Basic Education Requirements: A. All applicants must show successful completion of a full 4-year professional engineering curriculum leading to a bachelor's degree in engineering in an accredited college or university. To be acceptable, the curriculum must: 1. be in a school of engineering with at least one curriculum accredited by the Accreditation Board of Engineering and Technology (ABET) as a professional engineering curriculum; or 2. Include differential and integral calculus and courses (more advanced than first-year physics and chemistry) in five of the following seven areas of engineering science or physics: (a) statistics, dynamics; (b) strength of materials (stress - strain relationships); (c) fluid mechanics, hydraulics; (d) thermodynamics; (e) electrical fields and circuits; (f) nature and properties of materials (relating particle and aggregate structure to properties); (g) any other comparable area of fundamental engineering science or physics such as optics, heat transfer, soil mechanics or electronics.
Or,
B. Combination of education and experience - college-level education, training, and/or technical experience that furnished (1) a thorough knowledge of the physical and mathematical sciences underlying engineering, and (2) a good understanding, both theoretical and practical, of the engineering sciences and techniques and their
applications to one of the branches of engineering. The adequacy of such background must be demonstrated by one of the following:
1. Professional registration or licensure - Current registration as an Engineer Intern (EI), Engineer in Training (EIT)1, or licensure as a Professional Engineer (PE) by any State, the District of Columbia, Guam, or Puerto Rico. Absent other means of qualifying under this standard, those applicants who achieved such registration by
means other than written test (e.g., State grandfather or eminence provisions) are eligible only for positions that are within or closely related to the specialty field of their registration. For example, an applicant who attains registration through a State Board's eminence provision as a manufacturing engineer typically would be rated
eligible only for manufacturing engineering positions.
2. Written Test - Evidence of having successfully passed the Fundamentals of Engineering (FE)2 examination or any other written test required for professional registration by an engineering licensure board in the various States, the District of
Columbia, Guam, and Puerto Rico.
3. Specified academic courses - Successful completion of at least 60 semester hours of courses in the physical, mathematical, and engineering sciences and that included the courses specified in the basic requirements under paragraph A. The courses must be fully acceptable toward meeting the requirements of an engineering program as
described in paragraph A.
4. Related curriculum - Successful completion of a curriculum leading to a bachelor's degree in an appropriate scientific field, e.g., engineering technology, physics, chemistry, architecture, computer science, mathematics, hydrology, or geology, may be accepted in lieu of a bachelor’s degree in engineering, provided the applicant has
had at least 1 year of professional engineering experience acquired under professional engineering supervision and guidance. Ordinarily there should be either an established plan of intensive training to develop professional engineering competence, or several years of prior professional engineering-type experience, e.g., in interdisciplinary positions. (The above examples of related curricula are not all inclusive.)
And,
Specialized Experience Requirements: In addition to the basic education requirements, applicants must also meet either the specialized experience or the substitution of education for experience described below.
For GS-7: One year of professional engineering experience equivalent to the GS-5 level. In order to be creditable, this experience must be non-routine, professional engineering work: (1) is in an engineering discipline such as one of the following fields of engineering: mechanical, electrical, chemical, civil or structural, industrial, or materials engineering which demonstrates the ability to apply engineering concepts; (2) demonstrating ability to apply engineering knowledge to engineering problems in an industrial or construction setting; (3) Positive and continuing development of professional knowledge, skill and ability to successfully perform all the functions of the job; (4) Analyzing work processes and conditions, identifying and eliminating/controlling safety and occupational health hazards in construction, general industry or maritime.
For GS-9: One year of professional engineering experience equivalent to the GS-7 level. In order to be creditable this experience must be non-routine, professional engineering work: (1) In an engineering discipline directly related to the safety engineer position such as one of the following fields of engineering: mechanical, electrical, chemical, civil, industrial, or materials engineering; (2) Demonstrating ability to apply engineering knowledge to engineering problems in an industrial or construction setting; (3) Positive and continuing development of professional knowledge, skill and ability to successfully perform all the functions of the job; (4) Analyzing work processes and conditions, identifying and eliminating/controlling safety and occupational health hazards in construction, general industry or maritime; and (5) demonstrating general knowledge of OSHA or related safety and occupational health standards or codes.
Or,
Substitution of Education for Professional Experience: Applicants who do not meet the specialized experience described above but possess education as described below may qualify based on that education or combination of education and experience (transcripts are required - student copies are acceptable).
For GS-7: one full year of graduate-level education or superior academic achievement with a GPA of 3.0 on a 4.0 scale on a bachelor's degree, or graduating in the upper 10t% of the class, or election to an honor society. Education must be in one of the following fields of engineering: mechanical, electrical, chemical, civil, industrial, materials or in a field of science directly related to safety and occupational safety and health. Applicants with an engineering bachelor’s degree who have appropriate experience as a technician equivalent to grade GS-5 or higher may have such experience credited for grade GS-7 only on a month-for-month basis up to a maximum of 12 months.
For GS-9: a Master's degree or two full years of graduate education in one of the following fields of engineering: mechanical, electrical, chemical, civil, industrial, materials or in a field of science directly related to safety and occupational safety and health. A combination of superior academic achievement and 1 year of appropriate professional experience is qualifying at GS-9.