Software Engineer - Level - 2 or 3

Company: Northrop Grumman
Location: Colorado Springs
Posted on: April 2, 2026

Job Description:

RELOCATION ASSISTANCE: No relocation assistance available CLEARANCE REQUIRED FOR START: Yes CLEARANCE TYPE: Secret TRAVEL: Yes, 10% 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 Space Systems, Multi-Domain Operations, and Missile Defense Integration Business Unit (BU) has an exciting career opportunity for a Software Engineer – Level 2 or 3 (Java SE 8 Software Engineer) to join our team of qualified, diverse individuals. This position will be in Colorado Springs, CO. Position Overview: The Software Engineer / Principal Software Engineer – Level 2 or 3 will support a growing portfolio of programs and IRADs that focus on missile defense, space, and intelligence and will support various modeling, simulation, and analysis (MS&A) project teams performing software engineering tasks using languages like Java, C++, and Python to support complex analysis of defense systems. This position is specifically for an experienced Java SE 8 Software Engineer. Essential Functions: Designs, develops, documents, tests and debugs applications software and systems that contain logical and mathematical solutions. Conducts multidisciplinary research and collaborates with equipment designers and/or hardware engineers in the planning, design and development of product software. Ensure software standards are met and meet customer requirements. Seeking candidates who find satisfaction in working on challenging and diverse assignments in collaborative settings across all levels. This requisition may be filled at a higher grade based on qualifications listed below. This requisition may be filled at either a Software Engineer – Level 2 or a Principal Software Engineer – Level 3. Basic Qualifications: Software Engineer – Level 2: Bachelor’s Degree Bachelor’s Degree in a STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering or Mathematics) discipline preferred from an accredited university and 2 years of related work experience, or a Master's/PhD Degree. Principal Software Engineer – Level 3: Bachelor’s Degree in a STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering or Mathematics) discipline preferred from an accredited university and 5 years of related work experience, or a Master's Degree and 3 years of related work experience, or 1 year of related work experience with a PhD. Strong proficiency in Java SE 8 (core language features, streams, concurrency). Experience with object?oriented design and design patterns (e.g., Singleton, Factory, Builder). Familiarity with Spring Framework (Spring Boot MVC, Spring Data). Knowledge of RESTful API development (JSON, HTTP, Swagger/OpenAPI). Proficient with build tools such as Maven or Gradle. Unit and integration testing using JUnit (or TestNG) and Mockito. Version control using Git (GitHub/Bitbucket). Understanding of SQL/relational databases (e.g., PostgreSQL, Oracle) and basic JPA/Hibernate usage. Experience with micro?services architecture and Docker/Kubernetes containerization. Ability and willingness to travel up to 10% to support business needs Applicants must have either a current active in-scope U.S. Government DoD issued Secret security clearance, or an inactive U.S. Government DoD issued Secret clearance within the past 2 years at the time of application. If inactive the Secret clearance will need to be re-activated and is required to start work. Preferred Qualifications: Familiarity with and ability to work in an Agile/Scrum environment (daily stand?ups, sprint planning). Familiarity with CI/CD pipelines (Jenkins, GitLab CI, Azure DevOps). Exposure to cloud platforms (AWS, Azure, GCP). Knowledge of performance profiling tools (JProfiler, VisualVM). Understanding of security best practices (OWASP, Snyk). Experience with message brokers (Kafka, RabbitMQ). A current in-scope DoD Secret clearance. Primary Level Salary Range: $83,400.00 - $125,200.00 Secondary Level Salary Range: $103,600.00 - $155,400.00 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.

Keywords: Northrop Grumman, Aurora , Software Engineer - Level - 2 or 3, IT / Software / Systems , Colorado Springs, Colorado