Summary This position is located in Division of Operating Reactor Safety (DORS), Operations Branch in Region IV, Arlington, TX. The supervisor is Dr. Heather Gepford, Branch Chief. This is a Bargaining Unit position in the National Treasury Employees Union, Chapter 208. This position requires up to 40% travel. Selectee will be subject to Confidential Financial Disclosure and security ownership restriction reporting requirements. Responsibilities The Senior Operations Engineer serves as a region-based senior inspector that leads, develops, prepares, administers, and evaluates written and operating examinations for applicants for Reactor Operator (RO) and Senior Reactor Operator (SRO) licenses for commercial nuclear reactor facilities; leads activities to inspect and evaluate the effectiveness of licensee programs to train, evaluate, and re-qualify licensed plant operating staff members; and leads and performs routine and reactive inspections and assessments of the effectiveness of licensee activities related to facility operations. The Senior Operations Engineer provides technical support and oversight for operator performance and licensing issues including providing formal presentations and training on related topics. The successful candidate must be a qualified Chief Examiner in accordance with IMC 1245, Appendix C-10 and will perform the full range of Senior Operations Engineer duties. Duties include but are not limited to: 1. Developing, preparing, and administering examinations to applicants for operation's and senior operators' licenses for nuclear reactors. 2. Integrating inspection findings into overall licensee assessment. 3. Assisting in the development of operator licensing regulatory policies, recommending improvements, and implementing procedures designed to improve the operator licensing process. 4. Performing a wide variety of lead duties, generally diverse and multi-disciplinary, associated with the inspection of power reactors. 5. Independently planning, scheduling, and determining the scope of inspection to be performed personally, or by a team (normally 4-6 inspectors). 6. Preparing individual reports and coordinating team reports of inspection findings to document whether the facility is being operated safely, the licensee's management control program is effective, and regulatory requirements are being satisfied. Requirements Conditions of Employment This is a Drug Testing position. Must be able to meet/maintain security and suitability requirements. 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. You must answer ALL job specific vacancy questions for this announcement. Incomplete applications will not be considered. All information in your resume and responses to the vacancy questions must be true and accurate. Your resume will be used to validate your responses to the vacancy questions. If we are unable to validate your responses, you will not be considered. Qualifications You must possess at least one year of specialized experience at or equivalent to the next lower grade level (i.e., GG-13). Such experience should have provided you with the full range of knowledge, skills and abilities addressed in the rating factor questions that are associated with this vacancy announcement as well as in your resume. SPECIALIZED EXPERIENCE is defined as work experience applying regulations, criteria, standards, guides, and general NRC policy to provide guidance to facility licensees and regional office operator licensing staff and to independently plan and coordinate staff review of operator licensing activities to assure the safe operation by licensed operators at nuclear power facilities. Education To qualify for these positions, you must meet BOTH basic education/professional knowledge requirements that apply to Federal engineering positions at all grade levels AND the specialized experience requirements outlined above no later than 30 calendar days after the closing date of this announcement and before placement in the position. Candidates for Federal Government professional engineering positions must meet certain basic professional knowledge requirements. Generally these knowledge requirements are met by having a bachelor's or higher degree in a relevant professional engineering discipline (e.g., mechanical, metallurgical, materials, nuclear, structural, chemical, electrical) from a school of engineering with at least one professional engineering curriculum accredited by the Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology (ABET). However, if you do not possess such a professional engineering degree, you may still satisfy the professional knowledge requirements if you have current Professional Engineer (P.E.) registration in one of the relevant disciplines from any U.S. State or Territory; or if you successfully passed an Engineer-in-Training (EIT) written examination administered by a State Board of Engineering Examiners; or if you have either a related professional degree or at least 60 semester hours of specified engineering-related college courses COMBINED WITH at least a year of professional engineering work experience performed under professional engineer supervision and guidance. Note: Engineering technology degrees are not generally qualifying unless supplemented by other evidence of the individual's professional knowledge (e.g., current P.E. license or EIT examination results, as discussed above). More detailed information about these alternatives for meeting the knowledge requirements for Federal professional engineering jobs are described in the U.S. Office of Personnel Management Qualification Standards Operating Manual which may be accessed at the following Web site: OPM Qualification Standards for 0800 Professional Engineering Positions Additional Information The duty location of this position is Arlington, Texas. 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 and the Collective Bargaining Agreement, if applicable. Based on the staffing needs of the agency/area of consideration, additional selections may be made from this vacancy announcement.