Direct Hire Authority (DHA) Announcement

Post Secondary Student or Recent Graduate

Engineering Division, Hydrology, Hydraulics and Coastal Engineering Branch

Water Management Section

Seattle District

Open Date: 5/25/2023

Closing Date: 5/25/2023

Position Title: Recent Graduate – Civil Engineer (Hydraulics), GS-0810-09 Target 11/12

Type of Appointment: Permanent Location: U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Seattle District, Seattle, WA

Special Salary Rate Range for the GS-09 being recruited: $81,708 - $96,414

Duties: Serves as a Hydraulic Engineer and Reservoir Regulator. At the developmental level you will receive training and closer supervision until you reach the target grade (GS-12). Duties of this position include, but are not limited to:

• Assisting with the water management and operations of reservoirs and reservoir systems in a large geographic area within the Seattle District boundaries, which include both snowmelt-dominated and rainfall runoff-dominated watersheds.
• Applying computational and analytical computer modeling tools for use in reservoir systems planning, water management operation studies, as well as assisting in the development of new or supplemental tools to accomplish the same.
• Assisting with the development and preparation of water management coordination plans for the operation of flood control and multi-purpose dam and reservoir projects; water control, operations and maintenance manuals; water management operation planning studies; hydraulic engineering studies; hydrologic studies and meteorological studies.
• Assisting with special hydrologic research investigations and statistical analysis for specific geographic areas and post-event hydrologic reports.
• Assisting with feasibility reports and design memoranda for proposed projects with water management and hydraulic engineering aspects, and with environmental assessments or impact statements.

Qualifications:
To qualify for this Civil Engineer (Hydraulics) position at the GS-09 level:

RECENT GRADUATE REQUIREMENT:
This position is open to recent graduates who have completed, within the previous two years, a qualifying associates, bachelors, masters, professional, doctorate, vocational or technical degree or certificate from a qualifying educational institution. (Veterans unable to apply within two years of receiving their degree due to military service obligation have up to six years after degree completion to apply). (You must provide a copy of your transcripts showing the degree conferred.)
 

NOTE: Applications can be accepted from students who expect to complete qualifying education NLT 31 JUL 2023. (Degrees MUST be conferred no later than 31 JUL 2023.)

BASIC REQUIREMENT FOR SERIES 0810:
A. Degree: Bachelor’s degree (or higher degree) in engineering. To be acceptable, the program must: (1) lead to a bachelor’s degree (or higher degree) in a school of engineering with at least one program accredited by the Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology (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:

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) examination, or any other written test required for professional registration, by an engineering licensure board in the various States, the District ofColumbia, Guam, or 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 A above. The courses must be fully acceptable toward meeting the requirements of an engineering program.

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 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.

In addition to meeting the basic requirement above, to qualify for this position you must also meet the qualification requirements listed below:

FOR THE GS-09 LEVEL:
Specialized Experience: One year of specialized experience which includes performing hydrologic or hydraulic analyses. This definition of specialized experience is typical of work performed at the second lower grade/level position in the federal service (GS-07).

OR

Education: Master's or equivalent graduate degree or 2 full years of progressively higher level graduate education leading to such a degree in a field which demonstrates the knowledge, skills, and abilities necessary to do the work of the position.

OR

Combination of Education and Experience: A combination of education and experience may be used to qualify for this position as long as the computed percentage of the requirements is at least 100%. To compute the percentage of the requirements, divide your total months of experience by 12. Then divide the total number of completed graduate semester hours (or equivalent) beyond the first year (total graduate semester hours minus 18) by 18. Add the two percentages.

Area of Consideration: All U.S. Citizens
This is a Direct Hire Authority (DHA) solicitation utilizing the Direct Hire Authority (DHA) for Post-Secondary Students & Recent Graduates.

Other Information:

• Obtain and maintain a valid state driver’s license.
• Incumbent will work weekends, nights, and holidays during flood periods or other emergency situations and may receive calls at home during non-duty hours requiring immediate action. • Up to 10% business travel may be required.
• Moving assistance is not authorized.
• The following incentives may be authorized: Student Loan Repayment, Advanced In-hire, Recruitment Incentive or advanced leave accrual.

How to Apply: This is a DHA announcement for a permanent position at the GS-09, level with non-competitive promotion potential through intervening grades of GS-11/12.

Anyone wishing consideration for this opportunity must submit the following:

1. Cover Letter (Optional)
2. Resume
3. Transcripts (An unofficial copy of current transcripts is acceptable)

Send the above items via email to: Kevin Shaffer, kevin.p.shaffer@usace.army.mil

Point of Contact: Kevin Shaffer, kevin.p.shaffer@usace.army.mil (206) 764-3660
Chief, Water Management Section, Seattle District, Army Corps of Engineers

Mindy Kincaid, mindy.s.kincaid@usace.army.mil (206) 422-0579
Administrative Officer, Engineering Division, Seattle, District, Army Corps of Engineers

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