Systems Research and Development Engineer

Systems Research and Development Engineer

Join to apply for the Systems Research and Development Engineer role at The Applied Research Laboratory at Penn State University
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We are seeking a motivated, experienced, and driven Systems Research and Development Engineer to join the Strategic Systems Operations Division in the Applied Research Laboratory (ARL) at Penn State. This position will work with senior technical staff to research, design, develop, integrate, and test advanced communications systems. If you are interested in collaborating and learning with a team of brilliant researchers to develop next‑generation communications and signal‑processing software and hardware solutions, this is for you.

ARL fosters and develops some of the greatest minds that the Department of Defense (DoD) has to offer.

ARL is an authorized DoD Skill Bridge partner and welcomes all transitioning military members to apply.

• Organize and direct a multidisciplinary, strong, and diverse engineering team.
• Balance team members, activities, and priorities with the process to achieve a final product.
• Provide technical leadership within CSP Division projects.
• Plan and direct research projects related to communications.
• Guide programs of national or international significance; identify future problems, research trends, and opportunities.
• Interact and collaborate regularly with the engineering team, principal investigator, sponsors, and other stakeholders.

This position can be filled at multiple levels depending on your education and work experience. Minimally requires a Bachelor's degree in an engineering or science discipline plus five years of related experience. Additional education and/or experience is required for higher level positions. A Master’s degree in Electrical Engineering is preferred.

• Advanced understanding of electrical engineering principles associated with communications.
• Collection and processing architectures for RF signals in general, with emphasis on the impact of propagation effects in the HF and below bands as well as UHF through Ku bands.
• AoA and TDOA/FDOA geolocation techniques.
• Communications protocols – OSI stack, UDP/TCP/IP.
• Familiarity with wireless specifications such as cellular (4G/5G)/WiFi (802.11).
• Capable of creating testable system‑level performance requirements from sponsor‑defined use cases or user stories.
• Capable of taking high‑level system requirements and performing a first‑order decomposition into hardware and software functions.
• Capable of generating test plans/procedures to validate system‑level performance.

• TS/SCI Clearance.
• Communication, analytical, and organizational skills.
• Detail‑oriented thinking with the ability to see the big picture.
• Troubleshooting experience.
• Conflict resolution experience.
• FFRDC or UARC experience.

The position will be located in State College, PA, Reston, VA, or Annapolis Junction, MD. This position requires in‑office work but may allow for hybrid work when the contract permits. Occasional travel to CONUS and possibly OCONUS locations is required.

Candidate selected will be subject to a government security investigation. You must be a U.S. citizen to apply. Employment with the Applied Research Laboratory will require successful completion of a pre‑employment drug screen and background check(s).

$ - $ (includes all possible grades).

Penn State is an equal‑opportunity employer and is committed to providing employment opportunities to all qualified applicants without regard to race, color, religion, age, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability or protected veteran status. If you are unable to use our online application process due to an impairment or disability, please contact 814‑865‑1473.