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Computer Scientist

Department of Commerce
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
National Weather Service (NWS), Office of Water Prediction (OWP).
This job announcement has closed

Summary

This position is located in the National Weather Service (NWS), Office of Water Prediction (OWP), with one Location Negotiable vacancy.

This position is also announced under vacancy number NWS OWP-24-12414899-ST, which is open to Status Candidates. You must apply to both announcements if you want to be considered for both.

Overview

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Hiring complete
Open & closing dates
06/10/2024 to 06/24/2024
Salary
$122,198 to - $181,216 per year
Pay scale & grade
GS 14
Locations
1 vacancy in the following locations:
Anchorage, AK
Tuscaloosa, AL
Peachtree City, GA
Slidell, LA
Remote job
No
Telework eligible
Yes—as determined by the agency policy.
Travel Required
Occasional travel - You may be expected to travel for this position.
Relocation expenses reimbursed
No
Appointment type
Permanent
Work schedule
Full-time
Service
Competitive
Promotion potential
None
Job family (Series)
Supervisory status
No
Security clearance
Not Required
Drug test
No
Position sensitivity and risk
Moderate Risk (MR)
Trust determination process
Announcement number
NWS OWP-24-12414900-DE
Control number
794833500

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Duties

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As a Computer Scientist, you will perform the following:

  • Serve as the senior expert technical authority, managing and providing leadership for the National Weather Service (NWS) Hydrology Program as related to software design and architecture and software development, and other computer science matters.
  • Manage the development of design and technical documentation, software specifications, and all associated software testing activities, complying with software development best practices.
  • Provide input for development of programmatic needs with management, lead the discussion among peers and external collaborators and partners, and produce written guidance for plans and strategies for implementing software development initiatives.
  • Manage the planning and coordination of open source software development projects, which require innovation and originality and provide authoritative information and advice within the area of assignment.

Requirements

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Conditions of employment

Key Requirements:
  1. Must be a U.S. Citizen.
  2. Suitable for Federal employment, as determined by background investigation.
  3. Selectee may be subject to serving a one-year probationary period.
  4. More requirements are listed under Qualification and Other Information.
  5. Must be registered for Selective Service, if applicable (www.sss.gov).
  6. Payment of relocation expenses is not authorized.
  7. This position in the bargaining unit. This position is covered by (1538).
  • A background investigation will be required for this position. Continued employment will be subject to the applicant's successful completion of a background security investigation and favorable adjudication. Failure to successfully meet these requirements will be grounds for termination.
  • Throughout the recruitment and hiring process we will be communicating with you via email; therefore, it is imperative that the email address you provide when applying for this vacancy remains active. Should your email address change, please notify the point of contact identified in the vacancy announcement as soon as possible so that we can update our system.

Qualifications

Qualification requirements in the vacancy announcements are based on the U.S. Office of Personnel Management (OPM) Qualification Standards Handbook, which contains federal qualification standards. This handbook is available on the Office of Personnel Management's website located at: https://www.opm.gov/policy.

BASIC REQUIREMENTS: This position has a positive Education Requirement in addition to at least one year of Specialized Experience in order to be found minimally qualified. Transcripts must be submitted with your application package. You MUST meet the following requirements:

A. Degree: Bachelor's degree in computer science.

OR

B. 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.

AND

SPECIALIZED EXPERIENCE: Applicants must possess one year of specialized experience equivalent in difficulty and responsibility to the next lower grade level in the Federal Service. Specialized experience is experience that has equipped the applicant with the particular competencies/knowledge, skills and abilities to successfully perform the duties of the position. This experience need not have been in the federal government.

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.

To qualify at the GS-14 level:
SPECIALIZED EXPERIENCE: In addition to meeting the Basic Requirements above, applicants must possess one full year (52 weeks) of specialized experience equivalent to the GS-13 in the Federal service. Specialized experience MUST include all of the following:

  • Identifying specifications and requirements for hardware and software to support modern software development and validation;
  • Developing new software products for high performance computing systems; and
  • Performing open source software design and software development.

