Civil Engineer (Hydraulics)

Summary Reclamation is seeking a career professional looking for an opportunity to capitalize on their expertise as a Civil Engineer (Hydraulics). You can make a difference in the West by assisting in meeting increasing water demands while protecting the environment. Duty Location: Lakewood, Colorado Responsibilities The Hydraulic Investigations and Laboratory Services group, located within the Bureau of Reclamations Technical Service Center in Lakewood, Colorado, applies physical hydraulic modeling, computational fluid dynamics modeling, hydraulic analysis, and field measurements expertise to help solve critical water issues in the western United States. Staff operate the Bureau of Reclamations world-recognized 54,000 sq. ft. Hydraulics Laboratory, with an 88-year history of developing state-of-the-art hydraulic engineering technologies. Engineers use cutting edge equipment to address site-specific needs and conduct applied engineering research studies that benefit all Reclamation projects. Civil Engineers develop computational fluid dynamics models to solve difficult problems and visualize solutions. Engineers also travel to field locations to test hydraulic structures and equipment. Each employee is given the opportunity to develop their skills through formal training, on-the-job mentorship, and professional engagement and is encouraged to bring their unique expertise to enhance the groups capabilities. Duties are listed at the full performance level: Performs civil engineering duties by conducting physical and numerical modeling and field assessments, collecting data, and completing data analysis in the area of hydraulics, fluid mechanics, and water resources. Applies engineering concepts and practices in hydraulics and the principles of fluid mechanics to plan, coordinate, and conduct studies on civil structures such as dams, canals, pumping plants, pipelines, fishways, hydraulic machinery, and associated river and reservoir systems. Performs hydraulic engineering studies and on projects related to evaluating and improving the design performance of hydraulic structures and equipment, developing environmental solutions for river restoration, fish passage, and fish protection, ensuring the safety of dams, and managing and conserving water. Participates in scientific and applied engineering research, including laboratory and field investigations, in support Reclamations mission. Prepares written technical documentation such as technical laboratory reports, technical memorandums, engineering study analyses and results, peer-reviewed research publications, model drawings, and technical proposals. Makes oral presentations of technical work to internal team members and external technical briefings to Reclamation clients and collaborators. Requirements Conditions of Employment You must be a U.S. Citizen or U.S. National. You must be suitable for federal employment, determined by a background investigation. You must submit a resume and supporting documentation (see Required Documents).You must submit eligibility documents for veterans consideration (see Required Documents).You must meet any minimum education and/or experience requirements (see Qualifications).You must submit transcript(s) to verify education requirements (see Qualifications/Education). Individuals serving in Recent Graduate appointments may be non-competitively converted to a permanent position with the Bureau of Reclamation upon successful completion of the program, but conversion is neither promised nor guaranteed. To be eligible for conversion to a permanent, these Recent Graduates must also: Be a U.S. Citizen or National; Have completed at least one year of continuous service; Have demonstrated successful job performance as documented by a rating of record (or summary rating) of at least Fully Successful or equivalent; Be recommended for conversion by their manager or supervisor; Meet the Office of Personnel Managements qualification standards for the position to which the Recent Graduate will be converted (which may include a positive education requirement); and Meet all agency and program specific requirements as specified in their individual Participant Agreement. If converted to a permanent or term appointment, the anticipated target position is GS-0810-11; however, that may change based on the need of the organization at that time. The full performance level of the target position will be dependent on the type of position and will be determined at the time of conversion. Recent Graduates converted to a term position in the competitive service may subsequently be non-competitively converted to a career or career-conditional appointment without further competition. Qualifications To qualify for this position, you must meet BOTH the Basic Qualification Requirement and the Additional Requirements. Your resume must clearly describe your relevant experience. A copy of your unofficial transcripts must be provided with your application. You must meet all Eligibility and Qualification requirements by 10/18/2024 Future Graduates: You must meet all requirements AND be able to start working no later than 07/18/2025. No Exceptions to extend past this date. BASIC QUALIFICATION REQUIREMENT A. Degree: Engineering. To be acceptable, the program must: (1) lead to a bachelors 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), 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 Boards eminence provision as a manufacturing engineer typically would be rated eligible only for manufacturing engineering positions. -or- 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 of Columbia, Guam, and Puerto Rico. -or- 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. -or- 4. Related curriculum — Successful completion