Associate Engineer - Public Works, Transportation and Hydraulics Services

Salary : $140,059.92 - $177,253.44 Annually
Location : San Jose Metropolitan Area
Job Type: Full-Time
Job Number: 202601862
DEPART: Public Works
Opening Date: 11/09/2026
Closing Date: 11/23/2026 11:59 PM Pacific

Our diverse and inclusive workforce of more than 7,000 employees play a key role in the success of San Jos, the heart of the Silicon Valley. All City of San Jos employees work together as one team to make San Jos a vibrant, innovative, and desirable place to live and work. Visit to learn more about our One Team Leadership Values and Expectations, including quality and excellent customer service and here to learn more about San Jos.

The City of San Jos is an equal opportunity employer. Applicants for all job openings will be considered without regard to age, race, color, religion, sex, national origin, sexual orientation, disability, veteran status or any other consideration made unlawful under any federal, state or local laws. The City of San Jos is committed to offering reasonable accommodations to job applicants with disabilities. If you need assistance or an accommodation due to a disability, please contact us at , 711 (TTY), or via email at
About the Department
The City of San Jos, the Capital of Silicon Valley, is one of the nation's best managed cities in which to live, work, and do business. Moreover, San Jos is the center of cultural, government and economic activity for the region. The employees of the City of San Jos have embraced the following values: Integrity, Innovation, Excellence, Collaboration, Respect and Celebration. The City's Department of Public Works (DPW) is seeking an individual whose values align with the values of the City's employees.
The Department of Public Works is responsible for delivering capital improvement projects for a wide variety of City facilities and infrastructure, maintaining City facilities and fleet assets, facilitating and regulating development activities. The Department is committed to high-quality services, partnering with the community, and providing an excellent environment in which to work.

Position Duties
The Department of Public Works is currently seeking to fill several full-time Associate Engineer vacancies in the Transportation and Hydraulics (THS) Division.
The salary range for this classification is $140,059.92 - $177,253.44 annually. This salary range includes an approximate five percent (5%) ongoing non-pensionable pay. Actual salary shall be determined by the final candidate's qualifications and experience.
The THS Division is responsible for the design, construction management, and master planning of a wide range of public infrastructure projects including bridges, culverts, streets, sidewalks, storm and sanitary sewers, pump stations, streetlights, landscape and hardscape improvements, and traffic signals. The division also provides construction and engineering support for the upgrades and revitalization of the San Jose-Santa Clara Regional Wastewater Facility. In addition, this division provides general engineering plan reviews for general projects as well as electrical engineering reviews for projects constructed by private developers.
Duties include, but are not limited to the following:

• Managing capital improvement projects, i.e., overseeing, controlling, and guiding the projects from inception through project completion.
• Interfacing with the public, consultants, contractors, other City departments/sections, and other agencies, and responsible for timely response to the stakeholders' requests and concerns on projects.
• Negotiating, preparing, and managing consultant agreements and/or construction contracts and consultant service orders.
• Working with client to prepare project scoping and budgeting. Tracking and managing project costs and schedule using appropriate tools and resources.
• Preparing clearly written and effective reports and Council Memos.
• Supervising staff such as Engineers and Engineering Technicians by prioritizing and assigning work; conducting performance evaluations; ensuring staff is trained; and making hiring, termination, and disciplinary recommendations.
• Responsible for applying and acquiring permits from regulatory agencies and managing design and construction of capital improvement projects.
• Preparing and/or reviewing designs, engineering plans, estimates, specifications, and contract documents for capital improvement projects, private development projects or other engineering related projects that are prepared by subordinates and/or consultants engaged by the City or by private developers.
• Reviewing and responding to Request for Information memos (RFIs) and submittals, negotiates change orders and reviews and processes pay applications and consultant invoice.
• Supervising the collection and analysis of field data and prepares recommendations.
• Coordinating with construction and including third party inspectors and attends field meetings to resolve problems arising in the field during the construction of improvement projects.

This recruitment may be used to fill multiple positions in this, or other divisions or departments. If you are interested in employment in this classification, you should apply to ensure you are considered for additional opportunities that may utilize the applicants from this recruitment.

Minimum Qualifications
Education: A Bachelor's degree from an accredited college or university in the required professional engineering discipline or possession of an Engineer-in-Training (EIT) certificate.

Experience: Three (3) years of increasingly responsible professional engineering experience.
Acceptable Substitutions: A Master's degree from an accredited college or university in the required professional engineering discipline may be substituted for one (1) year of professional engineering experience.

Required Licensing:

• Certificate of Registration in a relevant professional engineering discipline may be required for some positions.
• Possession of a valid State of California driver's license may be required.
• Other licenses or certifications may be required for particular positions.

Form 700 Requirement: This position requires a disclosure of outside investments, real property interest, income, and business positions. You must complete and file an "Assuming Office Form 700" with the City Clerk's Office within the first 30 days of employment with the office.

