Summary

This position is part of the WAPA-RMR-Rocky Mountain Region. As an Power System Real-Time Electrical Engineer, you will be responsible for predictive studies for the reliable operation of the Bulk Electric System (BES).

**This is not a remote position. The selectee will be required to be physically present at the Loveland, Colorado duty location.**

Duties

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As a Power System Real-Time Engineer, some of your duties will include, but are not limited to:

• Perform real-time studies, utilizing state estimation and power flow tools, to predict the state of the Bulk Electric System (BES) and offer mitigation strategies to promote the reliable operation of the BES.
• Direct, prepare, coordinate, and review operational real time studies.
• Prepares detailed reports and is an expert technical advisor regarding analyses of power system operations, Balancing Authority (BA) operations, Transmission Operator (TOP) operations associated with regional facilities operation.
• Responsible for the documentation, organization, and coordination of applicable compliance requirements.
• Train and mentor peers, and lower graded engineers, and other Operations personnel in the areas of compliance, real time state estimation, and operations support.

This is a developmental position with the Full-Performance Level at the AD-4.

Requirements

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Conditions of employment

• Must be a U.S. Citizen or National.
• This employer participates in the e-Verify program.
• Males born after 12/31/1959 must be registered for Selective Service.
• Suitable for Federal employment, as determined by a background investigation.
• May be required to successfully complete a probationary/trial period. Employees serving on a probationary or trial period may be terminated at any time during the probationary or trial period for performance, conduct, or business-related reasons in the interest of Federal service.
• In accordance with Executive Order 14170, applicants are encouraged to respond to the four short, free-response, essay questions in the questionnaire. Answers to these questions are not scored or rated. Your answers will be reviewed by the hiring manager and agency leadership if you are referred for selection consideration.
• Limit your resume to no more than two (2) pages. If more than two pages are submitted, only the first two pages will be reviewed to determine your eligibility and qualifications. Your full resume will be made available to the hiring manager if you are referred.).
• This position requires irregular work schedules and/or shift work. The incumbent may be required to work rotating shifts and recurring overtime on short notice to include nights, weekends, and/or holidays.
• Occasional travel of up to 5-10% annually is required with overnight travel possible during all or part of that time.
• The incumbent must successfully complete and pass a physical, drug test, vision acuity and hearing examination upon onboarding and annually thereafter.

Qualifications

Qualification requirements in the vacancy announcements are based on the U.S. Office of Personnel Management (OPM) Qualification Standards Handbook, which contains federal qualification standards. This handbook is available on the Office of Personnel Management's website located at: https://www.opm.gov/policy.

BASIC REQUIREMENTS:

This position has an Individual Occupational Requirement (IOR) for the 0800 Series as described below that must be met:

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

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, t he 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.)

SPECIALIZED EXPERIENCE: Applicants must posses one year (52 weeks) of specialized experience equivalent in difficulty and responsibility to the next lower grade level in the Federal service. Specialized experience is experience that has equipped the applicant with the particular knowledge, skills, and abilities to successfully perform the duties of the position. The experience need not have been in the Federal government.

To qualify for the AD-03/GS-11:

Applicants must have one year (52 weeks) of experience at the AD-02/GS-09 grade level or equivalent pay band in the Federal service. This experience includes:

Conducting studies and using both real time state estimation and offline power flow tools, to gain proficiency sufficient to provide technical direction for changing system configurations, switching activities related to forced outages, and general switching.

OR

SUBSTITUTION OF EDUCATION: Three (3) years of progressively higher-level graduate education leading to a Ph.D. degree or Ph.D. or equivalent doctoral degree, if related.

OR

Combination of education and experience to successfully perform the duties of the position.

