Duties

Summary

Serves as a Research Aerospace Engineer in the Aerothermodynamics Branch at NASA Langley Research Center. This position involves research and study of numerical simulations and computational methods for the hypersonic flow of fluids. Duties include simulations of high-speed flows, such as occur in launch vehicle ascents, hypersonic flight, missiles, and the entry of vehicles into planetary atmospheres.
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Responsibilities

• The engineer applies aerothermodynamic knowledge to the assessment, optimization and benchmarking of the nation's space access, trans-atmospheric and planetary entry vehicle concepts.
• The engineer applies their sub-discipline area of research expertise, and acts as principal investigator to address aerothermodynamic vehicle system problems, typically of an advanced and complex nature
• Researches the unique flow field and surface interactions associated with a prescribed vehicle configuration.
• Reports results to project management in a timely manner through presentations, technical interchange meetings and engineering reports, and when possible are documented through technical publication.
• Researches empirical and theoretical investigations with one or more of the following objectives: computational fluid dynamics algorithm development and validation.
• Research also includes numerical models for high-energy, high-speed viscous flows, non-equilibrium chemical kinetic and transport phenomena; hypersonic boundary layer transition and turbulence; and the implementation of simulation software.
• In a principal investigator role, research results are to be published in the technical literature and should answer important questions in the scientific field, account for previously unexplained phenomena, or change existing products and process

Travel Required

Occasional travel - Travel may be required for training or other work-related duties

Supervisory status
No

Promotion Potential
13

Requirements

Conditions of Employment

• Position subject to pre-employment background investigation
• A one-year probationary period may be required
• Selectee must complete a financial disclosure statement
• Drug designated position subject to pre-employment and random drug testing
• Must be able to obtain and maintain a Secret security clearance.
• A Graduate Degree or equivalent is preferred.
• As identical vacancies are identified additional selections may be made.

Qualifications

In addition to the Basic Education Requirement, you must have one year of specialized experience equivalent to the next lower grade, which has equipped you with the particular competencies needed to successfully perform the duties of the position described above.

To Qualify for the GS-12:
One year of specialized experience is described as experience in planning, conducting and reporting on professional research topics related to aerothermodynamics; and, experience in conducting computations related to unique flow field and surface interactions for hypersonic flight applications.

To Qualify for the GS-13:
One year of specialized experience is described as experience in planning, conducting and reporting on professional research topics related to aerospace vehicles including issues related to planetary entry/re-entry vehicle concepts; and, experience in developing research on appropriate computational methods and high fidelity modeling of unique flow field and surface interactions specific to hypersonic aerospace vehicle configurations.

Your resume must include a clear and detailed narrative description, in your own words, of how you meet the required specialized experience. Experiences copied from a position description, vacancy announcement or other reference material constitutes plagiarism and may result in disqualification and losing consideration for the job.

You must meet qualifications requirements by the closing date of this announcement.

Education

In order to qualify for this position you must meet Basic Education Requirement

Applicants must have successfully completed an undergraduate or graduate degree with a major in either a) engineering from a college or university that has ABET accredited engineering programs or b) Physical Science, Mathematics, Life Science, Computer Science, Other fields of science.

Degrees in engineering technology are not considered to be qualifying for this position.

The accreditation, type of degree, and course work taken will determine if the basic education requirements are met.

The degree must have been received in the year of, or any year subsequent to the original date of accreditation. To find out if a school has an ABET accreditation, go to ABET accredited schools

Applicants must list their majors on their resume.

ABET or Foreign accreditation requirement applies to foreign education. Applicants who have completed part or all of their education outside the U.S. must have their foreign education evaluated by an accredited organization to ensure that the foreign education is comparable to the education received in accredited educational institutions in the U.S. If selected, a written evaluation translated in English of any foreign education must be completed and provided to the Human Resources official making the offer. Please indicate in your resume that you have had your foreign education formally evaluated by the closing date of the announcement. Failure to provide this evaluation will may in your being found unqualified for the position.

Applicants must complete the following fields in USAJOBS Resume Builder, Step 2. Education section in order for education qualifications to be considered for this position:
-College/University Name
-State/Territory/Province/Country
-City/Town
-Degree/Level Attained
-Completion date/year awarded
-Major
-Minor
-GPA

Additional information

Any applicant tentatively selected for this position may be required to undergo a pre-employment background investigation. Individuals who have special priority selection rights under the Agency Career Transition Assistance Program (CTAP) or the Interagency Career Transition Assistance Program (ICTAP) must be well qualified for the position to receive consideration for special priority selection. See 'How You Will Be Evaluated' for definition of well qualified. Federal employees seeking CTAP/ICTAP consideration must indicate their eligibility when applying for a position. The USAJOBS resume asks you to identify your ICTAP eligibility; the NASA Supplemental Information asks you to identify your CTAP eligibility. If you are selected for the position, you must be prepared to submit proof that you meet the requirements for CTAP/ICTAP. This includes a copy of the agency notice, a copy of their most recent Performance Rating and a copy of their most recent SF-50 noting current position, grade level, and duty location.

