Architect/Civil Engineer (Interdisciplinary)

Duties

What will I do in this position if hired?

In the Architect/Civil Engineer (Interdisciplinary) (IC-12) position, you will serve as an Architect/Civil Engineer, providing technical assistance for FEMA's hazard mitigation grant programs, with the goal of reducing risk to natural hazards. The ideal candidate will have experience developing or reviewing grant applications for technical feasibility and cost-effectiveness using FEMA-approved Benefit Cost Analysis (BCA) software or methodology.

Typical assignments include:

• Providing engineering or architectural advice to Mitigation staff as a subject matter expert, and collaborating with FEMA staff on identifying, developing, and/or reviewing Mitigation projects.
• Serving as regional expert in Benefit-Cost Analysis (BCA) using FEMA-approved software or methodologies to support cost-effectiveness determinations for potential mitigation grant projects.
• Providing formal and informal technical assistance and training to grant recipients and sub-recipients on best practices for developing cost effective BCAs.
• Providing mitigation project application review support through technical feasibility, program eligibility, and cost-effectiveness for Mitigation grant programs.
• Reviewing architectural designs for mitigation techniques and compliance to grant program eligibility requirements.
• Suggesting solutions to accomplish mitigation goals and implementing strategies for leveraging multiple funding sources.
• Analyzing data or technical information from a variety of resources to prepare oral briefings and written reports for technical and non-technical audiences.

In the Architect/Civil Engineer (Interdisciplinary) (IC-13) position, you will serve as an Architect/Civil Engineer, providing technical guidance on hazard mitigation projects to reduce the risks from disasters and natural hazards. The ideal candidate will have experience providing engineering or architectural advisory services on natural hazard mitigation issues and benefit-cost analysis concepts, and experience providing technical assistance and training to state, local or tribal governments.
Typical assignments include:

• Providing administrative and engineering /architectural advice and assistance to internal and external customers related to mitigation techniques for proposed mitigation projects.
• Using Benefit-Cost Analysis (BCA) software or methodology to provide expert-level technical assistance and guidance related to mitigation projects.
• Conducting feasibility, project effectiveness, and cost-effectiveness technical reviews for mitigation program applications.
• Providing code analysis and compliance in connection with building envelope and surrounding property.
• Reviewing architectural/engineering designs for mitigation techniques and compliance to policy guidelines.
• Delivering training to stakeholders related to building cost-effective mitigation projects.

What else do I need to know?

At FEMA, our mission is to help people before, during and after disasters, and every employee at FEMA has a role in emergency management. Every FEMA employee has regular and recurring emergency management responsibilities, though not every position requires routine deployment to disaster sites. All positions are subject to recall around the clock for emergency management operations, which may require irregular work hours, work at locations other than the official duty station, and may include duties other than those specified in the employee's official position description. Travel requirements in support of emergency operations may be extensive in nature (weeks to months), with little advance notice, and may require employees to relocate to emergency sites with physically austere and operationally challenging conditions.

This announcement is for a position as a CORE (Cadre of On-Call Response/Recovery Employee). CORE employees are full-time employees hired to directly support the response and recovery efforts related to disasters. Appointments to CORE positions are typically between two years and four years in duration and may be renewed based upon workload needs and funding availability. Employees are hired under the Robert T. Stafford Act and are excluded from the provisions of title 5, United States Code, governing jobs in the competitive service. They can be hired under a streamlined process instead of a competitive process. After three years of continuous service, Stafford Act employees may be granted competitive eligibility to apply for permanent full-time positions at FEMA.

FEMA is committed to ensuring that its workforce reflects the diversity of the nation. At FEMA, our workforce includes the many identities, races, ethnicities, backgrounds, abilities, ages, cultures, and beliefs of the people we serve. To learn about FEMA's ongoing diversity and inclusion efforts, reasonable accommodation process, and the FEMA Core Values, please visit .

Requirements

Conditions of Employment

To ensure the accomplishment of our mission, DHS requires every employee to be reliable and trustworthy. To meet those standards, all selected applicants must undergo, successfully pass, and maintain a background investigation as a condition of placement into this position. This may include a credit check after initial job qualifications are determined, a review of financial issues, such as delinquency in the payment of debts, child support and/or tax obligations, as well as certain criminal offenses and illegal use or possession of drugs (please visit: Mythbuster on Federal Hiring Policies for additional information). For more information on background investigations for Federal jobs, please visit OPM Investigations .

Conditions of Employment:

• You must successfully pass a background investigation.
• You must be able to obtain and maintain a Government travel card.
• Selective service registration is required for males born after 12/31/59.
• Travel may be required.

Qualifications

All qualifications and eligibility requirements must be met by the closing date of the announcement.

