This position is located within the Office of Planning, Analysis, and Risk Management (OPARM).
OPARM performs complementary and collaborative work and is tasked with integrating and analyzing relational data. They provide data visualization and analytics services to support FSIS decision-making, policy development, risk management, and strategic planning.
Summary
This position is located within the Office of Planning, Analysis, and Risk Management (OPARM).
OPARM performs complementary and collaborative work and is tasked with integrating and analyzing relational data. They provide data visualization and analytics services to support FSIS decision-making, policy development, risk management, and strategic planning.
Males born after 12/31/1959 must be Selective Service registered or exempt
Subject to satisfactory adjudication of background investigation and/or fingerprint check
Successful completion of one-year probationary period, unless previously served.
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 at https://www.e-verify.gov/
Federal employees must be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 regardless of their duty location. If selected, you will be required to submit documentation of COVID-19 vaccination by November 22, 2021 or before appointment, if after November 22.
The agency will provide additional information regarding what COVID-19 vaccination information or documentation will be needed and how you can request of the agency a legally required exception from this requirement.
Qualifications
Applicants must meet all qualifications and eligibility requirements by the closing date of the announcement including specialized experience and/or education, as defined below.
NOTE: There are individual occupational requirements for the 1529 and 1550 job series. You must meet the individual occupational requirement (basic education requirement) for the respective job series, outlined in the education section of this announcement.
Qualifications Requirements for the GS-09 Grade Level: Applicants must have one year of specialized experience equivalent to the GS-07 grade level in the Federal service or equivalent responsibility in the private sector/pay systems. This specialized experience must includeall the following:
Writing statistical computer programs and algorithms.
Training or experience extracting and transforming data from relational databases.
Cleaning data to address issues such as missing values, outliers, duplicates, functional dependencies, etc.
To substitute education for experience at the GS-09 grade level, you must meet at least one of the individual occupational requirements identified in the education section of the announcement. AND
You must possess a master's or equivalent graduate degree or 2 years of progressively higher-level graduate education leading to a master's degree. This education demonstrates the knowledge, skills, and abilities necessary to do the work of this position. OR
Combination of Experience and Education: You must have an appropriate combination of successfully completed graduate level education and experience. The quality of the combination of education and experience must be sufficient to demonstrate that you possesses the knowledge, skills, and abilities required to perform work in the occupation. To determine your combination, first compute your experience as a percentage of the experience listed in the job announcement (1 year of specialized experience); then determine your education as a percentage of the education listed above; then add the two percentages. The total percentages must equal at least 100 percent. Only graduate education in excess of 1 year (18 semester hours) may be used to qualify.
Qualifications Requirements for the GS-11 Grade Level: In addition to the GS-09 specialized experience detailed above, to qualify at the GS-11 grade level applicants must have one year of specialized experience equivalent to the GS-09 grade level in the Federal service or equivalent responsibility in the private sector/pay systems that includesall the following:
Independently extracting and transforming data from relational databases.
Performing review of computer programing code for accuracy.
Experience engaging with leaders, colleagues, students, or clients to identify analytical needs or understand and define reporting requirements.
To substitute education for experience at the GS-11 grade level, you must meet at least one of the individual occupational requirements identified in the education section of the announcement. AND
You must possess a Ph.D. or equivalent doctoral degree or 3 years of progressively higher-level graduate education leading to a Ph.D. degree. This education must demonstrate the knowledge, skills, and abilities necessary to do the work of this position. One year of full-time graduate education is considered to be the number of credit hours that the school attended has determined to represent 1 year of full-time study. If that information cannot be determined from the school, 18 semester hours should be considered as equivalent to 1 year of full-time study. OR
Combination of Experience and Education: You must have an appropriate combination of successfully completed graduate level education and experience. The quality of the combination of education and experience must be sufficient to demonstrate that you possesses the knowledge, skills, and abilities required to perform work in the occupation To determine your combination, first compute your experience as a percentage of the experience listed above; then determine your education as a percentage of the education listed above; then add the two percentages. The total percentages must equal at least 100 percent. Only graduate education in excess of 2 years (36 semester hours) may be used to qualify.
Qualifications Requirements for the GS-12 Grade Level: In addition to the GS-09 and GS-11 specialized experience detailed above, to qualify at the GS-12 grade level applicants must have one year of specialized experience equivalent to the GS-11 grade level in the Federal service or equivalent responsibility in the private sector/pay systems that includesall the following:
Designing and implementing plans to accomplish analytic or computer programming projects.
