STEM OPT Staff Software Developer Jobs
Staff Software Developer roles qualify for STEM OPT when your degree falls under an eligible CIP code in computer science, engineering, or a related field. Your employer must be enrolled in E-Verify, and the 24-month STEM OPT extension gives you up to 36 months total to build seniority, ship production systems, and pursue H-1B sponsorship.
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Get Access To All JobsCompany:
Qualcomm Technologies, Inc.
Job Area:
Engineering Group, Engineering Group > Software Engineering
General Summary:
About Qualcomm Robotics
Qualcomm Advanced Robotics Team is building the AI first stack and platform for the next generation general purpose robots - from AMRs and cobots to emerging humanoids by pairing heterogeneous compute (CPU/GPU/DSP/NPU) with a full Robotics SDK and developer tooling for manipulation, perception, navigation, and fleet workflows. We are leveraging our success in automated driving product portfolio, advanced AI end to end development and tools, and safety architecture to accelerate the growth in this emerging market.
The Opportunity
As Software Engineer, you will be the senior technical developer for Qualcomm’s robotics software platform —defining the end‑to‑end architecture, raising the engineering bar across core middleware and services (ROS 2/DDS), and leading cross‑functional teams to deliver production‑grade SDKs and reference solutions that customers can take to market. You’ll combine deep systems expertise with hands‑on leadership across perception/SLAM, planning & control, real‑time Linux/MCU, and on‑device AI shipping robust software on Qualcomm robotics SoCs.
What you’ll do
- Develop the software architecture for the Qualcomm Robotics platform interfaces, runtime, QoS, and safety envelopes across Linux + MCU subsystems; drive DDS/ROS 2 patterns for reliable, real‑time data flow on heterogeneous compute, and system mapping and optimization to Qualcomm Robotics platform.
- Develop the platform roadmap and technical design reviews across perception (VIO/VSLAM, DFS), mapping, semantic scene understanding, navigation, manipulation, and SDK components; ensure high performance and low power on our SoCs.
- Drive real‑world validation using sim‑in‑the‑loop and HIL; establish metrics for robustness, determinism, and regression across camera/IMU/LiDAR stacks and whole‑robot scenarios.
- Optimize for heterogeneous compute (CPU/GPU/DSP/NPU) and camera pipeline/ISP; guide teams on concurrency, memory/power budgets, and accelerator utilization for on‑device AI.
- Champion safety & reliability practices and interfaces compatible with relevant standards (e.g., ISO 26262/IEC 61508 alignment where applicable) and design for field diagnostics, observability, and OTA update paths.
- Mentor and grow senior engineers across core platform, perception, controls, and SDK setting crisp technical direction, code quality bars, and review culture.
- Engage customers & partners as the senior technical face of the platform clarify requirements, guide integrations, and translate learnings into the roadmap.
How you’ll lead
- Set the technical bar for platform correctness, determinism, and developer experience.
- Coach senior ICs and tech leads, building a strong review culture and CI/CD discipline for robotics.
- Partner with product and silicon teams to align software roadmaps with SoC capabilities and customer needs.
Why Qualcomm
- Opportunity to shape the software heart of a rapidly scaling robotics portfolio used across industrial, commercial, and emerging humanoid form factors.
- Build on a mature developer ecosystem (RBx/QRB platforms, on‑device AI toolchains) and ship at the edge, globally.
Minimum Qualifications:
- Bachelor's degree in Engineering, Information Systems, Computer Science, or related field and 4+ years of Software Engineering or related work experience.
OR
Master's degree in Engineering, Information Systems, Computer Science, or related field and 3+ years of Software Engineering or related work experience.
OR
PhD in Engineering, Information Systems, Computer Science, or related field and 2+ years of Software Engineering or related work experience.
- 2+ years of work experience with Programming Language such as C, C++, Java, Python, etc.
Preferred Qualifications:
- 5+ years in software engineering, with 4+ years building robotics platforms, Ubuntu, ROS2 or complex real‑time distributed systems; proven record shipping SDKs or core runtimes.
- Expert in C++ (modern) and Python with production experience in ROS 2 and DDS (QoS, discovery, message design, and tracing).
- Depth in: Physical AI embedded and virtual platforms, SLAM/visual‑inertial odometry, dense/stereo depth, semantic mapping, planning & controls, or manipulation —with demonstrable system‑level integration on embedded platforms.
- Strong background in Linux for robotics, real‑time considerations, and MCU/RTOS interactions (time sync, safety islands, bootloaders, field firmware management).
- Performance engineering on heterogeneous SoCs (CPU/GPU/NPU/DSP) and camera/ISP stacks; hands‑on profiling and optimization.
- BS/MS in CS, EE, Robotics, or related field (PhD a plus).
- Track record leading large cross‑functional efforts (architecture docs, design reviews, de‑risking, postmortems) that landed in customer products.
