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Senior Principal Engineer Jobs in Silver Spring, MD

Senior Principal Engineer

Baltimore, MD · On-site

$124K - $171K/yr

  • Medical

  • Dental

  • Vision

  • Life

  • Retirement

  • PTO

Seeking Professional Licensed Engineer with 5 - 15 years of experience in the water industry. Background and experience in municipal or industrial water, wastewater, reclaimed water, stormwater ...

Senior Principal Engineer

Silver Spring, MD · On-site

$130K - $179K/yr

  • Medical

  • Dental

  • Vision

  • Life

  • Retirement

  • PTO

Seeking Professional Licensed Engineer with 5 - 15 years of experience in the water industry. Background and experience in municipal or industrial water, wastewater, reclaimed water, stormwater ...

Senior Principal Engineer

Fairfax, VA · On-site

$128K - $177K/yr

  • Medical

  • Dental

  • Vision

  • Life

  • Retirement

  • PTO

Seeking Professional Licensed Engineer with 5 - 15 years of experience in the water industry. Background and experience in municipal or industrial water, wastewater, reclaimed water, stormwater ...

Showing results 21-40

Senior Principal Engineer information

See Silver Spring, MD salary details

$84.8K

$160.7K

$221.7K

How much do senior principal engineer jobs pay per year?

As of Aug 17, 2026, the average yearly pay for senior principal engineer in Silver Spring, MD is $160,680.00, according to ZipRecruiter salary data. Most workers in this role earn between $129,700.00 and $178,800.00 per year, depending on experience, location, and employer.

What is a senior principal engineer?

A Senior Principal Engineer is a highly experienced technical leader who is responsible for guiding the overall engineering direction and strategy within an organization. They typically possess deep expertise in their field, provide mentorship to other engineers, and influence major architectural and technical decisions. Senior Principal Engineers often collaborate with cross-functional teams, ensure best practices are followed, and play a critical role in driving innovation. Their work has a significant impact on the company's products and technical vision.

What does a senior principal engineer do?

Senior Principal Engineers often serve as technical leaders on cross-functional projects, collaborating closely with product managers, architects, and development teams to define technical direction and ensure architectural consistency. They provide deep expertise to solve complex engineering challenges, mentor other engineers, and help align project goals with the organization's strategic vision. Their role frequently involves facilitating communication between different departments and ensuring technical decisions support both immediate project needs and long-term scalability.

What are the key skills and qualifications needed to thrive as a senior principal engineer?

To excel as a Senior Principal Engineer, you need deep technical expertise in your engineering discipline, advanced problem-solving abilities, and typically a bachelor's or master's degree in engineering or a related field. Proficiency with industry-standard design and simulation software, project management tools, and relevant certifications (such as PMP or PE) are often required. Exceptional leadership, strategic thinking, and strong communication skills distinguish top performers in this role. These competencies are vital for leading complex projects, driving innovation, and effectively guiding engineering teams to achieve organizational goals.

What is the difference between Senior Principal Engineer vs Lead Engineer?

AspectSenior Principal EngineerLead Engineer
CredentialsTypically requires a bachelor's or master's degree in engineering, with extensive industry experienceSimilar educational background, often with additional certifications or specialized training
Work EnvironmentFocuses on high-level technical strategy, innovation, and mentorship across projectsLeads specific projects or teams, overseeing technical execution and coordination
Industry UsageCommon in large corporations and R&D settingsFound in both startups and established companies, often in project-based roles

While both roles require strong technical expertise, the Senior Principal Engineer typically focuses on strategic technical leadership and innovation at an organizational level, whereas the Lead Engineer manages project execution and team coordination. The Senior Principal Engineer often operates at a higher, more strategic level within the engineering hierarchy.

What are popular job titles related to Senior Principal Engineer jobs in Silver Spring, MD?

For Senior Principal Engineer jobs in Silver Spring, MD, the most frequently searched job titles are:

What job categories do people searching Senior Principal Engineer jobs in Silver Spring, MD look for?

The top searched job categories for Senior Principal Engineer jobs in Silver Spring, MD are:

What cities near Silver Spring, MD are hiring for Senior Principal Engineer jobs?

Cities near Silver Spring, MD with the most Senior Principal Engineer job openings:

Infographic showing various Senior Principal Engineer job openings in Silver Spring, MD as of August 2026, with employment types broken down into 95% Full Time, 2% Part Time, and 3% Contract. Highlights an 85% Physical, 6% Hybrid, and 9% Remote job distribution, with an average salary of $160,680 per year, or $77.2 per hour.

