Healthcare Engineer

Clarification from the agency

This Job Opportunity Announcement is open to current, permanent employees within the Veterans Health Administration (VHA). NOTE: The 2-page Resume requirement does not apply to this position. For more information, refer to Required Documents below.

Complete all application requirements detailed in the "Required Documents" section of this announcement.

Occasional travel is required of the incumbent. Travel will be for a variety of reasons, including but not limited to: national and regional conferences, site visits to other facilities in the VISN (or the VISN offices), face-to face meetings regarding national and regional projects/assignments, specialized training for certain medical equipment and/or systems, other training opportunities that may improve the incumbents ability to better
serve the needs of the VA.

Total Rewards of a Allied Health Professional

Major Duties and Responsibilities:

• Determines requirements, reconnaissance, location, and prepares designs, specifications and estimates.
• Applies a broad knowledge of the conventional methods, precedents, and standards. Complex situations occur requiring adaptation or modification of precedents typical of the work environment.
• Conducts investigations to develop improved design of materials and methods. Explores background information (literature, reports, and discussions with others having specialized knowledge of the issue) and consults with supervisor in evaluating information and selecting approaches to study the issue.
• Prepares designs characterized by a variety of conditions. Prepares original designs and preliminary and final layouts.
• Coordinates assignments with other agency engineers and architects responsible for related features.
• Reviews architect-engineer plans and specifications for adequacy and feasibility.
• Explores background information (literature, reports, and discussions with others having specialized knowledge of the issue) and consults with supervisor in evaluating information and in presenting the information in an effective manner.
• Provides professional oversight and/or project management for construction or maintenance efforts.
• Performs scheduling and layout of operations, and inspection and surveillance of materials, methods, and equipment used in construction. Uses originality to develop and modify methods, techniques, and procedures, in discerning new patterns of phenomena, and in correlating and substantiating already developed hypotheses.
• Develops competitive bidding cost estimates for a variety of projects of multiple-use nature, or projects in different geographic locations thus presenting different physical or cultural considerations.
• Reviews contractor's progress charts and conducts field surveys to verify fulfillment of obligations.
• Administers payments to the contractor.
• Coordinates with the designer and contractor in making design changes.
• Determines systems requirements, reconnaissance, location, and prepares designs, specifications and estimates.
• Provides professional advice to peers, subordinates or non-professional administrators or managers.
• Perform other duties as assigned, depending on grade level.

Work Schedule: Monday - Friday; 7:00 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.
Recruitment Incentive (Sign-on Bonus): Not Authorized
Permanent Change of Station (Relocation Assistance): Not Authorized
Pay: Competitive salary and regular salary increases.
Paid Time Off: 37-50 days of annual paid time offer per year (13-26 days of annual leave, 13 days of sick leave, 11 paid Federal holidays per year)
Parental Leave: After 12 months of employment, up to 12 weeks of paid parental leave in connection with the birth, adoption, or foster care placement of a child.
Child Care Subsidy: After 60 days of employment, full time employees with a total family income below $144,000 may be eligible for a childcare subsidy up to 25% of total eligible childcare costs for eligible children up to the monthly maximum of $416.66.
Retirement: Traditional federal pension (5 years vesting) and federal 401K with up to 5% in contributions by VA
Insurance: Federal health/vision/dental/term life/long-term care (many federal insurance programs can be carried into retirement)
Telework: Not Available
Virtual: This is not a virtual position.
Functional Statement #: 54916-A; 54917-A; 54918-A; 54919-A
Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized

Conditions of employment

• You must be a U.S. Citizen to apply for this job.
• Selective Service Registration is required for males born after 12/31/1959.
• Must be proficient in written and spoken English.
• Subject to background/security investigation.
• Selected applicants will be required to complete an online onboarding process. Acceptable form(s) of identification will be required to complete pre-employment requirements (https://www.uscis.gov/i-9-central/form-i-9-acceptable-documents). Effective May 7, 2025, driver's licenses or state-issued identification cards that are not REAL ID compliant cannot be utilized as an acceptable form of identification for employment.
• Must pass pre-employment physical examination / evaluation.
• Participation in the seasonal influenza vaccination program is a requirement for all Department of Veterans Affairs Health Care Personnel (HCP).
• Complete all application requirements detailed in the "Required Documents" section of this announcement.