- Experience delivering developer‑facing SDKs and documentation; familiarity with Qualcomm robotics stacks and ROS 2 package ecosystems.
- Demonstrated results in on‑device AI for perception or policy (model optimization, quantization, or pipeline fusion) on edge devices.
- Contributions to ROS/ROS 2 or relevant open‑source robotics projects; publications/patents in SLAM, perception, manipulation, or real‑time systems.
Principal Duties and Responsibilities:
- Leverages advanced Software knowledge and experience to design, develop, create, modify, and validate critical embedded and cloud edge software, applications, and/or specialized utility programs.
- Analyzes user needs, software requirements, and time and cost constraints to design and customize sophisticated software for optimal operational efficiency.
- Designs and implements software sub-systems for complex, large-scale products and systems.
- Leads design, coding, and testing efforts to ensure that projects are completed to specifications and schedules.
- Performs highly complex code reviews and regression tests as well as triages and fixes issues to ensure the quality of code.
- Collaborates with individuals outside the software function (e.g., Hardware, Systems, and Test engineers) to increase leverage and design solutions that work with other components of a specific project.
- Writes detailed technical documentation for highly complex Software projects; reviews technical documentation for junior engineers.
Qualcomm is an equal opportunity employer. If you are an individual with a disability and need an accommodation during the application/hiring process, rest assured that Qualcomm is committed to providing an accessible process. You may e-mail disability-accomodations@qualcomm.com or call Qualcomm's toll-free number found here. Upon request, Qualcomm will provide reasonable accommodations to support individuals with disabilities to be able participate in the hiring process. Qualcomm is also committed to making our workplace accessible for individuals with disabilities.
To all Staffing and Recruiting Agencies: Our Careers Site is only for individuals seeking a job at Qualcomm. Staffing and recruiting agencies and individuals being represented by an agency are not authorized to use this site or to submit profiles, applications or resumes, and any such submissions will be considered unsolicited. Qualcomm does not accept unsolicited resumes or applications from agencies. Please do not forward resumes to our jobs alias, Qualcomm employees or any other company location. Qualcomm is not responsible for any fees related to unsolicited resumes/applications.
EEO Employer: Qualcomm is an equal opportunity employer; all qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability, Veteran status, or any other protected classification.
Qualcomm expects its employees to abide by all applicable policies and procedures, including but not limited to security and other requirements regarding protection of Company confidential information and other confidential and/or proprietary information, to the extent those requirements are permissible under applicable law.
Pay range and Other Compensation & Benefits:
$151,900.00 - $227,900.00
The above pay scale reflects the broad, minimum to maximum, pay scale for this job code for the location for which it has been posted. Even more importantly, please note that salary is only one component of total compensation at Qualcomm. We also offer a competitive annual discretionary bonus program and opportunity for annual RSU grants (employees on sales-incentive plans are not eligible for our annual bonus). In addition, our highly competitive benefits package is designed to support your success at work, at home, and at play. Your recruiter will be happy to discuss all that Qualcomm has to offer – and you can review more details about our US benefits at this link.
If you would like more information about this role, please contact Qualcomm Careers.
Company:
Qualcomm Technologies, Inc.
Job Area:
Engineering Group, Engineering Group > Software Engineering
General Summary:
About Qualcomm Robotics
Qualcomm Advanced Robotics Team is building the AI first stack and platform for the next generation general purpose robots - from AMRs and cobots to emerging humanoids by pairing heterogeneous compute (CPU/GPU/DSP/NPU) with a full Robotics SDK and developer tooling for manipulation, perception, navigation, and fleet workflows. We are leveraging our success in automated driving product portfolio, advanced AI end to end development and tools, and safety architecture to accelerate the growth in this emerging market.
The Opportunity
As Software Engineer, you will be the senior technical developer for Qualcomm’s robotics software platform —defining the end‑to‑end architecture, raising the engineering bar across core middleware and services (ROS 2/DDS), and leading cross‑functional teams to deliver production‑grade SDKs and reference solutions that customers can take to market. You’ll combine deep systems expertise with hands‑on leadership across perception/SLAM, planning & control, real‑time Linux/MCU, and on‑device AI shipping robust software on Qualcomm robotics SoCs.
What you’ll do
- Develop the software architecture for the Qualcomm Robotics platform interfaces, runtime, QoS, and safety envelopes across Linux + MCU subsystems; drive DDS/ROS 2 patterns for reliable, real‑time data flow on heterogeneous compute, and system mapping and optimization to Qualcomm Robotics platform.
- Develop the platform roadmap and technical design reviews across perception (VIO/VSLAM, DFS), mapping, semantic scene understanding, navigation, manipulation, and SDK components; ensure high performance and low power on our SoCs.
