Senior Backend Developer Jobs in Virginia
Senior Backend Developer jobs in Virginia are in strong and sustained demand, concentrated in defense contracting, federal IT services, cloud infrastructure, and financial technology sectors, with openings ranging from mid-level engineers to principal architects. Northern Virginia, Richmond, and the Hampton Roads corridor are the primary hiring hubs, home to established employers like Booz Allen Hamilton, Leidos, and Capital One that consistently seek senior backend talent. The most in-demand specialties include distributed systems engineering, cloud-native API development, and microservices architecture supporting government and enterprise platforms. Find a role that fits below and apply directly.
Find Senior Backend Developer JobsOverview
Showing 5 of 25+ Senior Backend Developer jobs
Job ID: 2618996
Location: Ashburn, VA, US
Date Posted: 2026-11-10
Category: Software
Subcategory: SW Engineer
Schedule: Full-Time
Shift: Day Job
Travel: No
Minimum Clearance Required: None
Clearance Level Must Be Able to Obtain: Public Trust
Potential for Remote Work: ORA_HYBRID
Description
SAIC is currently seeking a motivated, career and customer oriented, and hands on senior-level Java Backend Developer with cloud experience to join our team to begin an exciting and challenging career in Ashburn, Va.
This position is hybrid-remote and requires 2 days on-site per week in Ashburn, VA.
Job Responsibilities:
- Working closely with the tech lead and senior developers, the Java Developer will participate in the system architecture design, development, integration testing and validation, and all aspects of the software life cycle (requirements to design to implementation to test) for a java back-end application involving extensive Messaging and Transaction processing
- Must be hands on and be able to design and develop Java code as dictated by project requirements as needed and work with/mentor junior team members.
- Work with users in an Agile development approach to understand requirements, then elicit feedback and refine solution through demonstrations
- Provide application support during testing and production phase and work with the lead to deploy code fixes as needed
Qualifications
Required Skills and Experience
- B.S. Degree in Computer Science or Engineering and 9+ years of software development experience
- 9+ years of strong Java J2EE/JEE design and software development experience including designing, developing, and documenting large-scale enterprise software systems.
- 5+ years of working with Applications on Cloud utilizing serverless hosted services like AWS lambda.
- Experience with NoSQL DBs like MongoDB, DocumentDB, DynamoDB etc.
- Docker and Kubernetes experience
- Spring Boot/AWS cloud experience
- Web /Micro Sevices
- SQL DBs (preferably Oracle)
- XML/JSON
- Unix/Linux
- Extensive skills in JDBC/JPA/Hibernate and strong SQL skills is required for this position.
- Knowledge of standard design patterns.
- Demonstrated expertise in software engineering practices (e.g., reading/generating software specs, design patterns, continuous integration)
- Gitlab/JIRA/Jenkins for CI/CD
Desired Skills and Experience
- First-hand experience working with large project teams (working with the Federal Government a strong plus)
- Demonstrated ability to think critically and creatively to develop innovative solutions to software problems
- Ability to develop and maintain components with stringent performance requirements
- Agile development experience a plus
- React experience is a plus
- IBM MQ, JMS, EJB, MDB and other JEE technologies
- JEE Server experience (Weblogic\Websphere\JBOSS\etc.)
- This is a highly technical and hands on position
- Masters in Computer Science or related field is a plus
Customer Requirements
- Clearance – Ability to obtain and hold a public trust position and favorable suitability based on a CBP Background Investigation
- Citizenship – Must be a US Citizen
- Location – Hybrid with on-site (Ashburn, VA) visits 2 days per week and if a mission need. All candidates must be within the GWA/commutable area
Target salary range: $140,001 - $180,000. The estimate displayed represents the typical salary range for this position based on experience and other factors.
Job ID: 2618996
Location: Ashburn, VA, US
Date Posted: 2026-11-10
Category: Software
Subcategory: SW Engineer
Schedule: Full-Time
Shift: Day Job
Travel: No
Minimum Clearance Required: None
Clearance Level Must Be Able to Obtain: Public Trust
Potential for Remote Work: ORA_HYBRID
Description
SAIC is currently seeking a motivated, career and customer oriented, and hands on senior-level Java Backend Developer with cloud experience to join our team to begin an exciting and challenging career in Ashburn, Va.
This position is hybrid-remote and requires 2 days on-site per week in Ashburn, VA.
Job Responsibilities:
- Working closely with the tech lead and senior developers, the Java Developer will participate in the system architecture design, development, integration testing and validation, and all aspects of the software life cycle (requirements to design to implementation to test) for a java back-end application involving extensive Messaging and Transaction processing
- Must be hands on and be able to design and develop Java code as dictated by project requirements as needed and work with/mentor junior team members.
- Work with users in an Agile development approach to understand requirements, then elicit feedback and refine solution through demonstrations
- Provide application support during testing and production phase and work with the lead to deploy code fixes as needed
Qualifications
Required Skills and Experience
- B.S. Degree in Computer Science or Engineering and 9+ years of software development experience
- 9+ years of strong Java J2EE/JEE design and software development experience including designing, developing, and documenting large-scale enterprise software systems.
- 5+ years of working with Applications on Cloud utilizing serverless hosted services like AWS lambda.
- Experience with NoSQL DBs like MongoDB, DocumentDB, DynamoDB etc.
