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GEOPHYSICIST

Department of the Air Force
Department of the Air Force - Agency Wide
23 ANALYSIS SQ
This job announcement has closed

Summary

Click on "Learn more about this agency" button below for IMPORTANT additional information.

The primary purpose of this position is The principal function of the Geophysics staff is to provide scientific oversite for the Center geophysical operations and for Directorate geophysical research and development (R&D) and operations and maintenance (O&M) projects, both internal and external.

Overview

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Reviewing applications
Open & closing dates
09/03/2025 to 09/09/2025
Salary
$146,807 to - $190,848 per year
Pay scale & grade
GG 14
Location
FEW vacancies in the following location:
Patrick AFB, FL
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
Excepted
Promotion potential
14
Job family (Series)
Supervisory status
No
Security clearance
Sensitive Compartmented Information
Drug test
Yes
Position sensitivity and risk
Special-Sensitive (SS)/High Risk
Trust determination process
Financial disclosure
No
Bargaining unit status
No
Announcement number
8X-DCIPS-12792631-955596-TS
Control number
844691200

This job is open to

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Clarification from the agency

Open only to current employees of the organization where the vacancy exists (Air Force Technical Applications Center - AFTAC)

Duties

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1. Defines and conducts original geophysical R&D in the general topic area of nuclear explosion monitoring. Such work may include both theoretical and empirical investigation of explosion and earthquake source physics, studies of geophysical wave propagation development of data processing algorithms and software, especially those involving digital signal processing, and the evaluation of new sensor hardware and technology. Shepherds innovative products and results through the transition from research prototype to operational status, as appropriate. On occasion, conducts short-term geophysical studies as assigned by supervisor.

2. Establishes, develops, and maintains effective working relationships with AF ISR Agency, HAF/A2, other DoD organizations, Department of Energy, other US Government agencies, and national and international technical oversight committees. Works with key customer and coordinating officials to ensure customer satisfaction, explain organizational policy and procedures, and resolve problems that arise. Participates in special projects and initiatives and performs special assignments.

3. Communicates results of investigations both orally and in written form to audiences at various
levels, including Center, Command, Agency, Inter-Agency, and International. Regularly represents
Center and Directorate at meetings, workshops, and conferences, and advocates Center position in
discussions with inter-Agency customers and external partners.

4. Provides scientific oversight for existing R&D and O&M contracts within the Directorate, as well as
rendering technical judgment and opinion on proposals being considered for funding. Advises Division Chief (GG-15) and Director (SES) on scientific and technical merits of such initiatives.

Requirements

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Conditions of employment

  • U.S. Citizenship Required
  • All new DCIPS employees are required to complete a two-year DCIPS trial period.
  • If authorized, PCS will be paid IAW JTR and AF Regulations. If receiving an authorized PCS, you may be subject to completing/signing a CONUS agreement. More information on PCS requirements, may be found at: https://afciviliancareers.com/regulatory/
  • This posn is subject to provisions of the DoD Priority Placement Program
  • Must be registered for Selective Service, see Legal and Regulatory Guide
  • Employee may be required to work other than normal duty hours, to include evenings, weekends and/or holidays
  • Shift work and emergency overtime may be required
  • Employee must maintain current certifications
  • Disclosure of Political Appointments
  • Direct Deposit: All federal employees are required to have direct deposit
  • Advance in hire may be authorized if there is demonstrable proof provided on your resume
  • The employee may be required to travel in military and/or commercial aircraft to perform temporary duty assignments.
  • Polygraph: Incumbent is required to undergo a counterintelligence-scope polygraph examination.
  • Requires flexibility to work other than normal duty hours, which may include evenings, weekends and/or holidays.
  • Employees and family members requiring medical/dental care in the overseas location are responsible for obtaining/paying for care. Access for these members to military medical/dental treatment facilities is on space-available/reimbursable basis only.

Qualifications

This is a GG-14 position in the Defense Civilian Intelligence Personnel System (DCIPS). The GG-14 duties for the "Professional" work category are at the "Senior" work level and are equivalent to those at the GS-14 level. The selectee's salary will be set within the grade equivalent to a GS/GG grade based on the selectee's qualifications in relation to the job.