of a curriculum leading to a bachelors 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 bachelors 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.) ~AND~ ADDITIONAL REQUIREMENT In addition to meeting the basic education requirement, you must also meet one of the following for each grade level. Specialized experience is obtained after the requirements noted under Basic Qualifications Requirements are met. GS-09 A. Specialized Experience: To qualify, applicants must have one full year of specialized experience comparable in scope and responsibility to the GS-07 grade level in the Federal service (obtained in either the public or private sectors). To meet specialized experience, your resume must describe experience that demonstrates the particular knowledge, skills, and abilities as follows: Assisting experienced engineers with conducting routine hydraulic engineering assessments that involve physical hydraulic modeling, numerical modeling, hydraulic field investigations, and hydraulic analyses. Applicant must have communication skills that include written technical documents and oral presentations. B. Education: 2 years of progressively higher-level graduate education leading to a masters degree or masters or equivalent graduate in a field which demonstrates the knowledge, skills, and abilities necessary to do the work of the position. -or- C. Combination of Education and Experience: A combination of education (noted in choice B) and specialized experience (noted in choice A) may be used to qualify for this position if the computed percentage of the requirements is at least 100%. You must include months, years and hours per week worked to receive credit for your work and/or volunteer experience. One year of specialized experience is equivalent to 12 months at 40 hours per week. Part-time hours prorated. You will not receive any credit for experience that does not indicate exact hours per week. 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. Education This vacancy announcement allows substituting education for experience at the GS-09 and GS-11 grade levels. You must submit a copy of college transcript(s) (unofficial copy is acceptable) to support claimed education if substituting education for experience. Transcripts must include the name of the college or university and date the degree was conferred. A typed list of courses, grades, semester/quarter hours, GPA, etc. will not be accepted. Non-submission may result in being rated not-qualified for the position. This position has a mandatory education requirement. You must submit a copy of college transcript(s) (unofficial copy is acceptable) to support claimed education if substituting education for experience. Transcripts must include the name of the college or university and date the degree was conferred. Non-submission will result in being rated not-qualified for the position.You will be required to provide official college transcripts to verify educational qualifications, if selected. An official transcript must be sent directly from the Universitys Registrars office and must be provided from the institution awarding the degree. Academic transcripts certified by notary publics are NOT official. Official transcripts must be submitted prior to reporting to work as a condition of employment. Failure to submit official transcripts may be grounds for dismissal or rescission of the job offer. Accreditation: Only education from an accredited college or university recognized by the Department of Education is acceptable to meet education requirements or to substitute for experience, if applicable. For additional info, refer to the Office of Personnel Management and U.S. Department of Education. Foreign Education: To receive credit for education completed outside the United States, you must show proof that the education has been submitted to a private organization that specializes in interpretation of foreign educational credentials and such education has been deemed at least equivalent to that gained in conventional U.S. education programs. For additional info, refer to the U.S. Network for Education Information. Additional Information You may be required to serve a one year trial period. Current, permanent Federal employees who are selected from this announcement may be required to serve a probationary period. This is a career development opportunity in the excepted service under the Bureau of Reclamation Pathways Recent Graduate Program. The candidate selected to fill the position will be required to complete a Participant Agreement the spells out the requirements of the program, including a requirement to complete 40 hours of formal interactive training directly related to your position in the first year, assignment of a mentor, and developing an Individual Development Plan (IDP) to identify anticipated training and development opportunities. Reclamation has determined that the duties of this position are suitable for telework and you may be allowed to telework with supervisory approval.DOI uses E-Verify to confirm the employment eligibility of all newly hired employees. To learn more about E-Verify, including applicant rights and responsibilities, please visit https://www.e-verify.gov/This position is designated as a LOW RISK position. It requires a fully completed and favorably adjudicated SF85 Background Investigation (T1 or equivalent) that is current (within the last 5 years). This is a condition of employment. Male applicants born after December 31, 1959 must certify registration with the Selective Service System or that the applicant is exempt from having to do so under the Selective Service Law. Go to: https://www.sss.govThis is a non-bargaining unit position. Additional vacancies may be filled using this job announcement.