Civil/Agricultural Engineer (Design Engineer) - Natural Resources Conservation Service

Summary The incumbent serves as a design engineer and is responsible for planning, design and quality assurance of all aspects of engineering on complex projects. This position will also serve as the Natural Resources Conservation Service state point of contact for engineering design tools, computer software and surveying. Incentive may be offered for eligible selectee in the amount of $20,000. Incentive will be disbursed as $10,000 per year for a total of 2 years. Responsibilities Develops or directs detailed analyses, designs and reports of complex engineering practices of state-sized dams, concrete structures, stream restoration projects, erosion/flood control, wetland creation/restoration and other conservation practices. Directs the type, scope and intensity of field investigations and surveys needed for practice implementation. Directs and prepares designs, preliminary and final drawings and specifications on complex engineering practices that may include hydrological, hydraulic, structural, and geotechnical analysis. Directs and performs site investigations and feasibility studies, field checks and field construction checks for conservation practice installations. Recommends changes in designs, specifications, and schedules to accommodate conditions at the construction site, availability of materials or to expedite construction. Develops and provides technical guidance and training to personnel in the area of structural analysis and design, enlisting the aid of appropriate specialists in conducting training when necessary. Requirements Conditions of Employment Qualifications Applicants must meet all qualifications and eligibility requirements by the closing date of the announcement including specialized experience and/or education, as defined below. Basic Education Requirement: 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: 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. Written Test -- Evidence of having successfully passed the Fundamentals of Engineering (FE)2 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. 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. 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. In addition to meeting one of the Basic Requirements listed above, applicants must meet the following Minimum Qualifications Requirement in order to be considered: Specialized Experience: To qualify for the GS-11 level, you must possess at least one year of specialized experience equivalent to the GS-09 level or higher in Federal service, or comparable experience not gained through Federal service. Examples of specialized experience include: Providing technical engineering guidance on soil and water conservation issues affecting farmers, landowners, and other parties; Planning, designing, and coordinating the engineering phases of soil conservation practices and watershed flood protection programs; OR Possess at least 3 years of progressively higher-level graduate education leading to a Ph.D. degree or Ph.D. or equivalent doctoral degree in agricultural engineering or related engineering discipline; OR Possess an equivalent combination of experience and education as described in the job announcement (the total percentage must equal at least 100 percent to qualify). To qualify for the GS-12 level, you must possess at least one year of specialized experience equivalent to the GS-11 level or higher in Federal service, or comparable experience not gained through Federal service. Examples of specialized experience include: Formulation of engineering planning, design and construction of conservation practices that address natural resource protection; Coordinating and conducting quality assurance checks through site investigations and feasibility studies; Recommending changes when necessary; Identifying training needs of personnel and delivering training for both individual and group levels. For more information on the qualifications for this position, click here: All Professional Engineering 0800 Series and Group Standard for Professional & Scientist Positions 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 and can provide valuable training and experience that translates directly to paid employment. You will receive credit for all qualifying experience, including volunteer experience. Education You must submit a copy of your college transcripts or a list of college courses with credit hours, dates completed, and grades received to verify all education requirements (i.e. substitution of education and/or basic education requirement). If a relevant course is not clearly qualifying (e.g. special topic, seminar, research, thesis, obscure or misleading course title, etc.), please submit an official course syllabi and/or detailed course description from the university/college for that particular course to ensure you are properly evaluated. Please note that qualifications determinations are based solely on the information submitted for each particular vacancy announcement. You must document all requirements on every vacancy; we cannot use previous determinations as a basis for rating. All required information must be received by the closing date of this announcement, and non-submission of all required documents/documentation will result in non-consideration. Unofficial transcripts will be accepted. This information must be received by the closing date of this announcement. Non-submission of these documents will result in non-consideration. Education must be accredited by an accrediting institution recognized by the U.S. Department of Education in order for it to be credited towards qualifications. Applicants must, therefore, only report attendance and/or degrees from schools accredited by accrediting institutions recognized by the U.S. Department of Education. Applicants can verify accreditation via this link. All education claimed by applicants will be verified accordingly. Important: If you are using foreign education to meet qualification requirements, you must send a Certificate of Foreign Equivalency with your transcript in order to receive credit for that education. Click on this link for more information. Additional Information This position is being concurrently announced under Merit Promotion Announcement Number NRCS-24-12547367-MP-VA-DLB. Current or former Federal employees or other eligible applicants may apply to both announcements to expand all possibilities of consideration since different referral criteria apply to each type of announcement. See the above announcement for more information. A recruitment or relocation incentive may be offered to a qualified selectee payable at the rate of $10,000 per year for two years for a total of $20,000. Rules and regulations apply. A service agreement is required if approved. For more information regarding incentives, please see the following link: Recruitment, Relocation & Retention Incentives (opm.gov) Career Transition Assistance Plan (CTAP), Reemployment Priority List (RPL), or Interagency Career Transition Assistance Plan (ICTAP): Visit the OPM website for information on how to apply as a CTAP, RPL, or ICTAP eligible. To exercise selection priority for this vacancy, CTAP/RPL/ICTAP candidates must meet the basic eligibility requirements and all selective factors. CTAP/ICTAP candidates must be rated and determined to be well qualified (or above) based on an evaluation of the competencies listed in the How You Will Be Evaluated section. When assessed through a score-based category rating method, CTAP/ICTAP applicants must receive a rating of at least 85 out of a possible 100. Physical Demands: The work requires some physical exertion such as long periods of standing, traversing steep slopes and rough construction sites, recurring bending and stooping, jumping across shallow ditches, walking in soft, muddy and slippery conditions, and lifting and carrying equipment and samples that weigh up to 50 pounds. Work Environment: Work is performed in an office setting as well as frequent trips to field sites that involve exposure to construction equipment and the environment, and extreme temperatures of hot and cold. When in the field incumbent is required to wear hard hat and observe necessary precautions on scaffolding, in trenches, and in the area of moving machinery. Exposure to noise levels common to construction sites with large earthmoving equipment can be expected. There is exposure to disease carrying insects and irritating plants. PLEASE NOTE: In the interest of filling this position as efficiently as possible, we are requiring the following: If called for an interview, applicants must be available to interview within 3 business days of being contacted. If a tentative job offer is extended, selectee will have 2 business days in which to accept or decline. If you are selected for a position with further promotion potential, you will be placed under a career development plan and may be non-competitively promoted if you successfully complete the requirements and if recommended by management. However, promotion is neither implied nor guaranteed. This position is eligible for telework within the local commuting area of the position and other flexible work arrangements. Current USDA policy includes telework for an 8 hour work day, 4 days per week; other flexibilities are possible dependent upon availability and/or the position and its associated duties. Employee participation is at the discretion of the supervisor.