Make an impact at the United States Postal Service Office of Inspector General (USPS OIG)!
We're seeking a skilled Operations Research Analyst to lead complex analytical projects, apply advanced quantitative methods, and shape data-driven decisions that strengthen postal operations.
Bring your expertise and voice to our team in Bethesda, MD!
Summary
Make an impact at the United States Postal Service Office of Inspector General (USPS OIG)!
We're seeking a skilled Operations Research Analyst to lead complex analytical projects, apply advanced quantitative methods, and shape data-driven decisions that strengthen postal operations.
Bring your expertise and voice to our team in Bethesda, MD!
Current Career United States Postal Service Office of Inspector General, United States Postal Service, United States Postal Inspection Service, and Postal Regulatory Commission employees only. All others will not be considered or selected from this vacancy announcement.
About the Audit Services Directorate:
The Audit Services directorate provides guidance and support to the Office of Audit, including budgeting, contracting, audit policies, quality assurance, data analysis, statistical sampling, audit reporting, training, strategic planning, project administration, and coordination with other OIG components.
About the Position:
The USPS OIG conducts performance audits and reviews of multiple Postal Service functional areas.
As the Operations Research Analyst, you will provide expert level advice in the area of operations research analysis. Serving as a trouble-shooter, providing authoritative advice and guidance on problems not susceptible to treatment by accepted methods; recommendations and decisions are characterized by breadth and importance.
As a successful candidate, you will have relevant experience in:
Performing scientific work that involves designing, developing, and adapting mathematical, statistical, econometric, and other scientific methods and techniques.
Developing and applying quantitative methods in support of agency mission.
Coordinating and synthesizing quantitative data to analyze the composite cost benefit of operations or systems.
Planning, organizing, and conducting research on complex operations research analysis issues that involve major areas of uncertainty in approach, methodology, or interpretation to identify appropriate solutions.
Analyzing operational research problems and providing advice and insight about the probable effects of alternative solutions to these problems.
Participating or leading meetings with OIG and USPS officials to communicate results of work.
Maintaining liaison with other offices, agencies and other appropriate organizations as needed.
The duties and responsibilities associated with this position may vary based upon the agency's needs at the time of hire. The preceding description of major duties and responsibilities is only intended to give applicants a general overview of the expectations.
Compensation: The USPS OIG is Excepted Service and uses a Pay Banding system, which is equivalent to the Federal GS scale. Grade and salary determinations will be made based upon a candidate's education and professional experience.
This position is being advertised at the Journey Band level, equivalent to a GS-13. The salary range for this position is $121,785.00 - $158,322.00. The salary figures include locality pay. For locality table specifics, visit: OPM's General Schedule (GS).
Must be able to obtain and maintain a Moderate Background Investigation (MBI) clearance.
Must be able to obtain and maintain a government-issued credit card.
May be required to successfully complete a 12-month probationary period.
Qualifications
Position Minimum Qualification Requirements
You must meet all minimum qualifications listed below.
Professional Experience Requirement:
At least three (3) years of professional, full-time experience applying quantitative modeling, statistical analysis, and optimization techniques to support planning, decision-making, or risk assessment.
Must have experience translating complex analytical findings into clear, actionable insights for organizational leadership or stakeholders.
Must have experience collaborating with cross-functional teams (such as compliance, operational, or program groups) to improve process efficiency or control effectiveness.
Education Requirement:
Bachelor's degree in operations research, or at least 24 semester hours in a combination of operations research, mathematics, probability, statistics, mathematical logic, science or a closely related quantitative field in audit, finance, or government. (You must submit transcripts from accredited college or university)
Desirable Qualifications
Skilled at translating complex analytical results into clear, actionable insights for senior leadership. Proven ability to work with large datasets and collaborate with audit, compliance, and operational teams to enhance audit effectiveness is highly desirable.
An advance degree or certification
Knowledge of Postal Service operations
Evaluation Factors | How you will be evaluated:
You must have the experience, knowledge, and skills as listed in each of the evaluation factors listed below. Include your major accomplishments relevant to the position requirements and factors in your resume. Failure to demonstrate that you meet all the evaluation factor requirements as listed below will result in a score of zero (0), an ineligible status, and you will not be referred for further consideration.
