The ideal entry-level candidate is a proactive learner with natural curiosity and ability to ... defense acquisition process. Candidates with electrical engineering degrees are preferred.
The ideal entry-level candidate is a proactive learner with natural curiosity and ability to ... defense acquisition process. Candidates with electrical engineering degrees are preferred.
Entry Level Defense Contractor information
See Utah salary details
$22.8K - $26.4K
1% of jobs
$26.4K - $30K
6% of jobs
$30K - $33.6K
6% of jobs
$36.8K is the 25th percentile. Wages below this are outliers.
$33.6K - $37.2K
13% of jobs
$37.2K - $40.8K
17% of jobs
The median wage is $42K / yr.
$40.8K - $44.4K
20% of jobs
$46.7K is the 75th percentile. Wages above this are outliers.
$44.4K - $48K
18% of jobs
$48K - $51.6K
9% of jobs
$51.6K - $55.2K
5% of jobs
$55.2K - $58.8K
2% of jobs
$58.8K - $62.4K
2% of jobs
$22.8K
$43.5K
$62.4K
How much do entry level defense contractor jobs pay per year?
As of Jul 25, 2026, the average yearly pay for entry level defense contractor in Utah is $43,544.00, according to ZipRecruiter salary data. Most workers in this role earn between $36,900.00 and $47,300.00 per year, depending on experience, location, and employer.
What is an Entry Level Defense Contractor job?
An Entry Level Defense Contractor job involves working for a private company that provides goods or services to the military and government defense agencies. These roles can vary widely, including engineering, cybersecurity, logistics, and project management. Typically, entry-level positions require a relevant degree or technical skills, along with the ability to obtain security clearance if needed. Responsibilities may include assisting with research, supporting senior team members, and ensuring compliance with government regulations. It’s a great starting point for those looking to build a career in the defense industry.
What are the key skills and qualifications needed to thrive in the Entry Level Defense Contractor position, and why are they important?
To thrive as an Entry Level Defense Contractor, you generally need a bachelor’s degree in a relevant field such as engineering, computer science, or business, along with strong analytical and problem-solving skills. Familiarity with industry-specific tools such as project management software, technical documentation platforms, and sometimes security clearance processes is often required. Strong attention to detail, adaptability, and teamwork are important soft skills for collaborating effectively and meeting project objectives. These abilities are essential for ensuring compliance with industry standards, successful project delivery, and maintaining the trust of both clients and regulatory bodies.
What does the daily work of an Entry Level Defense Contractor typically involve?
As an Entry Level Defense Contractor, your daily responsibilities might include assisting with project documentation, analyzing data, supporting senior team members in proposal preparation, and ensuring compliance with defense regulations. You'll often collaborate with multidisciplinary teams, such as engineers, analysts, and project managers, to help execute specific project tasks. Many roles involve a balance of desk work and occasional meetings or briefings to discuss project progress and requirements. This position offers valuable exposure to complex national security projects and allows you to build technical and collaborative skills that are highly regarded across the industry.
What are the most commonly searched types of Defense Contractor jobs in Utah? The most popular types of Defense Contractor jobs in Utah are:
What job categories do people searching Entry Level Defense Contractor jobs in Utah look for? The top searched job categories for Entry Level Defense Contractor jobs in Utah are:
What cities in Utah are hiring for Entry Level Defense Contractor jobs? Cities in Utah with the most Entry Level Defense Contractor job openings:
$40K/yr
Other
Posted 8 days ago
Job description
Veteran's preference does not apply to DHA recruitment.
Click on "Learn more about this agency" button below for more information.
The primary purpose of this position is to serve as a professional general engineer responsible for systems engineering for assigned programs/projects.Qualifications:Experience requirements are described in the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) Qualification Standards for General Schedule Positions, Professional Engineering Positions, located here.
BASIC REQUIREMENT OR INDIVIDUAL OCCUPATIONAL REQUIREMENT: In order to qualify, applicants must meet the education requirement listed in the Education section below. Must submit relevant transcripts!