Other Qualifications
The ideal candidate will possess the following competencies, as demonstrated in past and current employment history.
Job Expertise - Demonstrates knowledge of and experience with applicable professional/technical principles and practices, Citywide and departmental procedures/policies and federal and state rules and regulations.
Communication Skills - Effectively conveys information and expresses thoughts and facts clearly, orally and in writing; demonstrates effective use of listening skills; displays openness to other people's ideas and thoughts.
Computer Skills - Experienced with common business computer applications including but not limited to: MS Outlook, MS Word, MS PowerPoint, and MS Excel, Adobe Acrobat, BlueBeam, and construction management programs such as PMweb, EADOC, ProjectWise, and ProCore.
Teamwork & Interpersonal Skills - Develops effective relationships with co-workers and supervisors by helping others accomplish tasks and using collaboration and conflict resolution skills.
Decision Making - Identifies and understands issues, problems, and opportunities; uses effective approaches for choosing a course of action or developing appropriate solutions.
Planning - Acts to align own unit's goals with the strategic direction of the organization; Defines tasks and milestones to achieve objectives, while ensuring the optimal use of resources to meet those objectives
Problem Solving - Approaches a situation or problem by defining the problem or issue; determines the significance of problem; collects information; uses logic and intuition to arrive at decisions or solutions to problems that achieve the desired outcome.
Project Management - Ensures support for projects and implements agency goals and strategic objectives.
Supervision - Sets effective long and short-term goals based on good understanding of management practices; establishes realistic priorities within available resources; provides motivational support; empowers others; assigns decision-making and work functions to others in an appropriate manner to maximize organizational and individual effectiveness.
Selection Process:

The selection process will consist of an evaluation of the applicant's training and experience based on the application and responses to all the job specific questions. You must answer all questions to be considered, or your application may be deemed incomplete and withheld from further consideration. Applicants are expected to write their own essays/responses. Only those candidates whose backgrounds best match the position will be invited to proceed in the selection process. Additional phases of the selection process will consist of one or more interviews.
If you have questions about the duties of these positions or the selection and hiring process, please contact Britney Mesa at
Additional Information:

Employment Eligibility: Federal law requires all employees to provide verification of their eligibility to work in this country. Please be informed that the City of San Jose will NOT sponsor, represent or sign any documents related to visa applications/transfers for H1-B or any other type of visa which requires an employer application.

You must answer all job-specific questions to be considered for this vacancy or your application will be deemed incomplete and withheld from further consideration. Applicants are expected to write their own essays/responses.

Please note that applications are currently not accepted through CalOpps or any other third party job board application system.

This recruitment may be used to fill multiple positions in this, or other divisions or departments. If you are interested in employment in this classification, you should apply to ensure you are considered for additional opportunities that may utilize the applicants from this recruitment.

Please allow adequate time to complete the application and submit before the deadline or the system may not save your application. If your online application was successfully submitted, you will receive an automatic confirmation email to the email address you provided. IF YOU DO NOT RECEIVE THE CONFIRMATION, please email and we will research the status of your application.

AI and the Hiring Process

We recognize that Artificial Intelligence (AI) is becoming part of daily life and can be a valuable tool for learning, research, and professional growth. We encourage candidates to use AI responsibly as a support in preparing application materials, live assessments, and interviews. However, we value authenticity, accuracy and truthfulness. Application responses and interview answers must reflect your own knowledge, skills, and experiences. While AI can supplement preparation, it cannot replace the originality and judgment we look for in our employees. This ensures fairness, transparency, and equity for all applicants in the hiring process.
The City of San Jose offers a wide range of core health benefits including Medical, Dental, Vision, Employee Assistance Program, Life Insurance, Disability, and Savings Plans. Please visit the City's for detailed information on coverage, cost, and dependent coverage.

For information on the City's Retirement Plan(pension for full-time employees), please visit the Office of Retirement Services You will be able to view information based on different Sworn/Federated job classification.

In additional to the benefits above, there is an to explore further benefits of working for the City of San Jose like paid leave, educational reimbursements, and holiday pay are specific to the job classification and union membership.
01

We recognize that Artificial Intelligence (AI) is becoming part of daily life and can be a valuable tool for learning, research, and professional growth. We encourage candidates to use AI responsibly as a support in preparing application materials, live assessments, and interviews. However, we value authenticity, accuracy and truthfulness. Application responses and interview answers must reflect the candidate's own knowledge, skills, and experiences. While AI can supplement preparation, it cannot replace the originality and judgment we look for in our employees. This ensures fairness, transparency, and equity for all applicants in the hiring process.

• Yes, I acknowledge that I have read and understand the above statement regarding the use of AI in the application and interview process.

02

What is the highest level of education you have completed?

• High School Diploma or the equivalent (GED)
• College (1 to 29 semester units/ 1 to 44 quarter units)
• College (30 to 59 semester units/ 45 to 89 quarter units)
• College (60 to 89 semester units/ 90 to 134 quarter units)
• College (90 to 119 semester units/ 135 to 179 quarter units)
• College (120 or more semester units/ 180 or more quarter units)
• Associate's Degree
• Bachelor's Degree
• Master's Degree
• Doctoral Degree
• Other
• None of the above

03

Do you possess an Engineer-In-Training (EIT) certificate?

• Yes, I possess an EIT certificate.
• No, I do not possess an EIT certificate.

04

How many years of increasingly responsible professional engineering experience do you possess?

• Fewer than three (3) years.
• More than three (3) years.

05

An acceptable education substitution for the Associate Engineer position is one (1) year experience of professional engineering experience. If you meet the acceptable substitution for this position, please describe in detail. Otherwise, please type "NA" if this does not apply to you.
06

Please describe in detail your professional engineering experience, including the institution(s) you work for, job title(s), years of employment and primary duties. Your explanation must be consistent with your work history and resume.
07

Please provide examples of your work that support your experience in delivery of capital improvement projects (e.g., conduct research, design, feasibility studies, bidding, construction, and/or post construction of projects, and working with client departments or other stakeholders). Please include your role in each example (e.g. Project Manager, Assistant, Project Manager, Drafter, team lead, etc.).
08

Describe your experience supervising and/or leading staff. Include the length of time you supervised or led staff, the number of employees under your direct supervision, and a description of your methods for developing employees.
Required Question