Summary This position is located in the Office of Nuclear Regulatory Research, Division of Systems Analysis, Fuel and Source Term Code Dev Branch. The supervisor is Hossein Esmaili. This position is in the Bargaining Unit with the National Treasury Employees Union, Chapter 208. This position is subject to Confidential Financial Disclosure reporting requirements. This position is subject to security ownership restriction reporting requirements. Responsibilities The successful candidate will perform the full range of Reactor Systems Engineer - Severe Accident Analyst duties. Such duties include but are not limited to: Performing independent (including in-house) studies of detailed severe accident analysis using state-of-practice severe accident computer codes. These studies are performed in a reliable manner and use technically sound approaches. These analytical studies focus on various types reactor systems, and experimental facilities used in support of resolving technical issues. Maintaining state-of-the-art knowledge and expertise in the area of severe accident and radiological source terms, and in the state-of-practice severe accident code development. Maintaining and developing the NRC severe accident code, such as MELCOR, to meet emerging needs introduced by small modular reactors, micro-reactors, and non-LWR advanced reactor designs. Develops and implements a long-term strategy to maintain state-of-practice analytical capabilities. Performing severe accident modeling with state-of-practice code, such as MELCOR, in support of Agency research needs as well as urgent licensing needs of user offices. Interacting with internal stakeholders (Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation, Office of Nuclear Materials Safety and Safeguards) having interest and responsibility in research area, Developing and implementing solutions to User Need Requests and other emerging issues pertaining to the area of severe accident code development, analysis and synthesis of radiological source terms. Developing, planning and implementing analytic and experimental research programs. Providing technical direction to contractors involved in various severe accident code development and severe accident and source term research, and coordinates support to users of these programs. Providing technical review of obtained experimental data and analytical efforts, and integrates program results with code development needs, interfaces with user offices and assures timely dissemination of results to user offices. Requirements Conditions of Employment Background investigation leading to a clearance is required for new hires This is a Drug Testing position. U.S. Citizenship Required 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. Key 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-13) in the Federal service or equivalent experience in the private or public sector. The ideal candidate will be able to demonstrate the following: 1. Demonstrated knowledge of engineering principles and mathematical methods for reactor design and analysis, particularly relating to severe accident behavior and radiological source term, and scientific principles as related to the development and assessment of analytical codes. Examples may include experience with reactor design and analysis, particularly relating to severe accident behavior and radiological source terms related to operating, new and advanced (light water and non-light water) reactor designs as well as advanced nuclear fuel concepts (AT/HBU/IE). Examples may also include experience in performing severe accident analyses and synthesis of radiological source terms. 2. Demonstrated ability in performing safety analysis using severe accident codes (e.g., MELCOR) for operating, new and advanced reactor designs. Examples may include experience performing safety analysis using severe accident codes for operating, new and advanced reactor designs and to evaluate the accuracy and reliability of the results for nuclear reactor and beyond design basis accidents. 3. Demonstrated ability to coordinate, plan, develop, and provide technical oversight and direction of analytical and experimental research programs or projects. Examples may include experience in reviewing, coordinating, and managing the activities of an analytical and experimental research program or project within schedule and resource limitations, in evaluating varied proposals and approaches to a program or project’s challenges, and recommending and implementing changes for improving the effectiveness and efficiency of a program or project. 4. Demonstrated ability to effectively communicate technical information both orally and in writing. Examples may include leading complex technical discussions, consolidating complex and diverse opinions, data, or analysis results into concise, balanced and well-founded recommendations and producing high quality technical reports to diverse stakeholders. 5. Demonstrated ability to establish and maintain effective work relationships with management and staff, coworkers, and personnel of external organizations. Examples may include experience using tact, diplomacy, and negotiation to achieve cooperation and develop consensus, experience using informal and formal networks to build support for programs and serving as a point of contact with other program offices, the Commission, industry, advisory groups, international organizations, or other stakeholders to provide advice and recommendations on research areas and initiatives to enhance regulatory effectiveness and efficiency. SPECIALIZED EXPERIENCE is defined as: experience which provides knowledge of modeling approaches related to severe accidents and source terms. Examples may include, but are not limited to, experience in the development and use of severe accident and source term computer codes and/or experience supporting the resolution of relevant severe accidents and source terms technical issues related to operating Light Water Reactors (LWRs), advanced fuel concepts (i.e., ATF/HBU/IE), spent fuel pool, spent fuel casks, or non-LWR advanced reactor designs. 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. Education Qualification for All Professional Engineering 0800 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: 1. 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. 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.) 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: https://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/classification-qualifications/general-schedule-qualification-standards/0800/nuclear-engineering-series-0840/ Additional Information The duty location of this position is Rockville, MD. In general, employees are expected to be in the office at a minimum of 4 days per pay period**. Telework schedules, including full-time telework, are approved, on a case-by-case basis. If selected, telework will be determined in accordance with Agency policy and the Collective Bargaining Agreement, if applicable.