Sr Principal Engineer Microelectronic Semiconductors

Northrop Grumman Corporation

Elkridge, MD • On-site

$108K - $163K/yr

Full-time

Medical, Life, PTO

Re-posted 24 days ago


Northrop Grumman rating

8.2

Company rating: 8.2 out of 10

Based on 363 frontline employees who took The Breakroom Quiz

88th of 540 rated manufacturers


Job description

RELOCATION ASSISTANCE: No relocation assistance available
CLEARANCE REQUIRED FOR START: No
CLEARANCE TYPE: None
TRAVEL: Yes, 10% of the TimeDescription
At Northrop Grumman, our employees have incredible opportunities to work on revolutionary systems that impact people's lives around the world today, and for generations to come. Our pioneering and inventive spirit has enabled us to be at the forefront of many technological advancements in our nation's history - from the first flight across the Atlantic Ocean, to stealth bombers, to landing on the moon. We look for people who have bold new ideas, courage and a pioneering spirit to join forces to invent the future, and have fun along the way. Our culture thrives on intellectual curiosity, cognitive diversity and bringing your whole self to work - and we have an insatiable drive to do what others think is impossible. Our employees are not only part of history, they're making history.
Northrop Grumman is seeking a Principal Engineer Microelectronic Semiconductors/Sr Principal Engineer Microelectronic Semiconductors 3/4, Manufacturing Engineer: at our Mission Systems Sector in Elkridge, MD.
The qualified candidate will become part of Northrop Grumman's Manufacturing organization. The selected candidate will work in a fast paced environment where he/she will interact with multiple disciplines.
Process Development
  • Developing new and maintaining, or improving, existing manufacturing processes with a focus on production capabilities and affordability
  • Providing ROI justification for process improvements
  • Specifying, identifying and procuring new manufacturing equipment for production readiness and preparing equipment for production
  • Developing/revising process documentation and work instructions
  • Be able to take lessons learned and incorporate them into today's process development

Factory Support
  • Support manufacturing of micro electronics including: Die, BGAs and interposers.
  • Lead and monitor builds as they work down the line. Report out on progress and continuous improvement.
  • Monitoring process yields and cost, recommending and implementing quality improvements to drive improved metrics.
  • Solving of manufacturing problems (related to materials, designs, equipment and tooling, training and instructions) to support production.
  • Assisting with the training of new personnel and participation in the design of operation training materials
  • Supporting factory maintenance personnel with the troubleshooting and repair of process equipment
  • Helping build team meet the requirements of J-STD-001, internal requirements, and other relevant IPC/MIL-STDs.

Design and Engineering Support:
  • Recommending product design improvements required to produce advanced microelectronics products.
  • Documenting state-of-the-art process capabilities and guidelines for product designers
  • Participating in design producibility reviews for new products
  • Lead development activities for new cutting edge products with new manufacturing processes.

This position can be filled at either a level 3 or level 4.
Basic Qualifications Level 3:
  • Bachelors degree in a STEM major and 5+ years relevant manufacturing circuit card assembly environment, or Masters degree and 3+ years relevant manufacturing circuit card assembly environment experience.
  • Ability to obtain and maintain a U.S. Government security clearance
  • U.S. citizenship

Basic Qualifications for level 4:
  • Bachelors degree in a STEM major and 8+ years of relevant manufacturing circuit card assembly environment, or Masters degree and 6+ years relevant manufacturing circuit card assembly environment.
  • Ability to obtain and maintain a U.S. Government security clearance
  • U.S. citizenship

Preferred Qualifications:
  • Experience using J-STD-001 and IPC/MIL-STDs standards in manufacturing.
  • Familiarity with Fuzion and Mycronic Pick and Place Machines, Screen Printers, SPI concepts and X-Ray.
  • Desirable to be skilled in component packaging requirements.
  • Demonstrate engineering leadership & teamwork capabilities, interpersonal communication skills, and activities (professional/community/extracurricular)
  • Experience in developing and delivering presentations and leading small and large groups
  • Experience in working on business or engineering full life-cycle projects from inception through launch.
  • Experience working through root cause and corrective action activities.
  • Demonstrate engineering technical leadership in a field.
  • Experience in working in an autonomous work environment on complex projects.
  • Experience in a PCCB process culture
  • Successful track record of mentorship and guidance of early career engineers

MANUMS
#MPR
Primary Level Salary Range: $108,800.00 - $163,200.00
Secondary Level Salary Range: $135,800.00 - $163,200.00
The above salary range represents a general guideline; however, Northrop Grumman considers a number of factors when determining base salary offers such as the scope and responsibilities of the position and the candidate's experience, education, skills and current market conditions.
Depending on the position, employees may be eligible for overtime, shift differential, and a discretionary bonus in addition to base pay. Annual bonuses are designed to reward individual contributions as well as allow employees to share in company results. Employees in Vice President or Director positions may be eligible for Long Term Incentives. In addition, Northrop Grumman provides a variety of benefits including health insurance coverage, life and disability insurance, savings plan, Company paid holidays and paid time off (PTO) for vacation and/or personal business.
The application period for the job is estimated to be 20 days from the job posting date. However, this timeline may be shortened or extended depending on business needs and the availability of qualified candidates.
Northrop Grumman is an Equal Opportunity Employer, making decisions without regard to race, color, religion, creed, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, marital status, national origin, age, veteran status, disability, or any other protected class. For our complete EEO and pay transparency statement, please visit http://www.northropgrumman.com/EEO. U.S. Citizenship is required for all positions with a government clearance and certain other restricted positions.

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About Northrop Grumman

Sourced by ZipRecruiter

At Northrop Grumman, our employees have incredible opportunities to work on revolutionary systems that impact people's lives around the world today, and for generations to come. Our pioneering and inventive spirit has enabled us to be at the forefront of many technological advancements in our nation's history - from the first flight across the Atlantic Ocean, to stealth bombers, to landing on the moon. We look for people who have bold new ideas, courage and a pioneering spirit to join forces to invent the future, and have fun along the way. Our culture thrives on intellectual curiosity, cognitive diversity and bringing your whole self to work - and we have an insatiable drive to do what others think is impossible.

Industry

Space research administration

Company size

10,000+ Employees

Headquarters location

Falls Church, VA, US

Year founded

1939