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Hardware Staff Engineer

Qualcomm Technologies
San Diego, CA Full Time
POSTED ON 6/3/2026
AVAILABLE BEFORE 7/3/2026
Company:
Qualcomm Technologies, Inc.

Job Area:
Engineering Group, Engineering Group > Hardware Engineering

General Summary:

Role Summary

The Staff Engineer is a senior individual contributor responsible for leading the design, implementation, and delivery of complex board-level hardware subsystems for automotive platform products. This role owns board-level execution from concept through production and serves as a key technical contributor across cross-functional teams, operating with a high degree of independence within an established system architecture.

Scope typically spans one or more complex boards or subsystems within an automotive platform.

Key Responsibilities
  • Lead board-level hardware design for assigned automotive subsystems or reference designs, including schematic design, component selection, and design tradeoffs.
  • Own board bring-up, debug, and validation across temperature, voltage, and operating corner conditions.
  • Drive power architecture implementation, clocking, reset, and sequencing for assigned designs.
  • Apply and review high-speed digital, signal integrity, power integrity, EMI/EMC, and mixed-signal design considerations in collaboration with PCB layout engineers.
  • Conduct and participate in schematic, layout, and design reviews to identify risks and ensure design robustness.
  • Partner with system, software, safety, mechanical, and manufacturing teams to align hardware design with system requirements.
  • Work with suppliers, ODMs, and internal operations teams to resolve component, manufacturing, and reliability issues.
  • Support hardware readiness through DV, PV, and SOP milestones, including issue tracking and root-cause analysis.
  • Mentor junior and senior engineers through technical guidance, design reviews, and shared best practices.
  • Contribute technical input to platform planning, design standards, and process improvements.

Minimum Qualifications:
Bachelor's degree in Computer Science, Electrical/Electronics Engineering, Engineering, or related field and 4 years of Hardware Engineering or related work experience.
OR
Master's degree in Computer Science, Electrical/Electronics Engineering, Engineering, or related field and 3 years of Hardware Engineering or related work experience.
OR
PhD in Computer Science, Electrical/Electronics Engineering, Engineering, or related field and 2 years of Hardware Engineering or related work experience.

Preferred Qualifications:

  • Masters degree in Electrical Engineering or a related field.
  • 10 years of experience in board-level hardware design.
  • Experience delivering automotive or safety-critical hardware products.
  • Strong background in high-speed digital, power delivery, and mixed-signal circuit design.
  • Hands-on experience with schematic capture, simulation, and hardware debug tools (oscilloscopes, logic analyzers, protocol analyzers, etc.).
  • Familiarity with automotive expectations such as reliability, thermal constraints, EMC, and lifecycle validation.
  • Experience collaborating across cross-functional teams and with external suppliers.

Level of Responsibility
  • Operates with limited supervision, independently driving technical execution for assigned boards or subsystems.
  • Makes technical decisions that have meaningful impact on product quality, schedule, and system performance.
  • Regularly communicates complex technical concepts to cross-functional stakeholders.
  • Influences design decisions within the immediate program or subsystem scope.
  • Provides technical guidance and mentorship to other engineers.
  • Contributes input during program planning and technical reviews.

Qualcomm is an equal opportunity employer. If you are an individual with a disability and need an accommodation during the application/hiring process, rest assured that Qualcomm is committed to providing an accessible process. You may e-mail or call Qualcomm's toll-free number found here. Upon request, Qualcomm will provide reasonable accommodations to support individuals with disabilities to be able participate in the hiring process. Qualcomm is also committed to making our workplace accessible for individuals with disabilities. (Keep in mind that this email address is used to provide reasonable accommodations for individuals with disabilities. We will not respond here to requests for updates on applications or resume inquiries).

To all Staffing and Recruiting Agencies: Our Careers Site is only for individuals seeking a job at Qualcomm. Staffing and recruiting agencies and individuals being represented by an agency are not authorized to use this site or to submit profiles, applications or resumes, and any such submissions will be considered unsolicited. Qualcomm does not accept unsolicited resumes or applications from agencies. Please do not forward resumes to our jobs alias, Qualcomm employees or any other company location. Qualcomm is not responsible for any fees related to unsolicited resumes/applications.

EEO Employer: Qualcomm is an equal opportunity employer; all qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability, Veteran status, or any other protected classification.

Qualcomm expects its employees to abide by all applicable policies and procedures, including but not limited to security and other requirements regarding protection of Company confidential information and other confidential and/or proprietary information, to the extent those requirements are permissible under applicable law.

Pay range and Other Compensation & Benefits:
$134,800.00 - $202,200.00

The above pay scale reflects the broad, minimum to maximum, pay scale for this job code for the location for which it has been posted. Even more importantly, please note that salary is only one component of total compensation at Qualcomm. We also offer a competitive annual discretionary bonus program and opportunity for annual RSU grants (employees on sales-incentive plans are not eligible for our annual bonus). In addition, our highly competitive benefits package is designed to support your success at work, at home, and at play. Your recruiter will be happy to discuss all that Qualcomm has to offer - and you can review more details about our US benefits at this link.

If you would like more information about this role, please contact Qualcomm Careers.

Salary : $134,800 - $202,200

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