This position will be filled through use of TSA's Direct Hire Authority pursuant to TSA MD 1100.30-26. Under the Direct-Hire Authority, category grouping and Veterans' Preference does not apply. Securing Travel, Protecting People - At the Transportation Security Administration, you will serve in a high-stakes environment to safeguard the American way of life.

Duties

This General Engineer (Direct Hire) position is located Operations Support, Requirements & Capabilities Analysis, Analysis & Engineering, Transportation Security Administration, Department of Homeland Security (DHS). Duties include but are not limited to: Serve as the Chief Engineer providing expertise on all engineering aspects of explosive and threat detection technology. Lead the development of new engineering theories, concepts, principles methods, applications, and practices. Recommend strategies to improve existing detection requirements and the establishment of new detection requirements for emerging technologies. Brief and advise senior level officials on detection requirements which inform existing core TSA screening mission needs and operational requirements. Conduct, attend, and review materials associated with Technical Interchange Meetings throughout the developmental and continuous process efforts with Transportation Security Equipment (TSE) manufacturers to assist with expediting capability development, ensuring effective testing methodologies, etc. Develop, comprehend, and interpret administrative policies, plans and procedures to determine the impact on the mission, programs, and operations. Recommend strategies to improve existing detection requirements and the establishment of new detection requirements for emerging technologies. Coordinate and manage the ongoing analysis of threat characterization data (e.g., micro-CT scans of explosives) and quantify detection technology limitations to advised management in supporting the prioritization of equipment investments to detect threats and establish detection requirements across all transportation security equipment. Develop detection requirements along with the Chief Scientist to ensure that the development of associated detection requirements is based on in-depth understanding of explosives, associated effects, and chemical/physical characteristics which has a direct effect on TSA's ability to counteract terrorist threats and activity on TSA's highest priority technology projects. Represent TSA as the leading detection requirements authority at technical forums, industry days, conferences, and delegations to discuss detection and false alarm capability gaps and future proposals addressing security effectiveness and operational efficiency capability gaps. Serve as TSA's representative at the DHS Science & Technology (S&T) Explosives Division and Transportation Security Laboratory to advise and define TSA's Research and Development projects and to develop program requirements and technical goals. Oversee and delegate detection requirements related work of support contractor subject matter experts and partner organizations (i.e. National Labs) to effectively prioritize and execute requirements development across the capability areas. Mentor other detection team members and staff members on the detection requirements development process to ensure the appropriate operational and functional requirements are developed. Note: The duties are at the full SV-K performance level.

Requirements

Qualifications

In addition to the Basic Education Requirements, to qualify at the SV-K (GS-15) grade level: Applicants must possess one full year (52 weeks) of specialized experience equivalent to the SV-J (GS-14) in the Federal service. Specialized experience MUST include all the following: Serve as senior technical authority to lead the development of threat detection requirements for explosives and threat detection technologies throughout the engineering and product lifecycle; AND Evaluate current detection requirements to determine capability gaps and make recommendations for new requirements to mitigate associated risks with technology improvements; AND Serve as an agency representative in various forums to communicate complex technical requirements to both internal and external stakeholders. Credit for experience is given based on a 40-hour workweek. Part-time experience is credited on a part-time ratio, i.e., working 20 hours per week for two months equals one month of experience. No additional credit is given for overtime. National Service Experience (i.e., volunteer experience): 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. The Office of Personnel Management (OPM) must authorize employment offers made to current or former political appointees. If you are currently, or have been within the last 5 years, a political Schedule A, Schedule C, Non-career SES or Presidential Appointee employee in the Executive Branch, you must disclose this information to the Human Resources Office. Resumes must include the following: Narrative description of duties with start and end dates (including the month and year) for work experience. State the number of hours worked in a position (i.e. full-time or part-time). If part-time, state the total number of hours worked per week. Performance level (i.e. band or grade) Utilizing the USAJOBS Resume Builder and completing all available fields is strongly encouraged. You must meet the qualification requirements for this position no later than the closing date of the vacancy announcement.

Education

In addition to the minimum qualifications described above, you must meet the following requirement(s) to be considered qualified for the position:

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

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. (The above examples of related curricula are not all-inclusive.)

Note: An applicant who meets the basic requirements as specified in A or B above, except as noted under B.1., may qualify for positions in any branch of engineering unless selective factors indicate otherwise.

For positions requiring positive education requirements, or if you are using education to meet all or part of the qualification requirements, you MUST submit a copy of your transcripts or an itemized list of college courses from an accredited college or university, which includes equivalent information from the transcript (course title, semester/quarter hours, and grade/degree earned) in your resume. The information must be provided with the application by the closing date of the announcement. If selected, the applicant must supply a transcript or certification of degree.

Contacts

• Address OS - Requirements and Capabilities Analysis 6595 Springfield Center Dr Springfield, VA 22150 US
• Name: HC ServeU Customer Care
• Email: [email protected]