Software Engineer (Starshield)
Role summary
SpaceX's Starshield team is seeking versatile, motivated, and collaborative Software Engineers to build highly reliable in-space mesh networks and secure systems for national security efforts. This role involves the full software lifecycle, from design and development to testing and operational support, with a focus on C++ development on Linux-based systems. Engineers will work on satellite constellation performance, security, and availability, developing automated ground systems, simulations, and continuous integration pipelines. Aerospace experience is not required, but a Bachelor's degree in a relevant field or 2+ years of software development experience is necessary. Preferred skills include networking protocols, Linux kernel development, and data processing. A Top Secret clearance is required.
SpaceX was founded under the belief that a future where humanity is out exploring the stars is fundamentally more exciting than one where we are not. Today SpaceX is actively developing the technologies to make this possible, with the ultimate goal of enabling human life on Mars.
SOFTWARE ENGINEER (STARSHIELD)
Starshield leverages SpaceX’s Starlink technology and launch capability to support national security efforts. While Starlink is designed for consumer and commercial use, Starshield is designed for government use, with an initial focus on earth observation, communications, and hosted payloads.
The Starshield software team is building highly reliable in-space mesh networks, designing secure systems to guarantee access to space, designing next-gen communication and sensing software, and more. Aerospace experience is not required to be successful here - we want our engineers to bring fresh ideas from all areas. We look for engineers who love solving problems and seek to make an impact on an inspiring mission. As we expand this team, we're looking for versatile, motivated, and collaborative engineers.
Our team is involved in designing the vehicle systems at every phase of development. We build tools that enable us to work more efficiently, and that help us build software systems that are secure, reliable, and autonomous. Our software engineers are responsible for the life cycle of the software they create, including development, testing, and operational support.
RESPONSIBILITIES:
There are several roles within the Starshield software team with different focus areas. Applicants will interview for specific focus areas based on hiring needs and qualifications. Specific role responsibilities may include:
BASIC QUALIFICATIONS:
PREFERRED SKILLS AND EXPERIENCE:
Some preferred skills and experience depend on the specific team within flight software and may include:
ADDITIONAL REQUIREMENTS:
COMPENSATION AND BENEFITS:
Pay Range: Software Engineer/Level I: $125,000.00 - $145,000.00/per year Software Engineer/Level II: $145,000.00 - $175,000.00/per year
Your actual level and base salary will be determined on a case-by-case basis and may vary based on the following considerations: job-related knowledge and skills, education, and experience.
Base salary is just one part of your total rewards package at SpaceX. You may also be eligible for long-term incentives, in the form of company stock, stock options, or long-term cash awards, as well as potential discretionary bonuses and the ability to purchase additional stock at a discount through an Employee Stock Purchase Plan. You will also receive access to comprehensive medical, vision, and dental coverage, access to a 401(k) retirement plan, short and long-term disability insurance, life insurance, paid parental leave, and various other discounts and perks. You may also accrue 3 weeks of paid vacation and will be eligible for 10 or more paid holidays per year. Employees accrue paid sick leave pursuant to Company policy which satisfies or exceeds the accrual, carryover, and use requirements of the law.
ITAR REQUIREMENTS:
SpaceX is an Equal Opportunity Employer; employment with SpaceX is governed on the basis of merit, competence and qualifications and will not be influenced in any manner by race, color, religion, gender, national origin/ethnicity, veteran status, disability status, age, sexual orientation, gender identity, marital status, mental or physical disability or any other legally protected status.
Applicants wishing to view a copy of SpaceX’s Affirmative Action Plan for veterans and individuals with disabilities, or applicants requiring reasonable accommodation to the application/interview process should reach out to EEOCompliance@spacex.com.
Sample SpaceX interview questions
- 1
Build a distributed platform for storing and serving digital assets.
system designmedium - 2
Develop a web app that shortens URLs like TinyURL.
system designmedium - 3
Propose a high-level design for a tracing system that can handle millions of spans per second across thousands of services.
system designmedium - 4
Iterator over a Binary Search Tree Implement an iterator over a binary search tree. Input: root = [7,3,15,null,null,9,20], calls: next(), hasNext(), next() Output: 3, TRUE, 7 Explanation: The iterator yields the smallest value (3), confirms more nodes exist, then properly yields the next in-order value (7).
codingmedium - 5
Count Anagrammatic Substrings Count the number of anagrammatic substrings from one string present in another. Input: s = "abab", p = "ab" Output: [0, 1, 2] Explanation: The substrings "ab", "ba", and "ab" starting at indices 0, 1, and 2 respectively are all anagrams of the string "ab".
codingmedium
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