Background

The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) prides itself on creating a work environment rich in opportunity, diversity, leadership, training, teamwork and work life balance. Begin a challenging career as part of a select group of professionals who protect people and the environment with the peaceful use of nuclear materials in medicine, industry, and research.

Duties

Reactor Systems Engineers at the NRC have responsibilities that include:

1) serving as reviewers or researchers in the area of nuclear power plant reactor systems, which includes primary systems, containment systems, reactor core or fuel design, analytical codes and numerical methods used to evaluate reactor systems, evaluations of operational performance, evaluations of source term and severe accident analyses, evaluation of design basis event analyses, and research related to these areas;
2) performing analyses or evaluating analytical results or the results of regulatory research related to performance, design and operation of operating reactors, research reactors, new lightwater or non-lightwater reactors, non-power production and utilization facilities and nuclear fuel designs; supporting more senior engineers or project leaders in the resolution of technical issues, research and licensing problems;
3) providing technical assistance and advice relating to the reactor safety aspects of nuclear power plants.
NOTE: These positions are being filled using Direct Hire Authority. NRC utilizes Direct Hire Authority to fill vacancies in a variety of engineering & physical science occupations. This vacancy announcement is a REPOSITORY of applications. Applications MAY BE periodically referred to hiring managers both during the open period and after the closing date. Because of the large number of applications anticipated, applicants' status will not be updated.
Please read the official Job Opportunity Announcement on USAJOBS.gov in its entirety prior to submitting your application for consideration. You are applying to a resume database. Your resume and any documents submitted will be retained and may be used at any time during or after the open period of this Public Notice.
U.S. Citizenship is REQUIRED.

Qualifications

All positions, dependent upon grade levels being filled, require some level of related experience or education. (Job family series is professional engineering).
Candidates may qualify based on a combination of Education and Experience: Candidates may meet the basic qualification requirements for engineers by having at least a Bachelor's degree in an appropriate professional engineering field prior to appointment and, dependent on the grade level of the position, one year of SPECIALIZED EXPERIENCE at the next lower grade level, or equivalent, in an occupation listed or a closely related occupation performing similar duties.

To qualify for GG-11: Doctorate degree (PhD) in or related to an Engineering discipline OR Masters Degree and one year of post degree work experience OR Bachelors degree and two years of post-degree work experience in or related to Engineering.
GG-12 and above: Requires 1 year of experience at the next lower grade level in the Federal service or equivalent experience in the private or public sector.
SPECIALIZED EXPERIENCE is defined as experience technically and analytically reviewing, researching or evaluating design, operation, and performance of reactor systems and nuclear fuel designs for nuclear reactors. Please indicate in your resume and/or optional cover letter how you meet the qualifications for this position.

The ideal candidate for these positions must demonstrate:

1) Demonstrated capacity to apply the theories, principles, and practices in the field of reactor systems, operation and nuclear fuel sufficient to technically and analytically review, research or evaluate design, operation, and performance for a variety of operating reactors, research reactors, new lightwater or non-lightwater reactors, and non-power production and utilization facilities and nuclear fuel designs;
2) Demonstrated ability in formulating sound technical judgements, making technical, policy or research recommendations, and finding solutions to unique first of a kind challenges regarding issues pertaining to event evaluation, operating experience and numerical modeling in the areas of core physics, fuel behavior, reactivity control systems, containment systems and core thermal-hydraulic performance;
3)Ability to plan, direct, coordinate, and manage complex, highly technical projects;
4) Ability to present technical information both orally and in writing; and
5) Ability to develop and implement successful approaches to problem solving and conflict resolution.
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 and additional space provided for supplemental response.

Education

You must include an unofficial or official copy of your college and/or university transcripts with your application. Education must be from an accredited (or pre-accredited) college or university recognized by the U.S. Department of Education. If you are qualifying based on foreign education, you must submit proof of credibility of education as evaluated by a credentialing agency.

Qualification for All Professional Engineering 0800 Series:

Basic Educational 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 above.
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.)

How to Apply

Visit www.nrc.gov Review the NRC Career Opportunities page, click on Apply Now then Search for Job Opportunities and click on current NRC vacancies. Find the Public Notice for Direct Hire (Reactor Systems Engineer) Job Announcement Number ALL OFC-2025-0009 and apply on-line by December 7, 2024. Be sure to answer all of the Vacancy Questions. We strongly encourage you to read the entire official announcement before you submit your application for this position so that you correctly submit all necessary materials and documentation.

If you are viewing this opportunity after December 7th please visit NRC's website and discover additional opportunities for which you might be interested.