Supervisory Physical Scientist

U.S. Customs and Border Protection; San Francisco (CA); On-site; USD 120,000 - 150,000; Full time

Job summary

U.S. Customs and Border Protection in San Francisco, CA, seeks qualified candidates for a GS-14 position in the Office of Laboratories and Scientific Services.

The role focuses on overseeing the LSS Quality Program and coordinating with field laboratories to ensure quality and compliance. Requirements include a degree in physical science, engineering, or mathematics with 24 semester hours in physical science/engineering, or a combination of education and experience, plus one year of specialized

Qualifications

• Degree in physical science, engineering, or mathematics with 24 semester hours in physical science/engineering.
• Combination of education and experience including 24 hours in physical science/engineering plus relevant experience.
• Experience: 1 year at the next lower grade (GS-13) with related duties.

Responsibilities

• Oversee LSS Quality Program in the field lab and coordinate with the local Quality Manager.
• Maintain awareness of technical, management, budgetary, HR and union issues.
• Address employee complaints and apply disciplinary actions as needed.
• Plan future work and pursue ways to improve lab efficiency and quality.
• Coordinate with other field sites and the national office; support national programs.

Education

Physical science, engineering, or mathematics (24 hours in physical science/engineering)

Job description

Organizational Location: This position is with the Department of Homeland Security, within U.S. Customs and Border Protection, Office of Laboratories and Scientific Services, located in San Francisco, CA .

Additional selections may be made for other organizational divisions and/or units within the duty location(s) listed above.

Basic Requirement:

You qualify for this position if you meet the basic requirement listed below and possess the experience or substitution of education, if applicable, as described below:

A. Degree:

physical science, engineering, or mathematics that included 24 semester hours in physical science and/or related engineering science such as mechanics, dynamics, properties of materials, and electronics.

OR

B. Combination of education and experience:

education equivalent to one of the majors shown in "A" above that included at least 24 semester hours in physical science and/or related engineering science, plus appropriate experience or additional education.

AND

Experience:

You qualify for the GS-14 grade level if you possess 1 year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the next lower grade level, performing duties such as:

• Overseeing the application of the LSS Quality Program within the field laboratory and through the local Quality Manager with familiarization of LSS Quality Program requirements and any accrediting body's supplemental requirements to serve as the laboratory's administrative coordinator.
• Maintaining a high level of awareness for current technical, management, budgetary, human resource, and union issues
• Addressing complaints from employees and effecting disciplinary measures, such as warnings and reprimands, and other actions, when necessary.
• Planning work for future requirements and actively pursuing ways to improve the efficiency and quality of the laboratory's product and services.
• Coordinating with other field locations and the national office, and providing expertise in developing, implementing, and evaluating national programs, as requested.

NOTE: Your resume must explicitly indicate how you meet this requirement, otherwise you will be found ineligible. Please see the "Required Documents" section below for additional resume requirements.

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.

You must:

• Meet all qualification requirements, including education if applicable to this position, subject to verification at any stage of the application process; and
• Meet all applicable Time in Grade requirements (current federal employees must have served 52 weeks at the next lower grade or equivalent grade band in the federal service) by 08/31/2026.

The Office of Personnel Management (OPM) must authorize employment offers made to current or former political appointees. If you are currently, or have been within the last 5 years, a political Schedule A, Schedule C, Non-career SES or Presidential Appointee employee in the Executive Branch, you must disclose this information to the Human Resources Office.

Background Investigation:

U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) is a federal law enforcement agency that requires all applicants to undergo a thorough background investigation prior to employment in order to promote the agency's core values of vigilance, service to country, and integrity. During the screening and/or background investigation process, you will be asked questions regarding any felony criminal convictions or current felony charges, the use of illegal drugs (e.g., marijuana, cocaine, heroin, LSD, methamphetamines, ecstasy), and the use of non-prescribed controlled substances including any experimentation, possession, sale, receipt, manufacture, cultivation, production, transfer, shipping, trafficking, or distribution of controlled substances. For additional information on the preemployment process, review the following link: Applicant Resources | CBP Careers

Residency:

There is a residency requirement for all applicants not currently employed by CBP. Individuals are required to have physically resided in the United States or its protectorates (as declared under international law) for at least three of the last five years. If you do not meet the residency requirement and you have been physically located in a foreign location for more than two of the last five years, you may request an exception to determine if you are eligible for a residency waiver by meeting one or more of the following conditions:

• Working for the U.S. Government as a federal civilian or as a member of the military
• A dependent who was authorized to accompany a federal civilian or member of the military who was working for the U.S. government
• Participation in a study abroad program sponsored by a U.S. affiliated college or university
• Working as a contractor, intern, consultant or volunteer supporting the U.S. government

Probationary Period:

All employees new to the federal government must serve a one year probationary period during the first year of his/her initial permanent federal appointment to determine fitness for continued employment. Current and former federal employees may be required to serve or complete a probationary period.

Agency Career Transition Assistance Program (CTAP) or the Interagency Career Transition Assistance Program (ICTAP) Eligibles:

If you have never worked for the federal government, you are not CTAP/ICTAP eligible. View information about CTAP/ICTAP eligibility on OPM's Career Transition Resources website. To be considered well qualified under CTAP/ICTAP, you must be rated at a minimum score of 85 for this position. In addition, you must submit the supporting documents listed under the Required Documents section of this announcement.

Supervisory Probationary Period:

You may be required to serve an 18 month probationary period upon appointment.

Leadership Training:

All newly appointed first-time CBP Supervisors are required to complete mandatory training. The training will be scheduled by the Office of Training and Development within the first 90 days of appointment. The duration of the training will include 3 weeks of in residence training in Harpers Ferry, WV.

Note: This training may be waived if previously completed.

Reasonable Accommodation (RA) Requests:

If you believe you have a disability (i.e., physical or mental), covered by the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 as amended that would interfere with completing the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments, you will be granted the opportunity to request a RA in your online application. Requests for RA for the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments and appropriate supporting documentation for RA must be received prior to starting the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments. Decisions on requests for RA are made on a case-by-case basis. If you meet the minimum qualifications of the position, after notification of the adjudication of your request, you will receive an email invitation to complete the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments, based on your adjudication decision. You must complete all assessments within 48 hours of receiving the URL to access the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments, if you received the link after the close of the announcement. To determine if you need a RA, please review the Procedures for Requesting a Reasonable Accommodation for Online Assessments here.