Embedded Software Engineer at Actalent
Huntsville, AL
$110,000–$156,000from the description
Jul 28, 2026
Huntsville, AL
Jul 29, 2026
What this job asks for AI summary
An embedded software engineering role focused on developing software for unmanned and robotic systems used in defense and commercial applications, including aircraft and payloads. The engineer will handle full-lifecycle development — from writing and testing firmware that integrates sensors and embedded processors, to supporting flight test operations and transitioning code to production. Suits candidates with hands-on embedded C/C++ and Python experience across real-time and Linux-based platforms.
Mid level · 5+ years · Huntsville, AL · Full-time
“or” means any one of them counts — you don't need all of them.
We read this from the posting text with AI. Skim the description below before ruling yourself out.
How this req sits in the market our data
Roughly 9 people in the Huntsville, AL area plausibly meet what this posting asks for (software developers). range 2–15
Applicant volume Light — Few people clear these requirements, so an application that does clear them gets looked at. Worth applying to even if you miss a nice-to-have.
Rare in this occupation — lead with these, and say what you built with them.
Most people in this occupation already list these. Still required — just not what gets you shortlisted.
What the occupation pays Median $130,897 (middle half $102,526–$165,828). This posting is about at that midpoint.
Estimated from BLS employment for this occupation and area, per-skill prevalence across our listing corpus, and published wage benchmarks — as of Jul 29, 2026. It is a model, not a headcount.
Why we read it this way (8)
The title 'Software Engineer III' maps to a mid-level band by numeric convention, and the 5–8 year experience range is consistent with that; seniority is assessed as Mid accordingly.
A Bachelor's degree in a relevant engineering or CS field is listed under Essential Skills, but the posting explicitly accepts 'equivalent combination of education, training, and experience' — so no hard degree gate applies.
Visual Studio is listed with 'or similar IDE'; alternatives would include Eclipse, CLion, or VS Code, but no specific alternatives are named in the posting.
The serial/embedded protocols (RS-485, RS-232, CAN, I2C, SPI, USB) are listed together as 'common protocols such as' — the 'such as' qualifier indicates examples of a required capability class, but they appear under Essential Skills and are treated as a hard gate on embedded protocol experience collectively.
µC/OS and freeRTOS are listed as interchangeable RTOS options under Additional Skills & Qualifications (preferred).
Ardupilot and PX4 are listed as interchangeable open-source autopilot options under Additional Skills & Qualifications (preferred).
This posting is placed by Actalent, a staffing/engineering services firm; the actual employer is not named. The role is described as a permanent (direct-hire) placement.
No security clearance is explicitly required, though the defense application context may imply one is needed or preferred — the posting does not gate on it.
Read the full posting
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