Physical Scientist (Quality Assurance)

Clarification from the agency

U.S. Citizens, lnteragency Career Transition Assistance Program (ICTAP) eligibles and Agency Career Transition Assistance Program (CTAP) employees.

The selectee will serve as a Physical Scientist (Quality Assurance) in the Office of Field Operations, Forensic Services Division. Typical work assignments include:

• Coordinating periodic audits to determine conformance with approved quality policies and procedures. Participating in the annual self-inspection audit required to maintain accreditation.
• Examining evidence, lab results, and findings related to fingerprint, document, and instrumental analysis procedures, techniques, and methods used by laboratory personnel to ensure quality and conformance with policies and procedures.
• Supporting the research and validation of the quality assurance program; monitoring daily processes of various branches to ensure compliance with established policies and procedures and to ensure critical elements are met to maintain status of an accredited laboratory.
• Maintaining and updating standard operating procedures and quality documents; developing and publishing guidelines for implementation of quality assurance mechanisms in technical protocols for quality controls; and ensuring new procedures are validated and documented before implementation.

Apply for this exciting opportunity to impact the Secret Service's ability to validate all systems, processes, and procedures in the forensic laboratory prior to use, in support of national security.

Conditions of employment

• U.S. Citizenship is required.
• Males born after 12/31/1959 must be registered for Selective Service.
• Complete the initial online assessment and USA Hire Assessment, if required.

If selected for this position, you will be required to:

• Obtain and maintain a top secret Tier 5 clearance. For more information visit OPM Mythbuster Page.
• Submit to a drug test prior to your appointment and random drug testing while you occupy the position.
• Submit a credit check after a conditional offer of employment has been accepted.

As a condition of employment for accepting this position, you will be required to serve a 1-year probationary 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 probationary period your employment will be terminated unless you receive certification, in writing, that your continued employment advances the public interest.

Qualifications

To be considered qualified for this position you must meet the following qualification requirements for the respective grade level in which you are applying.

Applicants must demonstrate that they meet the Basic Requirements AND Minimum Qualification requirements as listed below:

BASIC REQUIREMENTS:
A. Degree: physical science, engineering, or mathematics that included 24 semester hours in physical science and/or related engineering science such as mechanics, dynamics, properties of materials, and electronics.
OR
B. Combination of education and experience - education equivalent to one of the majors shown in A above that included at least 24 semester hours in physical science and/or related engineering science, plus appropriate experience or additional education.

IN ADDITION TO MEETING THE BASIC REQUIREMENTS ABOVE, YOU MUST ALSO MEET THE FOLLOWING MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS:

You qualify for the GS-11 level if you possess one of the following:

One year of specialized experience equivalent to the GS-9 level performing duties such as:

• Supporting quality assurance of forensic examination activities in a laboratory environment.
• Assisting with the examination of laboratory evidence, results or findings for accuracy.
• Reviewing laboratory policies, procedures, or protocols related to quality assurance and proficiency testing.

OR

• A Ph.D. or equivalent doctoral degree, or 3 full years of progressively higher-level education leading to such a degree in a field which demonstrates the knowledge, skills, and abilities necessary to do the work of the position.

OR

• A combination of education and experience may be used to qualify for this position if the computed percentage of the requirements is at least 100%. To compute the percentage of the requirements, divide your toral months of experience by 12. Then divide the total number of completed graduate semester hours (or equivalent) by 18. Add the two percentages.

You qualify for the GS-12 level if you possess one year of specialized experience equivalent to the GS-11 level performing duties such as:

• Assisting in laboratory quality assurance programs, including proficiency testing, analytical quality control, and quality audits, to ensure compliance with established policies and accreditation standards.
• Updating laboratory policies and procedures related to the quality assurance program.
• Reviewing and validating laboratory evidence results and finding in accordance with laboratory standards.
• Assisting in researching and developing projects for the solution of problems related to forensic techniques.

The qualification requirements listed above must be met by the closing date of this announcement.

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.

Current or Former Political Appointees: 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.

How you will be evaluated

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

This announcement is being filled using the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) Direct-Hire Authority. Agencies may appoint candidates directly to jobs, without regard to the provisions of Title 5 U.S.C.3309 through 3318. Therefore, Veterans' preference does not apply when appointing individuals. For more information on Direct Hire Authority please visit: Direct Hire Authority.