Leading data analysis projects to capture and implement data requirements and business rules.
Developing interactive visualizations that combine data from multiple sources using tools such as Tableau, SAS Visual Analytics, ArcGIS, ggplot2, matplotlib, plotly, etc.
There is no education substitute for the GS-12 grade level.
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.
Education
To qualify for this position, you must meet at least one of the Individual Occupational Requirements (basic education) outlined below. You must submit a copy of all transcripts to validate that you meet at least one of the basic education requirements.
Individual Occupational Requirements
Mathematical Statistician (1529)
Basic Education Requirements: A. Degree: that included 24 semester hours of mathematics and statistics, of which at least 12 semester hours were in mathematics and 6 semester hours were in statistics. OR B. Combination of education and experience -- at least 24 semester hours of mathematics and statistics, including at least 12 hours in mathematics and 6 hours in statistics, as shown in A above, plus appropriate experience or additional education. Evaluation of Experience:
The experience offered in combination with educational courses to meet the requirements in paragraph B above should include evidence of statistical work such as (a) sampling, (b) collecting, computing, and analyzing statistical data, and (c) applying known statistical techniques to data such as measurement of central tendency, dispersion, skewness, sampling error, simple and multiple correlation, analysis of variance, and tests of significance.
Without other indications of statistical experience, work required in the processing of numerical or quantified information by other than statistical methods is not considered appropriate qualifying experience. Examples of such nonqualifying work include statistical clerical work; statistical drafting; calculation of totals, averages, percentages, or other arithmetic summations; preparation of simple tables or charts; or verification of data by simple comparison or proofreading.
Link to Mathematical Statistician (1529) Individual Occupational Requirement here.
Computer Scientist (1550)
Basic Education Requirements:
Bachelor's degree in computer science or bachelor's degree with 30 semester hours in a combination of mathematics, statistics, and computer science. At least 15 of the 30 semester hours must have included any combination of statistics and mathematics that included differential and integral calculus. All academic degrees and course work must be from accredited or pre-accredited institutions. Evaluation of Education:
Applicants should have sufficient knowledge to understand the fundamental concepts and techniques of computer science. Courses designed to provide an introduction to computer science techniques and methodologies, to problems of system design, and to other specialized fields are acceptable. Courses or experience in teaching elementary, business, or shop mathematics are not acceptable.
Link to Computer Scientist (1550) Individual Occupational Requirement here.
To Substitute Education for Specialized Experience at GS-09 and GS-11 Grade Levels
To qualify at the GS-09 grade level based on Education, applicants must meet one of the individual occupational requirements identified above AND A. Successfully completed a master's or equivalent graduate degree or 2 full years of progressively higher level graduate education leading to such a degree in a field which demonstrates the knowledge, skills, and abilities necessary to perform the work of the position OR B. have the specialized experience as described in A, but less than one year; and I have at least one year of graduate education as described in B, but less than the required two years. I have computed the percentage of the requirements that I meet, and the total is at least 100% (To compute the percentage, divide your total months of qualifying experience by 12. Then, divide your semester hours of graduate education beyond the first year (total graduate semester hours minus 18) by 18. Add the two percentages. The total percentage must equal at least 100 percent to qualify.)
To qualify at the GS-11 grade level based on Education, applicants must meet one of the individual occupational requirements identified above AND
A. Have successfully completed a Ph.D. or equivalent doctoral degree or 3 full years of progressively higher level graduate education leading to such a degree in a field which demonstrates the knowledge, skills, and abilities necessary to perform the work of the position OR B. Have the specialized experience as described in A, but less than one year; and I have at least two years of graduate education as described in B, but less than the required three years. I have computed the percentage of the requirements that I meet, and the total is at least 100% (To compute the percentage, divide your total months of qualifying experience by 12. Then, divide your semester hours of graduate education beyond the second year (total graduate semester hours minus 36) by 18. Add the two percentages. The total percentage must equal at least 100 percent to qualify.).
Additional information
Career Transition Assistance Plan (CTAP), Reemployment Priority List (RPL), or Interagency Career Transition Assistance Plan (ICTAP): Visit the OPM website for information on how to apply as a CTAP, RPL, or ICTAP eligible. To exercise selection priority for this vacancy, CTAP/RPL/ICTAP candidates must meet the basic eligibility requirements and all selective factors. CTAP/ICTAP candidates must be rated and determined to be well qualified (or above) based on an evaluation of the competencies listed in the How You Will Be Evaluated section. When assessed through a score-based category rating method, CTAP/ICTAP applicants must receive a rating of at least 85 out of a possible 100.
