Engineer Principal - Citywide (5212) - (C00488)

City and County of San Francisco; San Francisco (CA); On-site; USD 190,000 - 230,000; Full time

Job summary

City and County of San Francisco seeks a Principal Engineer/Architect to manage professional engineering and architectural personnel across diverse design and construction projects.

Under general administrative direction, you will oversee budgets, set design standards, and coordinate with contractors and agencies. A CA PE license is required, with nine years of experience and possible out-of-state licensure waivers; ICBO/ICC certifications may be needed for some roles.

Qualifications

• Nine (9) years verifiable professional engineering work experience, six (6) years must be as a licensed professional engineer.
• Two (2) of the nine (9) years must be equivalent to the City and County of San Francisco class 5211 Senior Engineer.
• Substitutions for Engineer Specialty: Master's may substitute for 1 year; PhD may substitute for 2 years.
• Notes for Engineer Specialty: ICBO/ICC or equivalent certifying body may be required.
• Out-of-state license waiver: candidates licensed elsewhere may apply and be waived until CA license is presented.
• Working Conditions may include lifting up to 50 pounds, ladders, high places, outdoors, long hours and weekends.

Responsibilities

• Plan, direct and coordinate design activities for major engineering/architectural projects.
• Establish, manage and monitor organizational budgets.
• Coordinate with contractors, agencies and inspectors to ensure alignment with plans and standards.
• Supervise staff, conduct performance appraisals and participate in disciplinary processes.
• Write policies, procedures and evaluations; conduct negotiations with government and agencies.

Job description

• Full-time
• Certification Rule: Rule of the List
• Exam Type: Class Based Test
• Work Hours: Regular
• Job Code and Title: 5212-Engineer/Architect Principal
• Fill Type: Permanent Civil Service
• Eligible List Type: Combined Promotive and Entrance

Company Description

This is a Citywide Exam posting. Your application to this posting is an application to take a citywide exam.

If you pass the exam, you will be emailed your score and ranking on the eligible candidate list. When a department has an open position with this job classification they will use this eligible list to hire for that position. Departments will contact candidates from this list to gauge interest in their specific roles. Learn more about the City’s hiring process here: https://careers.sf.gov/knowledge/process/

San Francisco is a vibrant and dynamic city, on the forefront of economic growth & innovation, urban development, arts & entertainment as well as social issues & change. This rich tapestry of culture and ideas is sustained by our City's commitment to heighten the quality of life for the diverse population of San Franciscans and residents of the greater Bay Area. Our employees play an important role not only in making our City what it is today, but also in shaping the future of San Francisco.

Application Opens:November 13, 2026
Application Filing Deadline:5:00 PM PST on November 30, 2026

Job Description

Under general administrative direction, the Principal Engineer/Architect manages, plans, assigns and directs the activities of several units or a group of professional and sub-professional engineering/architectural personnel engaged in a wide variety of design and/or construction projects.

The essential functions of the class may vary depending upon assignment and may include:

• Planning, directing and coordinating the design activities of a number of major sections engaged in complex engineering and/or architectural projects.
• Establishing, preparing, managing,reviewing and monitoring organizational budgets.
• Establishing and evaluating organizational goals and objectives;planning,coordinating and directing the activities of professional engineering and/or architectural personnel with those of contractors, subcontractors, state and local agencies,and inspection and construction personnel.
• Supervising subordinate personnel,completing performance appraisals, and participating in the disciplinary process when necessary.
• Establishing design and construction standards; reviewing and approving correspondence,reports,estimates and other materials.
• Writing policies,procedures,correspondence and evaluations.
• Conducting important negotiations with representatives of government andarchitectural and engineering agencies.
• Coordinating,interpreting, and enforcing policies; conferring and coordinating with operating division managers, other departments, andstate and local agencies.
• Making presentations to boards,organizations, and the public.
• Performs other related duties as assigned.

Qualifications

1. Nine (9) years verifiable professional engineering (e.g. civil, electrical, mechanical, sanitary/chemical/environmental, transportation/traffic, or structural) work experience, of which six (6) years of that experience must be as a licensed professional engineer. Two (2) of the nine (9) years must be equivalent to the City and County of San Francisco class 5211 Senior Engineer ;

AND

2. Possession of a current Certificate of Registration as a Professional Engineer in the State of California.

Substitutions for Engineer Specialty:

1. A Master's Degree in Engineering may substitute for 1 (one) year of work experience.

2. A PhD in Engineering may substitute for 2 (two) years of work experience.

Notesfor Engineer Specialty:

3. Some engineering positions may require possession of a certificate issued by the International Conference of Building Officials (ICBO), International Code Council (ICC) or an equivalent certifying body.

4. Some positions may require additional special engineering licensing and/or work experience in areas such as Construction Management, Structural Design, Corrosion, Fire Protection, Geotechnical Engineering, Environmental, or Instrumentation and Control Systems, additional disciplines may be determined at a later time.

This note applies to all candidates who are applying from out of the state of California for all specialties:

1. Candidates licensed in other states who otherwise meet the minimum requirements of this announcement, but do not possess the required California license, may file for this examination, and if successful, will be placed under waiver on the resulting eligible list until the required California license is presented.

License or Certificate:

Working Conditions:Some positions may require specific lifting up to 50 pounds; climbing ladders; working in high places and confined spaces; exposure to various weather conditions and outdoors; bending, sitting, and walking for extended periods of time and over uneven surfaces. Positions in this class may also be required to work specific schedules which may include weekends, holidays, part time, nights, and/or overtime.

Verification:

Every application is reviewed to ensure that you meet the minimum qualifications as listed in the job ad. Review SF Careers Employment Applications for considerations taken when reviewing applications.

Applicants may be required to submit verification of qualifying education and experience at any point during the recruitment and selection process. If education verification is required, information on how to verify education requirements, including verifying foreign education credits or degree equivalency, can be found at https://careers.sf.gov/knowledge/experience-education/ .

Note: Falsifying one’s education, training, or work experience or attempted deception on the application may result in disqualification for this and future job opportunities with the City and County of San Francisco.

All work experience, education, training and other information substantiating how you meet the minimum qualifications must be included on your application by the filing deadline. Information submitted after the filing deadline will not be considered in determining whether you meet the minimum qualifications.

Resumes will not be accepted in lieu of a completed City and County of San Francisco application.

Applications completed improperly may be cause for ineligibility, disqualification or may lead to lower scores.

One year of full-time employment is equivalent to 2000 hours, (2000 hours of qualifying work experience is based on a 40 hours work week), any overtime hours that you work above forty (40) hours per week are not included in the calculation to determine full-time employment.

SELECTION PROCEDURES

After application submission, candidates deemed qualified must complete all subsequent steps to advance in this selection process, which includes the following:

Minimum Qualification Supplemental Questionnaire with Training and Experience Evaluation (100%):

Candidates will be prompted to complete a Supplemental Questionnaire with Training and Experience Evaluation as part of the online employment application. This Minimum Qualification Supplemental Questionnaire is designed to obtain specific information regarding an applicant's experience in relation to the Minimum Qualifications for this position. Applicants must also complete the official application. It is essential that applicants provide complete information in identifying their education, experience and training.

The Minimum Qualification Supplemental Questionnaire will be used to evaluate if the applicant possesses the required minimum qualifications and if so, it will also be used to determine the final score and rank on the eligible list/score report.

Additional Information

Eligible List/Score Report: