Duties

As a Mechanical Engineer, you will:

• Perform a variety of technical tasks that require competency in Mechanical or Bio/Biomedical Engineering.
  
• Serve as subject matter expert in the following areas: female crash safety; ATD design, biofidelity, evaluation and application; experimental biomechanics in support of determining human injury response, tolerance and kinematics and for development of biofidelity corridors and injury criteria.
  
• Develop long-range plans for vital NHTSA research programs; defines required resources in technical, administrative, and financial terms.
  
• Prepare original technical reports and papers for presentation in national and international forums; serves on committees and panels and participates in seminars devoted to broad biomechanical issues.
  
• Serve as a Lead Engineer and contract officer's representative (COR), directing complex, multidisciplinary research programs of national and international impact and scope, involving academic, industrial, and government participants. Routinely directs activity of government engineers and scientists.
• Maintain high level contacts within the automotive and product safety community at large, both within and outside the government.

The ideal candidate for this position should be an (established) expert in injury biomechanics research, preferably associated with motor vehicle crashes. Given this expertise, the incumbent should have (demonstrated) experience in real-world injury data analysis; experimental biomechanics research (planning), execution, data analysis and synthesis; ATD development, evaluation, and testing; and/or development and application of human body models.

Requirements

Conditions of Employment

• You must be a U.S.Citizen and eligible for consideration.
• You must meet specialized experience to qualify.
• Required documents must be submitted by the closing date.
• Submit application and resume online by 11:59 PM EST on the closing date.

CONDITIONS OF EMPLOYMENT:

• SELECTIVE SERVICE: Males born after 12/31/1959 must be registered for the Selective Service.
• PROBATIONARY PERIOD: You must complete a one-year probationary period (unless already completed).
• TIME-IN-GRADE: Federal applicants must have served 52 weeks at the next lower grade in the competitive or excepted service in the executive branch to satisfy time-in-grade restrictions contained in 5 CFR 300, Subpart F.
• DEU REQUIREMENTS: Applicants selected under delegated examining procedures may be required to successfully complete a one-year probationary period (unless already completed).
• REMOTE WORK: This position may be eligible for Remote Work. Remote work is an arrangement in which an employee works at an approved alternative worksite (e.g., from home) that is at a location away from the agency worksite. Remote work location will be determined upon/after selection and may affect locality pay. The difference in salary is determined by the locality pay in each location. Salaries for all areas are available on the OPM website at: https://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/pay-leave/salaries-wages/2022/general-schedule/

Qualifications

To meet the minimum qualifications for this position, you must (1) meet the Mandatory Education Requirement for the series, (2) provide a copy of your transcripts or other applicable documentation for verification, AND (3) meet the specialized experience requirements for each grade. Please review the following information before proceeding with the application process:

(1) All applicants must meet the education requirements under A or B to qualify for applying to an engineering position :

Successful completion of a degree in engineering that: (1) has at least one program accredited by the Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology (ABET); or (2) that included differential and integral calculus and courses (more advanced that first year physics and chemistry) in five of the following seven areas of engineering science or physics: (a) statics, dynamics; (b) strength of materials; (c) fluid mechanics, hydraulics; (d) thermodynamics; (e) electrical fields and circuits; (f) nature and properties of materials; 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 or training: college level education, training and/or technical experience that has 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), or licensure as a Professional Engineer (PE).

Written Test - Evidence of having successfully passed the Fundamentals of Engineering (FE) 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 which included the courses as specified in Paragraph A above.

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 had at least 1 year of professional engineering experience acquired under professional engineering supervision and guidance. There should be either an established plan of intensive training to develop professional engineering competence, or several years of prior professional engineering type experience. This must be clearly described in your resume.

For additional information, please refer to the OPM qualifications standard for GS-800: All Professional Engineering Positions qualifications at: https://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/classification-qualifications/general-schedule-qualification-standards/0800/files/all-professional-engineering-positions-0800.pdf.

(2) Upload the appropriate document(s) to your application for verification purposes. (Refer to 'Required Documents' section for additional guidance)

If selected, the final transcript must be received before your start date. Other applicants must meet all qualification requirements by the closing date of this announcement.

(3) Specialized Experience:

To determine which grade(s) you are eligible for, review the following grade specific details. You will be asked questions as part of your application but make sure to verify how you meet this experience in your resume or you may be deemed ineligible.

For the GS-14:

On Experience, you must have at least one year of experience, equal or equivalent to the GS-13 grade level, which included:

• Experience in developing, designing, planning, coordinating, conducting and/or analyzing the results of research projects in the area of injury trauma biomechanics motor vehicle crash
• Experience in injury data analysis methods and computer modeling related to real-word motor vehicle crash data and related experimental testing of human surrogates.
• Experience preparing written documents and presenting research findings.

You cannot substitute education at this level, you must have experience.

KNOWLEDGE, SKILLS AND ABILITIES (KSAs): Your qualifications will be evaluated on the basis of your level of knowledge, skills, abilities and/or competencies in the following areas:

Demonstrated experience (education, work history, publications) in injury/trauma biomechanics.

Demonstrated knowledge of injury data analysis methods and computer modeling related to real-word motor vehicle crash data and related experimental testing of human surrogates.

Ability to produce well-written reports/peer-reviewed publications and present at public forums.

Ability to plan for and manage technical research projects.

Leadership of and skills in planning, developing and evaluating research projects and multi-disciplinary teams.

For all types of consideration, 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.

For additional information about applying to Federal positions, please click on the following link: https://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/classification-qualifications/general-schedule-qualification-policies/#url=e4

Other applicants must meet all qualification requirements by the closing date of this announcement.

Additional information

PLEASE NOTE:

• This is not a Bargaining unit position.

COVID VACCINATION: If selected, you will be required to provide information regarding your COVID-19 vaccination status for the purposes of implementing workplace safety protocols, such as protocols related to masking, physical distancing, testing, travel, and quarantine.

This announcement may be used to fill additional positions if similar vacancies occur within 90 days of the issue date of the referral certificate.