In addition to meeting the basic requirement above, to qualify for this position you must also meet the qualification requirements listed below:
SPECIALIZED EXPERIENCE: Applicants must have at least 1 year (52 weeks) of specialized experience at the next lower broadband NH-01, equivalent to the next lower grade GS-04 or equivalent in other pay systems. Specialized experience is knowledge of multidisciplinary professional engineering concepts, principles, practices, standards, methods, techniques, materials, and equipment to effectively apply engineering theories, principles, and concepts to system design, architecture, and integration. NOTE: Due to the use of 120-day rosters, this period of experience may be completed within 120 days of the closing date of this announcement.
Ideal Candidate: The ideal entry-level candidate is a proactive learner with natural curiosity and ability to understand complex systems. The ideal experienced candidate has at least 3 years of experience as an effective system safety professional in the defense acquisition process. Candidates with electrical engineering degrees are preferred. Qualified applicants for entry-level pay have the ability to learn the system safety process and requirements for conventional weapon systems, analyze data to make informed decisions, identify and apply applicable system safety requirements, and communicate technical information clearly and concisely, both in writing and orally. Qualifications for higher pay include all entry-level requirements plus applied knowledge and experience with design and qualification requirements for conventional weapon systems and standard defense acquisition regulations, practices, and procedures.
KNOWLEDGE, SKILLS AND ABILITIES (KSAs): Your qualifications will be evaluated on the basis of your level of knowledge, skills, abilities and/or competencies in the following areas:
1. Knowledge of multidisciplinary professional engineering concepts, principles, practices, standards, methods, techniques, materials, and equipment to effectively apply engineering theories, principles, and concepts to system design, architecture, and integration.
2. Knowledge of systems engineering practices and procedures as they pertain to sustainment, modification, logistics, and production management principles, concepts, policies, and systems.
3. Knowledge of standard acquisition regulations, practices, and procedures, as well as the principles of planning and program management.
4. Ability to analyze data and establish requirements for technical objectives and characteristics.
5. Ability to communicate clearly, concisely, and with technical accuracy, both orally and in writing, as well as work in a professional manner with peers, management, contractors, academia, and other agencies.
6. Ability to use computer applications in support of planning, designing, analysis, and reporting.
PART-TIME OR UNPAID EXPERIENCE: Credit will be given for appropriate unpaid and or part-time work. You must clearly identify the duties and responsibilities in each position held and the total number of hours per week.
VOLUNTEER WORK EXPERIENCE: Refers to paid and unpaid experience, including volunteer work done through National Service Programs (i.e., Peace Corps, AmeriCorps) and other organizations (e.g., professional; philanthropic; religious; spiritual; community; student and social). Volunteer work helps build critical competencies, knowledge and skills that can provide valuable training and experience that translates directly to paid employment. You will receive credit for all qualifying experience, including volunteer experience.Education:ARE YOU USING YOUR EDUCATION TO QUALIFY? If position has a positive degree requirement or education forms the basis for qualifications, you MUST submit transcriptswith the application. Official transcripts are not required at the time of application; however, if position has a positive degree requirement, qualifying based on education alone or in combination with experience; transcripts must be verified prior to appointment. An accrediting institution recognized by the U.S. Department of Education must accredit education. Click here to check accreditation.
BASIC REQUIREMENT:
A. Degree: Engineering. To be acceptable, the program must: (1) lead to a bachelor's degree in a school of engineering with at least one program accredited by ABET; or (2) include differential and integral calculus and courses (more advanced than first-year physics and chemistry) in five of the following seven areas of engineering science or physics: (a) statics, dynamics; (b) strength of materials (stress-strain relationships); (c) fluid mechanics, hydraulics; (d) thermodynamics; (e) electrical fields and circuits; (f) nature and properties of materials (relating particle and aggregate structure to properties); and (g) any other comparable area of fundamental engineering science or physics, such as optics, heat transfer, soil mechanics, or electronics.
