumman Total Rewards
Primary Level Salary Range: $142,200.00 - $213,400.00The above salary range represents a general guideline; however, Northrop Grumman considers a number of factors when determining base salary offers such as the scope and responsibilities of the position and the candidate's experience, education, skills and current market conditions.Depending on the position, employees may be eligible for overtime, shift differential, and a discretionary bonus in addition to base pay. Annual bonuses are designed to reward individual contributions as well as allow employees to share in company results. Employees in Vice President or Director positions may be eligible for Long Term Incentives. In addition, Northrop Grumman provides a variety of benefits including health insurance coverage, life and disability insurance, savings plan, Company paid holidays and paid time off (PTO) for vacation and/or personal business.The application period for the job is estimated to be 20 days from the job posting date. However, this timeline may be shortened or extended depending on business needs and the availability of qualified candidates.Northrop Grumman is an Equal Opportunity Employer, making decisions without regard to race, color, religion, creed, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, marital status, national origin, age, veteran status, disability, or any other protected class. For our complete EEO and pay transparency statement, please visit http://www.northropgrumman.com/EEO. U.S. Citizenship is required for all positions with a government clearance and certain other restricted positions.Skills Required
- Bachelor's degree with 8 years experience OR Master's with 6 years OR PhD with 4 years
- U.S. Citizenship
- Proficiency in industry standard programming languages (LabVIEW, C/C++, LabWindows CVI) and ability to develop code independently
- Experience designing test hardware
- Fundamental understanding of electrical circuit schematics
- Working knowledge of Visio, CREO, or other mechanical design packages
- Experience documenting and developing cable drawings/wiring diagrams
- Experience working in a team and good communication skills
- Experience leading junior engineers
- Position is 100% onsite (cannot accommodate telecommute)
- No clearance required to start (but clearance may be preferred later)
- Ability to generate certification test procedures and design review materials
- Ability to perform lab integration, test, and troubleshooting of UUT
- Ability to create/test automation scripts and instrument control for test sequences
- Willingness to work a 9/80 schedule
- Active TS/SCI security clearance
- Experience developing instrument drivers and test scripts for ATE/CTE
- Strong programming skills using LabVIEW, LabWindows CVI and/or C/C++
- Experience developing test application software to interface with COTS test equipment and instrument drivers
- Experience in test and debug of hardware and software systems
- Familiarity with signal generators, logic analyzers, oscilloscopes, DMMs, switching matrices, loads and power equipment
- Experience working in an AGILE/SCRUM environment
Northrop Grumman Compensation & Benefits Highlights
The following summarizes recurring compensation and benefits themes identified from responses generated by popular LLMs to common candidate questions about Northrop Grumman and has not been reviewed or approved by Northrop Grumman.
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Retirement Support — 401(k) matching is considered strong, with additional defined-benefit coverage for certain cohorts and options like catch-up contributions. Retirement programs are repeatedly highlighted as a core strength of the total rewards.
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Leave & Time Off Breadth — PTO, company-paid holidays, and compressed work schedules (such as 9/80) provide meaningful time away and flexibility. These scheduling options are cited as a major quality-of-life benefit across many locations.
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Parental & Family Support — Paid parental leave alongside caregiver leave, adoption assistance, and back-up care supports a range of family needs. These programs have been expanded recently, signaling continued investment in family support.
Northrop Grumman Insights
What We Do
We are a close-knit community of big thinkers collaborating to keep the world safe. Our passion, creativity and expertise bring next-level technology solutions to life in autonomous systems, cyber, C4ISR, strike, space, and logistics and modernization for our customers around the globe. On the Northrop Grumman team, you’ll join our pursuit of excellence immersed in a dynamic culture of innovation and respect. Your unique perspective will help achieve our shared vision for the future of global security. Every step of the way, you'll be supported by world-class training, employee resource groups and a comprehensive benefits package that enables greater health and happiness for you and your family. Worldwide and across disciplines, we’re challenging what’s possible for technology to protect people and places from undersea to outer space and into cyberspace. And we see the impact of our performance every day. We are Northrop Grumman, and we work on what matters—now, you too can make a difference. Explore opportunities in engineering, IT, manufacturing, business management, cybersecurity and more with us. Northrop Grumman is committed to hiring and retaining a diverse workforce. We are proud to be an Equal Opportunity/Affirmative Action Employer.