- Drive real‑world validation using sim‑in‑the‑loop and HIL; establish metrics for robustness, determinism, and regression across camera/IMU/LiDAR stacks and whole‑robot scenarios.
- Optimize for heterogeneous compute (CPU/GPU/DSP/NPU) and camera pipeline/ISP; guide teams on concurrency, memory/power budgets, and accelerator utilization for on‑device AI.
- Champion safety & reliability practices and interfaces compatible with relevant standards (e.g., ISO 26262/IEC 61508 alignment where applicable) and design for field diagnostics, observability, and OTA update paths.
- Mentor and grow senior engineers across core platform, perception, controls, and SDK setting crisp technical direction, code quality bars, and review culture.
- Engage customers & partners as the senior technical face of the platform clarify requirements, guide integrations, and translate learnings into the roadmap.
How you’ll lead
- Set the technical bar for platform correctness, determinism, and developer experience.
- Coach senior ICs and tech leads, building a strong review culture and CI/CD discipline for robotics.
- Partner with product and silicon teams to align software roadmaps with SoC capabilities and customer needs.
Why Qualcomm
- Opportunity to shape the software heart of a rapidly scaling robotics portfolio used across industrial, commercial, and emerging humanoid form factors.
- Build on a mature developer ecosystem (RBx/QRB platforms, on‑device AI toolchains) and ship at the edge, globally.
Minimum Qualifications:
- Bachelor's degree in Engineering, Information Systems, Computer Science, or related field and 4+ years of Software Engineering or related work experience.
OR
Master's degree in Engineering, Information Systems, Computer Science, or related field and 3+ years of Software Engineering or related work experience.
OR
PhD in Engineering, Information Systems, Computer Science, or related field and 2+ years of Software Engineering or related work experience.
- 2+ years of work experience with Programming Language such as C, C++, Java, Python, etc.
Preferred Qualifications:
- 5+ years in software engineering, with 4+ years building robotics platforms, Ubuntu, ROS2 or complex real‑time distributed systems; proven record shipping SDKs or core runtimes.
- Expert in C++ (modern) and Python with production experience in ROS 2 and DDS (QoS, discovery, message design, and tracing).
- Depth in: Physical AI embedded and virtual platforms, SLAM/visual‑inertial odometry, dense/stereo depth, semantic mapping, planning & controls, or manipulation —with demonstrable system‑level integration on embedded platforms.
- Strong background in Linux for robotics, real‑time considerations, and MCU/RTOS interactions (time sync, safety islands, bootloaders, field firmware management).
- Performance engineering on heterogeneous SoCs (CPU/GPU/NPU/DSP) and camera/ISP stacks; hands‑on profiling and optimization.
- BS/MS in CS, EE, Robotics, or related field (PhD a plus).
- Track record leading large cross‑functional efforts (architecture docs, design reviews, de‑risking, postmortems) that landed in customer products.
- Experience delivering developer‑facing SDKs and documentation; familiarity with Qualcomm robotics stacks and ROS 2 package ecosystems.
- Demonstrated results in on‑device AI for perception or policy (model optimization, quantization, or pipeline fusion) on edge devices.
- Contributions to ROS/ROS 2 or relevant open‑source robotics projects; publications/patents in SLAM, perception, manipulation, or real‑time systems.
Principal Duties and Responsibilities:
- Leverages advanced Software knowledge and experience to design, develop, create, modify, and validate critical embedded and cloud edge software, applications, and/or specialized utility programs.
- Analyzes user needs, software requirements, and time and cost constraints to design and customize sophisticated software for optimal operational efficiency.
- Designs and implements software sub-systems for complex, large-scale products and systems.
- Leads design, coding, and testing efforts to ensure that projects are completed to specifications and schedules.
- Performs highly complex code reviews and regression tests as well as triages and fixes issues to ensure the quality of code.
- Collaborates with individuals outside the software function (e.g., Hardware, Systems, and Test engineers) to increase leverage and design solutions that work with other components of a specific project.
- Writes detailed technical documentation for highly complex Software projects; reviews technical documentation for junior engineers.
Qualcomm is an equal opportunity employer. If you are an individual with a disability and need an accommodation during the application/hiring process, rest assured that Qualcomm is committed to providing an accessible process. You may e-mail disability-accomodations@qualcomm.com or call Qualcomm's toll-free number found here. Upon request, Qualcomm will provide reasonable accommodations to support individuals with disabilities to be able participate in the hiring process. Qualcomm is also committed to making our workplace accessible for individuals with disabilities.
To all Staffing and Recruiting Agencies: Our Careers Site is only for individuals seeking a job at Qualcomm. Staffing and recruiting agencies and individuals being represented by an agency are not authorized to use this site or to submit profiles, applications or resumes, and any such submissions will be considered unsolicited. Qualcomm does not accept unsolicited resumes or applications from agencies. Please do not forward resumes to our jobs alias, Qualcomm employees or any other company location. Qualcomm is not responsible for any fees related to unsolicited resumes/applications.
