Electronics Engineer, GS-0855
Definitions:
EXPERIENCE: One year of work experience is twelve months working full-time (at least 35-40 hours per week). Part-time experience can be pro-rated (i.e., a year at 20 hours per week is credited as 6 months of experience). If your position consisted of mixed duties, experience credit is given for the percentage of time that you spent on qualifying duties (i.e., if you held a position for 2 years, full-time, consisting of 25% personnel work and 75% budget work, and then applied for a budget position you could calculate your experience as follows: 2 yrs = 24 months. 24 months x 75% [percentage of time spent on budget duties] = 18 months of qualifying experience.)
UNDERGRADUATE EDUCATION: A year of undergraduate education is 30 semester hours, 45-quarter hours or the equivalent of college study. This education must have been obtained in an accredited college or university for which high school graduation or the equivalent was a prerequisite.
GRADUATE EDUCATION: In the absence of specific graduate program information, a year of graduate education is 18 semester hours or 27-quarter hours of graduate level college course work, or the number of credit hours the school attended has determined to represent 1 year of full time study. This education must have been obtained in an accredited college or university.
BASIC EDUCATION REQUIREMENT: Applicants must meet A or B below to satisfy the basic education requirement for Electronics Engineer, all grade levels. A. Degree: Professional Engineering. To be acceptable, the curriculum must: 1) be in a school of engineering with at least one curriculum accredited by the Accreditation Board for 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 5 of the following 7 areas of engineering science of 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
B. ALTERNATIVE METHODS OF QUALIFYING: In lieu of meeting the specific educational requirements listed above, applicants may substitute four years of college level education, training, and/or technical experience that furnished (1) a thorough knowledge of the physical and mathematical sciences underlying professional 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. This knowledge and understanding must be equivalent to that provided by a full 4-year professional engineering curriculum. ***The adequacy of such background MUST be demonstrated by one of the following:
1. Professional Registration - Current registration as a professional engineer 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; or 2. Written Test - Evidence of having successfully passed the Engineer-in-Training (EIT) examination, or the written test required for professional engineering registration; or (**NOTE: Applicants who have passed the EIT examination and have completed all the requirements for either (a) a bachelor's degree in engineering technology (BET) from an accredited college or university that included 60 semester hrs. of courses in the physical, mathematical, and engineering sciences, or (b) a BET from a program accredited by the Accreditation Board for Engineering & Technology (ABET) may be rated eligible for certain engineering positions at GS-5. Eligibility is limited to positions that are within or closely related to the specialty field of the engineering technology program. Applicants for positions that involve highly technical research, development, or similar functions requiring an advanced level of competence in basic science must meet the basic requirements specified in paragraph "A" above.) 3. Specified Academic Courses - Successful completion of at least 60 semester hours of courses in the physical, mathematical, and engineering sciences and in engineering that included the courses specified in "A" above: i.e., differential and integral calculus and courses in five of the seven areas of engineering science or physics as listed under "A" of the basic requirements above as (a) through (g). The courses must be fully acceptable toward meeting the requirements of a professional engineering curriculum as described in "A" above; or 4. Related Curriculum - Successful completion of a curriculum leading to a bachelor's degree in engineering technology or in an appropriate professional field, e.g., physics, chemistry, architecture, computer science, mathematics, hydrology, or geology, may be accepted in lieu of a degree in engineering, provided you also have at least 1 year of professional engineering experience acquired under professional engineering supervision and guidance.
For GS-07:
In addition to the basic requirements as stated above, applicants must meet one of the following to qualify for the GS-07 level:
**Applicants with a professional engineering degree who have appropriate experience as an engineering technician equivalent to GS-5 or higher may have such experience credited for GS-7 on a month-to-month basis up to a maximum of 12 months.
**OR successful completion of a 5-year program of study of a least 160 semester hours leading to a bachelor's degree in a professional engineering curriculum is qualifying. **OR superior academic achievement at the baccalaureate level in a professional engineering curriculum is qualifying. (CLICK HERE FOR MORE INFORMATION ON SUPERIOR ACADEMIC ACHIEVEMENT)
**OR one year of graduate level education in professional engineering (18 semester hours, 27 quarter hours or the equivalent); OR with a bachelor's degree in professional engineering, one year of graduate education in a related field may be qualifying if it provided the knowledge, skills, and abilities necessary to perform successfully the work of the position to be filled.
**OR one year of professional engineering experience defined as nonroutine engineering work that required and was characterized by (1) professional knowledge of engineering; (2) professional ability to apply such knowledge to engineering problems; and (3) positive and continuing development of professional knowledge and ability. To be creditable, this professional engineering experience must have been equivalent to at least the GS-05 grade level in the Federal service and it must have equipped the applicant with the knowledge, skills, and abilities to perform successfully the duties of the position to be filled.
Examples of GS-05 level work may include: 1) applying basic formulas to routine electronic calculations; 2) collecting, retrieving, and interpreting electronics information; 2) developing basic electronics procedures; and 3) assisting in the design and installation of electronic equipment and components. Technical manuals, directives, and criteria were detailed and directly applicable to the work. Specific instructions as to what was required and relevant guidance was provided.
**OR a combination of successfully completed graduate level education, as described above, and professional engineering experience, as described above. (CLICK HERE FOR DETAILS ON HOW TO COMBINE GRADUATE EDUCATION & EXPERIENCE)
For GS-09:
In addition to the basic requirements as stated above, applicants must meet one of the following to qualify for the GS-09 level:
**A combination of superior academic achievement in a professional engineering curriculum and 1 year of appropriate professional engineering experience.
