---
title: 'New Graduate Engineer, Propulsion (Raptor) at SpaceX'
canonical: 'https://feeny.ai/job/new-graduate-engineer-propulsion-raptor-spacex-hawthorne-pzs8bvcw9tdy'
type: 'job'
last_seen: '2026-09-15'
---

# New Graduate Engineer, Propulsion (Raptor) at SpaceX

- **Company:** SpaceX
- **Location:** Hawthorne, CA
- **Posted:** 2026-04-29
- **Last confirmed live:** 2026-09-15
- **Apply:** https://boards.greenhouse.io/spacex/jobs/8517361002?gh_jid=8517361002

## Job description

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.

## NEW GRADUATE PROPULSION ENGINEER, RAPTOR

Join the forefront of space exploration at SpaceX as a member of the Raptor team – the worlds most advanced rocket engine powering Starship’s journey in making humanity multiplanetary. If you’re eager to tackle real-world challenges in propulsion systems, from mechanical design and analysis to manufacturing and testing – this is your opportunity to help build the worlds most powerful rocket engine with an emphasis on efficiency and reusability. Bring your innovative mindset and strong fundamentals in engineering principles to drive the boundaries of what’s possible.

## RESPONSIBILITIES:

- Expect a dynamic role doing what you’re best at. Our team is building high performance flight hardware, a high-volume rocket engine production line, and a propulsion system that can rapidly and reliably power our rockets. Whatever your skill set, you’ll be aligned to the part of the program you’re most effectively able to contribute to.
- Own the design and development of next generation rocket engines, test stands, and production lines.
- Perform hand calculations and FEA to develop, assess, and optimize designs.
- Rapidly iterate on manufacturing processes and development testing in a fast-paced environment.
- Collaborate with interdisciplinary teams to ensure hardware integrates with all Raptor systems and supports necessary mission operations.
- Own large business outcomes and experience a rate of personal and professional growth that is unmatched literally anywhere else.
- Get a front row seat to witness an impossible idea manifest in real life. The next few years will be incredibly dynamic as we transition from the challenge of building hardware to actually flying reusable rockets to orbit.

## BASIC QUALIFICATIONS:

- Bachelor's degree in an engineering discipline or physics.
- 1+ years of mechanical and/or fluids engineering experience via project team, research, internships, and/or professional experience.
- Graduating in the spring of 2026, summer of 2026 or Fall of 2026.

## PREFERRED SKILLS AND EXPERIENCE:

- Strong ability to use data and analysis to make fast data-driven decisions.
- Ability to perform trade studies and make clear recommendations using first principles and engineering fundamentals even with partial information. Strong understanding of engineering fundamentals.
- Experience working at a nimble engineering organization or in a highly technical position that required a scrappy, entrepreneurial manner to accomplish tasks with tight time or budget constraints.
- Excelled in ultra-competitive environments. You’ve nailed a podium finish in engineering, math, or science competitions, achieved scores in the top percentile of scholastic or standardized tests, or demonstrated other incredible feats of intellectual achievement.
- Experience building hardware or have a passion for contributing to a work product that operates in the real world.
- Succeeded in multiple endeavors at once. Maybe you worked through college, were a student athlete, or demonstrated strong work or academic performance in multiple fields.
- Demonstrated rapid growth. You’ve held successive positions of increasing responsibility within an organization, were able to get yourself up to speed at a heroic pace, and accomplished something meaningfully difficult early in your career.
- Demonstrated resilience and the ability to overcome failure or extreme odds. Many critics would say that our goals are impossible but this isn’t the first time we’ve proven that highly improbable goals like reusable rockets can become possible.
- Success in academics at a rigorous and highly regarded university: minimum GPA 3.5/4.0 or higher, standardized test scores minimum 95th percentile, merit-based scholarship recipient.

## ADDITIONAL REQUIREMENTS:

- Ability to work extended hours and weekends as necessary.

Propulsion Engineer/Level I: $100,000.00 - $115,000.00/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:

- To conform to U.S. Government export regulations, applicant must be a (i) U.S. citizen or national, (ii) U.S. lawful, permanent resident (aka green card holder), (iii) Refugee under 8 U.S.C. § 1157, or (iv) Asylee under 8 U.S.C. § 1158, or be eligible to obtain the required authorizations from the U.S. Department of State. Learn more about the ITAR [here](https://www.pmddtc.state.gov/?id=ddtc_kb_article_page&sys_id=24d528fddbfc930044f9ff621f961987).

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.

