Duties

Summary

This position is located in the National Center for Education Evaluation (NCEE) of the U.S. Department of Education (ED), Institute of Education Sciences (IES).

Learn more about this agency

Responsibilities

We encourage you to read this entire vacancy announcement prior to submitting your application.

As an Education Research Analyst, you will perform the following duties:

• Lead, design and conduct research and evaluation activities that require extensive knowledge of a given federal education policy domain using a wide range of sophisticated statistical methods, such as randomized controlled trials.
• Provide technical support and authoritative advice to officials of the department, federal and state agencies, educational institutions, and private and research organizations, within a given federal education policy domain.
• Serve as the Contracting Officer's Representative (COR) for evaluation contracts within a given federal education policy domain, monitoring contractor's technical, managerial, and financial performance.

APPLICATION LIMIT: This vacancy announcement is limited to the first 50 applications received and will close at 11:59PM Eastern Time on the day that we receive the 50th application, or at 11:59PM Eastern Time on the listed closing date, whichever occurs first.

Travel Required

Occasional travel - Minimal travel may be required

Supervisory status
No

Promotion Potential
13

Requirements

Conditions of Employment

• You must be a U.S. Citizen.
• Relocation Expenses will not be paid.
• Must complete a Background Investigation and fingerprint check.
• Males 18 and over must be registered with the Selective Service.

You must meet all qualification requirements within 30 days of the closing date of this vacancy announcement.

If you are a current federal employee, you must meet all time-in-grade and time-after competitive appointment qualifications within 30 days of the closing date of this vacancy announcement. To verify that you meet these requirements, we will review your responses to the core eligibility questions on the occupational questionnaire, as well as your submitted resume and required documents. To make an accurate determination, you will need to include on your resume your federal position title, pay plan, occupational series, grade level, agency, dates for which you held the grade level (stated as MM/YYYY to MM/YYYY, OR MM/YYYY to PRESENT), and total hours worked per week.

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).

Qualifications

Basic Requirements (All Grades): This position has a positive Education Requirement in addition to at least one year of Specialized Experience. In order to be found minimally qualified, you MUST meet the following requirements:

A. Degree: that included or was supplemented by at least 24 semester hours in a field related to the work of the position to be filled, of which at least one course was in research methods and at least two courses were in statistics.

OR

B. Combination of education and experience -- at least 24 semester hours in a field related to the work of the position to be filled, including at least one course in research methods and two courses in statistics, plus appropriate experience or additional education. The experience must have demonstrated (1) a thorough knowledge of the principles underlying the work of this series, and (2) understanding, both theoretical and practical, of the methods and techniques applied in performing work in this series.

AND

One year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the next lower grade level in federal service that has equipped you with the particular knowledge, skills, and abilities to perform successfully the duties of the position (see description below).

Specialized Experience for the GS-13:
One year of experience equivalent to the GS-12 performing all three (3) of the following duties or work assignments:

Experience designing impact or implementation evaluations of educational interventions, policies, or programs.

Experience translating educational research or evaluation into written or other materials designed for educators or decision-makers

Experience directing the work of others in the design or conduct of rigorous education research

Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities (KSAs)
The quality of your experience will be measured by the extent to which you possess the following knowledge, skills and abilities (KSAs). You do not need to provide separate narrative responses to these KSAs, as they will be measured by your responses to the occupational questionnaire (you may preview the occupational questionnaire by clicking the link at the end of the Evaluations section of this vacancy announcement).

Knowledge of education research and evaluation methodologies, principles and practices, and the role of governments sufficient to plan, evaluate, and advise on funded education research projects.

Ability to decipher available research and evaluation information and effectively present meaningful and pertinent facts and results.

Skill in oral and writing communication for briefings and formal presentation of analysis results of complex programs and alternatives.

Ability to interact and/or influence office units, other programs and organizations, and staff elements of the department in order to obtain optimal organization resources and results.

Knowledge and understanding of research management sufficient to provide technical guidance to agency program officials, key stakeholders, and research organizations.

Education

Note: If you are using foreign education to meet qualification requirements, you must send a Certificate of Foreign Equivalency with your transcript in order to receive credit for that education. For further information, visit: https://www2.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ous/international/usnei/us/edlite-visitus-forrecog.html

Substitution of education for specialized experience is not applicable to this vacancy.

Additional information

Veterans' Career Counseling: If you are a veteran interested in receiving tips on preparing a Federal resume and/or how to prepare for an interview, you may email Iwork@ed.gov to schedule a session with a career counselor ("Veterans Counseling Session" should be placed in the subject line of the email).

Student Loan Default: If selected for this position, we will verify that you have not defaulted on any loan funded or guaranteed by the U.S. Department of Education. If you are found to be in default, we will contact you to make arrangements for repayment prior to making an official offer of employment.