**OR successful completion of a 5-year program of study of at least 160 semester hours leading to a bachelor's degree in a professional engineering curriculum and one year of appropriate professional engineering experience is qualifying.
** OR two years of progressively higher level graduate education (36 semester hours, 54 quarter hours, or the equivalent) leading to a master's degree in professional engineering, or a master's or equivalent graduate degree in professional engineering; OR with a bachelor's degree in professional engineering the aforementioned graduate education may be in a related field of study if it provided the knowledge, skills, and abilities necessary to do the work of the position to be filled.
**OR one year of professional engineering experience defined as nonroutine engineering work that required and was characterized by (1) professional knowledge of engineering; (2) professional ability to apply such knowledge to engineering problems; and (3) positive and continuing development of professional knowledge and ability. To be creditable, this professional engineering experience must have been equivalent to at least the GS-07 grade level in the Federal service and it must have equipped the applicant with the knowledge, skills, and abilities to perform successfully the duties of the position to be filled.
Examples of GS-07 level work may include: 1) adjusting and correlating electronic data, 2) collecting and interpreting data for electronic systems design; 3) writing computer programs for electronics systems analysis; 4) recognizing discrepancies in data. The work was carried out using prescribed methods. Guidelines consisted of user guides, technical manuals, published standard procedures, precedents and detailed instructions. Judgment was used in selecting the most appropriate guidelines and techniques. Assignments were typically screened to eliminate difficult or unusual problems.
**OR a combination of successfully completed progressive graduate level education, as described above, that is beyond the first year of graduate study and professional engineering experience, as described above. (CLICK HERE FOR DETAILS ON HOW TO COMBINE GRADUATE EDUCATION & EXPERIENCE)
For GS-11:
In addition to the basic requirements as stated above, applicants must meet one of the following to qualify for the GS-11 level:
**Three years of progressively higher level graduate education (54 semester hours, 81 quarter hours or the equivalent) leading to a Ph.D. degree in professional engineering or Ph.D. or equivalent doctoral degree in professional engineering; OR with a bachelor's degree in professional engineering the aforementioned graduate education may be in a related field of study if it provided the knowledge, skills, and abilities necessary to do the work of the position to be filled.
**OR one year of professional engineering experience defined as nonroutine engineering work that required and was characterized by (1) professional knowledge of engineering; (2) professional ability to apply such knowledge to engineering problems; and (3) positive and continuing development of professional knowledge and ability. To be creditable, this professional engineering experience must have been equivalent to at least the GS-09 grade level in the Federal service and it must have equipped the applicant with the knowledge, skills, and abilities to perform successfully the duties of the position to be filled.
Examples of GS-9 level work may include: (1) conducting preliminary investigations and analyses relating to site selection and systems integration in connection with systems installations; (2) preparing design criteria for smaller or less complex electronic equipment portions of facilities; (3) developing technical data for formal specifications regarding materials, sizes, dimensions, quantities and costs; (4) designing and constructing electronic systems and components. The work was of a conventional nature, but often required consideration of and selection from several alternative approaches or solutions to problems to arrive at the best treatment from a technical standpoint and sometimes required substantial adaptation of standardized guides and criteria. Critical or overriding problems were referred to a higher authority for guidance or decision.
**OR a combination of successfully completed graduate level education, as described above, that is beyond the second year of progressive graduate study and professional engineering experience, as described above. (CLICK HERE FOR DETAILS ON HOW TO COMBINE GRADUATE EDUCATION & EXPERIENCE)
For GS-12:
In addition to the basic requirements as stated above, applicants must meet one of the following to qualify for the GS-12 level:
At least one full-time year of specialized professional engineering experience equivalent to the GS-11 level in the Federal service. OR one year of professional engineering experience defined as nonroutine engineering work that required and was characterized by (1) professional knowledge of engineering; (2) professional ability to apply such knowledge to engineering problems; and (3) positive and continuing development of professional knowledge and ability. To be creditable, this professional engineering experience must have been equivalent to at least the GS-11 grade level in the Federal service and it must have equipped the applicant with the knowledge, skills, and abilities to perform successfully the duties of the position to be filled. Examples of GS-11 level work may include: 1) Conducting studies to determine the need and feasibility for equipment; 2) developing recommendations for changes the manufacturer should make or specifications for a category of devices; 3) preparing design criteria for complex facilities with varying conditions or scope of difficulty or providing formal specifications regarding materials, sizes, dimensions, quantities, costs.
For GS-13:
In addition to the basic requirements as stated above, applicants must meet one of the following to qualify for the GS-13 level:
At least one full-time year of specialized professional engineering experience equivalent to the GS-12 level in the Federal service. OR one year of professional engineering experience defined as nonroutine engineering work that required and was characterized by (1) professional knowledge of engineering; (2) professional ability to apply such knowledge to engineering problems; and (3) positive and continuing development of professional knowledge and ability. To be creditable, this professional engineering experience must have been equivalent to at least the GS-12 grade level in the Federal service and it must have equipped the applicant with the knowledge, skills, and abilities to perform successfully the duties of the position to be filled.
Examples of GS-12 level work may include: 1) Designing and developing unique and original electronics systems; 2) analyzing specifications data sheet and drawings to determine applicability; 3) conducting studies for extensive modifications of major components of electronic equipment; 4) developing test and evaluation procedures for electronic systems and equipment.