Advanced knowledge of theories, concepts, principles, and practices of financial, mathematical, statistical, and operations research sufficient to sufficient to complete assignments that involve initiating, applying, and planning major developmental studies.
Skill in intermediate to advanced execution and control of projects that represent an important segment of the agency's operating programs and/or projects.
Ability to evaluate the data resulting from applying mathematical or statistical tools, models, methods, and techniques.
Ability to provide significant and innovative recommendations for advancing programs and/or methods.
Ability to communicate effectively both orally and in writing.
Education
Education must be accredited by an institution recognized by the U.S. Department of Education.
Applicants can verify accreditation here: www.ed.gov.
Special Instructions for Candidates with Foreign Education:
Education completed outside the United States must be deemed equivalent to that gained in U.S. education programs. You must submit all necessary documents to a private U.S. credential evaluation service to interpret equivalency of your education against courses given in U.S. accredited colleges and universities.
For further information visit: https://sites.ed.gov/international/recognition-of-foreign-qualifications/.
Additional information
Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) Status: Exempt. (Nonexempt employees are entitled to overtime pay; Exempt employees are not).
Reasonable Accommodations
This agency provides Reasonable Accommodations to applicants with disabilities. If you require accommodations for any part of the application and/or hiring process, please send an email to jobs@uspsoig.gov. The decision on granting an accommodation request will be made on a case-by-case basis.
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.
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.
USPS OIG Benefits Overview
Pay is only part of the compensation you will earn working for the USPS OIG
As a result of the passage of the Postal Service Reform Act of 2022 (PSRA), USPS employees (including USPS OIG) and retirees will transition from the Federal Employees Health Benefits (FEHB) Program to the Postal Service Health Benefits (PSHB) Program effective January 1, 2025. Detailed information about eligibility and enrollment will be provided upon hiring.
For more information, visit the Postal Service Health Benefits (PSHB) Program website at https://www.opm.gov/healthcare-insurance/pshb/.
Visit the 'Guide to PSHB Plans' for a comprehensive PSHB plan comparison tool and an educational tool that explains how Medicare B works: https://www.checkbook.org/pshb/
Flexible Work Schedules
USPS OIG offers a range of family-friendly flexibilities including flexible work schedules and employee assistance programs.
Leave and Holidays
In addition to eleven (11) paid holidays each year, you will earn thirteen (13) days of paid sick leave and thirteen (13) to twenty-six (26) paid vacation days each year depending on your years of service.
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.
You will be assessed on how well you meet the qualifications and competencies (knowledge, skills, abilities, and other characteristics) on this announcement.
The Human Resources Office will review your resume and supporting application documentation to ensure that you meet the eligibility required for this position. You will no longer be considered for this position if you:
Fail to attach all required documentation;
Submit application materials that indicate that you are not minimally qualified for this position;
Receive a zero (0) rating on any Evaluation Factor; or
Fail to qualify during the interview.
Only the top-rated candidates will be referred to a review official or the selecting official for further consideration. Top-rated applicants may be required to participate in an interview. Your rating may be further adjusted or rated as ineligible by the review official or the selecting official based on your interview performance. Once all applicant scores are finalized, the selecting official will make a final decision.
Applicants for this position may be interviewed one or more times as part of the hiring process. During interviews, applicants may not use any AI tool or virtual assistant (such as ChatGPT) to help them answer questions, except for accessibility tools used as part of a reasonable accommodation. Applicants who fail to follow these rules will be disqualified from the hiring process.
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.
USPS OIG Benefits Overview
Pay is only part of the compensation you will earn working for the USPS OIG
As a result of the passage of the Postal Service Reform Act of 2022 (PSRA), USPS employees (including USPS OIG) and retirees will transition from the Federal Employees Health Benefits (FEHB) Program to the Postal Service Health Benefits (PSHB) Program effective January 1, 2025. Detailed information about eligibility and enrollment will be provided upon hiring.