## About SpaceX

## Company Overview
- **One-liner**: SpaceX designs, manufactures, and launches advanced rockets and spacecraft while building a global satellite broadband network and AI infrastructure to enable interplanetary life.
- **Entity Type**: Public (Nasdaq: SPCX) – IPO priced at $135/share on June 12, 2026
- **Headquarters**: Starbase, Texas (primary); Hawthorne, California (historical headquarters)
- **Founded**: 2002
- **Founders**: Elon Musk

## Core Business
- **Industries**: Aerospace & Defense, Spaceflight, Satellite Telecommunications, Artificial Intelligence
- **Target Customers**: Government (NASA, U.S. Armed Forces, international agencies), Commercial satellite operators, Broadband consumers (Starlink), Defense/intelligence (Starshield)
- **Mission**: To make humanity multiplanetary by building the integrated hardware and software infrastructure of the future across space, connectivity, and AI.

## Products & Services
- **Falcon 9**: Reusable two-stage rocket – the world’s most launched orbital rocket, with over 630 successful first-stage reflights.
- **Falcon Heavy**: Heavy-lift launch vehicle composed of three Falcon 9 cores; capable of lifting nearly 64 metric tons to orbit.
- **Starship**: Fully reusable super-heavy launch vehicle and spacecraft (largest ever built) designed for missions to the Moon, Mars, and beyond.
- **Dragon 2**: Crew and cargo spacecraft used for NASA Commercial Crew and private missions to the ISS and beyond.
- **Starlink**: Low-Earth-orbit satellite constellation providing high-speed, low-latency broadband internet to over 10.3 million people globally.
- **Starshield**: Military-grade satellite services for national security and defense customers.
- **SpaceXAI**: Division focused on AI compute infrastructure, frontier models, and real-time data processing (including AI compute satellites).

## Market Standing
- **Valuation**: Conflicting reports – Internal share offer in 2025 valued SpaceX at **$800 billion**; IPO pricing (June 2026) implied a market capitalization of approximately **$75 billion** for the shares offered.
- **Key Metric**: Annual revenue of **$15.0 billion** (2025); total funding raised **$15.2 billion** across 56 rounds.
- **Notable Investors/Partners**: Google (led $1B Series G), Intesa Sanpaolo, NASA, U.S. Space Force, and numerous institutional investors.
- **Growth Signals**: Employee headcount of **11,387** (monthly growth +2.5%); **1,671 active job postings**; Falcon 9 launch cadence of 1–3 per week; Starlink subscriber base covering ~10.3 million people; recent acquisition of xAI (February 2026).

## Competitive Advantages
- **Full reusability**: Only company with a fleet of reusable orbital rockets (Falcon 9, Falcon Heavy), dramatically lowering per-launch cost.
- **Vertical integration**: Designs, manufactures, and operates its own rockets, spacecraft, satellite constellation, and AI platform – enabling rapid iteration and cost control.
- **Scale and reliability**: More orbital launches per year than any other provider (public or private); proven track record with NASA and DoD.
- **First-mover in commercial spaceflight**: Established crew transport, satellite internet, and now AI compute in orbit.

## Strategic Focus
- **Starship development**: Complete testing and operational deployment of the fully reusable Starship system for lunar (Artemis) and Mars missions.
- **Starlink expansion**: Grow subscriber base, launch V3 satellites, and extend mobile and direct-to-cell services.
- **AI integration**: Leverage SpaceXAI for on-orbit compute and real-time data analytics; build AI compute satellites.
- **Interplanetary infrastructure**: Develop technologies for sustained human presence on the Moon and Mars.

## Why Work Here
- **Mission-driven culture**: Employees directly contribute to making life multiplanetary – “hard work and innovative solutions result in big gains.”
- **Impactful projects**: Work on reusable rockets, crewed spacecraft, global broadband, and AI systems that are actively changing the space industry.
- **Compensation**: Competitive salaries, comprehensive health benefits, and equity packages.
- **Work locations**: Primary campuses in Hawthorne, CA and Starbase, TX (with additional sites in Cape Canaveral, FL and Vandenberg, CA). Roles span engineering, software, manufacturing, and support.
- **Engineering culture**: Merit-based, fast-paced, with high ownership; top talent sourced from Tesla, Boeing, NASA JPL, and other aerospace leaders.
- **Open roles**: Over 1,600 active positions across software, AI, avionics, propulsion, supply chain, and more – including internships.

## Sources
1. [SpaceX Careers Page](https://www.spacex.com/careers)
2. [LinkedIn – SpaceX Company Profile](https://www.linkedin.com/company/spacex)
3. [SpaceX IPO Factsheet (PDF)](https://content.spacex.com/cms-assets/FINAL_Documents%20and%20Updates/SpaceX%20IPO_Factsheet.pdf)
4. [SpaceX IPO Pricing Press Release](https://ir.spacex.com/updates/releases-details/2026/Space-Exploration-Technologies-Corp--Announces-Pricing-of-Initial-Public-Offering/default.aspx)
5. [SpaceX Jobs Board (Greenhouse)](https://job-boards.greenhouse.io/spacex)

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