In order to qualify, you must meet the specialized experience requirements described in the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) Qualification Standards for General Schedule Positions, Professional and Scientific Positions

BASIC REQUIREMENT OR INDIVIDUAL OCCUPATIONAL REQUIREMENT:

  1. Degree: that included at least 30 semester hours in mathematics (including calculus) and the physical sciences (geophysics, physics, engineering, geology, astronomy, meteorology, electronics, etc.).

    or

  2. Combination of education and experience -- courses as shown in A above, plus appropriate experience or additional education.


In addition to meeting the basic requirement above, to qualify for this position you must also meet the qualification requirements listed below:

EXPERIENCE REQUIRED: Your resume must reflect the quality level of experience which demonstrates the possession of the knowledge, skills, abilities, and competencies necessary for successful job performance required for this position. Examples of creditable experience include: extensive knowledge of geophysics, especially explosion seismology and seismic data processing. The incumbent possesses and uses expert knowledge to develop new theories, sensor networks, and or processing algorithms to analyze seismic, hydroacoustic, and infrasonic data. Incumbent understands and assimilates highly complex technical information relating to explosion seismology and applies this information to compare and evaluate scientific theory versus observed results. Note: Creditable experience may include previous military experience, experience gained in the private sector, or experience gained in another government agency.

KNOWLEDGE, SKILLS AND ABILITIES (KSAs): Your qualifications will be evaluated on the basis of your level of knowledge, skills, abilities and/or competencies in the following areas:

1. The minimum academic requirement for this position is a Bachelor's degree in the physical
sciences (seismology, geophysics, physics, engineering, geology, etc.), or a related technical
field from an accredited college or university. An advanced degree (MS or PhD) is highly desired.

2. Professional experience in the general area of geophysical sciences, either in the laboratory
or the field, or a combination thereof. One example would be the development of data-processing
algorithms and computer software for the processing of seismic, hydroacoustic, or infrasound data.
Expertise in software coding with commonly-used high-level languages (e.g., FORTRAN, C, Java,
Python, etc.) desirable. Another example would be the design, planning and execution of a
geophysical survey or field experiment, with practical experience deploying sensors and
trouble-shooting data acquisition systems. A third example would be demonstrable expertise in
observational seismology, with the ability to recognize various seismic phases at all distance
ranges. Knowledge of and expertise with standard software tools for analysis/evaluation, including,
but not limited to the Analyst Review Station (ARS), geotool, Seismic Analysis Code (SAC), Generic
Mapping Tools (GMT) desirable. Knowledge of Center geophysical operations a strong plus.

3. Demonstrable ability to communicate scientific and technical ideas, as shown by the
publication of peer- reviewed articles in open scientific literature, or the presentation of work
at scientific conferences, symposia, and workshops.

4. Must be able to focus on accomplishing specific research and engineering tasks while
understanding and appreciating the context in which the tasks are conducted. Must have broad
awareness of technological developments in the geophysical sciences and willingness to integrate
information from various disciplines to achieve mission goals. Proven ability to lead and/or work
within team structure, possibly at multi-agency or international level is desirable. Capability to
design, schedule, and manage a project is also desired.

5. Must be able to obtain and maintain a security clearance. Must demonstrate an understanding of
security procedures and a willingness to protect classified information.

CONDITIONS OF EMPLOYMENT CONT'D:

1.
Position is designated special-sensitive and requires eligibility for access to Sensitive
Compartmented Information (SCI), other intelligence-related Special Sensitive information, or involvement in Top Secret Special Access Programs (SAP) to fully perform the duties and responsibilities of the position. A non-disclosure agreement must be signed.

2. Drug Testing: This position has been designated by the Air Force as a Testing Designated Position (TDP) under the Air Force Civilian Drug Demand Reduction Program. Employee must pass initial and periodic short notice drug testing. Illegal drug use by employees in sensitive positions presents a clear threat to the mission of the Air Force, national security, and public safety.

3. This is a Mission Essential (ME) position performing a Mission Critical Function (MCF) which must continue uninterrupted after the occurrence of an emergency and continued through full resumption of all functions. IAW, DoDI 3020-42, Defense Continuity Programs.

PART-TIME OR UNPAID EXPERIENCE: Credit will be given for appropriate unpaid and or part-time work. You must clearly identify the duties and responsibilities in each position held and the total number of hours per week.

