Branch Chief

Summary

These positions are located in divisions and branches to be determined within Region II.

The supervisor is to be determined.

These positions are Non Bargaining Unit.

These positions are subject to Confidential Financial Disclosure reporting requirements.

These positions are subject to security ownership restriction reporting requirements.

This job is open to

Clarification from the agency

Accepting applications from current NRC employees on a permanent appointment or NRC competitive Term appointment. Based on the staffing needs of the agency/area of consideration, additional selections may be made from this vacancy announcement.

Duties

The successful candidate will perform the full range of Branch Chief duties. Such duties include, but are not limited to:

1. Manages and develops the implementation of the Inspection Program for operating nuclear power reactors, reactors under construction, or fuel facilities to assure the safety of NRC licensed facilities and activities and compliance with NRC requirements.

2. Supervises inspections, as well as various assessments.

3. Enforces the provisions of NRC permits, licenses, rules, regulations, orders and other directives pertinent to the protection of the public health and safety and to the common defense and security.

4. Supervises region-based inspectors, and provides for their evaluation and development.

5. Supervises branch participation in program assessment processes.

6. Supervises the ongoing technical review/analysis of operating experience, allegations and emergency response activities as assigned.

7. Develops and implements management controls to measure individual and branch performance and to achieve regional and agency goals.

8. Leads continuous improvement initiatives, supports and advocates agency and regional initiatives and decisions, and supports and advocates agency and regional initiatives and decisions, and supports the efforts of others.

9. Engages with leadership team members, practices the NRC Leadership model and holds self and others accountable.

Requirements

Conditions of Employment

This is a Drug Testing position.

Must be able to meet/maintain security & suitability requirements.

Multiple selections may be made.

You must meet the qualifications for this position by no later than 30 calendar days after the closing date of this announcement and before placement in the position.

Selectee must successfully complete a two-year supervisory trial period, if this requirement has not been previously met.

Qualifications

In order to qualify for this position, you must have at least one year of specialized experience at the next lower grade level (GG-14) in the Federal service or equivalent experience in the private or public sector.

SPECIALIZED EXPERIENCE is defined as: All candidates must have specialized experience which demonstrates knowledge of engineering or scientific methods, techniques and practices associated with effective regulatory programs. A description of how you possess the specialized experience as well as how you meet the qualifications desired in an ideal candidate should be addressed in your resume. You may also provide additional information related to your qualifications in the vacancy question provided for supplemental response.

The ideal candidate will be able to demonstrate the following:

1. Ability to lead people, manage technical staff, coordinate the activities of others, and effectively utilize human resources. This includes: effectively leading people with different backgrounds, skills, styles and perspectives, developing others, formulating goals, establishing objectives, and providing clear direction; obtaining, managing, and prioritizing resources to meet multiple objectives concurrently; leading organizational improvement and innovation activities; coordinating and working across organizational lines to meet goals.

2. Skill in preparing information on complex technical or policy issues for oral or written presentation to various internal and external stakeholders; presenting information on complex technical or policy issues to various internal and external stakeholders; participating with peers and superiors to resolve, and effectively communicate the resolution of organizational or programmatic issues.

3. Knowledge of, and experience with, operations, engineering, health physics, security, or event response as it relates to nuclear power plant or fuel facility operations, construction, maintenance and design. Include any particular experience in implementing the NRC Reactor Oversight Program, Construction Reactor Oversight Program, or Fuel Facility Oversight Program. Describe your ability to assess technical issues based on information available, including NRC regulations and documents (including backfit, industry standards, licensing bases, and licensee implementing procedures). Describe your experience with risk-informed regulation and the allegation process.

Education

For 0801 Series:

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

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:

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.

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.

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.

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.)

More detailed information about these alternatives are described in the U.S. Office of Personnel Management Qualification Standards Operating Manual which may be accessed at the following website:

For 1301 series:

Basic Requirements:

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.

Additional information

The duty location of this position is Atlanta, GA. In general, employees are expected to be in the office 4 days per pay period. Telework schedules are approved, on a case-by-case basis. If selected, telework will be determined in accordance with Agency policy.

Based on the staffing needs of the agency/area of consideration, additional selections may be made from this vacancy announcement.

How You Will Be Evaluated

You will be evaluated for this job based on how well you meet the qualifications above.

You will be evaluated for this job based on how well you meet the qualifications above.

When the application process is complete, your application will be reviewed to determine if you meet the job requirements. You will be rated based on the information provided in your resume and your responses to the vacancy questions to determine your level of knowledge, skill and ability related to the job requirements. If you are among the top candidates for this position, your application will be referred to the hiring manager.

Your resume and responses to the vacancy questions are of key importance for evaluating your skills, knowledge, and abilities as they relate to this position. Therefore, we encourage you to submit a thorough resume and responses to the vacancy announcement questions that directly relate to this position.

You may for this vacancy.

Required Documents

As a NRC employee you are required to submit your most recent Rating of Record (Performance Appraisal) or a statement saying that one is not available.

All supplemental documents can now be collected electronically and should be submitted before the closing date of this vacancy announcement. You have two choices for submitting your supplemental documents:

1. Use the "USAJOBS" feature to download documents from your USAJOBS portfolio; or

2. Use the "Upload" feature to upload documents directly from your computer. The following types of documents can be uploaded:

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If you are relying on your education to meet qualification requirements:

Education must be accredited by an accrediting institution recognized by the U.S. Department of Education in order for it to be credited towards qualifications. Therefore, provide only the attendance and/or degrees from .

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.