Defense Modeling & Simulation Research Engineer

The Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory; Laurel (MD); On-site; USD 100,000 - 245,000; Full time

Job summary

The Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory in Laurel, MD seeks a Research Engineer to turn mission-level simulation into decision-ready software. You will split time between developing C++ modeling capabilities and building Python tools for scenario generation and data processing.

You will also perform R&D on real-world mission-system behaviors, analyze simulation results for utility and requirements, and translate analyst needs into modeling requirements.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in physics, mathematics, software engineering, or a related field.
• Demonstrated experience building robust, maintainable software with modern C++17 or newer, including numerical methods or modeling complex phenomena.
• Proficient in Python for analysis and automation.
• Experience designing and conducting experiments using simulation, modeling, or data-driven methods to evaluate hypotheses and inform technical decisions.
• Experience translating research concepts, algorithms, or analytical results into practical software prototypes and evaluating their performance.
• Able to communicate clearly with developers and end-users about technical issues, tradeoffs, and new features.
• Willingness to obtain SAP level access and Interim Secret/Top Secret clearances.
• Citizenship requirements as applicable.

Responsibilities

• Develop software (approximately half time): build C++ modeling and simulation capabilities representing multi-domain mission-system behaviors.
• Build Python and C++ tools for scenario generation, data processing, and regression of simulations.
• Perform research and analysis (approximately half time): conduct R&D on real-world mission-system behaviors and ground models in real operation data.
• Analyze simulation outputs to assess military utility, system requirements, and capability tradeoffs.
• Translate analyst needs into modeling requirements that drive simulation work.

Skills

C++17

Python

Software design

Experimentation

Communication

Education

Bachelor's degree in physics, math, CS or related field

Tools

AFSIM

GitLab

Docker

CMake

Job description

The Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory in Laurel, MD seeks a Research Engineer to turn mission-level simulation into decision-ready software. You will split time between developing C++ modeling capabilities and building Python tools for scenario generation and data processing.

You will also perform R&D on real-world mission-system behaviors, analyze simulation results for utility and requirements, and translate analyst needs into modeling requirements.