Statistician

Clarification from the agency

This vacancy will be filled using the Office of Personnel Management's Direct-Hire Authority. Veterans' preference and traditional rating and ranking of applicants do not apply to positions filled under this announcement.

• Conducts methodological research to evaluate the adequacy of actuarial methods and premium rates for existing crop insurance policies and those proposed by other parties, including those proposed through the 508(h) process.
• Researches, plans, and implements projects that represent an important segment of Agency operating programs.
• Initiates, applies, and plans developmental studies, providing recommendations for advancing programs and/or methods.
• Establishes premium rates for assigned crops and analyzes proposals to change the terms in insurance contracts or to extend coverage to crops or areas not previously insured.
• Verifies the accuracy and validity of the data and underlying assumptions.
• Uses statistical modeling to develop and provide recommendations to subject-matter specialists on interpreting multiple, conflicting, or incomplete data obtained from crop insurance program participants, 508(h) program proposals, and other sources.
• Analyzes data collected to identify areas of comparable productivity and risk.
• Provides technical input to publications or other documents that are the basis for formulating methodology, policy or procedure.

Conditions of employment

• You must be a US Citizen or US National.
• Males born after 12/31/1959 must be Selective Service registered or exempt.
• Subject to satisfactory adjudication of background investigation and/or fingerprint check. If selected, you may be sent instructions on obtaining fingerprints. Please note we are unable to reimburse for any fees incurred.
• As a condition of employment for accepting this position, you will be required to serve a 1-year probationary period unless previous federal service is creditable. During this time your employment will be evaluated, and 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.
• Direct Deposit: Per Public Law 104-134 all Federal employees are required to have federal payments made by direct deposit to their financial institution.
• Successfully pass the E-Verify employment verification check. To learn more about E-Verify, including your rights and responsibilities, visit e-verify.gov.
• This position is designated as mobile work. Mobile work is a condition of employment and is characterized by routine and regular travel to conduct work in customer or other worksites as opposed to a single authorized alternative worksite.

Qualifications

In order to qualify, you must meet the eligibility and qualifications requirements as defined below by the closing date of the announcement. For more information on the qualifications for this position, visit the Office of Personnel Management's General Schedule Qualification Standards.

Your application and resume must clearly show that you possess the experience requirements. If education is required or being used to qualify, you must submit a copy of your transcripts.

Basic Requirement:
GS-1530:

1. Degree: that included 15 semester hours in statistics (or in mathematics and statistics, provided at least 6 semester hours were in statistics), and 9 additional semester hours in one or more of the following: physical or biological sciences, medicine, education, or engineering; or in the social sciences including demography, history, economics, social welfare, geography, international relations, social or cultural anthropology, health sociology, political science, public administration, psychology, etc. Credit toward meeting statistical course requirements should be given for courses in which 50 percent of the course content appears to be statistical methods, e.g., courses that included studies in research methods in psychology or economics such as tests and measurements or business cycles, or courses in methods of processing mass statistical data such as tabulating methods or electronic data processing.

   or

2. Combination of education and experience -- courses as shown in A above, plus appropriate experience or additional education. The experience should have included a full range of professional statistical work such as (a) sampling, (b) collecting, computing, and analyzing statistical data, and (c) applying statistical techniques such as measurement of central tendency, dispersion, skewness, sampling error, simple and multiple correlation, analysis of variance, and tests of significance.

In addition to meeting the basic requirement, you must also possess experience and/or directly related education listed below.

Specialized Experience Requirement

Specialized Experience for GS-11: Possess at least one year of specialized experience, equivalent to the Federal GS-09 level or higher, which has equipped the applicant with the knowledge, skills and abilities to successfully perform the duties of the position. Examples of specialized experience at this level include conducting methodological research to existing mathematical or statistical methodologies, procedures; evaluating actuarial methodologies and premium rates using statistical methods; interpreting data from insurance and analyzing data collected to identify areas of comparable productivity and risk; on a recurring basis with minimal, if any, oversight or assistance.
OR
Education Substitution for the GS-11: Completion of at least three full years of progressively higher-level graduate education resulting in a Ph.D. or equivalent doctoral degree from an accredited college or university, 3 full years of progressively higher-level graduate education leading to such a degree, or LL.M., if directly related. Related degrees include mathematics, statistics, economics, engineering, actuarial science, or other technical degree.
OR
Combination of experience and education: Possess a combination of education and experience may be used to qualify for this position as long as the computed percentage of the requirements is at least 100%. To compute the percentage of the requirements, divide your total months of experience by 12. Then divide the total number of completed graduate semester hours (or equivalent) beyond the second year(total graduate semester hours minus 36) by 18. Add the two percentages.