OR
B. Combination of education and experience -- college-level education, training, and/or technical experience that furnished (1) a thorough knowledge of the physical and mathematical sciences underlying engineering, and (2) a good understanding, both theoretical and practical, of the engineering sciences and techniques and their applications to one of the branches of engineering. The adequacy of such background must be demonstrated by one of the following: 1. Professional registration or licensure -- Current registration as an Engineer Intern (EI), Engineer in Training (EIT)1 , or licensure as a Professional Engineer (PE) by any State, the District of Columbia, Guam, or Puerto Rico. Absent other means of qualifying under this standard, those applicants who achieved such registration by means other than written test (e.g., State grandfather or eminence provisions) are eligible only for positions that are within or closely related to the specialty field of their registration. For example, an applicant who attains registration through a State Board's eminence provision as a manufacturing engineer typically would be rated eligible only for manufacturing engineering positions. 2. Written Test -- Evidence of having successfully passed the Fundamentals of Engineering (FE)2 examination or any other written test required for professional registration by an engineering licensure board in the various States, the District of Columbia, Guam, and Puerto Rico. 3. Specified academic courses -- Successful completion of at least 60 semester hours of courses in the physical, mathematical, and engineering sciences and that included the courses specified in the basic requirements under paragraph A. The courses must be fully acceptable toward meeting the requirements of an engineering program as described in paragraph A. 4. Related curriculum -- Successful completion of a curriculum leading to a bachelor's degree in an appropriate scientific field, e.g., engineering technology, physics, chemistry, architecture, computer science, mathematics, hydrology, or geology, may be accepted in lieu of a bachelor's degree in engineering, provided the applicant has had at least 1 year of professional engineering experience acquired under professional engineering supervision and guidance. Ordinarily there should be either an established plan of intensive training to develop professional engineering competence, or several years of prior professional engineering-type experience, e.g., in interdisciplinary positions. (The above examples of related curricula are not all inclusive.)
FOREIGN EDUCATION: Education completed in foreign colleges or universities may be used to meet the requirements. You must show proof the education credentials have been deemed to be at least equivalent to that gained in conventional U.S. education program. It is your responsibility to provide such evidence when applying.Employment Type: OTHER
Click on "Learn more about this agency" button below for more information.
The primary purpose of this position is to serve as a professional general engineer responsible for systems engineering for assigned programs/projects.Qualifications:Experience requirements are described in the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) Qualification Standards for General Schedule Positions, Professional Engineering Positions, located here.
BASIC REQUIREMENT OR INDIVIDUAL OCCUPATIONAL REQUIREMENT: In order to qualify, applicants must meet the education requirement listed in the Education section below. Must submit relevant transcripts!
In addition to meeting the basic requirement above, to qualify for this position you must also meet the qualification requirements listed below:
SPECIALIZED EXPERIENCE: Applicants must have at least 1 year (52 weeks) of specialized experience at the next lower broadband NH-01, equivalent to the next lower grade GS-04 or equivalent in other pay systems. Specialized experience is knowledge of multidisciplinary professional engineering concepts, principles, practices, standards, methods, techniques, materials, and equipment to effectively apply engineering theories, principles, and concepts to system design, architecture, and integration. NOTE: Due to the use of 120-day rosters, this period of experience may be completed within 120 days of the closing date of this announcement.
Ideal Candidate: The ideal entry-level candidate is a proactive learner with natural curiosity and ability to understand complex systems. The ideal experienced candidate has at least 3 years of experience as an effective system safety professional in the defense acquisition process. Candidates with electrical engineering degrees are preferred. Qualified applicants for entry-level pay have the ability to learn the system safety process and requirements for conventional weapon systems, analyze data to make informed decisions, identify and apply applicable system safety requirements, and communicate technical information clearly and concisely, both in writing and orally. Qualifications for higher pay include all entry-level requirements plus applied knowledge and experience with design and qualification requirements for conventional weapon systems and standard defense acquisition regulations, practices, and procedures.
KNOWLEDGE, SKILLS AND ABILITIES (KSAs): Your qualifications will be evaluated on the basis of your level of knowledge, skills, abilities and/or competencies in the following areas:
1. Knowledge of multidisciplinary professional engineering concepts, principles, practices, standards, methods, techniques, materials, and equipment to effectively apply engineering theories, principles, and concepts to system design, architecture, and integration.
2. Knowledge of systems engineering practices and procedures as they pertain to sustainment, modification, logistics, and production management principles, concepts, policies, and systems.
3. Knowledge of standard acquisition regulations, practices, and procedures, as well as the principles of planning and program management.
