Principal Systems Engineer/SME
00100 LEIDOS, INC. · 3325 Fort George G. Meade, MD
$154,050–$278,475from the description
Jul 1, 2026
3325 Fort George G. Meade, MD
Jul 20, 2026
What this job asks for AI summary
A senior systems engineering role supporting a classified foreign engagement mission, focused on designing, integrating, testing, deploying, and sustaining packet-based hardware and software systems using COTS and GOTS products. Day-to-day work includes end-to-end systems integration across hardware, software, and networking; writing and maintaining BASH and PERL scripts to automate configuration and server management; and providing technical leadership, troubleshooting, and lifecycle sustainment. Suited to a deeply experienced engineer holding an active TS/SCI clearance with polygraph.
Senior level · 20+ years · National · TS/SCI clearance · Full-time
Advertised as Principal, but the requirements read as Senior.
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.
What the occupation pays Median $108,178 (middle half $84,682–$137,059). 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)
Location is not specified in the posting. Leidos's Intelligence Sector / CABA programs are frequently based in the Maryland/Northern Virginia area (e.g., Fort Meade or Annapolis Junction), but no city or state is stated — CBSA left blank.
The role requires an active TS/SCI with polygraph — a hard gate explicitly stated under Basic Qualifications.
The degree requirement is effectively None: the JD accepts five additional years of Systems Engineering experience in lieu of a Bachelor's degree.
20 years of Systems Engineering experience is the stated minimum — an unusually high bar. Despite the 'Principal' title and the 20-year floor, the scope described (leading integration of a single program's systems, scripting, sustainment) aligns with a Senior band rather than Staff or Principal on a career-ladder basis; the title is advertised as Principal.
COTS/GOTS integration is listed as a named technical requirement (packet-based hardware/software systems using COTS and GOTS products) and is treated as a hard gate, though it is a methodology/approach rather than a discrete commercial tool. Bash and Perl scripting are the only specific named technologies explicitly required.
The posting mentions Security Engineering, CNO, SIGINT, and Cryptographic Key Management as business-area context, not as individual skill gates for this role.
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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