- Docker and Kubernetes experience
- Spring Boot/AWS cloud experience
- Web /Micro Sevices
- SQL DBs (preferably Oracle)
- XML/JSON
- Unix/Linux
- Extensive skills in JDBC/JPA/Hibernate and strong SQL skills is required for this position.
- Knowledge of standard design patterns.
- Demonstrated expertise in software engineering practices (e.g., reading/generating software specs, design patterns, continuous integration)
- Gitlab/JIRA/Jenkins for CI/CD
Desired Skills and Experience
- First-hand experience working with large project teams (working with the Federal Government a strong plus)
- Demonstrated ability to think critically and creatively to develop innovative solutions to software problems
- Ability to develop and maintain components with stringent performance requirements
- Agile development experience a plus
- React experience is a plus
- IBM MQ, JMS, EJB, MDB and other JEE technologies
- JEE Server experience (Weblogic\Websphere\JBOSS\etc.)
- This is a highly technical and hands on position
- Masters in Computer Science or related field is a plus
Customer Requirements
- Clearance – Ability to obtain and hold a public trust position and favorable suitability based on a CBP Background Investigation
- Citizenship – Must be a US Citizen
- Location – Hybrid with on-site (Ashburn, VA) visits 2 days per week and if a mission need. All candidates must be within the GWA/commutable area
Target salary range: $140,001 - $180,000. The estimate displayed represents the typical salary range for this position based on experience and other factors.
See All 25 Senior Backend Developer Jobs in Virginia
Find roles in Virginia that match your experience and apply in just a few clicks.
Find Senior Backend Developer JobsSenior Backend Developer Jobs by City in Virginia
Where Virginia roles are concentrated, by current openings.
Senior Backend Developer Job Market in Virginia
A snapshot from current Virginia openings, updated as new roles post.
Who's Hiring
What Virginia Employers Look For
The qualifications that appear most often in senior backend developer jobs across Virginia.
- Five or more years of professional backend development experience in production environments
- Proficiency in at least one server-side language such as Java, Python, Go, or Node.js
- Demonstrated experience designing and deploying RESTful or GraphQL APIs at scale
- Familiarity with cloud platforms, particularly AWS or Azure, common in Virginia's defense and government markets
- Experience with relational and NoSQL databases including PostgreSQL, MySQL, or MongoDB
- Strong understanding of CI/CD pipelines, containerization tools like Docker, and orchestration with Kubernetes
Senior Backend Developer Jobs in Virginia: Frequently Asked Questions
How do you become a senior backend developer in Virginia?
Backend development in Virginia has no state-issued license or registration requirement, so advancement depends on demonstrated technical depth and domain experience. Most senior roles require a bachelor's degree in computer science, software engineering, or a related field, though Virginia employers including federal contractors frequently evaluate candidates on portfolio work and verifiable project history. Building expertise in cloud infrastructure and systems design relevant to Virginia's defense and government IT market strengthens candidacy considerably.
How much do senior backend developers make in Virginia?
Senior backend developers in Virginia earn a median of about $136,460 a year, based on May 2025 Bureau of Labor Statistics wage data, ranging from around $83,350 for the lowest 10% to over $211,930 for the top 10%. Pay rises with experience, specialty, and employer.
Which companies hire senior backend developers in Virginia?
Employers hiring senior backend developers in Virginia right now include Vantor, Deloitte, and Booz Allen Hamilton, based on current listings on Migrate Mate as of November 2026. Northern Virginia's concentration of federal contractors and cloud infrastructure firms means many of these employers also require or prefer candidates who can obtain a security clearance.
Which Virginia cities have the most senior backend developer jobs?
Reston, Chantilly, and Virginia have the highest concentration of senior backend developer openings in Virginia. Northern Virginia dominates because of its dense cluster of federal agencies, defense contractors, and cloud data center operators, while Richmond draws demand from financial services firms and state government technology programs, and Hampton Roads reflects the region's military and logistics-sector IT needs.
Are there remote senior backend developer jobs in Virginia?
Yes, and more than most fields. About 67% of senior backend developer openings tied to Virginia are remote or hybrid as of November 2026, reflecting the desk-based and distributed nature of backend engineering work. Roles focused on cloud infrastructure, API development, and internal tooling tend to carry the most remote flexibility, while positions requiring on-site work typically involve classified federal systems or secure facilities.
How can I get hired as a senior backend developer in Virginia with little or no experience?
The most realistic entry path is securing an associate or junior software engineer role at one of Virginia's large federal IT contractors, such as Booz Allen Hamilton, Leidos, or SAIC, which run structured new-graduate programs and rotational tracks that build backend engineering skills over time. Moving from a QA engineer, systems analyst, or DevOps associate role is a common lateral path into backend work. Building a public portfolio demonstrating API projects or cloud deployments, and earning an AWS or Azure associate-level credential, meaningfully strengthens applications at Virginia employers.
Where can I find and apply to senior backend developer jobs in Virginia?
You can find and apply to senior backend developer jobs in Virginia on Migrate Mate, which lists current Virginia openings across the state's major hiring markets. Find roles that fit your experience and apply directly from the listing.
See All 25 Senior Backend Developer Jobs in Virginia
Find roles in Virginia that match your experience and apply in just a few clicks.
Find Senior Backend Developer Jobs