Job Market
TECH OPPORTUNITIES IN GOVERNMENT AND DEFENSE

Government agencies and contractors seek to fill entry-level tech jobs

Good grades and intern/co-op experiences lead to solid opportunities in the government & defense sector

By Tom Stabile
Contributing Editor

Government agencies and major contractors are welcoming entry-level candidates for jobs in information technology and engineering. The work is challenging and it starts right now. But here's the catch: candidates need solid academics and targeted work experiences to open the door.

Pitching in on big projects
The federal government needs a large army of contractors to coordinate projects, provide services and build systems. And the projects at these agencies and firms are also large in size, importance and complexity.

One example is the federal government's efforts to establish a new homeland security department, with many new initiatives and systems. For Computer Sciences Corporation (El Segundo, CA), homeland security also means serious work - work that keeps Paul Orvos, corporate manager of employment at CSC, very busy.

"We've won many contracts for work on homeland security," Orvos says. "So we have a great demand for staff in that area." And some of these projects even offer work for entry-level technical professionals.

Allen Bagwell works on software programming for a major satellite project.

Allen Bagwell, a technical staff member at Sandia National Laboratories (Albuquerque, NM), works on an anti-nuclear weapons proliferation project. It was his first technical job when he started at the lab in 2001. "My group works on software for the satellite ground systems antennas that detect nuclear testing," Bagwell says. "It's a multi-organizational effort."

A big project can be intimidating at first, says Ronny Liu, an associate software engineer at U.K.-based BAE Systems (San Diego, CA). When he started in July 2002, he worked on a major project for the U.S. Department of Defense. "I felt like an idiot during those first few weeks," Liu says. "These custom programs are written pretty much from scratch."

Ronny Liu of BAE Systems helps design, program, and evaluate software for a large federal government project.

Work experience pays off
Although Liu was not told the purpose of the project, BAE helped him learn the technical requirements of the software while on the job. Liu says two experiences prepared him for the challenge.

The first was two summers of work as an intern at Cisco Systems, where he learned how to act in a business environment. The second was writing a major program for an undergraduate computer science class at the University of California San Diego (La Jolla, CA). With the professor's guidance, Liu and his classmates built a giant compiler program from scratch. The task taught Liu the importance of each step when assembling a complex program.

"You have to design well in the beginning or you will be messed up in the end," Liu says. "It was very good practice. I didn't take it too seriously at school, but it taught me a lot."

Strong academics make a difference
Many government agencies and major contractors actively seek candidates with just bachelors degrees if they have strong academic records.

"Work hard to get the best grades you can," Bagwell says. "Keeping up your grades really pays off. We want bright people we can mold."

Understandably, masters degree grad-uates start entry-level jobs with higher pay and greater work responsibility. That's the case at The Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory (Batavia, IL), says Jeff Artel, human resources administrator for IT. "We do highly custom and highly proprietary work here," he says.

NAVAIR's Angela Starner: hands-on work experience prepares you to work on a team and juggle multiple assignments.

Experience is key
Angela Starner earned her BS in industrial and systems engineering from Ohio State University (Columbus, OH) in 2002. The large project she worked on as an undergraduate helped her land a job as an industrial engineer at the Naval Air Systems Command (NAVAIR) at Patuxent River, MD.

The technology solutions designed for the project saved $1 million for the company that contracted the work. Starner put the presentation on a CD to show job recruiters. "It showed them, 'This is what I can do,'" Starner says.

A year of formal work experience helped Smitha Sam land a job at Sandia Labs as a senior member of technical staff. Sam had worked at General Electric Power Systems while finishing her masters in computer science at the University of North Carolina (Charlotte, NC) in May 2001. Although the job involved only low-level software testing, it gave her experience in a professional workplace.

"I recommend internships," Sam says. "People who don't have those experiences are very confused when they start their work careers. The internship made it easier for me to start a real job."

Employers prefer students who have done internships. The FermiLab actively hires at the entry level, says Shelley Krivich, a recruiter in FermiLab's laboratory services section. But it prefers candidates with experiences beyond the classroom. "A student who has some real work experience definitely has an advantage at the entry level," Krivich says.

