DARC Software Signal Processing Engineer
Actalent · Colorado Springs, CO
$150000–$175000/hrfrom the description
Jul 27, 2026
Colorado Springs, CO
Jul 28, 2026
What this job asks for AI summary
A fully onsite contract role in Colorado Springs focused on designing and optimizing radar signal processing software for deep space radar systems. The engineer will build real-time C++ pipelines with GPU acceleration (CUDA), implement digital signal processing algorithms including Range-Doppler map generation, and work in a secure (Secret-cleared) Linux development environment supporting 24/7 deep space tracking capabilities.
Senior level · 5+ years · Colorado Springs, CO · Secret clearance · Contract
“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
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 $137,233 (middle half $108,638–$170,529). This posting is around 2462% above it.
Estimated from BLS employment for this occupation and area, per-skill prevalence across our listing corpus, and published wage benchmarks — as of Jul 28, 2026. It is a model, not a headcount.
Why we read it this way (9)
The posted pay range of $150,000–$175,000/hr appears to be a data entry error in the posting — the figures almost certainly represent an annual salary, not an hourly rate. The period has been recorded exactly as stated ('hr') per the posting, but hiring managers should verify the intended compensation basis before publishing.
The experience requirement is tiered by degree: 5 years with a BS, 3 years with an MS, or 1 year with a PhD. No single degree is hard-required; equivalent experience is accepted, so degree requirement is recorded as None.
An active DoD Secret clearance at the time of application is explicitly required as a hard gate.
DSP System Toolbox, Signal Processing Toolbox, and Phased Array System Toolbox appear under 'Additional Skills & Qualifications' (the secondary/preferred section) and are marked accordingly.
Beamforming is listed under 'Additional Skills & Qualifications' as 'basic knowledge' and is marked preferred.
The alt SOC (15-1299) reflects that this role sits at the intersection of software development and specialized signal/radar engineering — a niche not perfectly captured by the standard Software Developers code.
Ignored 3 non-technology phrase(s) as skills (responsibilities/concepts, not named tools): GPU optimization, Range-Doppler map processing, Phased Array System Toolbox.
Requires a Secret clearance — the cleared population is a small fraction of this occupation, so the real candidate pool is materially smaller than the estimate below, which does not model clearance.
Posting is for a contract engagement — the market benchmarks below price full-time roles, so read the comp comparison with that in mind.
Read the full posting
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