Software QA Engineer - California, Santa Clara, United States
$100,550 - $194,270 USD yearly
Originally posted 15 September 2026 by the employer.
Join the team ensuring the stability, automated efficiency, and operational excellence of mission-critical software powering Intel Mask Operation.
About the role
As a Software QA Test Engineer, you will ensure the quality and reliability of Intel's software products through systematic testing, contributing to the functionality and performance of key technologies within Intel Mask Operation.
What you'll do
- Design, implement, and execute systematic software test plans, test cases, and test suites across diverse operational environments.
- Integrate automated test suites into Continuous Integration / Continuous Deployment (CI/CD) pipelines.
- Isolate complex, intermittent, and multifaceted software defects using modern debugging tools and systematic diagnostic methodologies.
- Conduct deep-dive root cause analyses (RCA) and partner with development teams to formulate, verify, and document effective corrective actions.
- Participate in technical design and code reviews, providing actionable quality insights.
What you'll need
- Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science, Software Engineering, Electrical/Computer Engineering, or a closely related technical discipline with 3+ years of hands-on experience in software quality engineering, validation, or software development; OR Master’s degree in a relevant technical field with 2+ years of experience; OR Ph.D. in a relevant technical field with no prior professional experience.
- US Citizenship required.
- Ability to obtain and maintain a US Government Security Clearance.
- Test automation development and scripting using languages such as Python, Bash, or equivalent.
- Hands-on experience debugging complex software stacks, including systematic root cause analysis, log analysis, and defect isolation tools.
- Testing web services/APIs (REST, RPC, etc.) and communication mechanisms across distributed or interconnected systems.
- Standard software testing levels and methodologies (unit, integration, functional, regression, and performance testing).
Nice to have
- Hands-on experience integrating test frameworks within CI/CD pipelines (e.g., GitHub Actions, GitLab CI, Jenkins) and containerized test environments (e.g., Docker).
- Working familiarity with Agile/Scrum development methodologies and defect/project tracking workflows (e.g., Jira).
- Exposure to semiconductor manufacturing software, EDA / layout processing tools, platform-level software, OS internals (Linux/Windows), or system computation software.
Skills: Software QA, test plans, test automation, CI/CD, Python, semiconductor manufacturing software
This role has been open 30 days — well below the 48-day median for Software Engineering Semiconductor roles.
Software Engineering Semiconductor · Systems Software
|
Open roles in category
364
|
Median days open
48 d
|
Median salary
$148k
|
See the full market breakdown ▾Category comparison, skills in demand, and who else is hiring
| Metric | Intel Corporation | All employers we track in this specialty (364 roles · 60 employers) |
|---|---|---|
| Open roles in this specialty | 9 | 364 |
| Open roles in the wider Software, Firmware & Systems family | 191 | 6149 · 145 employers |
| Median days open | 30 d | 48 d (−18 d vs this employer) |
| Median salary (USD postings) | — | $148k |
Skills observed across this category: Software QA, test plans, test automation, CI/CD, Python, semiconductor manufacturing software
Who's hiring in this category
- Keysight Technologies · 39 open roles · median 27 d
- KLA Corporation · 31 open roles · median 118 d
- Cadence Design Systems · 28 open roles · median 204 d
- Micron Technology · 27 open roles · median 41 d
- NVIDIA · 27 open roles · median 45 d
- Applied Materials · 25 open roles · median 36 d
How we counted: 364 open Software Engineering Semiconductor (Systems Software) roles from 60 employers tracked in the SemiconductorJobs index, counted 15 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.