Northrop Grumman’s Space Sector is seeking a Systems Engineer Senior Systems Engineer – Level 2 or Level 3 to join our team in Chantilly, VA. This position is 100% onsite and cannot accommodate telecommute work.
The SV Onboarding Engineer will perform mission onboarding activities for a ground-based, service-oriented architecture intended to service next generation space capability. The team focuses on the space vehicle to ground segment integration to enable operations. This includes the integration of multiple heterogenous space vehicles into a common ground system. The Onboarding engineer will develop critical mission operations products in support of orbital analysis to include identification and integration of signature limitations and constraints.
This position will work a 9/80 schedule, with every other Friday off.
Your mission, should you choose to accept:
- Equal parts technical competency, forward thinking ideas, and execution focus.
- Functional understanding of ground system networking, private cloud deployments, data and messaging buses, software deployment, and hardware deployment.
- Interact in an organized and solutions-oriented manner, with external entities who are contributing elements of the integrated ground segment.
- Functional understanding of spacecraft design and operations.
- Managing work in Jira to work closely with the ground software development team.
- The work is managed between the low and high side and occurs on both. It will require organization skills to keep it all on track.
If this job description reads like it was written specifically for you, consider joining our team!
This position is contingent upon the candidate obtaining final clearances and program access(es) within a reasonable period of time as determined by the company.
This position can be filled at either a Level 2 or Level 3.
Basic Qualifications for Level 2:
- Bachelor’s degree with 2 years of professional experience or Master’s degree with 0 years of professional experience.
- Requires an active Top-Secret/Sensitive Compartmented Information (SCI) clearance at time of application
- Experience in Space to Ground and Mission Architecture and Space Vehicle Systems Engineering
- Experience with Satellite Ground Systems in the US National Security arena
- CONOPS development for Space Based programs.
- Understanding of space vehicle design concepts
Basic Qualifications for Level 3:
- Bachelor’s degree with 5 years of professional experience or Master’s degree with 3 years of professional experience or PhD with 1 year of professional experience.
- Requires an active Top-Secret/Sensitive Compartmented Information (SCI) clearance at time of application
- Experience in Space to Ground and Mission Architecture and Space Vehicle Systems Engineering
- Experience with Satellite Ground Systems in the US National Security arena
- CONOPS development for Space Based programs.
- Understanding of space vehicle design concepts
Preferred Qualifications:
- Knowledge of various mission analysis techniques and software tools.
- Understanding of Agile software development practices.
- Experience in astrodynamics or rendezvous and proximity operations (RPO)
- Background working software systems engineering.
- On-orbit testing of space systems and testing of integrated ground systems.
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Primary Level Salary Range: $91,800.00 - $137,600.00Secondary Level Salary Range: $114,000.00 - $171,000.00The 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 2 years of professional experience, or Master's degree with 0 years of professional experience for Level 2
- Bachelor's degree with 5 years of professional experience, Master's degree with 3 years of professional experience, or PhD with 1 year of professional experience for Level 3
- Active Top Secret/Sensitive Compartmented Information clearance at the time of application
- Experience in space-to-ground and mission architecture and space vehicle systems engineering
- Experience with satellite ground systems in the U.S. national security arena
- CONOPS development for space-based programs
- Understanding of space vehicle design concepts
- Knowledge of mission analysis techniques and software tools
- Understanding of Agile software development practices
- Experience in astrodynamics or rendezvous and proximity operations
- Background in software systems engineering
- Experience with on-orbit testing of space systems and integrated ground systems
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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Healthcare Strength — Health coverage offers multiple medical plan options by region alongside dental, vision, mental‑health resources, and wellness programs. Recent materials also highlight added family‑building support, including a dedicated fertility benefit.
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Retirement Support — The 401(k) savings plan is positioned as competitive with a company match, auto‑escalation features, and access to an employee stock fund/ESPP. Official filings and benefits guides emphasize retirement as a core element of the Total Rewards package.
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Leave & Time Off Breadth — Many sites offer a 9/80 schedule, generous PTO, paid holidays, and flexible/telework options where program needs allow. Paid parental and caregiver leave are prominently featured, with recent enhancements for the delivering parent.
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.