Lockheed Martin's Edugie Nosegbe believes that masters degree candidates should work for a year before going to grad school.

"Prospective masters degree candidates should work for a year at least before going to grad school," says Edugie Nosegbe, a systems engineer at Lockheed Martin Corporation (Bethesda, MD). "The academic world is completely different from the 'real' world. You have to be flexible."

Edugie Nosegbe: grad work through Lockheed Martin
Edugie Nosegbe graduated from the University of Virginia (Charlottesville, VA) in 1999 with a bachelors degree in systems engineering and an eye on the world. She chose Lockheed Martin because she wanted interesting engineering work and the possibility of international projects. And she liked the company's policy of tuition reimbursement for graduate studies.

First, Nosegbe spent a year at Lockheed's Mission Systems unit as a systems engineer working on Data Capture Systems 2000, software built for the 2000 U.S. Census. "That's where I learned systems engineering processes," she says. "That's also where I learned to build customer relationships and how to test and deploy systems in the field."

Then she entered Lockheed's Engineering Leadership Development Program (ELDP) to work on a masters degree in systems engineering with a concentration in business management. She went to UVA while working full time and graduated in 2002.

ELDP participants rotate among the Lockheed Martin units. They learn management skills, get exposure to customers and are trained in the company's financials - and they get a good understanding of how the company works.

At Lockheed Martin Transportation and Security Solutions, Nosegbe was a systems engineer on the Skyline Project, a commercial air traffic control system for international customers. She made sure the systems met the required specifications, helped with design features and ensured that the system worked.

Nosegbe is now at Lockheed's International Program Office in Rockville, MD. In August 2003, she headed to Panama to manage a team bidding on systems for that nation's civil aviation authority.

Lockheed Martin seeks new grads
Lockheed Martin Corporation actively seeks entry-level hires. Nearly 80 percent will work on federal government agency contracts. Lockheed researches, designs, develops, manufactures and integrates technology systems, products and services.

Sharon Scott Hayden, campus relations manager for Lockheed Martin, says the majority of the entry-level hiring needs are at the bachelors level, but notes that there's a need for people with advanced degrees as well. The bachelor-level hires may pursue graduate degrees while working full time. Scott Hayden leads a team that develops recruiting relationships with universities and student groups. Because of Lockheed Martin's strong diversity focus, it participates in events and career fairs sponsored by NSBE, SWE and SHPE.

Lockheed hires 1,500 to 2,500 entry-level technical people each year, many from its co-op and internship programs. It also offers extensive in-house training and mentoring. "You have the opportunity here to try new things and grow," Scott Hayden says. "If you're technical, you don't have to advance your career through management. You can stay hardcore technical and still advance."

Bankim Tejani is a member of technical staff at Sandia Labs.

Bankim Tejani finds tech challenges at Sandia
A dual major in computer and systems engineering and CS helped Bankim Tejani land good job offers when he graduated in 1999 from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (Troy, NY). After an internship at T. Rowe Price (Baltimore, MD), a financial institution, Tejani joined the company's project management office. It was a good job, but he wanted more. "I was able to run my own deployment, which was fun," he says. "But it wasn't technically challenging."

After two years, he moved to National Instruments Corporation (Austin TX), the site of a previous co-op experience. Again, he didn't find the cutting edge technology he was looking for. He remembered a stimulating internship at a U.S. Army research lab in Maryland, and thought that another government lab might offer the technical excitement he needed. Tejani accepted an offer from Sandia and started in November 2002. Now a member of technical staff, he enjoys his work on applications for satellite communications, data mining, simulations and network intrusion detection.

Tejani especially likes the way the lab evaluates new languages and systems - and the leeway they have with vendors eager to provide evaluation copies of software. "The lab offers lots of cool opportunities for technical training to improve your skills," he says. "I work with various software tools, mostly Java, which is fun. But I also work with Linux and Windows. I can use any package that's out there."