Upon review, your resume and/or supporting documents need to support your answer choices to the assessment questionnaire. Your resume must also reflect the one year of specialized experience requirement, in order to be considered. If the one year of specialized experience, equivalent to the next lower grade level cannot be identified in your resume, you will be considered not qualified. The competencies or knowledge, skills, and abilities needed to perform this job are:

• Attention to Detail
• Customer Service
• Decision Making
• Flexibility
• Integrity/Honesty
• Interpersonal Skills
• Learning
• Physical Sciences
• Quality Assurance
• Reading Comprehension
• Self-Management
• Stress Tolerance
• Teamwork
• Technical Competence
• Written Communication

Applicants who meet the basic requirement and specialized experience for the position will be referred to the selecting official for further consideration. Traditional rating and ranking of applicants do not apply to the announcement.

Interagency Career Transition Assistance Program (ICTAP/CTAP) Eligibles: If you have never worked for the Federal government, you are not ICTAP/CTAP eligible. View information about ICTAP/CTAP eligibility on OPM's Career Transition Resources website. To be considered well qualified under ICTAP/CTAP, you must be rated at a minimum score of 85.0 for this position. In addition, you must submit the supporting documents listed under the required documents section of this announcement.

Veterans: Although the Direct Hire Authority permits hiring without regard to Veterans Preference, applicants who are eligible for Veterans Preference are encouraged to include that information in their application and submit supporting documentation (See Required Documents section for information on substantiating documents).

An interview may be required for this position. If an interview is required, failure to complete the interview may result in removal from further consideration.

After the U.S. Secret Service completes its hiring, the resumes of the remaining candidates referred for selection consideration may be shared with other DHS Components and other federal agencies. During the application process, you may choose to opt-in if you would like your name, application material, and assessment results to be shared. There is no guarantee of further consideration, and you can continue to explore other job opportunity announcements.

Any offers of employment made pursuant to this announcement will be consistent with all applicable authorities, including Presidential Memoranda, Executive Orders, interpretive U.S. Office of Management and Budget (OMB) and U.S. Office of Personnel Management (OPM) guidance, and Office of Management and Budget plans and policies concerning hiring. These authorities are subject to change.

In addition to addressing the vacancy specific questions, you must also submit the following documentation:

• Resume - Limit your resume to no more than two pages. The USAJOBS database will not allow an applicant to submit an application that includes a resume over two pages. In order to receive credit for experience contained in an uploaded resume, your employment history should show work experience in month/year format (MM/YYYY), reflecting starting date and ending date, and include the number of hours worked per week. To learn how to format and submit a two-page resume, please visit the USAJOBS Help Center.
• Are you qualifying based on education or the position has an education requirement, or you are qualifying based on a combination of education and experience? Submit a copy of your college/university transcript (unofficial is acceptable) it must show school name, student's name, credit earned, degree, and date awarded. Education must be obtained from an accredited institution recognized by the U.S. Department of Education. Education completed in foreign colleges or universities may be used to meet Federal qualification requirements if you can show that your foreign education is comparable to education received in accredited educational institutions in the United States. For example, specific courses accepted for college-level credit by an accredited U.S. college or university, or foreign education evaluated by an organization recognized for accreditation by the Department of Education as education equivalent to that gained in an accredited U.S. college or university. It is your responsibility to provide such evidence with your application. See Recognition of Foreign Qualifications for more information.
• Are you claiming special priority selection rights under the Interagency Career Transition Assistance Program (ICTAP)? Submit a copy of your agency notice, copy of your most recent performance appraisal (with at least a satisfactory rating), and your most current SF-50 noting position, grade level, and duty location.
• Are you a veteran? Veterans' preference does not apply to selections made using Direct Hiring Authority however, if you would like to submit your military records for benefits you may receive after selection, please submit the following: a copy of your DD-214, Certificate of Release or Discharge from Active Duty (Member Copy 4). If a DD-214, Certificate of Release or Discharge from Active Duty (Member Copy 4) is not available, other documentation listing the beginning and ending dates of active service and the type of discharge must be submitted to verify eligibility. If claiming 10-point preference, you will need to submit a Standard Form (SF-15), "Application for 10-point Veterans' Preference." For more information view Veteran Information.
• Are you a current or former political Schedule A, Schedule C, Non-career SES or Presidential Appointee employee? Submit a copy of your applicable SF-50, Notification of Personnel Action, along with a statement that provides the following information regarding your most recent political appointment: Position title, Type of appointment (Schedule A, Schedule C, Non-career SES or Presidential Appointee), Agency beginning and ending dates of appointment.

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