Principal / Sr. Principal Space Payload Systems Engineer

0090 CORP-Corporate Office; United States; On-site; USD 105,400 - 196,700; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Health insurance

Life and disability insurance

Savings plan

Company-paid holidays

Paid time off

Job summary

Northrop Grumman Space Systems, within the ER-SEIT organization, seeks a Principal or Sr. Principal Systems Engineer to lead space subsystem, payload, and vehicle efforts across the full lifecycle.

The role emphasizes requirements analysis, architecture development, modeling and simulation, and verification planning. A DoD Top Secret clearance is required, with up to 10% travel expected.

Qualifications

• BS in STEM with 5+ years of relevant experience; or MS with 3+ years; or PhD with no required experience.
• Active DoD Top Secret clearance with SCI approval.
• U.S. citizenship required for government-related positions.

Responsibilities

• Lead systems engineering tasks for space subsystems, payloads, and vehicles.
• Perform requirements analysis, derivation, and management.
• Develop architecture, CONOPs, and system designs.
• Plan verification and validation activities.
• Conduct mission engineering, modeling, and simulation.
• Carry out cost and risk analyses for technical activities.

Skills

Systems engineering

Requirements analysis

Modeling and simulation

Architecture development

Interface definition

Cost and risk analysis

Verifications planning

Education

Bachelor’s degree in STEM field

MS degree in STEM field

PhD in STEM field (optional)

Tools

DOORS

STK

Cameo

Rhapsody

MATLAB

Python

Job description

Relocation Assistance

Relocation assistance may be available.

Clearance

Top Secret clearance required at the start of the position. Must possess an active U.S. Government DoD Top Secret security clearance with SCI approval and be able to maintain it throughout employment.

Travel

Travel up to 10% of the time is expected.

Overview

Northrop Grumman Space Systems—part of the Eastern Region Systems Engineering, Integration and Test (ER‑SEIT)—offers a Principal or Sr. Principal Systems Engineer role focused on space subsystems, payloads, and vehicles. You will engage in the full space system lifecycle, from early concept design through on‑orbit operational support, and work on mission‑critical intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance solutions.

Responsibilities

• Lead systems engineering tasks for space subsystems, payloads, and/or vehicles.
• Perform requirements analysis, derivation, and management.
• Conduct mission engineering, modeling, and analysis.
• Develop architecture, CONOPs, and system designs.
• Execute systems modeling and simulation.
• Carry out functional analysis, timeline analysis, and trade studies.
• Plan technical activities and perform cost and risk analysis.
• Define interfaces and integrate system components.
• Plan and execute verification and validation activities.
• Perform supportability and effectiveness analyses for total system performance.

Tools

Commonly used tools include DOORS, STK, Cameo, Rhapsody, MATLAB, and Python.

Basic Qualifications

• Principal Engineer – Bachelor’s degree in a STEM field with at least 5 years of relevant experience; or 3 years of experience with an MS degree; or PhD with no required experience.
• Sr. Principal Engineer – Bachelor’s degree in a STEM field with at least 8 years of relevant experience; or 6 years of experience with an MS degree; or PhD with 3 years of experience.

Preferred Qualifications

• Space systems experience.
• Sensor or payload expertise (antennas, radar, EO/IR, communications, on‑board processing).
• Space vehicle experience.
• Space ground systems architecture and design experience.
• Mission engineering, modeling, and simulation skills.
• Experience with Space Mission CONOPS.
• Assembly, Integration, and Test (AI&T) experience.

Salary & Benefits

Primary Level Salary Range: $105,400.00 – $158,000.00
Secondary Level Salary Range: $131,100.00 – $196,700.00

Salary offers are determined based on position scope, responsibilities, and candidate qualifications. Depending on the level, employees may be eligible for overtime, shift differential, discretionary bonuses, and long‑term incentives. Benefits include health insurance, life and disability insurance, a savings plan, company‑paid holidays, and paid time off for vacation or personal business.

EEO Statement

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.

Citizenship

U.S. citizenship is required for all positions with a government clearance and certain other restricted positions.