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RF Communications Systems Engineer Technician Top Secret clearance

Northrop Grumman

Stafford, VAJob$83–125K/yrSeen todaySeen in employer's feed today

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At a glance

Compensation
$83–125K/yr
Location
Stafford, VA
Work Authorization
US work authorization required

Olive lists jobs from US employers, including remote roles you can work from the United States.

Requirements

Credentials this posting asks for.

Top Secret clearance, required

Job overview

Northrop Grumman seeks an RF Communications Systems Engineer Technician for the Whisper program in Stafford, Virginia. The program uses an antenna-based RF transmission and receiving network with command-and-control software to remotely control systems worldwide. The role supports RF system verification, testing, performance analysis, integration, and operational monitoring. A Top Secret clearance is required to start, and the schedule includes second-shift weekdays and rotating weekend and federal-holiday shifts.

Skills & qualifications

RequiredNice to have

Skills

Microsoft Office, requiredElectrical Testing, requiredRF Testing, requiredAntenna Testing, requiredElectrical Test Equipment, nice to haveRF Verification, nice to haveDemodulation Techniques, nice to haveEngineering Disciplines, nice to haveHardware/Software Development, nice to have

Qualifications

Bachelor's+2, Master's, or High School+6 Years, requiredTop Secret Clearance, requiredTS-SCI, CI Poly, or Current CI-Poly, nice to haveNavy CTT, Army 35T, or Similar Military Experience, nice to haveAir Force IN2A, Navy CTT, or Army 35N Training, nice to have

Benefits

Medical Insurance
401(k) Match
Paid Time Off

Full job description

RELOCATION ASSISTANCE: No relocation assistance available

CLEARANCE REQUIRED FOR START: Yes

CLEARANCE TYPE: Top Secret

TRAVEL: No

Description

At Northrop Grumman, our employees have incredible opportunities to work on revolutionary systems that impact people's lives around the world today, and for generations to come. Our pioneering and inventive spirit has enabled us to be at the forefront of many technological advancements in our nation's history - from the first flight across the Atlantic Ocean, to stealth bombers, to landing on the moon. We look for people who have bold new ideas, courage and a pioneering spirit to join forces to invent the future, and have fun along the way. Our culture thrives on intellectual curiosity, cognitive diversity and bringing your whole self to work — and we have an insatiable drive to do what others think is impossible. Our employees are not only part of history, they're making history.

Northrop Grumman, Defense Systems, is seeking an RF Communications Systems Engineer Technician to work on the Whisper program in Stafford, Virginia. The Whisper program is a large Antenna based RF Transmission and receiving network project. We use command and control software to remotely control multiple systems worldwide.

Responsibilities:

  • Support verification of complex RF systems from a wide variety of antenna systems located throughout the world

  • Build and test complex test cases that support calibration services

  • Characterize system performance by documenting problems in a Configuration Management database

  • Monitor the status of critical global systems and report system status to senior contracting and government leadership

  • Support the development of system integration plans, procedures and scenarios used for new software/hardware integration testing

  • Analyze RF waveforms in the frequency and time domain

  • Support asset schedule and de-conflict complex tasks across multiple systems world-wide

  • Provide system performance validation and 2nd tier quality assurance on multiple systems worldwide

  • Must possess organized, logical thought process skills, exhibit a strong work ethic, and the ability to acquire and retain the requisite training for operational support

  • Able to work in a team environment where collaboration and attention to detail is critical to mission success

  • Excellent communication, interpersonal skills, and the ability to interface with all levels of employees and government leadership

Basic Qualifications:

  • Bachelor's + 2 years of exp or Master's degree or High School diploma / equivalent with 6 years’ work experience may be considered in lieu of a degree

  • Top Secret

  • Proficiency with Microsoft Office suite

  • Experience in electrical, RF, or antenna testing/engineering

  • Must be able to work 2nd shift: 2pm – 10pm Monday through Friday

  • Must be able to support 12-hr weekend shifts on a five-to-six-week rotation and support at least one 12-hr federal holiday shift per year

Preferred Qualifications:

  • TS-SCI with the ability to obtain a CI Poly or currently have CI-Poly

  • Navy Cryptologic Technician (CTT) or Army 35 T Military Intelligence (MI) Systems Maintainer/Integrator or other similar Military civilian experience

  • Skills required are in line with military equivalent training in ratings such as Air Force IN2A (IN5 equivalent), Navy CTT and Army 35N (98 series equivalents)

  • Experience operating electrical test equipment such as antennas, oscilloscopes, spectrum/network analyzers, EMI receivers, LNAs, signal generators, multimeters, etc.

  • Experience operating testing equipment like spectrum analyzers, system analyzers, watt meters, TDRs, FDRs, and multi-meters.

  • Academic or work-related experience with the following:

  • RF verification in frequency domain, time domain and demodulation techniques.

  • Apply engineering disciplines to real world activities and systems; and full life-cycle hardware/software development projects

Primary Level Salary Range: $83,400.00 - $125,200.00

The above salary range represents a general guideline; however, Northrop Grumman considers a number of factors when determining base salary offers such as the scope and responsibilities of the position and the candidate's experience, education, skills and current market conditions.

Depending on the position, employees may be eligible for overtime, shift differential, and a discretionary bonus in addition to base pay. Annual bonuses are designed to reward individual contributions as well as allow employees to share in company results. Employees in Vice President or Director positions may be eligible for Long Term Incentives. In addition, Northrop Grumman provides a variety of benefits including health insurance coverage, life and disability insurance, savings plan, Company paid holidays and paid time off (PTO) for vacation and/or personal business.

The application period for the job is estimated to be 20 days from the job posting date. However, this timeline may be shortened or extended depending on business needs and the availability of qualified candidates.

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

Job Category: Engineering

How this job compares

Set against the 3,197 open Systems Engineering jobs on Olive Jobs, counted November 11, 2026.

Pay
  • This posting$83–125K/yr
  • Virginia median$125–200K/yr202 salary ranges
  • US median$129–205K/yr2,291 salary ranges

This range's midpoint, $104K, is 38% below the Virginia median midpoint ($169K) — in the lowest quarter of Systems Engineering salary ranges in Virginia.

Openings
Olive Jobs lists 281 open Systems Engineering jobs in Virginia and 3,197 across the US. 6% of them nationwide are listed as remote or flexible.
Hiring the most in Virginia
Experience
This posting asks for at least 2 years of experience — less than three in four Systems Engineering postings that state a minimum ask for (median 7 years, across 2,518 postings).
Education
1,090 of the 3,197 open Systems Engineering jobs (34%) ask for a bachelor's degree or higher.

Counted across the open, public US postings on Olive Jobs on November 11, 2026. Pay medians are the middle values of the low ends and of the high ends of postings that list both ends of a range in the same cadence (a yearly salary or an hourly rate); a range's midpoint is halfway between its ends. Pay and experience figures resting on fewer than 20 postings are left out.

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