Data Scientist (Mission Engineering)

TL;DR

Data Scientist (Mission Engineering): Designing statistical methodologies and analytical pipelines to translate large-scale simulation data into tactical decisions for defense systems with an accent on experimental design, uncertainty quantification, and surrogate modeling. Focus on building scalable Python pipelines, developing ML surrogate models, and ensuring rigorous, reproducible quantitative analysis for high-stakes mission engineering.

Location: Onsite in Hawthorne, California, United States

Salary: $140,000–$220,000

Company

A modern defense company redefining domain dominance through Coherent Distributed Networks (CDN™) and a multi-product portfolio.

What you will do

• Design rigorous experimental constructs (DOE, adaptive sampling, sequential experimentation) for large-scale simulation campaigns to maximize signal efficiency.
• Apply advanced statistical methods, including Bayesian inference, regression modeling, and uncertainty quantification, to produce decision-quality conclusions.
• Build and own scalable Python-based data pipelines for ingestion, processing, and visualization of terabyte-scale simulation datasets.
• Develop ML and statistical surrogate models to accelerate analysis and enable real-time trade studies for mission planning.
• Establish team standards for data management, reproducibility, and statistical rigor through code review and methodology validation.
• Translate operational and engineering questions into structured analytical approaches and present results to senior stakeholders.

Requirements

• Bachelor's degree or higher in Statistics, Data Science, Mathematics, AI, or a related quantitative field.
• 7+ years of experience applying advanced statistical and data science methods, ideally in defense or intelligence.
• Deep expertise in experimental design (DOE), Bayesian methods, and surrogate modeling.
• Strong proficiency in Python, specifically with Pandas, NumPy, SciPy, Scikit-Learn, and PyTorch.
• Demonstrated experience building scalable analytical pipelines for terabyte-scale data.
• Eligibility to obtain a Top Secret / Sensitive Compartmented Information (TS/SCI) clearance.

Nice to have

• Master's or PhD in a quantitative field.
• Experience with military simulations such as AFSIM, ESAMS, Brawler, or Ansys STK.
• Expertise in Monte Carlo simulation campaigns and sensor performance analysis (radar, EO/IR, RF).
• Experience with HPC environments, distributed computing, and GPU-accelerated computing.
• Active TS/SCI clearance.

Culture & Benefits

• 100% company-paid medical, dental, and vision benefits.
• 401k with 50% company match up to 6% of pay, plus FSA and HSA.
• Free daily lunch and 'No meeting Fridays'.
• Unlimited PTO and casual dress code.
• Competitive base salaries, generous pre-IPO stock option grants, and relocation assistance.