Education

Education completed in colleges or universities outside the United States may be used to meet the above requirements. You must provide acceptable documentation that the foreign education is comparable to that received in an accredited educational institution in the United States. For more information on how foreign education is evaluated, visit: OPM Foreign Education Evaluation

College Transcript: Submit a copy of your college transcript that lists college courses detailing each course by the number and department (i.e., bio 101, math 210, etc.), course title, number of credit hours and grade earned. You must submit evidence that any education completed in a foreign institution is equivalent to U.S. education standards with your resume. You may submit an unofficial copy of the transcript at the initial phase of the application process. If course content cannot be easily identified from the title of the course as listed on your transcript, you must submit an official course description from the college/university that reflects the content at the time the course was taken.

Your college transcript is used to verify successful completion of degree, or college course work. An official college transcript will be required before you can report to duty.

Additional information

Well-qualified for CTAP and ICTAP eligibility includes those candidates who have been determined to exceed minimum qualifications for the position by attaining at least a rating of 85, but otherwise may or may not be among the highly or best-qualified candidates. Information about CTAP and ICTAP eligibility is on the Office of Personnel Management's Career Transition Resources website at: http://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/workforce-restructuring/employee-guide-to-career-transition/.

CTAP applicants MUST submit the following documents:

  1. A copy of your specific RIF notice; notice of proposed removal for failure to relocate; a Certificate of Expected Separation (CES); or certification that you are in a surplus organization or occupation (this could be a position abolishment letter, a notice eligibility for discontinued service retirement, or similar notice).
  2. A copy of your SF-50 "Notification of Personnel Action", noting current position, grade level, and duty location;
  3. A copy of your latest performance appraisal including your rating; and
  4. Any documentation from your agency that shows your current promotion potential.
ICTAP applicants MUST submit the following documents:
  1. A copy of your RIF separation notice; notice of proposed removal for failure to relocate; notice of disability annuity termination; certification from your former agency that it cannot place you after your recovery from a compensable injury; or certification from the National Guard Bureau or Military Department that you are eligible for disability retirement;
  2. A copy of your SF-50 "Notification of Personnel Action" documenting your RIF separation, noting your positions, grade level, and duty location, and/or Agency certification of inability to place you through RPL, etc.;
  3. A copy of your latest performance appraisal including your rating; and
  4. Any documentation from your agency that shows your current promotion potential.
NOAA participates in e-Verify. E-Verify is an Internet based system operated by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) in partnership with the Social Security Administration (SSA) that enables participating employers to electronically verify the employment eligibility of their newly hired employees.

The Department of the Commerce (DOC) places a high value on diversity of experience and cultural perspectives and encourages applications from all interested eligible candidates. Diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility (DEIA) are fundamental principles that guide the Department and allow us to successfully achieve our mission.

THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT IS AN EQUAL OPPORTUNITY EMPLOYER.

How you will be evaluated

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

We will review your resume, optional cover letter and supporting documentation to determine if you meet the minimum qualifications for the position. If you meet the minimum qualifications stated in the vacancy 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 the three pre-defined categories. The categories are "gold", "silver" and "bronze". However, your resume 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. The best-qualified candidates will be identified for referral to the hiring manager and may be invited for an interview. The scored occupational questionnaire will evaluate you on the following competencies; please do not provide a separate written response:

Problem Solving, Project Management, Software Development, and Technical Competence

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 eligible with a service-connected disability of 10% or more will be listed at the top of the highest quality category (gold) depending on the position and grade level of the job. For more information on Category Rating, please go to Category Rating.

Category rating will be used in the ranking and selection process for this position. The quality categories re Gold, Silver, and Bronze. You will be rated on the extent and quality of your experience, education, and training relevant to the duties of the position. If you are eligible, your on-line responses to the application questions will determine your placement in the appropriate quality category described above. Your responses must be substantiated by your resume. If you do not respond to the application questions you may be rated ineligible. Veterans' preference rules for category rating will be applied.

If it is determined that you have rated yourself higher than is supported in your description of experience and/or education as described in your resume/application, or that your resume or application is incomplete, you may be rated ineligible and/or not qualified.

To preview the announcement questionnaire, click here: https://apply.usastaffing.gov/ViewQuestionnaire/12414900

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