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General Engineer - DIRECT HIRE

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Washington, DC

Employer:  National Highway Traffic Safety Administration
Job Type:  Full Time

Description

Duties

As a General Engineer, you will:
  • Participate and is responsible for technical information analysis and trend analysis activities which facilitate engineering evaluation, petition analysis and the development of supporting test programs.
  • Analyze engineering aspects of manufacturers' designs, testing, research studies, statistical reports, service bulletins, selected automotive periodicals, and field performance as indicated through warranty, field complaints, owner, or operator complaints and the like.
  • Conduct programs involving selected vehicles or items of motor vehicle equipment to establish or identify any potential inherent safety or weaknesses in design, construction, or performance, etc.
  • Monitor performance of specific engineering testing programs to ensure that objectives are met and is responsible for evaluation of the engineering and technical results of such

The ideal candidate for this position is highly self-motivated, possesses sound engineering judgment, demonstrated knowledge and expertise in engineering, and significant expertise working in the field of automotive testing.  The candidate should exhibit good problem-solving skills, work independently as well as cooperatively with colleagues, and results driven to help accomplish the agency's mission. The candidate should be detail oriented, well organized, and have strong writing skills.  As part of their daily responsibilities, the candidate should be willing to complete intensive paperwork, occasionally handle stressful situations involving highly visible matters with significant public interest and manage conflict situations tactfully.

Requirements

Conditions of Employment
  • You must be a U.S. citizen & meet specialized experience to qualify
  • Submit application and resume online by 11:59 PM EST on the closing date
  • Required documents must be submitted by the closing date.
  • Direct Hire Authority will be used to fill this position


CONDITIONS OF EMPLOYMENT:
  • SELECTIVE SERVICE: Males born after 12/31/1959 must be registered for the Selective Service.
  • BACKGROUND INVESTIGATION: You may be required to complete a background/security investigation and meet preliminary requirements prior to onboarding.
  • GOVERNMENT TRAVEL CARD: This position involves travel.  A government contractor-issued travel card will be issued and must be retained for official business only.
  • PROBATIONARY PERIOD: Applicants may be required to successfully complete a one-year probationary period (unless already completed).
  • TIME-IN-GRADE: Federal applicants must have served 52 weeks at the next lower grade in the competitive or excepted service in the executive branch to satisfy time-in-grade restrictions contained in 5 CFR 300, Subpart F.


Qualifications

To meet the minimum qualifications for this position, you must meet the mandatory education and specialized experience requirements.

To qualify for the Grade 13, you must have at least one year of experience equal or equivalent to the GS-12, it must include:

  • Experience planning, organizing, directing, and executing research related to human factors and automotive technologies.
  • Experience interviewing consumers and developing new test procedures and surveys in support of defect investigation objectives.

KNOWLEDGE, SKILLS AND ABILITIES (KSAs): Your qualifications will be evaluated on the basis of your level of knowledge, skills, abilities and/or competencies in the following areas:
  • Knowledge and experience related to general engineering, system and/or subsystem testing methodology and quality assurance as it relates to regulated motor vehicles.
  • Demonstrate the ability to plan, implement and conduct technical investigations and lead investigation teams on matters pertaining to compliance with Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards.
  • Demonstrate the ability to understand complex technical ideas and express views through effective writing, and presentation skills while influencing, motivating, and leading others in a variety of situations.
  • Demonstrate the ability to plan, implement, manage, and report on engineering test programs, including contracting officer’s representative (COR) responsibilities or equivalent.

  • For all types of consideration, experience refers to paid and unpaid experience, including volunteer work done through National Service programs (e.g., Peace Corps, AmeriCorps) and other organizations (e.g., professional; philanthropic; religious; spiritual; community, student, social). Volunteer work helps build critical competencies, knowledge, and skills and can provide valuable training and experience that translates directly to paid employment. You will receive credit for all qualifying experience, including volunteer experience.

    For additional information about applying to Federal positions, please click on the following link:  https://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/classification-qualifications/general-schedule-qualification-policies/#url=e4

    All applicants must meet all qualification requirements by the closing date of this announcement.