Suitability and Investigation: If selected for this position, you will be required to complete the Declaration for Federal Employment (OF-306) to determine your suitability for federal employment and successfully complete a pre-appointment investigation/background check.

Non-Essential: This position is considered non-essential for purposes of reporting to work during federal government closures.

Telework: This position is telework eligible.

Bargaining Unit: This position is not included in the bargaining unit.

Selections: Agencies have broad authority under law to hire from any appropriate source of eligibles and may fill a vacancy in the competitive service by any method authorized. We may make additional selections from this vacancy announcement within 90 days from the date the selection certificates are issued, should vacancies occur. We may also share selection certificates amongst program offices across the agency.

How You Will Be Evaluated

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

We use a multi-step process to review and evaluate applicants:

1. Eligibility and Minimum Qualifications
Once the vacancy announcement closes, we will review your submitted resume and documents to determine if you meet the eligibility and minimum qualification requirements, including any required education, experience, and/or selective placement factors. You will be rated as ineligible if you are outside of the area of consideration (i.e., who may apply) or your application is missing any required documents. You will be rated as not qualified if you do not possess the minimum qualification requirements.

2. Rating and Ranking
If you are found to meet both the eligibility and minimum qualification requirements, we will assess the quality of your experience and the extent to which you possess the required KSAs by comparing your submitted resume and documents against your responses to the occupational questionnaire. (The occupational questionnaire is the list of questions in the automated system that you will have an opportunity to answer once you apply for the position).

Based on the outcome of this evaluation, you will be assigned a numerical score (out of 100 possible). If your responses to the occupational questionnaire are not substantiated by your submitted resume, you may be eliminated from receiving further consideration.

3. Referral and Selection
If you are found to be amongst the most highly qualified applicants, you will be referred to the selecting official. As part of the assessment and selection process, the selecting official may invite you to participate in a structured interview, check your references, and/or request that you submit a writing sample or complete a written assessment or exercise to further evaluate your qualifications for this position.

To preview questions please click here .

Background checks and security clearance

Security clearance
Other

Drug test required
No

Required Documents

You must submit (REQUIRED FOR ALL APPLICANTS):
• A resume demonstrating your education, experience, training, and accomplishments as it relates to the qualifications for this position and substantiating your responses to the occupational questionnaire.
• Transcripts showing course titles, number of credits, and dates of completion. You may submit unofficial transcripts as part of your application; however, if you are selected, you will be required to submit official transcripts prior to appointment.

If you are a current or former federal employee (including current U.S. Department of Education employees), you must also submit:
• A Notification of Personnel Action (SF-50), which demonstrates your competitive status eligibility. To verify your eligibility, we will review your SF-50 to determine your tenure (block 24) and position occupied (block 34). Examples of sufficient SF-50s include appointments, promotions, within-grade increases, and pay adjustments.

If you currently hold or previously held a federal position at or above the highest grade of this position or you have/had promotion potential at or above the highest grade of this position, you must also submit an SF-50 documenting your highest grade level held or promotion potential. Examples of sufficient SF-50s include appointments and promotions.

• A Copy of your Performance Appraisal and Awards, as applicable. Your performance appraisal and awards are requested to further assess the quality of your experience should your application be referred to the selecting official.

If you are claiming eligibility under the Veterans Employment Opportunities Act (VEOA), you must submit:
• A copy of your DD-214 that shows active service and character of discharge, member copy 4 (Separated Members only); OR
• A certification of expected discharge or release from active duty under honorable conditions within 120 days from the date of application (Current Active Duty Members only); AND/OR
• The Application for 10-Point Veteran Preference (SF-15) AND all documents indicated on the form as proof of type of preference.

If you are claiming selection priority under Interagency Career Transition Assistance Plan (ICTAP) and Career Transition Assistance Plan (CTAP), please visit:
CTAP: http://www.ed.gov/about/jobs/open/edhires/ctap.html
ICTAP: http://www.ed.gov/about/jobs/open/edhires/ictap.html

If you are claiming eligibility under any Special Hiring Authority, you must submit:
• Adequate proof of your eligibility (e.g., Documentation of noncompetitive eligibility as a returned Peace Corps Volunteer, Documentation of noncompetitive eligibility for employment under Schedule A as a person with severe physical disabilities, psychiatric disabilities, and intellectual disabilities.)

If you are relying on your education to meet qualification requirements:

Education must be accredited by an accrediting institution recognized by the U.S. Department of Education in order for it to be credited towards qualifications. Therefore, provide only the attendance and/or degrees from schools accredited by accrediting institutions recognized by the U.S. Department of Education .

Failure to provide all of the required information as stated in this vacancy announcement may result in an ineligible rating or may affect the overall rating.