Specialized Experience for GS-12: Possess at least one year of specialized experience, equivalent to the Federal GS-11 level or higher, which has equipped the applicant with the knowledge, skills and abilities to successfully perform the duties of the position. Examples of specialized experience at this level include conducting methodological research and recommending improvements to existing mathematical or statistical methodologies, procedures, and insurance policy provisions; evaluating actuarial methodologies and premium rates using statistical methods; providing recommendations on interpreting data from insurance and analyzing data collected to identify areas of comparable productivity and risk; on a frequent recurring basis with minimal, if any, oversight or assistance. You must have experience using programming software packages used to manipulate databases (ex. R, SAS, STATA, SQL, etc.).

Specialized Experience for GS-13: Possess at least one year of specialized experience, equivalent to the Federal GS-12 level or higher, which has equipped the applicant with the knowledge, skills and abilities to successfully perform the duties of the position. Examples of specialized experience at this level include conducting methodological research and recommending improvements to existing mathematical or statistical methodologies, procedures, and insurance policy provisions; developing and evaluating actuarial methodologies and premium rates using statistical methods; providing recommendations on interpreting data from insurance and analyzing data collected to identify areas of comparable productivity and risk; and initiating and planning developmental studies by providing significant and innovative recommendations for advancing insurance programs and methods. You must be proficient manipulating databases using various programming software packages (ex. R, SAS, STATA, SQL, etc.), and do so regularly as part of your normal job duties.

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.

How you will be evaluated

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

This is a Direct-Hire Authority position, all applicants who meet the minimum qualifications, to include any specialized experience and/or selective placement factor(s), if applicable, will be referred to the selecting official. Before a certificate is issued to the selecting official, your application is reviewed to ensure that you meet all the qualification requirements. Veteran's preference does not apply due to the existence of the Direct Hire authority for this position.

You will be evaluated based on how well you meet the qualifications listed in this vacancy announcement. Your qualifications will be evaluated based on your application materials (e.g., resume, supporting documents), your responses on the application questionnaire, and your responses to all assessments required for this position.

You will be assessed on the following competencies (knowledge, skills, abilities, and other characteristics):

• Attention to Detail
• Customer Service
• Decision Making
• Flexibility
• Integrity/Honesty
• Interpersonal Skills
• Learning
• Reasoning
• Self-Management
• Stress Tolerance
• Teamwork

The USA Hire Assessments includes a cut score based on the minimum level of required proficiency in these critical general competencies. You must meet or exceed the cut score to be considered. You will not be considered for the position if you score below the cut score or fail to complete the assessment.

Overstating your qualifications and/or experience in your application materials or application questionnaire may result in your removal from consideration. Cheating on an assessment may also result in your removal from consideration.

Clicking the link below will present a preview of the application form. The application form link below will only provide a preview and does not initiate the application process. To initiate the online application process, click the "Apply" button to the right.

To view the application form, visit: https://apply.usastaffing.gov/ViewQuestionnaire/13086290

When we complete our selections, the remaining list of qualified candidates may be shared with additional Federal agencies. You will have an opportunity to opt-in if you would like your name, application materials, and assessment results shared with additional Federal agencies to be considered for employment. There is no guarantee of further consideration.

The following documents are required for your applicant package to be complete. Encrypted documents will not be accepted. Failure to submit required, legible documents may result in loss of consideration.

• Resume that includes: Personal Information: name, address, contact information; Education; Work Experience related to this position as described in the major duties including work schedule, hours worked per week, dates of employment; title, series, grade (if applicable); other qualifications. Resume cannot exceed 2 pages.
• If education is required or being used to qualify, you must submit a copy of your college transcripts. An unofficial copy is sufficient with the application if it includes your name and the necessary course information; however, if you are selected, official transcripts will be required prior to entering on duty. Education must have been successfully obtained from an accredited school, college or university. If any education was completed at a foreign institute, you must submit with your application evidence that the institute was appropriately accredited by an accrediting body recognized by the U.S. Department of Education as equivalent to U.S. education standards. There are private organizations that specialize in this evaluation and a fee is normally associated with this service. For a list of private organizations that evaluate education, visit the NACES website. All transcripts must be in English or include an English translation.
• Surplus or displaced employees eligible for CTAP, RPL, or ICTAP priority must provide: proof of eligibility (RIF separation notice, notice of proposed removal for declining a transfer of function or directed reassignment to another commuting area, notice of disability annuity termination), SF-50 documenting separation (as applicable), current performance appraisal with rating of at least "Fully Successful" or equivalent, and your most recent SF-50 noting position, grade level, and duty location with your application per 5 CFR 330.

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