The Department of Commerce ranked top 5 in the 2023 Best Places to Work in the Federal Government amongst large agencies for the 12th year in a row! The ranking showcases the Department's continued commitment to increasing our employee engagement, employee satisfaction, and positive perceptions towards diversity, equity, accessibility, and inclusion. This notice is issued under direct-hire authority to recruit new talent to occupations for which NIST has a severe shortage of candidates.

Duties

NIST works with industry and science to advance innovation and improve quality of life. We're looking for a Research Engineer to join our team! If selected, you will lead research in structural engineering for coastal hazards, including wind, storm surge, and flooding areas in support of Hurricane Ian study and other wind- and surge-related research efforts within NIST, including: Compiling available field data and information on Hurricane Ian, its associated hazards and effects on the built environment, and development of a comprehensive, multi-year research plan with aim to improve resilience of coastal communities for future hurricanes. Providing technical leadership and expertise in hydrodynamic simulations, computational fluid dynamics with applications to coastal and wind engineering, and leading research efforts to (1) characterize the risks posed by hurricanes and other extreme wind events on the built environment and to (2) quantify their effects on the performance of buildings (structural system and envelope) and other structures. Completing field data collection related to Hurricane Ian or similar future events, as warranted. Disseminating Hurricane Ian and other research results through presentations at conferences and publication of authoritative journal papers and reports. Representing NIST within the wind and/or coastal engineering communities. Participating in standards and codes development organizations, as well as national and international collaborations, to champion the implementation of NIST research results in codes, standards, and guidelines. Participating in the development and/or revision of standards and codes for improved resilience of the built-environment against wind- and surge-induced hazards. Applicants should have knowledge of wind and coastal engineering. We are looking for someone with knowledge of one or more of the following technical areas: structural engineering, mechanics of materials, and statistical analysis, is a plus.

Requirements

• U.S. citizenship
• Males born after 12-31-59 must be registered for Selective Service
• Suitable for Federal employment
• Bargaining Unit Position: No

Qualifications

Basic Requirements: A. Degree in 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 B. 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), 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. In addition to the basic requirements above, applicants must have 52 weeks of specialized experience equivalent to the GS-12 grade level in the federal service (ZP-III for NIST employees). Specialized experience is defined as experience in the hydrodynamic simulation, computational fluid dynamic, and/or computational wind engineering areas. Experience refers to paid and unpaid experience, including volunteer work done. We will credit all qualifying volunteer experience in your application. The qualification requirements in this vacancy announcement are based on the U.S. Office of Personnel Management (OPM) Qualification Standards Handbook. Applicant Reconsideration

Education

This position has an education requirement. Transcripts must be submitted to validate that the education requirement has been met. Unofficial transcripts will be accepted in the application package. However, an official copy will be required prior to a final offer of employment.

Education completed outside of the U.S. must be evaluated by an accredited organization to ensure that it is comparable to education received in accredited institutions in the U.S. Click here to view a listing of accredited organizations from the Department of Education's website. A copy of the foreign education evaluation (containing the results with a course by course listing) is required with your application.

Contacts

• Address Materials and Structural Systems Division 100 Bureau Drive Gaithersburg, MD 20899 US
• Name: Evelyn Carter-Hopkins
• Email: [email protected]