Northrop Grumman logo

Principal Test & Evaluation Engineer

Northrop Grumman

Melbourne, FLJob$89–134K/yrSeen 2 days agoSeen in employer's feed 2 days ago

Most applications go out cold — see where you stand first. No sign-up to start.

You apply on the employer's site, with no Olive account needed.

Watch jobs like this.

Don't just apply. Show up ready.

Olive works from this exact posting.

At a glance

Compensation
$89–134K/yr
Location
Melbourne, FL
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.

Secret clearance

Job overview

Northrop Grumman’s Aeronautics Systems Research & Advanced Design team is hiring a Principal Test & Evaluation Engineer for its onsite Melbourne, Florida team. The engineer will support applying commercial technologies, including 5G communications, machine learning, and emerging wireless solutions, to operational military use cases. The role focuses on RF systems testing and integration, test documentation, instrumentation, and field demonstrations for DoD programs.

Skills & qualifications

RequiredNice to have

Skills

RF TestingTest Plan DevelopmentSystem Verification and ValidationCloud EnvironmentsHybrid-Cloud EnvironmentsOn-Premise EnvironmentsVirtualized EnvironmentsRF MicroelectronicsTest AutomationData Collection ToolsLab ManagementSelf-MotivationProactivityGoal OrientationLifting 75 Lbs

Qualifications

BS+5, MS+3 or PhD+1 YearsSecret ClearanceSAP Clearance Eligibility5 Years Related Experience3 Years Related Experience1 Year Related ExperienceWillingness to Travel25% TravelMaster's or PhD in STEM

Benefits

Relocation Assistance
Medical Insurance
Paid Time Off
401(k) Match

Full job description

RELOCATION ASSISTANCE: Relocation assistance may be available

CLEARANCE REQUIRED FOR START: Yes

CLEARANCE TYPE: Secret

TRAVEL: Yes, 25% of the Time

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’s Aeronautics Systems – Research & Advanced Design (R&AD) transforms breakthrough ideas into mission-ready capabilities through intelligent anticipation. We’re the front-end design engine, defining what comes next. From developing cutting-edge next-generation future aircraft to trailblazing collaborative autonomous platforms, we push the boundaries of technology and forge industry-leading partnerships that set new standards for what’s possible.

Our team owns the full lifecycle of advanced concept creation, from visionary early-stage designs and rapid prototyping to high-impact demonstrations and solving the toughest technical challenges in survivability, autonomy, and battle management. We seek curious, adaptable people who thrive on turning intuition into breakthrough solutions. If you’re driven to invent the future, build what’s next, and shape the landscape of national security, this is where you belong.

Northrop Grumman Aeronautics Systems has an opening for a Principal Test & Evaluation Engineer to join the team of qualified individuals on our Test and Evaluation team. This role is located onsite in Melbourne, FL.

In this role, the successful candidate will support the application of cutting-edge commercial technologies—such as 5G communications, machine learning, and emerging wireless solutions—to operational military use cases, enabling advanced battle-management capabilities.

Key Responsibilities:

  • Design, execute, and analyze RF systems testing and integration activities.

  • Develop comprehensive test plans, procedures, and reports for DoD programs.

  • Oversee instrumentation setup, configuration, and management.

  • Plan and conduct field demonstrations and exercises.

We offer flexible work arrangements, 9/80 work schedule with every other Friday off, phenomenal learning opportunities, exposure to a wide variety of projects and customers, and a very friendly team environment. We are looking for self-motivated, proactive, and goal-oriented people to help us grow our services and become even better at what we do.

Basic Qualifications:

  • Must have a Bachelor of Science degree in a Science, Technology, Engineering, or Math (STEM) discipline AND 5 years of related professional/military experience OR a Master of Science degree in a STEM discipline AND 3 years of related professional/military experience, OR a STEM Ph.D. AND 1 years of related professional/military experience

  • Must have an active US Government Secret (or higher) clearance (with a background investigation within the past 6 years or enrolled into Continuous Evaluation)

  • Must have the ability to obtain and maintain Special Access Program (SAP) clearance, within a reasonable amount of time as determined by business needs.

  • Must have experience with RF test equipment for system verification and validation.

  • Must have ability to generate test plans, procedures, and reports for DoD programs.

  • Must have ability to perform system verification and validation for DoD programs.

  • Must have experience working in cloud-based, hybrid-cloud, on-premise, and virtualized environments.

  • Must have willingness and ability to travel within the continental U.S. up to 25% of the time.

  • Must be able to lift up to 75lbs for transporting equipment for demonstrations

Preferred Qualifications:

  • Master’s or PhD degree in a STEM discipline.

  • Experience developing or testing RF microelectronics and related components.

  • Proven track record creating test-automation and data-collection tools for efficiency and repeatability..

  • Background as a Lab/SIL manager on DoD programs.

Primary Level Salary Range: $89,400.00 - $134,200.00

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 3,119 open Test Engineer jobs on Olive Jobs, counted November 4, 2026.

Pay
  • This posting$89–134K/yr
  • Florida median$85–158K/yr75 salary ranges
  • US median$103–162K/yr2,095 salary ranges

This range's midpoint, $112K, is 8% below the Florida median midpoint ($122K) — in the middle half of Test Engineer salary ranges in Florida.

Openings
Olive Jobs lists 128 open Test Engineer jobs in Florida and 3,119 across the US. 2% of them nationwide are listed as remote or flexible.
Hiring the most in Florida
Experience
This posting asks for at least 1 year of experience — less than three in four Test Engineer postings that state a minimum ask for (median 5 years, across 2,614 postings).
Education
1,686 of the 3,119 open Test Engineer jobs (54%) ask for a bachelor's degree or higher.

Counted across the open, public US postings on Olive Jobs on November 4, 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.

Prepare for this role

You've read the whole posting — now see how you match it.