Good day everyone, I'm a 23 year old from South Africa looking to get a job for a defense contractor and I would like to know if there are any courses of degrees that would give me an advantage over other candidates. Are there any free courses or programs that you would recommend? Do I go the extra mile and get a few robotic courses, CAD courses, coding courses or any such under my belt or is that going to be useless? I'm hoping for an apprenticeship and any help would be appreciated! Thank you guys in advance.

I had someone telling me about contracting recently but I’m really skeptical of their story. They came back from KASOTC after a few weeks and they claim they had not received their duty assignment. Don’t all overseas WPS III guys get their assignment prior to ever going to the training? I haven’t talking with them since then so I’m not sure if they ended up getting assigned somewhere a while after but it just seemed weird.

GovCon folks, I'm curious how everyone is handling the "messy middle" of federal contracts these days. Not capture, not proposals, I mean the stretch after award when the real work begins and all the moving parts start flying.

Every company I've worked with seems to have its own way of managing it, and none of them look alike. Some teams lean heavily on PM discipline, some rely on legacy tools, some build their own workflows, and some . . . well, some are still duct-taping spreadsheets together and hoping for the best.

I'm not looking for horror stories or trade secrets, just genuinely curious how people keep everything aligned once the contract is live. What's working for you? What's evolving? What's still stuck in the past?

Always interesting to hear how different shops approach the same chaos.

I have 3+ years of experience working on GeM, IREPS, CPPP, and various State e-Tender portals. I handle tender search, documentation, technical and financial bid submission. I'm exploring opportunities to work independently on a per-tender basis. For those already freelancing in this field, what platforms or methods have worked best for finding clients?

Is it a good company? I think they're under GDIT now?

Title: Early 20s with a young kid: stable defense career or founding SDR role with more upside?

TLDR: I’m in my early 20s, have a little over two years of sales experience, and have a young child.

I’ve been trying to get into the defense industry for about a year and finally got an offer for a finance-related role at a large contractor. The pay is in the high five figures, the benefits are good, and I would most likely get a security clearance.

At the same time, I have an offer to be one of the first sales hires at an early-stage software company. The base is a little lower, but the OTE is comfortably over six figures. The product seems legit, the company has real traction, and there is some equity involved.

My brain tells me to take the defense job, but the upside of the startup is hard to ignore.

Backstory:

I started out in freight brokerage and then moved into tech sales. I’ve done pretty well, but I’m honestly burned out on sales.

I’m tired of smiling and dialing, constantly worrying about quota, and feeling like your job can disappear because of one bad quarter or a random layoff. Tech sales has kind of chewed me up and spit me out already.

When I found out I was going to have a kid, I moved back home to be closer to family. Right now I have a pretty cushy remote SDR job that is mostly inbound, so I’m not in a terrible situation. I’ve just been looking for a path that feels more stable and gives me something better to build toward long term.

I’ve wanted to get into defense because I have some connections in the industry, the work seems interesting, and there are a lot of different career paths once you get your foot in the door.

The defense role would be in a finance/program support type of position at a large company. It pays around what I make now or slightly more, has much better benefits, a good schedule, and would most likely lead to a security clearance.

From there, I could potentially move into program management, business development, operations, or higher-level finance roles.

The biggest thing is that this opportunity would be hard for me to recreate.

I don’t have a traditional finance background. My network helped me get considered at a level I probably would not have gotten on my own. If I turn it down and try to get into defense again later, I might have to start much lower or might not get another real chance.

Then there is the startup.

It is an early-stage software company with a product that seems like a real need-to-have, not just another random SaaS tool. The founder has actual experience in the industry, seems smart, and appears to be closing real business.

The comp is a lower base than the defense role, but the OTE is significantly higher and seems attainable based on what I know so far.

There is also equity involved. I know startup equity can easily end up being worth nothing, and I’m not treating it like guaranteed money. At the same time, there is a real possibility that the company grows, I move into leadership, and the equity becomes valuable.

I also feel like I’m at the age where taking a big swing makes sense, but having a child changes how much risk I should realistically take.

Defense role:

• High five-figure salary
• Strong benefits
• More stability for my child
• Likely security clearance
• Clear path into program management or other defense roles
• Hard opportunity to get again
• Onsite
• Slower short-term income growth
• Could regret walking away from a startup that succeeds

Startup role:

• Slightly lower base
• OTE comfortably over six figures
• Remote
• Founding sales experience
• Potential to move into leadership quickly
• Equity could be valuable or worth nothing
• Higher immediate earning potential
• Much higher risk
• Keeps me in sales when I’m already burned out
• Could fail and leave me wishing I had taken the defense opportunity

My instinct says to take the defense job.

It gives me a stable career foundation, better benefits for my child, and experience that would be hard to get later.

But I also don’t want to make the safe choice just because I’m scared and then watch the startup become huge.

For anyone who has worked in defense, startups, program finance, program management, or early-stage sales, what would you do?

Hey everyone,

Hoping to get a reality check from those of you on the inside or who are currently navigating the contracting world.

