Qualifications
To view the complete qualification standard, applicants should reference - U.S. OPM Individual Occupational Requirements for Professional Engineering Positions https://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/classification-qualifications/general-schedule-qualification-standards/0800/files/all-professional-engineering-positions-0800.pdf in conjunction with the Group Qualification Standard for Professional & Scientific Positions https://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/classification-qualifications/general-schedule-qualification-standards/#url=GS-PROF.
Basic Requirements:
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)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.
2. 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.
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).
TO QUALIFY FOR THIS POSITION AT THE FV-G level, you must meet the Basic Requirements as stated above.
TO QUALIFY FOR THIS POSITION AT THE FV-H level, in addition to the above Basic Requirements you must demonstrate in your application you possess one (1) year of Specialized Experience equivalent to FV-G (FG/GS 5/7/9) level. Specialized experience is experience that has equipped you with the particular knowledge, skills, and abilities to perform successfully the duties of the position, and that are typically in or related to the work of the position to be filled.
Specialized Experience may include but is not limited to: collecting and analyzing data; performing trend analyses; engineering testing; developing technical reports; implementing Engineering requirements; providing technical support and professional engineering analysis to NAS systems.
OR,
EDUCATION SUBSTITION: 3 years of progressively higher level graduate education leading to a Ph.D. degree or Ph.D. or equivalent doctoral degree, gained from an accredited college or university. The education should provide the knowledge and skills required to do the work of the position.
OR,
Combination Education and Experience may be qualifying for this position.
TO QUALIFY FOR THIS POSITION AT THE FV-I level in addition to the above Basic Requirements you must demonstrate in your application that you possess at least one year of specialized experience equivalent to the FV-H (FG/GS 11/12) level. Specialized experience is experience that has equipped you with the particular knowledge, skills, and abilities to perform successfully the duties of the position, and that are typically in or related to the work of the position to be filled.
Specialized Experience may include but not limited to: experience with reviewing, analyzing and revising publications and/or technical manuals pertaining to electronic equipment repair; recommending improvements to the design or operation of systems; experience performing operational engineering modifications, technical assistance for restoration for complex communications system/equipment.
TO QUALIFY FOR THIS POSITION AT THE FV-J level in addition to the above Basic Requirements you must demonstrate in your application that you possess at least one year of specialized experience equivalent to the FV-I (FG/GS 13 ) level. Specialized experience is experience that has equipped you with the particular knowledge, skills, and abilities to perform successfully the duties of the position, and that are typically in or related to the work of the position to be filled.
Specialized Experience may include but not limited to: experience providing national level engineering support for National Airspace Systems communications equipment, navigation and/or surveillance systems; developing test strategies and requirements, interpreting test requirements, and preparation of operational test plans and procedures.
TO QUALIFY FOR THIS POSITION AT THE FV-K level in addition to the above Basic Requirements you must demonstrate in your application that you possess at least one year of specialized experience equivalent to the FV-J (FG/GS 14 ) level. Specialized experience is experience that has equipped you with the particular knowledge, skills, and abilities to perform successfully the duties of the position, and that are typically in or related to the work of the position to be filled.
Specialized Experience may include but not limited to: experience overseeing or leading engineering support for NAS communications equipment, navigation and surveillance systems; conducting complex testing of airspace system equipment; managing software development projects, developing standard operating procedures/instructions; issuing organizational policies concerning system repair/maintenance requirements and methodologies.
Applicants should include examples of Specialized Experience in their work history.