Structural Engineer (Secret Clearance Required)

About the job

Join a fast-growing defense-space innovator building next-generation satellites and national-security payloads. You will own structural-dynamics analysis from concept through launch, ensuring every bolted joint, composite panel, and mechanism meets mission-critical margins.

Responsibilities

• Perform closed-form and high-fidelity FEM (NX Nastran / Simcenter / FEMAP) for static, modal, buckling & frequency-response cases.
• Develop launch, acoustic, shock, and on-orbit load environments; produce load decks and margin summaries.
• Plan and execute proof, modal survey, acoustic, and random-vibration tests; correlate results to models.
• Generate customer-deliverable stress & test reports that satisfy NASA-STD-7001/7002, MIL-STD-810, and internal DRDs.
• Collaborate daily with design, thermal, materials, and systems teams to optimize mass, stiffness, and cost.
• Mentor junior analysts; lead peer reviews; manage multiple spacecraft programs in parallel.

Minimum qualifications

• B.S. or higher in Mechanical, Aerospace, or Civil Engineering.
• 8 + years (Sr.) / 12 + years (Principal) of spacecraft or complex-mechanical structural analysis.
• Expert with NX Nastran (or equivalent) & pre/post tools; scripting proficiency in MATLAB or Python.
• Demonstrated experience planning & correlating structural-environmental tests.
• Active DoD Secret (or higher) clearance and ability to work on ITAR-controlled programs.
• U.S. citizenship.

Preferred qualifications

• M.S. in structures, composites, or related discipline.
• Hands-on composite / aluminum-honeycomb sandwich design and failure-mode assessment.
• Familiarity with Windchill PLM and agile IPT development.
• Prior satellite bus or optical-payload heritage.