Software Engineer - San Jose, United States
Originally posted 20 July 2026 by the employer.
About the role
Western Digital is seeking a Software Engineer to support current and anticipated early-career engineering needs across areas such as firmware, systems software, and systems integration. The position is part of WD's early career development program for candidates with 0–2+ years of relevant experience.
What you'll do
- Design, develop, test, and debug embedded firmware using C, C++, assembly, and low-level programming languages. - Collaborate with hardware engineers to integrate software with electronic systems and resolve firmware and hardware interactions. - Design and develop system software, utilities, engineering tools, and system-level architectures. - Evaluate hardware and software compatibility while coordinating subsystem integration into complete products. - Support new product development from initial technical concept through production deployment.
What you'll need
- Currently pursuing or recently completed a Bachelor's or Master's degree in Computer Science, Software Engineering, Computer Engineering, Systems Engineering, Data Science, Electrical Engineering, or a related technical field. - Experience with programming languages such as C, C++, Python, Java, Go (Golang), SQL, or JavaScript through coursework, internships, research, or personal projects. - Familiarity with software development fundamentals, debugging, data structures, algorithms, or operating systems. - Demonstrated background supporting 0–2+ years of relevant professional experience.
Nice to have
- Proficiency with Microsoft Office and common software development tools such as Git, Linux, or IDEs. - Interest in storage technologies, semiconductors, embedded systems, cloud computing, AI, or data analytics.
Skills: firmware, embedded systems, low-level software, hardware interaction, C, C++
This role has been open 91 days — well above the 55-day median for Embedded Firmware Engineering roles.
Embedded Firmware Engineering · Systems Software
|
Open roles in category
730
|
Median days open
55 d
|
Median salary
$169k
|
See the full market breakdown ▾Category comparison, skills in demand, and who else is hiring
| Metric | Western Digital | All employers we track in this specialty (730 roles · 83 employers) |
|---|---|---|
| Open roles in this specialty | 15 | 730 |
| Open roles in the wider Software, Firmware & Systems family | 43 | 6166 · 145 employers |
| Median days open | 74 d | 55 d (+19 d vs this employer) |
| Median salary (USD postings) | — | $169k |
Skills observed across this category: firmware, embedded systems, low-level software, hardware interaction, C, C++
Who's hiring in this category
- Qualcomm · 119 open roles · median 53 d
- AMD · 65 open roles · median 37 d
- Micron Technology · 61 open roles · median 87 d
- NVIDIA · 56 open roles · median 61 d
- Lattice Semiconductor · 46 open roles · median 40 d
- NXP Semiconductors · 32 open roles · median 34 d
How we counted: 730 open Embedded Firmware Engineering (Systems Software) roles from 83 employers tracked in the SemiconductorJobs index, counted 19 Oct 2026. Specialty figures count only roles carrying this exact specialty label, so an employer's related work in neighbouring specialties is not included there — it is counted in the wider Software, Firmware & Systems family row. Figures refresh nightly.