Senior Systems Test Engineer - Secret Clearance

Northrop Grumman; San Diego (CA); On-site; USD 104,000 - 194,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Relocation assistance

9/80 schedule

Learning opportunities

Job summary

Northrop Grumman in Rancho Bernardo, CA is seeking a Principal / Sr. Principal System Test Engineer to lead test planning, execution, and verification of hardware/software for ground and flight releases.

DoD Secret clearance and collaboration with multiple teams are essential. The role emphasizes first-time quality, test rigor, and agile testing practices, with opportunities to shape verification strategies and CI frameworks across lab and operational environments.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s in STEM with 5+ years in engineering/professional/military experience; or Master’s with 3 years; or PhD with 1 year.
• Experience in System Test, Software Development, and/or Systems Engineering.
• Experience developing and executing system-level test procedures.
• Experience with Windows/Linux operating systems and VM usage.
• Active DoD Secret Clearance or higher.
• Weekend/multi-shift onsite support as required.

Responsibilities

• Plan, coordinate, and execute dry-run and formal system-level test activities for HW/SW certification.
• Develop, execute, and document integrated software/hardware test procedures.
• Design end-to-end test scenarios for performance, reliability, interoperability, and operational effectiveness.
• Translate system requirements into test plans and acceptance criteria.
• Support lab operations, data collection, and verification metrics closure.
• Drive lab configuration rigor and compliance with security requirements.
• Collaborate with cross-functional teams to integrate subsystem changes.
• Communicate findings and recommendations to leadership.
• Work independently and handle multiple priorities to meet schedules.
• Flexibility for weekends and off-hours as needed.

Skills

System Test

Software Development

Systems Engineering

Requirement-to-test traceability

CI / Automated testing

Scripting (Python)

Java / C++

Education

BSc in STEM

MSc in STEM

PhD in STEM

Tools

Windows

Linux

Virtual Machines (VMs)

Job description

Northrop Grumman in Rancho Bernardo, CA is seeking a Principal / Sr. Principal System Test Engineer to lead test planning, execution, and verification of hardware/software for ground and flight releases.

DoD Secret clearance and collaboration with multiple teams are essential. The role emphasizes first-time quality, test rigor, and agile testing practices, with opportunities to shape verification strategies and CI frameworks across lab and operational environments.