To qualify for the AD-04/GS-12:

Applicants must have one year (52 weeks) of experience at the AD-03/GS-11 grade level or equivalent pay band in the Federal service. This experience MUST include all the following:

• Investigating and providing electrical engineering oversight and expertise in developing operating procedures for constrained path or congested transmission management; and
• Providing technical assistance to real-time personnel groups such as Automatic Generation Control (AGC), Transmission Switching Operations (TSO), Transmission Scheduling and Security (TSS), Outage Coordination; and
• Using both real time state estimation and offline power flow tools, to gain proficiency sufficient to provide technical direction for changing system configurations, switching activities related to forced outages, and general switching; and
• Hold certification in either a Reliability Coordinator or Balancing and Interchange North American Electric Reliability Corporation (NERC) certification. NOTE: YOU MUST PROVIDE A COPY OF NERC CERTIFICATE WITH YOUR APPLICATION. FAILURE TO DO SO WILL RESULT IN YOUR REMOVAL OF CONSIDERATION AT THE AD-4)

"Experience" refers to paid and unpaid experience. Examples of qualifying unpaid experience may include: volunteer work done through National Service programs (such as Peace Corps and AmeriCorps); as well as work for other community-based philanthropic and social organizations. 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.

Physical Demands: The work is primarily sedentary and requires sitting in one position for long periods of time with intense concentration. Must possess normal color vision, visual acuity and hearing sufficiently to detect audible and visual alarms presented and have the ability to mentally analyze material observed and form a logical and appropriate course of action.

Work Environment: The work is performed primarily in an office setting. The position is in association with the continuous operation control center, requiring incumbent to work up to 12 hour rotating shifts, including nights, weekends, and holidays to provide 24/7 control center engineering support.

Education

If you are relying on your education to meet qualification requirements:

Education must be accredited by an accrediting institution recognized by the U.S. Department of Education in order for it to be credited towards qualifications. Therefore, provide only the attendance and/or degrees from schools accredited by accrediting institutions recognized by the U.S. Department of Education.

Foreign education must be reviewed by an organization recognized by the U.S. Department of Education. For special instructions pertaining to foreign education and a list of organizations that can evaluate foreign education, see the Department of Education website. DO NOT email or mail in any of your application documents. Documents will not be accepted outside of the online application system.

A copy of your informal transcripts are acceptable provided they reflect the degree awarded/conferred; however, if selected, a formal job offer will not be rendered until you provide a copy of your formal transcripts.

Additional information

• This job opportunity announcement may be used to fill additional similar vacancies across DOE.
• For general information on government-wide Telework polices visit: www.telework.gov.
• Applicants may request Reasonable Accommodation (RA) when applying or competing for a job due to a medical condition or to exercise religious beliefs. If you need reasonable accommodation in the application or selection process, please contact the Agency Contact listed on this vacancy announcement.

• If selection is made at a lower grade, promotion up to the full performance level may be made without further competition. However, promotion(s) will depend on the performance of the incumbent and are not guaranteed and are at the supervisor's discretion..
• The selectee for this position may be eligible to receive a recruitment or relocation incentive. You will need to sign an employment agreement to be eligible for this incentive.
• Permanent Change of Station (PCS) costs are not authorized.
• This position may be eligible for creditable service towards annual leave. Federal Employees earn annual leave at a rate (4, 6 or 8 hours per pay period) which is based on the number of years they have served as a Federal employee. DOE may offer newly-appointed Federal employee's credit for their job-related non-federal experience or active duty uniformed military service. This credited service can be used in determining the rate at which they earn annual leave. Such credit must be requested and approved prior to the appointment date and is not guaranteed.

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Candidates should be committed to improving the efficiency of the Federal government, passionate about the ideals of our American republic, and committed to upholding the rule of law and the United States Constitution.

Benefits

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A career with the U.S. government provides employees with a comprehensive benefits package. As a federal employee, you and your family will have access to a range of benefits that are designed to make your federal career very rewarding. Opens in a new windowLearn more about federal benefits.

Eligibility for benefits depends on the type of position you hold and whether your position is full-time, part-time or intermittent. Contact the hiring agency for more information on the specific benefits offered.