For more information, visit the Postal Service Health Benefits (PSHB) Program website at https://www.opm.gov/healthcare-insurance/pshb/.
Visit the 'Guide to PSHB Plans' for a comprehensive PSHB plan comparison tool and an educational tool that explains how Medicare B works: https://www.checkbook.org/pshb/
Flexible Work Schedules
USPS OIG offers a range of family-friendly flexibilities including flexible work schedules and employee assistance programs.
Leave and Holidays
In addition to eleven (11) paid holidays each year, you will earn thirteen (13) days of paid sick leave and thirteen (13) to twenty-six (26) paid vacation days each year depending on your years of service.
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.
You must submit all required documents by 11:59 PM EST on the closing date of this announcement, Vacancy Announcement 12913562, by closing date 04/02/2026.
Important Note: Make sure you submit all Required documents with your application. Failure to do so will result in your disqualification.
Resume - Required.IMPORTANT UPDATE:Your resume must not exceed two (2) pages. You will no longer be considered for this announcement if your resume exceeds the two-page limit. Your resume must reflect that you have experience, knowledge, and/or skills in each of the Evaluation Factors.It is essential that your resume and supporting documentation provide sufficient information to substantiate your qualifications for the announced position (categorize as "Resume"). Additional guidance on writing a federal resume can be found at: USAJOBS Help Center - How do I write a resume for a federal job?
Make sure your page margins are 0.5 inches. The recommended font styles are Sans-Serif, Calibri, Helvetica, Arial, Verdana, Open Sans, Source Sans Pro, Roboto or Noto Sans. Consider using 14-point size font for titles and 10-point for the main text in your resume. Your resume must be 5MB or less. We recommend saving and uploading your resume as a PDF to maintain formatting and number of pages. The resume builder can help you create a resume using these recommendations and uses the information in your USAJOBS profile to help you get started.
Cover Letter - Required. Two-page (2) maximum stating how your operations research analyst experience, such as applying analytical methods, optimization, and data-driven decision-making, directly solves the employer's specific problems and makes you a strong fit for the role.
Occupational Assessment Questionnaire - Required. Click the "Apply Online" button and follow the prompts to complete the Occupational Questionnaire. You must click on "Submit My Answers" at the end to complete this process.
Transcripts - Required. Must be from an accredited college or university. The information presented in the transcript must be verifiable and should contain the name of the institution, applicant's name, list of completed courses, semester hours, GPA, date and type of Bachelor's Degree issued. Education completed outside the United States must be deemed equivalent to that gained in conventional/accredited U.S. education programs to be acceptable for Federal employment. Attach document verifying that it has been deemed equivalent. For further information visit: https://sites.ed.gov/international/recognition-of-foreign-qualifications/.
PS-50 - Required. You can access your Postal Service Form 50 by logging into LiteBlue.usps.gov or by submitting an HR Help Desk ticket through KCE.
Supporting Documents, which may include:
Certificates or Licenses - Required if applicable. Upload and save as "Certificate" or "License".
If you are relying on your education to meet qualification requirements:
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.
To apply for this position, you must complete the online application and submit the documentation specified in the Required Documents section below. The complete application package must be submitted by 11:59 PM (EST) on the closing date, 04/02/2026, to receive consideration.
To begin, click Apply Online to access an online application. Follow the prompts to select your USAJOBS resume and/or other supporting documents.
You will need to be logged into your USAJOBS account or you may need to create a new account. You will be taken to an online application. Complete the online application, verify the required documentation, and submit the application.
You will receive an email notification when your application has been received for the announcement.
To verify the status of your application, log into your USAJOBS account: https://secure.login.gov/, select the Application Status link, and then select the More Information link for this position. The Application Status page will display the status of your application, the documentation received and processed, and your responses submitted to the online application.
Your uploaded documents may take several hours to clear the virus scan process.
You are strongly urged to read and print the entire vacancy announcement.