If you are selected for a position with further promotion potential, you will be placed under a career development plan, and may be non-competitively promoted if you successfully complete the requirements and if recommended by management. However, promotion is neither implied nor guaranteed.
This position may be eligible to telework up to four days per week, based upon the duties of the position. This position may also be eligible for flexible work arrangements as determined by agency policy and any applicable collective bargaining agreements.
A career with the U.S. government provides employees with a comprehensive benefits package. As a federal employee, you and your family will have access to a range of benefits that are designed to make your federal career very rewarding. Opens in a new windowLearn more about federal benefits.
Eligibility for benefits depends on the type of position you hold and whether your position is full-time, part-time or intermittent. Contact the hiring agency for more information on the specific benefits offered.
How you will be evaluated
You will be evaluated for this job based on how well you meet the qualifications above.
Applications will be evaluated in accordance with Office of Personnel Management's (OPM) Delegated Examining Procedures and USDA policy using category rating. Applicants who meet basic minimum qualifications will be placed in one of two or three categories: Best Qualified, Well Qualified, or Qualified. Within these categories, applicants eligible for veteran's preference will receive selection priority over non-veterans. Category placement will be determined based on applicants' quality of experience and the extent they possess the following knowledge, skills, and abilities (KSA) or competencies:
Analytical Programming
Interpersonal Skills
Manages and Organizes Information
Mathematical Reasoning
Planning and Evaluating
Problem Solving
Your application, including the online Assessment Questionnaire, will be reviewed to determine if you meet (a) minimum qualification requirements and (b) the resume supports the answers provided to the job-specific questions. Your resume must clearly support your responses to all the questions addressing experience and education relevant to this position. Those determined to be in the best qualified category will be referred to the selecting official for consideration.
Note: If, after reviewing your resume and/or supporting documentation, a determination is made that you have inflated your qualifications and or experience, your score may be adjusted to more accurately reflect your abilities, or you may be found ineligible. Please follow all instructions carefully. Errors or omissions may affect your rating. Providing inaccurate information on Federal documents could be grounds for non-selection or disciplinary action up to including removal from the Federal service.
Clicking the link below will present a preview of the application form; i.e. the online questionnaire. 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.
A career with the U.S. government provides employees with a comprehensive benefits package. As a federal employee, you and your family will have access to a range of benefits that are designed to make your federal career very rewarding. Opens in a new windowLearn more about federal benefits.
Eligibility for benefits depends on the type of position you hold and whether your position is full-time, part-time or intermittent. Contact the hiring agency for more information on the specific benefits offered.
The following documents are required for your applicant package to be complete. Our office cannot be responsible for incompatible software, your system failure, etc. Encrypted documents will not be accepted. Failure to submit required, legible documents may result in loss of consideration.
Resume that includes:1) personal information such as name, address, contact information; 2) education; 3) detailed 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); 4) other qualifications.
If education is required or you are using education 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, you will be required to submit official transcripts 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.
If claiming veteran's preference, you must submit a DD214, Certificate of Release from Active Duty, which shows dates of service and discharge under honorable conditions.If currently on active duty you must submit a certification of expected discharge or release from active duty service under honorable conditions not later than 120 days after the date the certification is submitted.Veteran's preference must be verified prior to appointment.Without this documentation, you will not receive veteran's preference and your application will be evaluated based on the material(s) submitted.
If claiming 10-point veteran's preference you must provide the DD214 or certification requirements (see above bullet), plus the proof of entitlement of this preference as listed on the SF-15 Application for 10-point Veterans' Preference. The SF-15 should be included but is not required. Failure to submit these documents could result in the determination that there is insufficient documentation to support your claim for 10-point preference. For more information on veterans' preference visit FEDSHIREVETS
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), and your most recent SF-50 noting position, grade level, and duty location with your application per 5 CFR 330.
Please read the entire announcement and all instructions before you begin. You must complete this application process and submit all required documents electronically by 11:59p.m. Eastern Time (ET) on the closing date of this announcement.
Applying online is highly encouraged. We are available to assist you during business hours (normally 8:00a.m. - 4:00p.m., Monday - Friday). If applying online poses a hardship, contact the Agency Contact listed below well before the closing date for an alternate method. All hardship application packages must be complete and submitted no later than noon ET on the closing date of the announcement in order to be entered into the system prior to its closing.
This agency provides reasonable accommodation to applicants with disabilities on a case-by-case basis; contact the Agency Contact to request this.
To begin, click "Apply" and follow the instructions to complete the Assessment Questionnaire and attach your resume and all required documents.