VOLUNTEER WORK EXPERIENCE: Refers to paid and unpaid experience, including volunteer work done through National Service Programs (i.e., Peace Corps, AmeriCorps) and other organizations (e.g., professional; philanthropic; religious; spiritual; community; student and social). Volunteer work helps build critical competencies, knowledge and skills that can provide valuable training and experience that translates directly to paid employment. You will receive credit for all qualifying experience, including volunteer experience.

Education

IF USING EDUCATION TO QUALIFY: If position has a positive degree requirement or education forms the basis for qualifications, you MUST submit transcriptswith the application. Official transcripts are not required at the time of application; however, if position has a positive degree requirement, qualifying based on education alone or in combination with experience, transcripts must be verified prior to appointment. An accrediting institution recognized by the U.S. Department of Education must accredit education. Click here to check accreditation.

FOREIGN EDUCATION: Education completed in foreign colleges or universities may be used to meet the requirements. You must show proof the education credentials have been deemed to be at least equivalent to that gained in conventional U.S. education program. It is your responsibility to provide such evidence when applying.

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION:
This position is a Defense Civilian Intelligence Personnel Systems (DCIPS) position implemented under Section 504, Title V of Public Law 99-569, Intelligence Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 1987, as codified in Sec 1601, Chap 83 of Title 10 United States Code which sets forth Air Force policies and procedures for DCIPS. This position is in the Excepted Service.

DoD Components with DCIPS positions apply Veterans' Preference to preference eligible candidates as defined by Section 2108 of Title 5 USC, in accordance with the procedures provided in DoD Instruction 1400.25, Volume 2005, DCIPS Employment and Placement. If you are a veteran claiming veterans' preference, as defined by section 2108 of Title 5 U.S.C., you must submit documents verifying your eligibility with your application package.

For additional information on DCIPS, click here

Additional information

Important Overseas Information: Applicants interested in applying for overseas locations please click here to review important information regarding the exceptional family member program.

Employed Annuitants (Reemployed Annuitants): Applicants in receipt of an annuity based on civilian employment in the Federal Service are subject to the DoD Policy on The Employment of Annuitants. Click here for more information.

120-Day Register: This announcement may result in a 120-day register that may be used to fill like vacancies for 120 days after the closing date. Applicants may be referred for consideration as vacancies occur.

Direct Deposit: All federal employees are required to have direct deposit.

Disabled veteran leave is available to a Federal employee hired on/after 5 Nov 2016, who is a veteran with a service-connected disability rating of 30% or more. For more information, click here.

If you have questions regarding this announcement and have hearing or speech difficulties click here.

Selectees who physically reside permanently in the U.S., the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico or Northern Mariana Islands, and the Possessions of the U.S., during the entire recruitment process (application, selection, and acceptance of a formal job offer) and selected for employment in the foreign area are eligible to receive certain foreign area benefits such as: Living Quarters Allowance (LQA) or government quarters, Post Allowance, Home Leave, etc. (subject to approval)

Selectees who physically reside outside the U.S., the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico or Northern Mariana Islands, and the Possessions of the U.S., during any step of the recruitment process (application, selection, and acceptance of a formal job offer) will have foreign area benefits eligibility be determined on a case by case basis.

Tax Law Impact for PCS: On 22-Dec-2017, Public Law 115-97 - the "Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017" suspended qualified moving expense deductions along with the exclusion for employer reimbursements and payments of moving expenses effective 01-Jan-2018 for tax years 2018 through 2025. When you perform a Civilian Permanent Change of Station (PCS) with the government, the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) considers the majority of your entitlements to be taxable. Visit GSA Bulletin FTR 20-04 here for additional information.

Candidates should be committed to improving the efficiency of the Federal government, passionate about the ideals of our American republic, and committed to upholding the rule of law and the United States Constitution.

How you will be evaluated

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

Your application package (resume, supporting documents, and responses to the questionnaire) will be used to determine your eligibility, qualifications, and quality ranking for this position. Please follow all instructions carefully. Errors or omissions may affect your rating or consideration for employment.

Your responses to the questionnaire may be compared to the documents you submit. The documents you submit must support your responses to the online questionnaire. If your application contradicts or does not support your questionnaire responses, you will receive a rating of "not qualified" or "insufficient information" and you will not receive further consideration for this job.

Applicants who disqualify themselves will not be evaluated further.

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