Job brief: Principal Electric Propulsion Engineer

What JoRoute checked · Checked by JoRoute

• Listed on Rocket Lab's own job board. JoRoute does not take listings from job ads or recruiters.
• First seen by JoRoute 2026-11-04 (2 days ago); last confirmed on the board 2026-11-06.
• The apply link opens job-boards.greenhouse.io, the address Rocket Lab's board gives for this job.
• No other listing with this title and place on this board in the last 90 days.
• No layoff notices (WARN) under this name in the state files JoRoute reads.

What the listing says · Employer's own words, not checked

• Pay: $162,000 to $270,000 a year
• Job type: Not stated
• Where: Long Beach, CA · RL Headquarters
• Posted: 2026-09-01 · over 60 days ago

What the job asks · Employer's own words, not checked

Level: Lead / staff. The title says "Principal".

Must have

• 12+ years of experience in propulsion system development, or equivalent high-performance field
• Bachelor’s degree in engineering, (aerospace, mechanical, mechatronics, or other technical engineering discipline)
• U.S. citizenship is required, due to program requirements
• Ability to obtain and maintain a security clearance
• Masters or PhD
• Government space technology export regulations, including the International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR), Rocket Lab Employees must be a U.S.

Main duties

• Own development of new or existing products or systems, acting as technical lead to guide team through end-to-end development process
• Test planning, setup, instrumentation, execution, and data analysis
• Communicate with project stakeholders internal and external to the team
• Mentor and coach people within the team on technical and professional development
• Contribute to engineering process development and documentation at Rocket Lab related to areas of experience

Lines copied from the posting, not rewritten. "Preferred" or "nice to have" items are not listed as must-haves.

How it compares · Compared by JoRoute from listings

• Typical listed pay for engineer jobs in Long Beach, CA: $160k a year (145 listings, 3 employers). This listing is 35% higher.
• Across Rocket Lab's 456 open listings, 24% of those with a posting date were first posted more than 60 days ago. How Rocket Lab hires

What nobody outside the employer knows · Not known

• Whether the role is already filled or on hold: employers often leave listings up.
• How many people applied, and who reads the applications.
• Where in the published range an offer would land.

Ask before you apply

1. Is this role still open, and when do you hope to fill it?
2. Which of the listed places is this role based in?
3. What are the interview steps, and when should I expect to hear back?

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