Systems Engineer at Ardent Principles, Inc.
Chantilly, VA
$130,000–$260,000
Jun 28, 2026
Chantilly, VA
Jul 20, 2026
What this job asks for AI summary
This role centers on maintaining and supporting a secure, enterprise-grade virtual desktop infrastructure built on VMware Horizon, vSphere, ESXi, and vCenter, with a focus on hyperconverged systems such as Cisco HyperFlex. Day-to-day work spans both Windows server services and Linux platforms, along with Teradici/PCoIP optimization. The position suits an experienced systems engineer holding an active TS/SCI clearance with Full Scope Polygraph.
Senior level · Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV · TS/SCI clearance · Full-time
Pay in the description: $130,000–$260,000
“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
Most people in this occupation already list these. Still required — just not what gets you shortlisted.
What the occupation pays Median $125,430 (middle half $98,650–$153,220). 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 (7)
The role is titled 'Systems Engineer' but the day-to-day work centers on operating and administering an enterprise VDI environment (VMware Horizon, vSphere, ESXi, vCenter, Cisco HyperFlex, Windows/Linux server services) — primarily running and maintaining infrastructure rather than building new software, which points to 15-1244. 15-1299 (Computer Occupations, All Other) is a plausible runner-up given the VDI/hyperconverged specialization.
An active TS/SCI with Full Scope Polygraph is an explicit hard gate stated at the top of the posting.
The compensation range ($130,000–$260,000/year) is unusually wide; this likely reflects varying levels of experience or clearance seniority rather than a single band.
All skills under 'Key Responsibilities' are framed as required ('you must have the following required skills'). Teradici and PCoIP appear in that same required block.
Certifications (VCP-DCV, VCAP/VCIX, MCSA/MCSE, TOGAF) appear under a 'Desired Certifications' heading and are listed as preferred. They are grouped as a single skill entry with alternatives since the JD treats them as interchangeable desirable credentials.
The 'Highly Desired Qualifications' section is explicitly described as 'not mandatory' — no skills from that section were extracted as hard gates.
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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