EEO Employer: Qualcomm is an equal opportunity employer; all qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability, Veteran status, or any other protected classification.
Qualcomm expects its employees to abide by all applicable policies and procedures, including but not limited to security and other requirements regarding protection of Company confidential information and other confidential and/or proprietary information, to the extent those requirements are permissible under applicable law.
Pay range and Other Compensation & Benefits:
$151,900.00 - $227,900.00
The above pay scale reflects the broad, minimum to maximum, pay scale for this job code for the location for which it has been posted. Even more importantly, please note that salary is only one component of total compensation at Qualcomm. We also offer a competitive annual discretionary bonus program and opportunity for annual RSU grants (employees on sales-incentive plans are not eligible for our annual bonus). In addition, our highly competitive benefits package is designed to support your success at work, at home, and at play. Your recruiter will be happy to discuss all that Qualcomm has to offer – and you can review more details about our US benefits at this link.
If you would like more information about this role, please contact Qualcomm Careers.
See all 69+ Staff Software Developer jobs
Sign up for free to unlock all listings, filter by visa type, and get alerts for new Staff Software Developer roles.
Get Access To All JobsTips for Finding STEM OPT Authorization as a Staff Software Developer
Verify your CIP code before applying
Pull your degree's CIP code from your DSO and cross-check it against the STEM OPT designated degree list on USCIS. Staff Software Developer roles typically map to computer science, software engineering, or information systems codes, but mislabeled transcripts have caused extension denials.
Filter job postings by E-Verify status
Ask recruiters directly whether the company is enrolled in E-Verify before advancing to technical interviews. Employers must be enrolled to sign your I-983 training plan, and joining a non-enrolled company means your STEM OPT extension is invalid from day one.
Target Staff-level roles at E-Verify employers on Migrate Mate
Use Migrate Mate to search Staff Software Developer positions filtered by verified E-Verify enrollment. Staff-level seniority signals an employer who can support a structured training plan and sustain sponsorship through your 24-month extension period.
Build your I-983 training plan around engineering milestones
Draft your I-983 before your offer letter is finalized, not after. Map your learning objectives to concrete Staff-level deliverables like system design ownership, code review leadership, or on-call responsibilities so USCIS sees a credible progression tied to your STEM degree.
Time your H-1B registration inside the STEM OPT window
You have up to 36 months to get selected in the H-1B lottery. Missing two consecutive registration cycles as a STEM OPT holder is a real risk, so negotiate a start date that lets you register in at least two fiscal year cycles before your authorization expires.
Confirm prevailing wage alignment before signing an offer
Run the Staff Software Developer SOC code through the OFLC Wage Search to confirm your offered salary meets at least Level II prevailing wage in the employer's metro area. A wage below the DOL threshold will block LCA certification when your employer files for H-1B.
Staff Software Developer jobs are hiring across the US. Find yours.
Find Staff Software Developer JobsFrequently Asked Questions
Does a Staff Software Developer role qualify for STEM OPT?
Yes, if your underlying degree carries an eligible CIP code, typically in computer science, software engineering, electrical engineering, or information science. The job title itself doesn't determine eligibility. USCIS evaluates whether the role directly relates to your degree field, and Staff Software Developer positions almost always satisfy that connection when paired with a qualifying STEM degree.
What does E-Verify enrollment mean for my STEM OPT extension?
Your employer must be actively enrolled in E-Verify before you can activate your STEM OPT extension. Without that enrollment, your DSO cannot recommend the extension and USCIS cannot approve it. Enrollment isn't the same as past use of E-Verify, so confirm current active status directly with HR or through the E-Verify employer search tool before accepting an offer.
What goes into the I-983 training plan for a Staff Software Developer?
The I-983 must document specific learning objectives tied to your STEM degree, the supervision structure, and how the employer will evaluate your progress at the 12-month midpoint and at the end of the extension. For Staff Software Developer roles, strong plans reference concrete engineering responsibilities like system architecture ownership, technical mentorship, or cross-functional project leadership, not generic tasks.
Can STEM OPT cap-gap protect me if my H-1B is still pending on October 1?
Yes. If your STEM OPT is valid on April 1 of the relevant fiscal year and your employer files an H-1B petition before your OPT expires, cap-gap automatically extends your work authorization through September 30. If USCIS selects and approves your petition, your H-1B status begins October 1. You can continue working at the same employer throughout that bridge period.
Where can I find Staff Software Developer jobs at E-Verify employers?
Migrate Mate lists Staff Software Developer positions filtered by E-Verify enrollment, so you're only seeing employers who can legally support your STEM OPT extension from day one. Searching there removes the guesswork of screening employers manually and lets you focus your applications on companies already set up to file your training plan and support an eventual H-1B.
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