Senior Systems Engineer, Test & Evaluation Lead (Defense)

QinetiQ US (formerly Avantus Federal); Fort Belvoir (VA); On-site; USD 140,000 - 190,000; Full time

Job summary

QinetiQ US is seeking an experienced Senior Systems Engineer to serve as a Test and Evaluation Lead for the U.S. Army C5ISR Center Javelin Seeker effort.

The role involves providing programmatic and technical oversight of contractor verification, qualification, integration, and developmental testing across the full acquisition life cycle. The candidate will advise government and industry stakeholders on T&E strategy, review test documentation, readiness assessments, and independent evaluations

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in Systems Engineering, Electrical Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, Optical Engineering, Aerospace Engineering, Physics, or a related technical discipline.
• 8+ years of systems engineering, test and evaluation, integration and test, or qualification experience supporting defense acquisition programs.
• Demonstrated experience supporting acquisition-level verification, qualification, developmental test, or system evaluation activities across the full acquisition life cycle.
• Experience providing government, SETA, program office, or lead engineering oversight of contractor-performed test activities.
• Experience developing, reviewing, or assessing test plans, procedures, readiness documentation, verification documentation, and test reports for complex defense systems.
• Experience with requirements development, verification planning, requirements traceability, and technical review processes.
• Experience supporting the development, integration, qualification, or test and evaluation of missile systems, seekers, sensors, EO/IR payloads, or other complex hardware-intensive defense systems.
• Strong analytical, technical writing, and briefing skills.
• Ability to communicate effectively with government, contractor, and cross-functional engineering stakeholders.
• Must have an Active DoD Secret or higher level clearance.

Responsibilities

• Provide systems engineering and programmatic oversight of contractor-executed test and evaluation activities in support of component qualification and acquisition decision milestones.
• Develop, review, update, and staff T&E strategies, test plans, verification approaches, and qualification documentation in alignment with system requirements and program objectives.
• Ensure traceability between system requirements, verification methods, qualification events, and test results.
• Support T&E planning across the full acquisition life cycle, including requirements development, design maturation, integration, verification, qualification, and formal program reviews.
• Lead or support Test and Evaluation Working Integrated Product Teams (T&E WIPTs), Test Readiness Reviews (TRRs), and other technical reviews.
• Review contractor-developed test procedures, readiness artifacts, safety documentation, data packages, and test reports for technical rigor, completeness, and contractual compliance.
• Coordinate with government organizations, test centers, laboratories, and contractor teams to support test planning, scheduling, resource alignment, and execution.
• Support independent technical assessment of test adequacy, qualification status, system performance, and program risk.
• Evaluate test discrepancies, root cause analyses, corrective action plans, and regression or retest activities.
• Prepare technical briefings, system assessment inputs, verification status updates, and leadership recommendations for government decision-makers.
• Support assessment of EO/IR subsystem and integrated sensor performance through functional, environmental, interface, and system-level verification activities.

Skills

Systems engineering

Test & Evaluation

Requirements traceability

Technical briefing

Stakeholder communication

Analytical skills

Education

Bachelor's degree in Systems Engineering/engineering/physics

Tools

MATLAB

Python

Telemetry reduction tools

Job description

QinetiQ US is seeking an experienced Senior Systems Engineer to serve as a Test and Evaluation Lead for the U.S. Army C5ISR Center Javelin Seeker effort.

The role involves providing programmatic and technical oversight of contractor verification, qualification, integration, and developmental testing across the full acquisition life cycle. The candidate will advise government and industry stakeholders on T&E strategy, review test documentation, readiness assessments, and independent evaluations