Software Integration & Test Engineer
TAP Engineering · Columbia, MD
$138,000–$230,000
Jul 9, 2026
Columbia, MD
Jul 21, 2026
What this job asks for AI summary
A small, highly technical team working on advanced hardware devices needs software engineers to design, develop, and validate software components. Day-to-day work centers on writing and running test cases against operational requirements, reviewing software for design compliance, and contributing to hardware/software trade-off decisions including integration of existing commercial and government tools. The role suits engineers with a background in software testing, debugging, and low-level programming who hold an active TS/SCI clearance with polygraph.
Senior level · 7+ years · Baltimore-Columbia-Towson, MD · TS/SCI clearance · Full-time
Pay in the description: $138,000–$230,000
“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 $141,954 (middle half $107,994–$205,328). 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 (8)
The role spans three internal levels (SWE1, SWE2, SWE3) requiring 7, 14, and 20+ years respectively; the overall years minimum is set to 7 (the entry point for the lowest posted level). The $138K–$230K compensation range reflects this full spread.
The posting is a genuine hybrid of software development and software testing/QA — key responsibilities include both developing test cases and contributing to software component design. Software Developers (15-1252) is the primary code given the design and development emphasis, but Software QA Analysts and Testers (15-1253) is a credible runner-up given the explicit testing focus.
The title carries no seniority modifier ('All Levels'), so the title states no level. The minimum entry point (SWE1 at 7+ years) supports a Senior classification.
A Bachelor's degree is listed as required but the JD explicitly states '4 years of relevant experience may be substituted in lieu of a degree,' so the degree requirement is set to None.
The clearance requirement is TS/SCI with polygraph. CCA-eligible candidates are also considered, meaning candidates who can obtain the clearance may apply — but the role ultimately requires TS/SCI with poly.
C is listed as the primary language skill with C++, C#, Python, and Java as named alternatives in the same requirement ('C, C++, C#, Python, Java, or comparable programming languages').
Jira and Confluence are listed together under Desired Qualifications as Atlassian products; Jira is used as the primary skill name with Confluence in alternatives since they are distinct tools but listed as a single preference.
Requires a TS/SCI 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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