NOTE: If a document is resubmitted, it replaces the previous submission, which means the previous document is no longer available to the Human Resources Office. If you are adding to, rather than replacing a previous submission, you must upload both the old document and the new document. You must verify that uploaded documents from USAJOBS transfer into the Agency's staffing system as there is a limitation to the number of documents that can be transferred. However, once in the Agency's staffing system, you will have the opportunity to upload additional documents. Applicants may combine all like required documents (e.g. SF-50s or veteran docs) into one or more files and scan for uploading into the application. Each file must not exceed 3MB. Grouping like documents into files will simplify the application process. Documents must be in one of the following formats: GIF, JPEG, JPG, PDF, PNG, RTF, or Word (DOC or DOCX). Uploaded documents may not require a password, digital signature, or other encryption to open.
Food Safety and Inspection Service
1400 Independence Ave SW
Washington, DC 20250
US
Next steps
Your application will be reviewed to verify that you meet the eligibility and qualification requirements for the position prior to issuing referral lists to the selecting official. If further evaluation or interviews are required, you will be contacted. Log in to your USAJOBS to check your application status.
Multiple positions may be filled from this announcement
The Federal hiring process is set up to be fair and transparent. Please read the following guidance.
The following documents are required for your applicant package to be complete. Our office cannot be responsible for incompatible software, your system failure, etc. Encrypted documents will not be accepted. Failure to submit required, legible documents may result in loss of consideration.
Resume that includes:1) personal information such as name, address, contact information; 2) education; 3) detailed 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); 4) other qualifications.
If education is required or you are using education 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, you will be required to submit official transcripts 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.
If claiming veteran's preference, you must submit a DD214, Certificate of Release from Active Duty, which shows dates of service and discharge under honorable conditions.If currently on active duty you must submit a certification of expected discharge or release from active duty service under honorable conditions not later than 120 days after the date the certification is submitted.Veteran's preference must be verified prior to appointment.Without this documentation, you will not receive veteran's preference and your application will be evaluated based on the material(s) submitted.
If claiming 10-point veteran's preference you must provide the DD214 or certification requirements (see above bullet), plus the proof of entitlement of this preference as listed on the SF-15 Application for 10-point Veterans' Preference. The SF-15 should be included but is not required. Failure to submit these documents could result in the determination that there is insufficient documentation to support your claim for 10-point preference. For more information on veterans' preference visit FEDSHIREVETS
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), and your most recent SF-50 noting position, grade level, and duty location with your application per 5 CFR 330.
Please read the entire announcement and all instructions before you begin. You must complete this application process and submit all required documents electronically by 11:59p.m. Eastern Time (ET) on the closing date of this announcement.
Applying online is highly encouraged. We are available to assist you during business hours (normally 8:00a.m. - 4:00p.m., Monday - Friday). If applying online poses a hardship, contact the Agency Contact listed below well before the closing date for an alternate method. All hardship application packages must be complete and submitted no later than noon ET on the closing date of the announcement in order to be entered into the system prior to its closing.
This agency provides reasonable accommodation to applicants with disabilities on a case-by-case basis; contact the Agency Contact to request this.
To begin, click "Apply" and follow the instructions to complete the Assessment Questionnaire and attach your resume and all required documents.
NOTE: If a document is resubmitted, it replaces the previous submission, which means the previous document is no longer available to the Human Resources Office. If you are adding to, rather than replacing a previous submission, you must upload both the old document and the new document. You must verify that uploaded documents from USAJOBS transfer into the Agency's staffing system as there is a limitation to the number of documents that can be transferred. However, once in the Agency's staffing system, you will have the opportunity to upload additional documents. Applicants may combine all like required documents (e.g. SF-50s or veteran docs) into one or more files and scan for uploading into the application. Each file must not exceed 3MB. Grouping like documents into files will simplify the application process. Documents must be in one of the following formats: GIF, JPEG, JPG, PDF, PNG, RTF, or Word (DOC or DOCX). Uploaded documents may not require a password, digital signature, or other encryption to open.
Food Safety and Inspection Service
1400 Independence Ave SW
Washington, DC 20250
US
Next steps
Your application will be reviewed to verify that you meet the eligibility and qualification requirements for the position prior to issuing referral lists to the selecting official. If further evaluation or interviews are required, you will be contacted. Log in to your USAJOBS to check your application status.
Multiple positions may be filled from this announcement
Fair and transparent
The Federal hiring process is set up to be fair and transparent. Please read the following guidance.