General Engineer

US Office of Inspector General; Alexandria (VA); On-site; USD 110,000 - 140,000; Full time

Job summary

US Office of Inspector General is seeking an experienced engineer to perform broad oversight of technical programs, policies, and procedures. The role requires rigorous analysis, reporting, and collaboration within the Research & Engineering Division to support critical decisions.

Responsibilities include conducting comprehensive reviews, ensuring compliance with technical standards, and communicating findings through high-quality written reports.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in engineering or equivalent with strong mathematical/engineering science foundation.
• Demonstrated writing proficiency in technical reports and presentations.

Responsibilities

• Oversee broad and complex engineering assessments, evaluations, or inspections of technical programs and policies.
• Collaborate within the Research & Engineering Division to support decision making with data-driven analyses.

Skills

Critical thinking

Written communication

Education

Engineering degree

ABET-accredited program or equivalent coursework

Job description

This position is located within the Deputy Inspector General for Evaluations, Space, Intelligence, Engineering Oversight Directorate. In this position, you will perform broad and complex oversight of engineering assessments, evaluations, or inspections of technical programs, policies, procedures, and function as a member of the Research & Engineering Division.

Basic Requirements

A. Degree: Engineering. To be acceptable, the program must: (1) lead to a bachelor's degree in a school of engineering with at least one program accredited by ABET; 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) statics, 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); and (g) any other comparable area of fundamental engineering science or physics, such as optics, heat transfer, soil mechanics, or electronics.

OR

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), 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.)

Specialized Experience

Applicants must have at least 52 weeks of specialized experience at the GS-12 or equivalent level. Specialized experience is defined as experience in one or more STEM disciplines, such as: Cybersecurity, Electronic Warfare, Nuclear Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, Electrical Engineering, Aerospace Engineering, Industrial Engineering, Civil Engineering, Environment Engineering, Computer Science, and Chemical Engineering. Experience supporting engineering and technical reviews, assessments, or evaluations of acquisition programs, weapon systems, supporting infrastructure, or other critical DoW systems. Ability to demonstrate critical thinking in the analysis of collected data for oral and written presentations and reports. Demonstrated writing proficiency through the use of highly effective and high-quality written products or reports with knowledge of and experience in engineering concepts, principles, techniques, and practices. Experienced in technical reviews providing input towards decision-making.

Direct Hire Authority

This position is announced under the OPM Government-Wide Scientific, Technical, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) Direct Hire Authority, which is a special hiring authority for certain STEM positions for grades GS 11-15. Under the STEM Direct-Hire Authority, veterans' preference and traditional rating and ranking of applicants including category rating does not apply to positions filled under this announcement. All applicants who meet the minimum qualification requirements will be forwarded to the selecting official for consideration.

For more information on OPM's authorization of Direct Hire Authority, please visit: https://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/hiring-information/direct-hire-authority/#url=Governmentwide-Authority

You must meet the minimum qualification requirements as stated in the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) Operating Manual, Qualification Standards for General Schedule Positions: https://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/classification-qualifications/general-schedule-qualification-standards/#url=0800-ndx and the Individual Occupational Requirements: https://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/classification-qualifications/general-schedule-qualification-standards/0800/files/all-professional-engineering-positions-0800.pdf

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 to paid employment. You will receive credit for all qualifying experience.

Only experience and/or education obtained by the closing date of this announcement will be considered.