Defense Modeling Simulation Jobs in Virginia (NOW HIRING)

SAIC has a funded need for a Radar Modeling Simulation Engineer to support a rapidly expanding Government Intelligence Community (IC) customer with cutting-edge programs within the National Reconnaissance Office (NRO) in Chantilly, VA.

This position offers a flexible work schedule, with core collaboration hours from 10:00 a.m. - 3:00 p.m., allowing you to balance mission demands with personal flexibility while still engaging deeply with a worldclass engineering team.

Clearance Requirements: Current and Active Top Secret/SCI with the ability to obtain a Poly.  (Note: The  current Security Clearance must be held by an IC Customer.) 

Role Overview

As a senior technical contributor, you will design, develop, and refine highfidelity radar and RF system models that underpin mission architecture decisions across the NRO's space enterprise. Your modeling and simulation products will inform spacecraft design, sensor performance, mission planning, and systemofsystems behavior-ultimately shaping how future spacedomain awareness and intelligence missions are executed.

You will work at the intersection of physicsbased modeling, orbital mechanics, sensor phenomenology, and digital signal processing, producing insights that guide engineering trades, reduce technical risk, and strengthen mission assurance. Your analyses will be used by senior Government leaders, system architects, and program managers to evaluate design options, validate performance, and chart the path for nextgeneration space capabilities.

Key Responsibilities to include:

• Develop advanced RF simulations - Build, refine, and maintain physicsbased radar and RF system models that characterize spacecraft sensor performance, signal behavior, and spacedomain awareness capabilities.
• Perform endtoend mission modeling - Integrate orbital dynamics, environmental effects, sensor models, and systemlevel interactions to evaluate mission performance across full operational scenarios.
• Analyze radar and RF data - Conduct RF phenomenology modeling, radar sensing analysis, and digital signal processing to assess detection, tracking, and characterization performance.
• Automate modeling workflows - Use Python, MATLAB, or similar tools to automate simulation pipelines, streamline data analysis, and interface between modeling environments for repeatable, highquality results.
• Produce technical artifacts - Generate clear, defensible technical documentation, simulation reports, and visualizations that support engineering decisions, design reviews, and customer briefings.
• Support design reviews & trade studies - Provide modelingdriven insights that quantify performance impacts, evaluate design alternatives, and inform systemlevel tradeoffs across spacecraft and mission architectures.

SAIC is a premier Fortune 500 mission integrator focused on advancing the power of technology and innovation to serve and protect our world. Our robust portfolio of offerings across the defense, space, civilian and intelligence markets includes secure high-end solutions in mission IT, enterprise IT, engineering services and professional services. We integrate emerging technology, rapidly and securely, into mission critical operations that modernize and enable critical national imperatives.

Required Education and Experience

• Bachelor's degree in Electrical Engineering, Physics, or a related field with 9+ years of professional technical experience (Master's degree with 7+ years, or PhD with 4+)
• Current and Active Top Secret/SCI with the ability to obtain a Poly.  (Note: The current Security Clearance must be held by an IC Customer.) 
• Radar & RF modeling experience - 4+ years of systemlevel modeling and simulation for radar or communications systems on space vehicles (preferred).
• Highfidelity radar modeling - Experience developing or evaluating highfidelity radar models for spacedomain awareness or related mission areas.
• Sensor phenomenology expertise - Strong understanding of RF and radar phenomenology, electromagnetic propagation, and sensorenvironment interactions.
• Mathematics & estimation - Solid foundation in applied mathematics, control systems, and state estimation techniques used in modeling and simulation.
• Programming & analysis - Intermediate Python experience preferred; familiarity with NumPy, SciPy, pandas, and matplotlib is beneficial for building efficient analysis pipelines.
• Clear technical communication - Ability to translate complex modeling results into clear, actionable insights for both technical and nontechnical audiences, including senior Government leadership.