Mechanical Design Engineering Co-op (Winter/Spring 2027)

Prattwhitney; Rockford (IL); On-site; USD 37,000 - 82,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Relocation eligibility

Job summary

RTX in Rockford, IL offers a full-time co-op opportunity in mechanical and aerospace design. You will review layouts, coordinate with engineering teams, and support a design lead on components, with emphasis on manufacturability and reliability.

This mentored role runs January through July/August, requiring enrollment in a STEM degree, and provides hands-on experience in aerospace product development, collaboration with manufacturing, and exposure to standard work practices.

Qualifications

• Pursuing a Bachelor’s or advanced degree in Mechanical or Aerospace Engineering or related STEM field and enrolled through the internship period.
• Full-time, Monday–Friday co-op session.
• Strong communication and collaboration with engineering teams.

Responsibilities

• Review layouts and drawings for clarity, completeness and accuracy.
• Coordinate with engineering personnel to ensure project completion.
• Support design lead in creation and review of components and stack-up calculations.
• Investigate and resolve design problems to enable project completion.
• Engage with manufacturing and engineering to solve production issues.
• Develop data, layouts, sketches, and notes to present design proposals.
• Follow standard procedures and workflows to optimize efficiency.

Skills

Inter-team communication

Design review

Problem solving

Attention to detail

Education

Bachelor’s or Advanced degree in Mechanical or Aerospace Engineering or related STEM

Tools

Microsoft Office (Excel, Word, PowerPoint)

CAD/CAE tools

Job description

Date Posted: 2026-09-27 Country: United States of America Location: US-IL-ROCKFORD-P6 ~ 4747 Harrison Ave ~ 4747 HARRISON AVE-P6 Position Role Type: Onsite U.S. Citizen, U.S. Person, or Immigration Status Requirements: U.S. citizenship is required, as only U.S. citizens are authorized to access information under this program/contract. Security Clearance Type: None/Not Required Security Clearance Status: Not Required

Are you ready to explore the world of aerospace and defense? Do you want to learn from and collaborate with some of the greatest minds in the industry? At RTX, our internships, co-ops and full-time careers provide an exceptional foundation to work on complex problems, advance your skills and create a safer, more connected world. Discover opportunities to make a difference at RTX.

What You Will Do

Immerse yourself in a full-time, Monday-Friday co-op session, that will run January- July/August (including the Spring semester; it is expected students will take a semester off from coursework to fully engage with this working mentorship opportunity).

• Review completed layouts and drawings to ensure clarity, completeness, conformity to standards, procedures, specifications, and accuracy of calculations and dimensioning.
• Communicate with the other engineering personnel to coordinate the interrelated design and ensure project completion.
• Support a Design lead in the creation and review of components, calculates stack-up of detail components, and performs analysis to substantiate model and print definition.
• Resolve design problems of difficult scope to ensure project completion.
• Engage with manufacturing and engineering counterparts to collaborate on production problem solving opportunities.
• Will be utilized as an individual contributor diagnosing and solving problems and building engineering capabilities.
• Will follow common procedures and standard work across the organization to optimize efficiency and quality of work performed.
• Develop data and make layouts, sketches, and notes necessary to present design proposals.
• Design components or portions of functional systems with assistance of experienced contributors and brainstorming technically advanced prototypes using computer design and engineering systems.
• Investigate pertinent design factors such as ease of manufacture, availability of materials and equipment, interchangeability, replaceability, strength-weight efficiency, and contractual specification requirements and cost.
• Design, develop and test metallic or non-metallic structures or materials and their related fabrication processes for use in engineering designs.

What You Will Learn

• Rotating Machinery in Aerospace
• Inter-team communication
• Mechanical design principles
• How to use and create standard work
• Professionalism

Qualifications

You Must Have

• Must be pursuing Bachelor’s or Advanced degree in Mechanical Engineering, Aerospace Engineering, or related Science, Technology, Engineering, or Mathematics (STEM) major and actively enrolled through the completion of the internship/co-op session. Experience may be obtained through on-the-job experience, research, coursework, or projects.

We Prefer

• Experience with manufacturing techniques
• Experience with Aerospace and Industrial Power Transmission systems
• Experience with Microsoft Office (Excel, Word, and/or PowerPoint)
• Prior RTX internship, co-op, or work experience

What We Offer

Our values drive our actions, behaviors, and performance with a vision for a safer, more connected world. At RTX we value: Safety, Trust, Respect, Accountability, Collaboration, and Innovation.

Relocation Eligibility

The salary range for this role is 37,000 USD - 82,000 USD. The salary range provided is a good faith estimate representative of all experience levels. RTX considers several factors when extending an offer, including but not limited to, the role, function and associated responsibilities, a candidate’s work experience, location, education/training, and key skills. Hired applicants may be eligible for benefits, including but not limited to, medical, dental, vision, life insurance, short-term disability, long-term disability, 401(k) match, flexible spending accounts, flexible work schedules, employee assistance program, Employee Scholar Program, parental leave, paid time off, and holidays. Specific benefits are dependent upon the specific business unit as well as whether or not the position is covered by a collective-bargaining agreement. Hired applicants may be eligible for annual short-term and/or long-term incentive compensation programs depending on the level of the position and whether or not it is covered by a collective-bargaining agreement. Payments under these annual programs are not guaranteed and are dependent upon a variety of factors including, but not limited to, individual performance, business unit performance, and/or the company’s performance. This role is a U.S.-based role. If the successful candidate resides in a U.S. territory, the appropriate pay structure and benefits will apply.

RTX anticipates the application window closing approximately 40 days from the date the notice was posted. However, factors such as candidate flow and business necessity may require RTX to shorten or extend the application window.

RTX is an Equal Opportunity Employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, age, disability or veteran status, or any other applicable state or federal protected class. RTX provides affirmative action in employment for qualified Individuals with a Disability and Protected Veterans in compliance with Section 503 of the Rehabilitation Act and the Vietnam Era Veterans’ Readjustment Assistance Act.

RTX is an aerospace and defense company that provides advanced systems and services for commercial, military and government customers worldwide. It comprises three industry-leading businesses – Collins Aerospace, Pratt & Whitney, and Raytheon.

Its 195,000 employees enable the company to operate at the edge of known science as they imagine and deliver solutions that push the boundaries in quantum physics, electric propulsion, directed energy, hypersonics, avionics and cybersecurity. The company, formed in 2020 through the combination of Raytheon Company and the United Technologies Corporation aerospace businesses, is headquartered in Arlington, Virginia.