Audit Services Directorate
1735 N Lynn Street
Arlington, VA 22209
US
Next steps
Once the Occupational Questionnaire has been received you will receive an acknowledgement email that your submission was successful. After a review of your application package has been completed, you will be notified of your rating and/or referral to the Selecting Official.
If eligible, applicants to this announcement may be referred to other locations or positions in other directorates in the USPS OIG.
The Federal hiring process is set up to be fair and transparent. Please read the following guidance.
You must submit all required documents by 11:59 PM EST on the closing date of this announcement, Vacancy Announcement 12913562, by closing date 04/02/2026.
Important Note: Make sure you submit all Required documents with your application. Failure to do so will result in your disqualification.
Resume - Required.IMPORTANT UPDATE:Your resume must not exceed two (2) pages. You will no longer be considered for this announcement if your resume exceeds the two-page limit. Your resume must reflect that you have experience, knowledge, and/or skills in each of the Evaluation Factors.It is essential that your resume and supporting documentation provide sufficient information to substantiate your qualifications for the announced position (categorize as "Resume"). Additional guidance on writing a federal resume can be found at: USAJOBS Help Center - How do I write a resume for a federal job?
Make sure your page margins are 0.5 inches. The recommended font styles are Sans-Serif, Calibri, Helvetica, Arial, Verdana, Open Sans, Source Sans Pro, Roboto or Noto Sans. Consider using 14-point size font for titles and 10-point for the main text in your resume. Your resume must be 5MB or less. We recommend saving and uploading your resume as a PDF to maintain formatting and number of pages. The resume builder can help you create a resume using these recommendations and uses the information in your USAJOBS profile to help you get started.
Cover Letter - Required. Two-page (2) maximum stating how your operations research analyst experience, such as applying analytical methods, optimization, and data-driven decision-making, directly solves the employer's specific problems and makes you a strong fit for the role.
Occupational Assessment Questionnaire - Required. Click the "Apply Online" button and follow the prompts to complete the Occupational Questionnaire. You must click on "Submit My Answers" at the end to complete this process.
Transcripts - Required. Must be from an accredited college or university. The information presented in the transcript must be verifiable and should contain the name of the institution, applicant's name, list of completed courses, semester hours, GPA, date and type of Bachelor's Degree issued. Education completed outside the United States must be deemed equivalent to that gained in conventional/accredited U.S. education programs to be acceptable for Federal employment. Attach document verifying that it has been deemed equivalent. For further information visit: https://sites.ed.gov/international/recognition-of-foreign-qualifications/.
PS-50 - Required. You can access your Postal Service Form 50 by logging into LiteBlue.usps.gov or by submitting an HR Help Desk ticket through KCE.
Supporting Documents, which may include:
Certificates or Licenses - Required if applicable. Upload and save as "Certificate" or "License".
If you are relying on your education to meet qualification requirements:
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.
To apply for this position, you must complete the online application and submit the documentation specified in the Required Documents section below. The complete application package must be submitted by 11:59 PM (EST) on the closing date, 04/02/2026, to receive consideration.
To begin, click Apply Online to access an online application. Follow the prompts to select your USAJOBS resume and/or other supporting documents.
You will need to be logged into your USAJOBS account or you may need to create a new account. You will be taken to an online application. Complete the online application, verify the required documentation, and submit the application.
You will receive an email notification when your application has been received for the announcement.
To verify the status of your application, log into your USAJOBS account: https://secure.login.gov/, select the Application Status link, and then select the More Information link for this position. The Application Status page will display the status of your application, the documentation received and processed, and your responses submitted to the online application.
Your uploaded documents may take several hours to clear the virus scan process.
You are strongly urged to read and print the entire vacancy announcement.
Audit Services Directorate
1735 N Lynn Street
Arlington, VA 22209
US
Next steps
Once the Occupational Questionnaire has been received you will receive an acknowledgement email that your submission was successful. After a review of your application package has been completed, you will be notified of your rating and/or referral to the Selecting Official.
If eligible, applicants to this announcement may be referred to other locations or positions in other directorates in the USPS OIG.
Fair and transparent
The Federal hiring process is set up to be fair and transparent. Please read the following guidance.