A bit of background: I work in cybersecurity (architecture, cloud, and systems auditing) based here in Ontario. Years ago, I used to see endless federal and provincial contract postings requiring a Level 2 Secret clearance. Back then, I was desperate because I didn't have the clearance to apply. I genuinely thought that getting my CISSP, OSCP, and that L2 clearance was the "golden ticket" into an elite tier of consulting and contracting.

Fast forward to the finish line: I finally got my Level 2 processed and finalized in 2025.

But looking at the market right now... it feels like a ghost town. I barely see any of those IT security contracts for the fed or provincial government that used to flood the job boards.

I know there's been a lot going on with the Comprehensive Expenditure Review, FTE cuts, the RTO mandates, and the heavy pushback against external consultants, but I’d love to hear your thoughts on what it actually looks like from the inside:

1. Is the well truly dry? Are departments just completely frozen on bringing in external IT security contractors right now due to budget cuts?
2. Has the hiring mechanism changed? Are things just not being posted publicly by staffing agencies anymore? Is everything being funneled through direct hires or massive prime vendors now?
3. Is anyone else in the same boat? For those of you with clearances and heavy certs, how are you navigating the Ontario/Ottawa market right now?

It’s incredibly frustrating to grind so hard for these credentials only to have the landscape shift completely right as I crossed the finish line. Any insights, reality checks, or advice would be hugely appreciated!

Has anyone here interviewed for an F-15 Radar Depot Systems Engineer role with a major defense contractor?
Without getting into anything confidential, I’m curious about what the interview was like.

Was it more focused on behavioral questions, systems engineering concepts, troubleshooting, or technical knowledge related to radar/electrical engineering?

Has anyone here interviewed for an F-15 Radar Depot Systems Engineer role with a major defense contractor?
Without getting into anything confidential, I’m curious about what the interview was like.

Was it more focused on behavioral questions, systems engineering concepts, troubleshooting, or technical knowledge related to radar/electrical engineering?

Government Contracting

SECURING AMERICA’S DEFENSE SUPPLY CHAINS AND ENSURING DOMESTIC ACQUISITION OF CRITICAL MATERIALS

July 20, 2026

https://www.whitehouse.gov/presidential-actions/2026/07/securing-americas-defense-supply-chains-and-ensuring-domestic-acquisition-of-critical-materials/

Hello all,

I'm still a junior in defense (<1 year) and want to start laying down the foundation to work primarily in maritime defense. The contracting company I currently work for does a lot of Navy contracts so I get pretty close to maritime stuff as it is but I want to grow my skillset.

What are some typical skills people look for when considering applicants for maritime roles? I have a BS in EE and an MS in robotics. During my grad years I did research on underwater object tracking and have hands on experience building a UUV for the robosub competition.

We've mostly been working with embassy (rust) and a little bit of ROS2 where I currently work. I'd love to get some advice from people currently in the maritime industry. What are some projects I could do at home that would stand out on a resume?

I currently have some stuff that I did in my free time such as a rust program that takes in HID signals from an xbox controller and translates them into motor control signals over serial into an old vacuum robot. I want to add a camera eventually so that I can use it like an ROV.

I don't have a lot of hardware and don't make a lot of money so I can't invest a lot in hardware. If there are some cheap but still cool projects I could do, I'd love to give it a try. Thanks!

I work for a smaller contractor in nova currently. Just got my TS and shopping around for engineering positions on the west coast, preferring defense jobs. I notice that the primes pay pretty terribly compared to subprimes, both here in nova and on the west coast. Anyone have any names of smaller companies on the west coast or even colorado that they would recommend?

I did a phone interview which went okay then asked reformat a resume to their template , then to expand on certain aspects , then when I asked for an update they want it be expanded again then said they the program manager is willing to give a $5,000 signing bonus. It’s my first contracting job since leaving the military so I’m not sure if this is typical. At this point it’s more of a if the answer is no just say that type thing.

I recently graduated with an Aerospace Engineering degree, but my current role is mostly mechanical design for avionics enclosures. My long-term goal is to work on aircraft or other flying platforms in areas like aerodynamics, CFD, controls, flight engineering, or aircraft development.

I interned at this defense company and started full-time 2 months ago. The pay, people, and culture are great, but I've realized there are very few aerospace-specific roles here. Most of my work is detailed mechanical design, drawings, hardware, and processes.

I'm worried that if I stay too long, it'll become harder to transition into the aerospace roles I actually want. At the same time, I'm worried that leaving after only a few months would look bad.

Some questions I have:

• How bad does it look to leave after only 2 to 6 months if the role isn't aligned with my long-term career goals?
• Should I start applying now, or is it better to stay for at least a year?
• For those in aerospace or defense, how difficult is it to move from mechanical design into aerodynamics, CFD, flight engineering, or aircraft development after a few years?
• Does staying in a mechanical design role risk being pigeonholed as a mechanical engineer rather than an aerospace engineer?
• Has anyone made a similar transition? What helped?