4. Ability to analyze data and establish requirements for technical objectives and characteristics.
5. Ability to communicate clearly, concisely, and with technical accuracy, both orally and in writing, as well as work in a professional manner with peers, management, contractors, academia, and other agencies.
6. Ability to use computer applications in support of planning, designing, analysis, and reporting.
PART-TIME OR UNPAID EXPERIENCE: Credit will be given for appropriate unpaid and or part-time work. You must clearly identify the duties and responsibilities in each position held and the total number of hours per week.
VOLUNTEER WORK EXPERIENCE: Refers to paid and unpaid experience, including volunteer work done through National Service Programs (i.e., Peace Corps, AmeriCorps) and other organizations (e.g., professional; philanthropic; religious; spiritual; community; student and social). Volunteer work helps build critical competencies, knowledge and skills that can provide valuable training and experience that translates directly to paid employment. You will receive credit for all qualifying experience, including volunteer experience.Education:ARE YOU USING YOUR EDUCATION TO QUALIFY? If position has a positive degree requirement or education forms the basis for qualifications, you MUST submit transcriptswith the application. Official transcripts are not required at the time of application; however, if position has a positive degree requirement, qualifying based on education alone or in combination with experience; transcripts must be verified prior to appointment. An accrediting institution recognized by the U.S. Department of Education must accredit education. Click here to check accreditation.
BASIC REQUIREMENT:
A. Degree: Engineering. To be acceptable, the program must: (1) lead to a bachelor's degree in a school of engineering with at least one program accredited by ABET; or (2) include differential and integral calculus and courses (more advanced than first-year physics and chemistry) in five of the following seven areas of engineering science or physics: (a) statics, dynamics; (b) strength of materials (stress-strain relationships); (c) fluid mechanics, hydraulics; (d) thermodynamics; (e) electrical fields and circuits; (f) nature and properties of materials (relating particle and aggregate structure to properties); and (g) any other comparable area of fundamental engineering science or physics, such as optics, heat transfer, soil mechanics, or electronics.
OR
B. Combination of education and experience -- college-level education, training, and/or technical experience that furnished (1) a thorough knowledge of the physical and mathematical sciences underlying engineering, and (2) a good understanding, both theoretical and practical, of the engineering sciences and techniques and their applications to one of the branches of engineering. The adequacy of such background must be demonstrated by one of the following: 1. Professional registration or licensure -- Current registration as an Engineer Intern (EI), Engineer in Training (EIT)1 , or licensure as a Professional Engineer (PE) by any State, the District of Columbia, Guam, or Puerto Rico. Absent other means of qualifying under this standard, those applicants who achieved such registration by means other than written test (e.g., State grandfather or eminence provisions) are eligible only for positions that are within or closely related to the specialty field of their registration. For example, an applicant who attains registration through a State Board's eminence provision as a manufacturing engineer typically would be rated eligible only for manufacturing engineering positions. 2. Written Test -- Evidence of having successfully passed the Fundamentals of Engineering (FE)2 examination or any other written test required for professional registration by an engineering licensure board in the various States, the District of Columbia, Guam, and Puerto Rico. 3. Specified academic courses -- Successful completion of at least 60 semester hours of courses in the physical, mathematical, and engineering sciences and that included the courses specified in the basic requirements under paragraph A. The courses must be fully acceptable toward meeting the requirements of an engineering program as described in paragraph A. 4. Related curriculum -- Successful completion of a curriculum leading to a bachelor's degree in an appropriate scientific field, e.g., engineering technology, physics, chemistry, architecture, computer science, mathematics, hydrology, or geology, may be accepted in lieu of a bachelor's degree in engineering, provided the applicant has had at least 1 year of professional engineering experience acquired under professional engineering supervision and guidance. Ordinarily there should be either an established plan of intensive training to develop professional engineering competence, or several years of prior professional engineering-type experience, e.g., in interdisciplinary positions. (The above examples of related curricula are not all inclusive.)
FOREIGN EDUCATION: Education completed in foreign colleges or universities may be used to meet the requirements. You must show proof the education credentials have been deemed to be at least equivalent to that gained in conventional U.S. education program. It is your responsibility to provide such evidence when applying.Employment Type: OTHER