Clarification from the agency

Recent College Graduates from qualifying institutions within two years of degree or certification (Veterans precluded by their military service obligation, will have up to six years to apply).

• Performs progressively more difficult assignments to assist higher-level statisticians.
• Applies statistical techniques and methods in performing project-related activities.
• Assists in writing procedural instructions.
• Assists in the preparation of documentation on procedures and problems encountered. Makes preliminary recommendations.
• Assignments provide experience and training to orient the incumbent to technical programs, operating procedures, and administrative policies and regulations.

Conditions of employment

• You must be a U.S. Citizen.
• You must successfully complete a background investigation.
• A one-year probationary period may be required.
• You must sign a Pathways Recent Graduate Agreement.

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

This announcement will close at 11:59 p.m. Eastern Time on the date the first (100) applicants are received or on August 21, 2020 whichever comes first.

The Census Bureau is seeking bright, innovative, results-oriented individuals to join our Recent Graduates Program (RGP). The Recent Graduate Program is a one-year program that targets individuals who have recently graduated from qualifying educational institutions or programs.  Successful applicants will be placed in a dynamic, one-year career development program.  Throughout the program, you will participate in formal training, job assignments and receive a mentor to develop competencies applicable to the Census Bureau’s mission and needs.  This position is at the grade 7 entry level, with an opportunity for permanent appointment upon successful completion of the program.

To be eligible for conversion to a permanent or term position, Recent Graduates must:

• Successfully complete at least 1-year of continuous service in addition to all requirements of the Program.
• Demonstrate successful job performance.
• Meet the Office of Personnel Management’s qualifications for the position to which the Recent Graduate will be converted.

This position is in the excepted service.

This is a bargaining unit position.

This position is eligible for telework; additional criteria will be required (e.g., supervisory approval).

A probationary period may be required.  If non-competitively converted, the time spent as a Recent Graduate will count towards the probationary period.

Qualifications

Basic Entry Requirements for All Grade Levels:

You must be a Recent College Graduate from a qualifying institution within two years of degree or certification (Veterans precluded by their military service obligation, will have up to six years to apply). 

MINIMUM GRADE REQUIREMENTS:

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 will 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.

AND

Qualification Requirement:

Specialized Experience: For the GS-07, you must have one year of experience at a level of difficulty and responsibility equivalent to the GS-05 in the Federal service. Experience for this position includes:  Demonstrated experience reviewing or analyzing data from a census or social science or demography survey. Demonstrated experience using statistical software packages. Demonstrated experience using statistical research to prepare a report or presentation.

OR

Education: 1 full year of graduate-level education

OR

Superior Academic Achievement (S.A.A.)

S.A.A. is based on (1) class standing, (2) grade-point average, or (3) honor society membership.

1. Class standing -- Applicants must be in the upper third of the graduating class in the college, university, or major subdivision, such as the College of Liberal Arts or the School of Business completed courses.

2. Grade-point average (G.P.A.)-- Applicants must have a grade-point average of:

     a. 3.0 or higher out of a possible 4.0 ("B" or better) as recorded on their official transcript, or as computed based on 4 years of education, or as computed based on courses complete curriculum;

     b. 3.5 or higher out of a possible 4.0 ("B+" or better) based on the average of the required courses completed in the major field or the required courses in the major field completed.

3. Election to membership in a national scholastic honor society

NOTE: To show proof of meeting the Basic Entry Requirements, all applicants MUST submit a copy of their college transcripts.  See the Required Documents section for more information.

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.

How you will be evaluated

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

How You will be Evaluated:

Your resume, optional cover letter and supporting documentation will be reviewed to determine if you meet the minimum qualifications for the position. If you meet the minimum qualifications stated in the job opportunity announcement, we will compare your resume, optional cover letter and supporting documentation to your responses on the scored occupational questionnaire (True/False, Yes/No, Multiple Choice questions) and place you in one of three pre-defined categories. These categories are "gold," "silver," and "bronze." Your resume and/or optional cover letter must support your responses to the scored occupational questionnaire, or your score may be lowered. Candidates placed in the "gold" category will be identified for referral to the hiring manager and may be invited for an interview.

How you will be evaluated for preference eligibility:  Within each category, those entitled to veterans' preference will be listed at the top of the pre-defined category for which they are placed.

Preference eligibles with a service-connected disability of 10% or more will be listed at the top of the highest quality category (gold).

The following competencies are desirable at the full performance level of this position.

• Ability to work with social science or demographic surveys or census.
• Ability to communicate complex and technical program information in person and to a variety of audiences.

For more information on category rating, please go to: http://www.hr.commerce.gov/s/groups/public/@doc/@cfpasa/@phrm/documents/content/prod01_009474.pdf

We recommend that you preview the online questions for this announcement before you start the application process.

Do NOT include the following types of information in your application:

• Social Security Number (SSN)
• Date of Birth (DOB)
• Photos of yourself (if included on your resume you will not be considered for this position)
• Personal information: such as age, gender, religious affiliation, etc.