    Education

    MANDATORY EDUCATION REQUIREMENTS:

    A. Degree: Engineering To be acceptable, the program must: (1) lead to a bachelor’s degree in a school of engineering with at least one program accredited by ABET; or (2) include differential and integral calculus and courses (more advanced than first-year physics and chemistry) in five of the following seven areas of engineering science or physics: (a) statics, dynamics; (b) strength of materials (stress-strain relationships); (c) fluid mechanics, hydraulics; (d) thermodynamics; (e) electrical fields and circuits; (f) nature and properties of materials (relating particle and aggregate structure to properties); and (g) any other comparable area of fundamental engineering science or physics, such as optics, heat transfer, soil mechanics, or electronics. OR

    Combination of education and experience -- College-level education, training, and/or technical experience that furnished (1) a thorough knowledge of the physical and mathematical sciences underlying engineering, and (2) a good understanding, both theoretical and practical, of the engineering sciences and techniques and their applications to one of the branches of engineering. The adequacy of such background must be demonstrated by one of the following:

    1. Professional registration or licensure -- Current registration as an Engineer Intern (EI), Engineer in Training (EIT)1, or licensure as a Professional Engineer (PE) by any State, the District of Columbia, Guam, or Puerto Rico. Absent other means of qualifying under this standard, those applicants who achieved such registration by means other than written test (e.g., State grandfather or eminence provisions) are eligible only for positions that are within or closely related to the specialty field of their registration. For example, an applicant who attains registration through a State Board's eminence provision as a manufacturing engineer typically would be rated eligible only for manufacturing engineering positions.

    2. Written Test -- Evidence of having successfully passed the Fundamentals of Engineering (FE) examination or any other written test required for professional registration by an engineering licensure board in the various States, the District of Columbia, Guam, and Puerto Rico.

    3. Specified academic courses -- Successful completion of at least 60 semester hours of courses in the physical, mathematical, and engineering sciences and that included the courses specified in the basic requirements under paragraph A. The courses must be fully acceptable toward meeting the requirements of an engineering program as described in paragraph A.

    4. Related curriculum -- Successful completion of a curriculum leading to a bachelor's degree in an appropriate scientific field, e.g., engineering technology, physics, chemistry, architecture, computer science, mathematics, hydrology, or geology, may be accepted in lieu of a bachelor’s degree in engineering, provided the applicant has had at least 1 year of professional engineering experience acquired under professional engineering supervision and guidance. Ordinarily there should be either an established plan of intensive training to develop professional engineering competence, or several years of prior professional engineering-type experience, e.g., in interdisciplinary positions. (The above examples of related curricula are not all inclusive).

    (2) Specialized Experience:
    To determine which grade(s) you are eligible for, review the following grade specific details.  You will be asked questions as part of your application but make sure to verify how you meet this experience in your resume, or you may be deemed ineligible.

    (3) Upload the appropriate document(s) to your application for verification purposes. (Refer to 'Required Documents' section for additional guidance).
    Students enrolled in a qualifying degree program can apply if the anticipated graduation date is within six months of the closing date of this announcement. If selected, the final transcript must be received before your start date.  Other applicants must meet all qualification requirements by the closing date of this announcement. Transcripts are required for this position.

    Additional information

    The Fair Chance to Compete for Jobs Act prohibits the Department of Transportation and its Operating Administrations from requesting an applicant's criminal history record before that individual receives a conditional offer of employment. In accordance with 5 U.S. Code § 9202(c) and 5 C.F.R § 920.201 certain positions are exempt from the provisions of the Fair Chance to Compete Act. Applicants who believe they have been subjected to a violation of the Fair Chance to Compete for Jobs Act, may submit a written complaint to the Department of Transportation by email at, FairChanceAct@dot.gov. To learn more, please visit our page at: The Fair Chance to Compete Act | US Department of Transportation 

    This announcement may be used to fill additional positions if similar vacancies occur within 90 days of the issue date of the referral certificate.

    Qualified CTAP/ICTAP candidates receive priority and will be referred to the hiring manager.

    Benefits

    A career with the U.S. government provides employees with a comprehensive benefits package. As a federal employee, you and your family will have access to a range of benefits that are designed to make your federal career very rewarding. Opens in a new window Learn more about federal benefits.

    Review our benefits

    Eligibility for benefits depends on the type of position you hold and whether your position is full-time, part-time or intermittent. Contact the hiring agency for more information on the specific benefits offered.
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