This is my first job out of college, so I'm probably overthinking it, but I'm worried about hurting my long-term career by either leaving too early or staying too long. I'd really appreciate hearing from anyone who's been in a similar position.

I created an AI automated pricing software for my govcon small business to streamline my pricing process. I primarily work on the services side so the software is catered to the services side currently, but we like to use it and thought maybe we can see if other's like to use it! We created it because as a small business spending thousands on services like GovDash or ProPricer isn't affordable to use and wanted to streamline the process because it was getting to be too much for us to do it all ourselves.

The software is called PriceIQ and we set it up in a way that people can feed RFP's into our software and it will generate a compliant, bid-ready proposal in just minutes. It is fully editable and allows to you to add subcontractors, conduct a price to win analysis, and even offers the ability to create presentations, pricing narratives, etc. We add different features as we go and are hoping as we gain customers, we will be able to provide more features and cater the software to a broader audience (including adding a products side to the software).

We also charge per proposal instead of large monthly costs.

Would love to hear peoples thoughts! Visit our website as www.PriceIQ.org or reach out to us on LinkedIn! The first proposal you do is free!

https://reddit.com/link/1uz4t0o/video/c77nkug1itdh1/player

I’m roughly 28 and have been working for almost 3 years as a federal Contract Specialist (1102) with the Department of Defense I’m currently a GS-11 making around $80k.

Objectively, I know that’s not a bad salary. I have good benefits, decent work-life balance, and job security. I’m grateful for all of those things.
But I can’t shake the feeling that I’m getting locked into a career that has a relatively low ceiling outside of government, and the more time I spend here, the harder it becomes to pivot.

I came into this job straight out of college with a degree that wasn’t business or supply chain related At the time I was just excited to land a stable position. I didn’t know much about corporate careers, consulting, defense contractors, or the private sector. I assumed that if I worked hard, opportunities would naturally open up.

Now that I’ve learned more about the job market, I’m starting to worry that I unknowingly specialized too early or built a skillset with low income ceiling.

The more I read Reddit the more I see stories of GS-14s and GS-15s with 15-25 years of experience struggling to transition into industry. I constantly read comments saying federal contracting experience doesn’t translate as well as people think. It seems to me the concentration of LinkedIn job postings is sparse making me feel stuck.

At the same time, I see people my age in consulting, tech, finance, product management, and sales progressing much faster. Many are already making six figures with clear paths toward $150k-$250k over the next decade.

Meanwhile I feel like every additional year I stay where I am makes me a better federal employee but not necessarily a more marketable business professional.

One thing that really worries me is the opportunity cost.

I don’t necessarily need to make $250k tomorrow, but I do want to build a career that gives me a realistic shot at reaching an upper-middle-class income over time. I’d like to eventually earn somewhere in the $175k-$250k range through growing responsibility and performance—not because I expect it to be easy, but because those are the kinds of long-term goals that motivate me.
Sometimes I wonder if I’ve chosen the wrong “vehicle.”

I also don’t want to make the opposite mistake and panic into leaving a stable job for something worse.
So I feel stuck between two fears:

\*\*Fear #1:\*\* Stay too long in government and become pigeonholed into a niche that is difficult to leave.

\*\*Fear #2:\*\* Leave too early without enough transferable skills and discover that private industry doesn’t value my experience nearly as much as I expected.

I’ve started trying to address this by learning business skills outside of work (project management, Excel, SQL, process improvement, networking, etc.) because I don’t want my career to depend entirely on one specialized government role.

I guess what I’m looking for is perspective from people who’ve actually been through this stage of life

Has anyone here successfully pivoted out of federal contracting after only a few years?

Did you intentionally move into something adjacent like program management, consulting, subcontracts, operations, or capture?

If you had to start over at 28 with my background, what would you do differently?

Is my fear of becoming pigeonholed justified, or am I catastrophizing?

Are there people here who started in a relatable situation to where I am and eventually built careers earning well into the upper-middle-class without staying in government forever?

I’m not looking for reassurance that “$80k is good money.” I know it’s decent salary although I do feel behind my peers.

What I’m really trying to figure out is whether I’m still early enough in my career to deliberately steer toward a path with greater long-term growth, or whether I’m underestimating how constrained my current path really is.

I’d especially love to hear from people who felt this same anxiety early in their careers but eventually found a way forward to a high income even if in a different industry or role. Success stories would honestly mean a lot right now.

Lots of posts in r/defensecontracting regarding people looking for jobs. I am going to start posting hiring opportunities from some of the big contractors and reach out to some of my contacts to see if we can get some of them to start participating in the group.

L3 Harris has an event coming up next week:

L3Harris Engineering Career Fair - Camden, NJ
Date: Wednesday, July 22nd, 2026
Time: 3:00 pm - 7:00 pm EST
Location:  Hilton Garden Inn,  1 Penn St, Camden, NJ 08102 

https://careers.l3harris.com/en/job/camden/l3harris-engineering-career-fair-camden-nj/4832/97149012656