CSC concentrates on government work
Each year, Computer Sciences Corporation (CSC) fills about 8,000 jobs. Most of the jobs go to information technology specialists and engineers, who develop software and systems for government and corporate clients. Paul Orvos, corporate manager of employment, says the company hires data analysts, security analysts, product integrators, system analysts, network architects, network engineers and telecommunications engineers.

In recent years, CSC's work has shifted to government contracts. Orvos attributes the shift in part to the government's response to the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks, and in part to the poor economy that has stalled activity in the commercial sector. Orvos predicts that as the economy improves the company will do more commercial work.

He adds that job candidates with security clearance make attractive hires because they can begin working on sensitive national security projects right away.

FermiLabs' Qiang Du looks forward to increased responsibilities and new assignments.

Qiang Du: FermiLab made a good impression
Qiang Du was impressed with the Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory from the start. "On my first flight to Chicago, I noticed this enormous ring two miles in diameter when I looked down from the plane," he says.

At the time, Du was completing his masters in electrical engineering at U of Missouri (Rolla, MO). He earned an undergraduate degree in his native China and spent the next three years working on graduate studies. He also spent one year at U of Missouri before graduating in May 2002.

Du's interest in physics and the opinion of a trusted advisor at U of Missouri encouraged him to send his résumé to the lab. He was hired and started in July 2002.

Now an engineer in the beams division/electrical-electronic support department, Du focuses on voltage power supply design and optimization projects that support the giant energy particle testers. His responsibilities are increasing and he's looking forward to taking on new assignments.

Angela Starner: hands-on systems tests at NAVAIR
Industrial and systems engineer Angela Starner tests naval aircraft components to make sure pilot and crew can escape from an aircraft in distress and live to talk about it. In her job Starner uses concepts she studied at Ohio State U, such as static dynamics, basic mathematics and computer programming.

She believes that hands-on work experience is the best way to prepare for the professional demands of working on a team and juggling multiple assignments. Last summer, Starner tested a new helmet visor to make sure that it did not detach when pilots eject from fixed-wing aircraft.

Starner intends to learn more about each plane and the gear it carries. She says it would be beneficial for her to know, for example, what oxygen mask is used on an F-16.

NAVAIR has wide-ranging technical needs
The Naval Air Systems Command recruits across engineering and scientific disciplines. NAVAIR's eight sites hire engineers with electrical, mechanical, aerospace, computer, chemical, environmental, civil and industrial specialties. On the West Coast, it also hires civil, electronics and materials engineers. Other positions require operations research analysts, computer scientists, mathematicians, chemists and other scientists. Entry-level applicants are welcome in each of these disciplines, says Tania Hayden, a recruiting program administrator. "We are always looking to fill different positions," Hayden says. "Managers come to us when they have a recruiting need."

NAVAIR mainly recruits at universities with diverse student bodies. Hayden says that each year NAVAIR receives about 6,000 résumés and hires between 300 and 350 engineers and scientists.

Smitha Sam of Sandia Labs likes learning new tools and keeping up with new technologies.

Smitha Sam: Sandia is a great match
A native of India, Smitha Sam earned a bachelors in engineering at the University of North Carolina (Charlotte, NC) in 1999 and stayed to earn a masters in computer science in 2001. She took a year off, then met Sandia reps at a job fair and found the company to be a great match. Sam started at Sandia in June 2002.

As a software engineer, Sam works on software testing automation projects, using programming languages like Unix and shell programming tools.

Thanks to her graduate degree, she started at Sandia as a senior member of technical staff. She especially likes the opportunity to work on the latest technology and to learn new skills. "I know I'll spend my life learning new tools and programs and keeping up with new technologies," she says.

Ronny Liu got noticed by BAE Systems
Ronny Liu's 2002 computer science degree from the University of California-San Diego includes a minor in economics/management science. Liu says the minor helped him to stand out at a job fair. He also credits his internship at Cisco Systems and the time he took to speak with BAE's recruiter at the fair. Another helpful factor was his demanding academic program.

An associate software engineer, Liu helps design, program and evaluate software for a large federal government project. He often works in Irix, a Unix-based interface for graphics software. Most computer science students don't study Irix, but one UCSD professor focused on it. Liu says the exposure paid off when he met BAE's recruiters.

