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Senior Underwater Sensors Engineer

MITRE
Mc Lean, VA Full Time
POSTED ON 4/4/2026
AVAILABLE BEFORE 5/2/2026
Why choose between doing meaningful work and having a fulfilling life? At MITRE, you can have both. That's because MITRE people are committed to tackling our nation's toughest challenges—and we're committed to the long-term well-being of our employees. MITRE is different from most technology companies. We are a not-for-profit corporation chartered to work for the public interest, with no commercial conflicts to influence what we do. The R&D centers we operate for the government create lasting impact in fields as diverse as cybersecurity, healthcare, aviation, defense, and enterprise transformation. We're making a difference every day—working for a safer, healthier, and more secure nation and world. Our workplace reflects our values. We offer competitive benefits, exceptional professional development opportunities for career growth, and a culture of innovation that embraces adaptability, collaboration, technical excellence, and people in partnership. If this sounds like the choice you want to make, then choose MITRE - and make a difference with us.

Department Summary:

The Advanced Maritime and Acoustic Technologies Department (L156) in MITRE Labs supports a wide range of BlueTech projects, driving transformative solutions and delivering cutting-edge defense and maritime technologies that address some of the most challenging issues our nation is facing.

Job Description:

We are seeking a Senior Underwater Sensors Engineer to aid in research and development, modeling and simulation, rapid prototyping, testing and evaluation, and workforce development. Desired fields include acoustic sensing, acoustic communications, unmanned underwater vehicles, maritime autonomy, oceanography, and climate science to support missions ranging from maritime defense to sustainable development of the Blue Economy. The ideal candidate will possess exceptional technical leadership abilities in their established areas of expertise, while also being confident leading and contributing to projects outside those areas. 

Roles and Responsibilities:

  • Support in the development of state-of-the-art signal processing algorithms for underwater sensing and communication systems.
  • Involvement in the design of next-generation transducer and acoustic sensors.
  • Conduct oceanographic acoustic modeling for predicting and assessing undersea sensor system characteristics.
  • Rapidly prototype sensors, communication platforms, and embedded, underwater systems.
  • Work on uncrewed and remotely operated underwater vehicles.

Basic Qualifications:

  • Current Top Secret/SCI clearance. 
  • BS, MS, or PhD in Electrical Engineering, Computer Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, Ocean Engineering, Physics, Mathematics, or related field. 
  • Typically requires a minimum of 5 years of related experience with a Bachelor’s degree; or 3 years and a Master’s or a PhD with relevant experience who can immediately contribute; or equivalent combination of related education and work experience.
  • Proactive self-starter with strong analytical, problem solving, communication, and interpersonal skills. 
  • Candidates must have a strong technical background with experience in one or more of the following: acoustic, radar, and/or sonar signal processing, algorithm development, detection and estimation theory, wave propagation, numerical methods, experimental data analysis, prototype development, and/or communication theory. 
  • Experience using analytical software tools such as MATLAB or Python for modeling, simulation, and analysis of physical systems. 
  • This position requires a minimum of 50% hybrid on-site
  • Per the U.S. Government’s eligibility requirements, you must be a U.S Citizen to be considered for a security clearance.

Preferred Qualifications:

  • PhD in Electrical Engineering, Computer Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, Ocean Engineering, Physics, Mathematics, or related field. 
  • Expertise in acoustic, radar, and sonar signal processing, and prototype development.  
  • Experience with field testing of maritime devices. 
  • Ability to foster effective working relationships with internal and external parties. 
  • Experience with US government systems and US government research ecosystem. 
  • Possess an external network of government sponsors and contacts. 

This requisition requires the candidate to have a minimum of the following clearance(s):

Top Secret/SCI

This requisition requires the hired candidate to have or obtain, within one year from the date of hire, the following clearance(s):

Top Secret/SCI

Salary compensation range and midpoint:

$126,800 - $158,500 - $190,200 Annual

Work Location Type:

Hybrid

Commitment to Non-Discrimination

All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to disability, status as a protected veteran or any other status protected by applicable federal, state, local or international law.

MITRE intends to maintain a website that is fully accessible to all individuals. If you are unable to search or apply for jobs and would like to request a reasonable accommodation for any part of MITRE’s employment process, please email recruitinghelp@mitre.org for general support and collegerecruiting@mitre.org for intern positions. This service is for individuals requiring reasonable accommodation requests. Please note that vendor solicitations will not receive a reply.

Benefits information may be found here.

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Salary : $190,200

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