As a condition of employment for accepting this position, you will be required to serve a 1 or 2-year trial period during which we will evaluate your fitness and whether your continued employment advances the public interest. In determining if your employment advances the public interest, we may consider:

• your performance and conduct;
• the needs and interests of the agency;
• whether your continued employment would advance organizational goals of the agency or the Government; and
• whether your continued employment would advance the efficiency of the Federal service.

Upon completion of your trial period, your employment will be terminated unless you receive certification, in writing, that your continued employment advances the public interest.

Qualifications

Basic Requirements:

• United States Citizenship: Non-citizens may only be appointed when it is not possible to recruit qualified citizens in accordance with VA Policy.
• English Language Proficiency: Per VA Handbook 5005, Part II, Chapter 3, Section A, Paragraph 3j: No person will be appointed under authority of 38 U.S.C., chapter 73 or 74, to serve in a direct patient-care capacity in VHA who is not proficient in written and spoken English.
• Grandfathering Provision: May qualify based on being covered by the Grandfathering Provision as described in the VA Qualification Standard for this occupation (only applicable to current VHA employees who are in this occupation and meet the criteria).
• Foreign Education: To be creditable, engineering, architecture or related education completed outside the U.S. must be submitted to a private organization that specializes in the interpretation of foreign educational credentials and such education must have been deemed at least equivalent to a Bachelor's degree as outlined in paragraph 3.b. of this appendix

Basic Education (and GS 7 Requirements):

• Bachelor's degree or higher in Engineering or Architecture.
  • Curriculum must be from a school with at least one curriculum accredited by the Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology, Engineering Accreditation Commission (excludes engineering technology) or National Council of Architectural Registration Boards curriculum. Acceptable engineering and architectural degrees include, but are not limited to: Electrical Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, Biomedical Engineering, Civil Engineering, Architecture and Architectural Engineering.

OR

• Evidence of passing the Fundamentals of Engineering Examination with a bachelor's degree.
  • Evidence can be in the form of an Engineering in Training certificate issued from any State, the District of Columbia, Guam or Puerto Rico, or test results from the National Council of Examiners for Engineering and Surveying (NCEES) identifying a passing score;

OR

• Evidence of current professional registration or licensure as a Professional Engineer or Architect.
  • Evidence of current professional registration or licensure can be from any State, the District of Columbia, Guam or Puerto Rico.

Grade Level Requirements -

GS-09 Healthcare Engineer (Developmental Level 1) -

• Experience: In addition to meeting the basic requirements, to qualify for the GS-09 you meet one of the following: at least 1 year of experience equivalent to the next lower grade level (GS-7);

OR

• Education: A Master of Engineering degree OR Master of Architecture degree OR Master of Science degree in Engineering OR a related field of study as outlined in paragraph 4.b.(1); OR A Bachelor's degree as outlined in paragraph 4.b.(1) AND 2 full years of progressively higher-level graduate education in a related field of study, provided the applicant's total background demonstrates the core competencies for GS-09 level assignment.

-And-

In addition to meeting the experience or education for the GS-9 level, do you possess the following KSA's:

• Knowledge of the principles, theories, concepts and practices of the engineering profession.
• Ability to interpret relevant codes, regulations, guidelines and standards to make recommendations to assure compliance with healthcare facility programs.
• Ability to understand the operational professional engineering needs of clinical services in the healthcare system.
• Ability to prepare material on current technical topics and trends for presentation to other technical staff and mid-level hospital management and to keep abreast of changes in engineering technology related to a healthcare facility.

GS-11 Healthcare Engineer (Developmental Level 2) -

• Experience/Education Requirement: In addition to meeting the basic requirements, to qualify for the GS-11 you meet one of the following:

Experience:

• At least 1 year of experience equivalent to the next lower grade level (GS-9)

OR

Education:

• A Ph.D. or equivalent doctoral degree in Engineering or a related field of engineering as outlined in paragraph 3.b.(1).

OR

• A Master of Engineering degree, Master of Architecture degree, Master of Science degree in Engineering or a related field of study as outlined in paragraph 4.b.(1), AND 1 full year of progressively higher level graduate education in a related field of study, provided the applicant's total background demonstrates the knowledge, skills and abilities for GS-11 level assignment.

OR

• A Bachelor's degree as outlined in paragraph 4.b.(1) AND 3 full years of progressively higher-level graduate education in a related field of study, provided the applicant's total background demonstrates the knowledge, skills and abilities for GS-11 level assignment.

