How to hire a radio engineer

How to hire a radio engineer, step by step

Here's a step-by-step radio engineer hiring guide:

• Step 1: Identify your hiring needs
• Step 2: Create an ideal candidate profile
• Step 3: Make a budget
• Step 4: Write a radio engineer job description
• Step 5: Post your job
• Step 6: Interview candidates
• Step 7: Send a job offer and onboard your new radio engineer
• Step 8: Go through the hiring process checklist

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1. Identify your hiring needs

   The radio engineer hiring process starts by determining what type of worker you actually need. Certain roles might require a full-time employee, whereas part-time workers or contractors can do others.

   Determine employee vs contractor status

   Is the person you're thinking of hiring a US citizen or green card holder?

   Yes

   No

   You should also consider the ideal background you'd like them a radio engineer to have before you start to hire. For example, what industry or field would you like them to have experience in, what level of seniority or education does the job require, and how much it'll cost to hire a radio engineer that fits the bill.

   Here's a comparison of radio engineer salaries for various roles:

   Type of Radio Engineer	Description	Hourly rate
   Radio Engineer	Electrical engineers design, develop, test, and supervise the manufacturing of electrical equipment, such as electric motors, radar and navigation systems, communications systems, and power generation equipment. Electronics engineers design and develop electronic equipment, such as broadcast and communications systems—from portable music players to global positioning systems (GPSs).	$31-70
   Controls Designer	Controls designers both design and draft systems of hydraulic, pneumatic, and electrical controls for equipment and machines. The designers make diagrams of the logic system for timing and sequence control... Show more	$33-58
   PCB Designer	PCB designers are professionals who use computer software programs to design printed circuit boards (PCBs), an electronic circuit that supports electronic components such as transistors, diodes, and capacitors. These designers must design and implement various circuit boards and perform revisions to apply changes that are based on the specifications of customers and engineers... Show more	$23-55

   Show more

2. Create an ideal candidate profile

   Common skills:

   • RF
   • Java
   • FM
   • Transmitters
   • FCC
   • Debugging
   • R
   • Audio Equipment
   • Radio Station
   • VHF
   • Radio Show
   • LTE
   • RAN
   • KPI

   Check all skills

   Responsibilities:

   • Process improvement efforts and/or other opportunities to automate these processes with computer applications with C++ and/or Java where applicable.
   • Create custom software products to support a variety of SCSI storage devices for SVR4 UNIX.
   • Design and develop RF/Analog broadband cable distribution equipment.
   • Execute event analysis and provide solutions to meet KPI requirements.
   • Evaluate technical readiness of VOIP over cellular technology for executive team
   • Perform testing of prototypes for conformance to FCC specifications during development.

   More radio engineer duties

3. Make a budget

   Including a salary range in your radio engineer job description is one of the best ways to attract top talent. A radio engineer can vary based on:

   • Location. For example, radio engineers' average salary in south dakota is 51% less than in district of columbia.
   • Seniority. Entry-level radio engineers 55% less than senior-level radio engineers.
   • Certifications. A radio engineer with certifications usually earns a higher salary.
   • Company. Working for an established firm or a new start-up company can make a big difference in a radio engineer's salary.

   Average radio engineer salary

   $98,659yearly

   $47.43 hourly rate

   ---

   Entry-level radio engineer salary

   $66,000 yearly salary

   Updated December 21, 2025

   Average radio engineer salary by state

   Rank	State	Avg. salary	Hourly rate
   1	Texas	$114,159	$55
   2	California	$111,863	$54
   3	Maryland	$106,559	$51
   4	Virginia	$105,808	$51
   5	Minnesota	$89,128	$43
   6	New York	$87,993	$42
   7	Tennessee	$85,882	$41
   8	Illinois	$83,100	$40
   9	Ohio	$82,369	$40

   Average radio engineer salary by company

   Company

   Rank	Company	Average salary	Hourly rate	Job openings
   1	Apple	$149,125	$71.69	144
   2	Joby Aviation	$118,736	$57.08	4
   3	E! News	$113,339	$54.49
   4	Nokia	$107,223	$51.55	6
   5	The Orin Group	$104,861	$50.41
   6	Amatel	$104,311	$50.15
   7	SOC	$104,079	$50.04
   8	CSC Holdings LLC	$102,294	$49.18	3
   9	CFD Research	$99,296	$47.74	2
   10	Alpina	$96,103	$46.20
   11	Viaero Wireless	$91,037	$43.77	3
   12	The Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory	$89,584	$43.07	21
   13	MetroStar	$88,902	$42.74
   14	CACI International	$87,929	$42.27	27
   15	The Salem News	$87,300	$41.97
   16	Minnesota State Fair	$70,129	$33.72

4. Writing a radio engineer job description

   A good radio engineer job description should include a few things:

   • Summary of the role
   • List of responsibilities
   • Required skills and experience

   Including a salary range and the first name of the hiring manager is also appreciated by candidates. Here's an example of a radio engineer job description:

   Radio engineer job description example

   Rquires RoIP engineering and technical expertise to lead, plan, project, develop, design, monitor, analyze, provision, install, test, troubleshoot, evaluate, accept, document and develop the current and future RoIP efforts. The contractor shall have superior knowledge in general IT systems engineering, as well as RoIP expertise, and be adept with IT technology required to provision IT services from an enterprise data center. The contractor shall provide expertise for secure IP-based solutions to manage real-time, secure communications over an IP network. The contractor shall have a solid background in computer systems, networks, satellite communications (SATCOM), servers, and RoIP technologies. The contractor shall be familiar with Very High Frequency (VHF), SATCOM Ultra High Frequency (UHF) and UHF Line of Sight (LOS) technologies. This task area may be subject to non-standard work hours and approximately one after hours calls per week. Minimum of 8140/8570 IAT II required.
   Qualifications Minimum of 8 years of relevant experience supporting projects of similar size, scope and complexity. BA/BS in Engineering or IT related discipline. Demonstrated experience in Radio principles both LOS and SATCOM. Demonstrated experience in Serial to Data translation and WAN and LAN technologies for data transport. Responsible for documenting and designing how radio communication can be transported over a variety of data transports. General Information MicroTech is an award-winning Service-Disabled Veteran-Owned Small Business (SDVOSB) and experienced provider of information technology and communications. MicroTech offers a wide range of professional services focused on providing cutting-edge solutions with the customer at the forefront of every decision we make. Solving complex business challenges is our passion - we provide effective, practical solutions that can increase productivity, and decrease costs.
   
   MicroTech has developed a well-earned reputation for best-in-class services and solutions using a repeatedly proven ISO 9001:2015 Quality Management System (QMS), ISO 20000 IT service management certification, and ITIL management qualified business processes.
   
   We offer great pay, amazing benefits, and our company culture is strong. MicroTech is devoted to people development and providing high achievers opportunities to grow professionally. As an employee, you are surrounded by intelligent, driven colleagues and have the benefit of a culture that is focused on bringing out the best in everyone. Our benefits include:
   
   • Insurance (medical, dental vision)
   • Paid Leave (15 days per year for those with less than three years of service, 20 days off for those with more than three years of service)
   • 401k Plan with Employer Matching Contribution
   • 11 Company-Paid Holidays
   • Tuition Assistance
   • Voluntary Benefit Programs
   • Corporate Discounts
   
   MicroTech is an Equal Opportunity/ Affirmative Action employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regards to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability, veteran status, or any other protected classes. We can recommend jobs specifically for you! Click here to get started.

   Copy this example

   

5. Post your job

   To find radio engineers for your business, try out a few different recruiting strategies:

   • Consider internal talent. One of the most important talent pools for any company is its current employees.
   • Ask for referrals. Reach out to friends, family members, and your current work to ask if they know any radio engineers they would recommend.
   • Recruit at local colleges. Attend job fairs at local colleges to recruit entry-level radio engineers with the right educational background.
   • Social media platforms. LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter have more than 3.5 billion users, and they're a great place for company branding and reaching potential job candidates.

   Post your job online:

   • Post your radio engineer job on Zippia to find and recruit radio engineer candidates who meet your exact specifications.
   • Use field-specific websites.
   • Post a job on free websites.

6. Interview candidates

   Recruiting radio engineers requires you to bring your A-game to the interview process. The first interview should introduce the company and the role to the candidate as much as they present their background experience and reasons for applying for the job. During later interviews, you can go into more detail about the technical details of the job and ask behavioral questions to gauge how they'd fit into your current company culture.

   You should also ask about candidates' unique skills and talents to see if they match the ideal candidate profile you developed earlier. Candidates good enough for the next step can complete the technical interview.

   The right interview questions can help you assess a candidate's hard skills, behavioral intelligence, and soft skills.

7. Send a job offer and onboard your new radio engineer

   Once you've found the radio engineer candidate you'd like to hire, it's time to write an offer letter. This should include an explicit job offer that includes the salary and the details of any other perks. Qualified candidates might be looking at multiple positions, so your offer must be competitive if you like the candidate. Also, be prepared for a negotiation stage, as candidates may way want to tweak the details of your initial offer. Once you've settled on these details, you can draft a contract to formalize your agreement.

   It's also good etiquette to follow up with applicants who don't get the job by sending them an email letting them know that the position has been filled.

   Once that's done, you can draft an onboarding schedule for the new radio engineer. Human Resources should complete Employee Action Forms and ensure that onboarding paperwork is completed, including I-9s, benefits enrollment, federal and state tax forms, etc. They should also ensure that new employee files are created for internal recordkeeping.

8. Go through the hiring process checklist

   • Determine employee type (full-time, part-time, contractor, etc.)
   • Submit a job requisition form to the HR department
   • Define job responsibilities and requirements
   • Establish budget and timeline
   • Determine hiring decision makers for the role
   • Write job description
   • Post job on job boards, company website, etc.
   • Promote the job internally
   • Process applications through applicant tracking system
   • Review resumes and cover letters
   • Shortlist candidates for screening
   • Hold phone/virtual interview screening with first round of candidates
   • Conduct in-person interviews with top candidates from first round
   • Score candidates based on weighted criteria (e.g., experience, education, background, cultural fit, skill set, etc.)
   • Conduct background checks on top candidates
   • Check references of top candidates
   • Consult with HR and hiring decision makers on job offer specifics
   • Extend offer to top candidate(s)
   • Receive formal job offer acceptance and signed employment contract
   • Inform other candidates that the position has been filled
   • Set and communicate onboarding schedule to new hire(s)
   • Complete new hire paperwork (i9, benefits enrollment, tax forms, etc.)

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How much does it cost to hire a radio engineer?