As a condition of employment, male applicants born after December 31, 1959, must certify that they have registered with the Selective Service System, or are exempt from having to do so under the Selective Service Law. In order to receive preference in hiring, you must clearly identify your claim for veterans preference on your resume.

NASA's Applicant Guide provides the information needed to assist you in determining whether or not you can claim 5 or 10 point veterans preference. You should not submit documents to prove your eligibility for veterans preference at this time. However, you must be prepared to submit proof of veterans preference (DD-214, and, if claiming 10-point preference, SF-15 plus proof required by that form) as requested by the Human Resources Office. Veterans preference will only be considered based on what is supported For instance, if you claim 10-point preference, but are only able to document 5-point preference, you will be considered accordingly. If you fail to provide the required documents within the stated time period, we may withdraw a job offer and/or remove you from further consideration.

Your USAJOBS account asks you to assign a name to each of your resumes. When you apply to a NASA position, we will show you the text of the resume you have submitted, but we do not maintain the name you have assigned to that resume. If you wish to keep track of that information, we recommend you make note of it at the time you apply.

Fair Employment Opportunities for Applicants
NASA Credit for National Service

Current Federal employees must meet three months after competitive appointment restrictions by the closing date of the announcement.

Identification of promotion potential in this position does not constitute a commitment or an obligation on the part of management to promote the employee. Promotion will depend upon administrative approval and the continuing need for an actual assignment and performance of higher level duties.

How You Will Be Evaluated

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

NASA uses an automated system (Resumix) that matches the competencies extracted from your resume to the competencies identified by the selecting official for the position. Based on the competencies you match, you are placed in one of three categories identified as 90, 80, or 70 pt. quality categories, which are defined as:

90 pt. Category - Tentatively meets (until subsequent confirmation upon referral) the basic qualification requirements identified in the vacancy announcement and has experience in the same or similar job that has demonstrated superior proficiency in the primary requirements of the position.

80 pt. Category - Tentatively meets (until subsequent confirmation upon referral) the basic qualification requirements identified in the vacancy announcement and demonstrates satisfactory proficiency in the primary requirements of the position.

70 pt. Category - Fails to meet criteria described in the 80 pt. category.

Additional application guidance is available in NASA's Applicant Guide .

Information for Veterans : The Category Rating Process protects the rights of veterans by placing them ahead of non-preference eligibles within each category. Preference eligibles who meet qualification requirements and have a compensable service-connected disability of at least 10 percent must be listed at the top of the highest quality category, except when the position being filled is scientific or professional at the GS-09 grade level or higher.

For the purpose of the Career Transition Assistance Program (CTAP) and the Interagency Career Transition Assistance Program (ICTAP), candidates rated in the top quality category are considered well-qualified.

To receive consideration, you must submit a resume and answer NASA-specific questions. The NASA questions appear after you submit your resume and are transferred to the NASA web site. If you successfully apply, USAJOBS will show your application status as 'Received'. If your status is 'Application Status Not Available', you have not successfully applied. Do not rely on a USAJOBS email to confirm successful application. Only an email from NASA confirms a successful application.

Background checks and security clearance

Security clearance
Secret

Drug test required
Yes

Required Documents

NASA's application process has been specifically developed to ensure that we only ask you for the information we absolutely need to evaluate your qualifications and eligibility. In order to apply for this position, you only need to submit your resume and answer the screening questions and supplemental information. No additional documentation is accepted at the time of application. (For example you need not submit narrative 'KSA' statements; they are not required and will not be evaluated.) In this way we allow you to focus on preparing a resume that best describes your background and abilities. For assistance in preparing your resume, consult the Applicant Guide . Nothing further is required until requested by the Human Resources Office. At that point, we may ask you to submit documentation to support statements made in your resume. For example, we may ask you to provide academic transcripts or proof of Federal employment status. If you are claiming veterans' preference, we may ask you to submit proof of veterans preference (DD-214, and, if claiming 10-point preference, SF-15 plus proof required by that form). If you fail to provide the required documents within the stated time period, we may withdraw a job offer and/or remove you from further consideration.

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.