Liu hasn't chosen a career path, but he says the security clearance he recently received will help him land advanced assignments at BAE.

In Kon McCann says his high grades and internships at Microsoft and Sybase caught Sandia's attention.

In Kon McCann: internships count at Sandia
In Kon McCann worked in biochemistry for two years after earning his degree in biochemistry and cellular molecular biology from the University of Washington (Seattle, WA) in 1998. He then spent the next two and a half years earning his masters in computer science at the University of Colorado (Boulder, CO). McCann graduated in 2002.

Hoping to work in software engineering, he found the complex work at Sandia appealing. McCann says his high grades and internships at Microsoft and Sybase caught Sandia's attention.

McCann now writes code, designs software and writes documentation. His new security clearance landed him a slot on several phases of a giant national defense/national security project.

"We are developing a large scale software product from the ground up. It will have close to a million lines of code when it's completed," he says. "It will be one of the largest programs here at the lab."

Fermilab's Damon Boyd enjoys his work so much that he plans to pursue an EE degree.

Damon Boyd is a technician in FermiLab's EES division
A native Californian, Damon Boyd II followed a job to the Chicago area, but left to pursue a bachelors in electrical engineering technology at an ITT Technical Institute campus in Mt Prospect, IL. He had learned about Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory from a classmate who worked there. Boyd started at the lab a few months before he graduated in 2002.

A technician in the beams division/electrical-electronic support department, Boyd focuses on prototypes for a system that controls the beam and power supplies for the lab's massive energy particle testers. "They shoot the beam that makes the protons and the antiprotons collide. We guide the beam using magnets controlled by the power supply," Boyd explains. He enjoys his work so much that he plans to pursue an EE degree to complement his EET.

FermiLab has engineering and IT opportunities
Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory hires for a variety of positions from administrative IT support to technology specialists. Human resources administrator Artel says entry-level IT candidates with undergraduate degrees typically support the lab's administrative technology infrastructure.

The lab tends to promote from within. But it looks for candidates with advanced degrees or scientific backgrounds for IT work supporting the complex technology behind the accelerator experiments.

"They're charged with keeping the machine's high energy magnetic components running at an optimum level," Artel says.

Recruiter Shelley Krivich says the lab has active diversity programs, ranging from internships to attending national conferences for SWE, SHPE, NSBE and AISES. She says the lab hires engineers from electrical, manufacturing and other fields. FermiLab usually hires for dozens of entry-level technical positions each year.

Allen Bagwell: software for Sandia National Labs
Allen Bagwell started out in the theater. But at age thirty-one, he decided to pursue a second bachelors degree in computer science. Graduating in 2001 from the University of Puget Sound (Tacoma, WA), he expected to end up at a tech startup.

Instead, he met Sandia recruiters at a job fair and liked what he saw. So he relocated to New Mexico in August 2001. He began working on software programming for a major satellite project without knowing much about satellites. But he learned along the way, using his C++ skills on both custom programs and reformatted vendor products.

Bagwell appreciates Sandia's many benefits, including diversity programs. He is openly gay, but hasn't been active in the lab's gay/lesbian networking group. For now, he plans to take advantage of Sandia's advanced degree study programs. "They encourage people to get their masters," he says.

Sandia's Tina Jenkin builds simulation models and analyzes sensor data. Flying is her passion.

Sandia's Tina Jenkin builds simulation models
Sandia labs offered Tina Jenkin a job after she graduated from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (Troy, NY) in 1999. But first she decided to get her masters degree in math, computer science and logic at Dresden University of Technology (Dresden, Germany). She joined Sandia after finishing her degree in 2000.

Jenkin first handled data mining. Then Sandia let her move to computer simulation, an area she enjoys. She now builds simulation models and analyzes sensor data, using programming tools such as Extend, Arena, Power Sym and Java.

"For anyone who is driven and has vision, this is a great area," she says. "A lot of people told me, 'Tina you're going to be bored with government work,' but I'm not bored yet."

D/C

Tom Stabile is a freelance writer in New York, NY.