Get up and close with rockets, have substantial responsibilities - Structural Engineer SpaceX Employee Review

4.0
Jul 25, 2019
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

- Work among a group of extremely intelligent and passionate people, be continuously humbled by your peers - The sense of camaraderie when watching critical missions live instills a sense of teamwork and satisfaction that is difficult to match anywhere else - Company is still attacking large problems with a fairly lean engineering team; engineers have much responsibility and ownership as a result

Cons

- Large parts of the company have lost their startup feel due to the nature of some of SpaceX's projects (flying crew, Air Force missions/requirements) which has allowed plenty of red tape and annoying (although necessary) paperwork to creep into engineering work - After a while, the hours get to you

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5.0
Jun 29, 2026
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

* **Unmatched Mission & Impact:** You are literally working on rockets and spacecraft. The cool factor is 10/10. * **Brilliant Coworkers:** You will be surrounded by some of the smartest, most driven engineers in the world. * **Insane Career Growth:** SpaceX on your resume is a golden ticket. You will learn more here in 3 months than in 3 years at a normal company. * **Hands-on Experience:** They actually trust interns with real, critical hardware. No boring coffee-fetching tasks.

Cons

**Cons:** * **Zero Work-Life Balance:** 70-80 hours a week is the norm, not the exception. Say goodbye to your social life and sleep. * **Extreme Burnout:** The "hustle culture" is toxic. You are expected to treat the company as your entire life. * **Mediocre Pay:** The hourly pay is average, especially when you factor in the insane hours and the high cost of living in LA/Hawthorne. * **Chaotic Management:** Decisions can change overnight based on whatever Elon Musk tweets or feels like doing that morning.

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