Security & Network Engineer, Space Systems

California-Institute-of-Technology; Pasadena (CA); Hybrid; USD 136,823,232 - 178,371,648; Full time

Job summary

Caltech is seeking a Security and Network Engineer to strengthen cybersecurity governance and network defense for IPAC. You will work within a data-center engineering team to shape security architecture across mission-critical pipelines and observatories, aligning with federal mandates.

Role emphasizes governance, compliance (NIST RMF/800-53, FIPS), and hands-on network engineering with Arista/Cisco gear. On-site at the Caltech campus in Pasadena with occasional remote flex.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in Information Technology, Computer Science, Computer Engineering, or a related field; 5+ years in network administration and cybersecurity.
• Hands-on network design and administration experience with enterprise hardware (e.g., Arista, Cisco).
• Experience managing enterprise firewalls and network security perimeters.
• Experience with network penetration testing and security auditing; data analysis.
• Cybersecurity principles including network access control and secure architecture design.
• Familiarity with federal cybersecurity compliance frameworks (NIST RMF/800-53, FIPS).
• US PERSON as defined by ITAR regulations.

Responsibilities

• Coordinate NASA ATO compliance, documentation, and reporting to achieve and maintain ATO status.
• Design, maintain, and audit Security Plans (SSPs) and POA&M tracking for missions and IPAC infrastructure.
• Translate NIST/ NASA directives into enforceable network architectures and configurations.
• Design, deploy, audit, and maintain firewall rules and security perimeters (Palo Alto).
• Provide network consultation and backup support to IPAC infrastructure and Arista/Cisco environments.
• Monitor networks with centralized logging and security alerting to detect vulnerabilities.
• Perform other duties as assigned.

Skills

Security engineering

Network engineering

Firewall administration

Threat monitoring

NIST RMF

Arista/Cisco experience

Penetration testing

Python/Bash scripting

US PERSON per ITAR

Education

Bachelor’s degree in IT / CS / CE

Tools

Palo Alto firewalls

Rapid7

CrowdStrike

Job description

Caltech is seeking a Security and Network Engineer to strengthen cybersecurity governance and network defense for IPAC. You will work within a data-center engineering team to shape security architecture across mission-critical pipelines and observatories, aligning with federal mandates.

Role emphasizes governance, compliance (NIST RMF/800-53, FIPS), and hands-on network engineering with Arista/Cisco gear. On-site at the Caltech campus in Pasadena with occasional remote flex.