-AND-

In addition to meeting the experience or education for the GS-9 level, you must possess the following KSA's:

• Knowledge of either mechanical, electrical, structural, civil or other engineering/architectural principles, practices and their applications in the healthcare environment.
• Knowledge of basic project management principles as applied to the healthcare setting.
• Ability to apply healthcare engineering related standards, codes, policies and regulations, inclusive of, state and local codes.
• Ability to communicate effective orally and in writing with internal and external customers with tact and diplomacy.
• Ability to develop material for clinical or administrative staff that addresses the principles and application of engineering technology and/or theory used in healthcare.
• Ability to advise staff on emerging engineering technology related to a healthcare facility, while keeping abreast of changes in such technology and utilizing the information to solve healthcare facility engineering challenges.

GS-12 Healthcare Engineer (Full Performance Level): In addition to meeting the basic requirements, you must possess

Experience

• At least 1 year of experience equivalent to the next lower grade level (GS-11).

-AND-

In addition to meeting the experience for the GS-12 level, You must possess the following KSA's:

• Knowledge of mechanical, electrical, structural, civil and other engineering/architectural principles, practices and their applications in the healthcare environment.
• Knowledge of healthcare industry standards and related regulatory agency and organization (including, but not limited to The Joint Commission (TJC), Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), National Fire Protection Agency (NFPA), etc.) regulations, requirements, guides, policies, procedures, directives, standards and general medical program requirements as they relate to healthcare engineering.
• Knowledge of construction standards, methods, practices and techniques, materials and equipment to determine compliance with engineering regulations and standards.
• Skill in researching and analyzing information, conditions, human factors and projections to make sound engineering and business recommendations and decisions to proactively identify problems and develop innovative solutions within the context of applicable rules, regulations and procedures.
• Ability to plan and execute complex, multi-faceted projects and inspections while prioritizing resources against approved scopes of work, contract documents and budgets.
• Ability to organize and lead multi-disciplinary task forces with members from different departments and divisions, as well as design and construction firms.

Reference: For more information on this qualification standard, please visit https://www.va.gov/ohrm/QualificationStandards/.

The full performance level of this vacancy is a GS 12. The actual grade at which an applicant may be selected for this vacancy is in the range of GS 7 to 12.

Physical Requirements: Applicants and supervisors should review the Functional Statement to ensure all physical and functional requirements are met.

How you will be evaluated

You will be evaluated for this job based on how well you meet the qualifications above.

IN DESCRIBING YOUR EXPERIENCE, PLEASE BE CLEAR AND SPECIFIC. WE MAY NOT MAKE ASSUMPTIONS REGARDING YOUR EXPERIENCE. Your application, resume, C.V., and/or supporting documentation will be verified. Please follow all instructions carefully. Errors or omissions may affect consideration for employment.

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; religions; 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 Department of Veterans Affairs performs pre-employment reference checks as an assessment method used in the hiring process to verify information provided by a candidate (e.g., on resume or during interview or hiring process); gain additional knowledge regarding a candidate's abilities; and assist a hiring manager with making a final selection for a position.

It is the policy of the VA to not deny employment to those that have faced financial hardships or periods of unemployment.

Veterans and Transitioning Service Members: Please visit the VA for Vets site for career-search tools for Veterans seeking employment at VA, career development services for our existing Veterans, and coaching and reintegration support for military service members.

Area of Consideration - Eligible applications will be reviewed and referred in the following order:

1. Current permanent VHA

To apply for this position, you must provide a complete Application Package which includes:

• Resume
• SF-50/ Notification of Personnel Action
• Transcript

Special Note for Applications: To complete your application, please use the following link https://vacareers.va.gov/wp-content/uploads/sites/5/Resume.docx to download the standard Clinical Resume Document. This one-page document does not need to be modified and must be uploaded into the two-page restricted 'Resume' document upload field.

**Your full resume/CV may be uploaded without page limitation into the 'Other' document upload field.**

**Your resume/CV must include the following information for each job listed (a determination may not be able to be made if these items are missing):

• Job title and Duties
• Month & year, start/end dated (e.g. June 2020 to April 2021
• Full-time or part-time status (include hours worked per week)
• Series and Grade, if applicable

The following documents are accepted, and may be required if applicable to your eligibility and/or qualifications for this position. Please ensure you have included all documents required for your application, such as a copy of your transcript (if using education to qualify), SF-50's (current/former Federal employees), etc.

• Cover Letter
• DD-214/ Statement of Service
• Disability Letter (VA)
• License
• Other (1)
• Professional Certification
• Resume
• SF-15
• SF-50/ Notification of Personnel Action
• Transcript

Next steps