Principal/Sr Principal Software Engineer Guidance Navigation Control (GNC)
Northrop Grumman · Los Angeles, CA
$114,000–$213,400from the description
Jun 30, 2026
Los Angeles, CA
Jul 21, 2026
What this job asks for AI summary
A software engineering role focused on developing, testing, and debugging software for navigation systems, with an emphasis on INS/GPS Kalman filter design and model-based engineering using MATLAB/Simulink. The work involves system integration on hardware, agile development practices, and collaboration across engineering teams. Suited to STEM-degreed engineers with hands-on experience in C, Python, and navigation or sensor fusion systems.
Senior level · 5+ years · Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA · Bachelor's required · Secret clearance · Full-time
Advertised as Principal, but the requirements read as Senior.
“or” means any one of them counts — you don't need all of them.
Posted 4 times — it's one opening, so apply once.
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 $164,459 (middle half $130,334–$195,752). 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 28, 2026. It is a model, not a headcount.
Why we read it this way (6)
This requisition covers two levels simultaneously: Principal Software Engineer (5+ years with BS) and Senior Principal Software Engineer (8+ years with BS). The salary range spans both levels ($114K–$171K for Principal; $142.2K–$213.4K for Senior Principal). Skills and years reflect the lower (Principal) gate as the minimum entry point.
The posting states 'Ability to obtain and maintain a U.S. Government Secret clearance is required,' while a current/active Secret clearance is listed under Preferred Qualifications. Clearance is flagged as a hard gate (must be obtainable), not currently held.
INS/GPS Kalman filter design is listed as 'Familiarity with' (Principal level) and 'Experience with' (Senior Principal level) in the required sections, but deeper expertise (INS mechanizations, sensor fusion, embedded INS/GPS) appears only under Preferred Qualifications.
Git is named as the primary version control skill; ClearCase, ClearQuest, and Jira are listed as alternatives in the same 'such as' clause — all are interchangeable options satisfying the same workflow/management tool requirement.
The role is fully on-site in Woodland Hills, CA (Los Angeles metro); no remote work is available.
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.
Read the full posting
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