Basic Requirements:

Degree: architecture; or related field that included 60 semester hours of course work in architecture or related disciplines of which at least (1) 30 semester hours were in architectural design, and (2) 6 semester hours were in each of the following: structural technology, properties of materials and methods of construction, and environmental control systems.

or

Combination of education and experience -- college-level education, training, and/or technical experience that furnished (1) a thorough knowledge of the arts and sciences underlying professional architecture, and (2) a good understanding, both theoretical and practical, of the architectural principles, methods, and techniques and their applications to the design and construction or improvement of buildings. The adequacy of such background must be demonstrated by at least one of the following:

Related Curriculum: Degree in architectural engineering may be accepted as satisfying in full the basic requirements, provided the completed course work in architectural engineering provided knowledge, skills, and abilities substantially equivalent to those provided in the courses specified in paragraph A. The curriculum for a degree in either architecture or architectural engineering covers function, esthetics, site, structure, economics, mechanical-electrical, and other engineering problems related to the design and construction of buildings primarily (but not exclusively) intended to house human activities. The courses required for a degree in architecture generally place emphasis upon planning, esthetics, and materials and methods of construction, while the courses for an architectural engineering degree place equal or greater weight on the technical engineering aspects such as structural systems, mechanical systems, and the properties of materials. Because of this difference in emphasis, persons with degrees in architecture may have a preference for work assignments that offer greater opportunities for them to express their artistic and creative abilities. As a result, they may be more concerned with planning and design aspects of architecture, and persons with degrees in architectural engineering may be more engaged in aspects emphasizing technical engineering considerations.

Experience: An applicant lacking a degree in architecture must have had l year of experience in an architect's office or in architectural work for each year short of graduation from a program of study in architecture. In the absence of college courses, 5 years of such experience is required. This experience must have demonstrated that the applicant has acquired a thorough knowledge of the fundamental principles and theories of professional architecture.

OR

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:

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

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.

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.

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.)

To qualify for this Architect/Civil Engineer (Interdisciplinary) position at the IC-12 level, you must possess one full year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the IC-11 level in the Federal government, which has equipped you with the skills needed to successfully perform the duties of the position. Experience may be obtained in the federal government, a state or local government, or private sector, and must demonstrate the following:

Analyzing design or engineering projects for cost-effectiveness, such as cost and/or benefit;

Interpreting design or construction guidelines and practices; and

Providing technical assistance to internal and external stakeholders.

To qualify for this Architect/Civil Engineer (Interdisciplinary) position at the IC-13 level, you must possess one full year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the IC-12 level in the Federal government, which has equipped you with the skills needed to successfully perform the duties of the position. Experience may be obtained in the federal government, a state or local government, or private sector, and must demonstrate the following:

Developing analytical approaches or methods to analyze projects for cost-effectiveness, such as cost, benefit, and/or risks;

Overseeing and/or managing Hazard Mitigation programs or projects; and

Providing technical guidance to internal and external stakeholders on hazard mitigation engineering and/or architectural concepts.

Education

Positive Education Requirement: This position has a positive education requirement, as outlined in the "requirements" section. You must submit a copy of your transcripts (unofficial are acceptable) with your online application. Once selected and prior to appointment, applicants must provide official college transcripts.

Education completed in foreign colleges or universities may be used to meet Federal qualification requirements if you can show that your foreign education is comparable to education received in accredited educational institutions in the United States. For example, specific courses accepted for college-level credit by an accredited U.S. college or university, or foreign education evaluated by an organization recognized for accreditation by the Department of Education as education equivalent to that gained in an accredited U.S. college or university. It is your responsibility to provide such evidence with your application. Visit the Department of Education's Recognition of Foreign Qualifications for more information.

Additional information

• STAFFORD ACT EXCEPTED SERVICE APPOINTMENTS: Cadre of On-Call Response/Recovery Employee (CORE) is an appointment type granted under the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act, Section 306 (b), which authorizes FEMA to appoint such temporary employees as necessary to accomplish work authorized under the Act. Appointments under this authority within FEMA are made to the excepted service and are nonpermanent in nature.
• If you receive a conditional offer of employment for this position, you will be required to complete an Optional Form 306, Declaration for Federal Employment , and to sign and certify the accuracy of all information in your application, prior to entry on duty. False statements on any part of the application may result in withdrawal of offer of employment, dismissal after beginning work, fine, or imprisonment.
• DHS uses E-verify, an internet-based system, to confirm the eligibility of all newly hired employees to work in the United States. Learn more about E-Verify , including your rights and responsibilities.
• The salary range indicated in this announcement reflects the minimum locality pay up to maximum locality pay for all duty locations listed. The range will be adjusted for selected duty location. General Schedule locality pay tables may be found under Salaries & Wages . Please note: first time hires to the Federal Government are typically hired at the Step 01.
• During the application process you will have an option to opt-in to make your resume available to hiring managers in the agency who have similar positions. Opting in does not impact your application for this announcement, nor does it guarantee further consideration for additional positions.

Please read the following important information to ensure we have everything we need to consider your application:

• Do not copy and paste the duties, specialized experience, or occupational assessment questionnaire from this announcement into your resume as that will not be considered a demonstration of your qualifications for this position.
• Please limit your resume to five pages. If more than five pages are submitted, only the first five pages will be reviewed to determine your eligibility and qualifications.
• Your resume serves as the basis for experience related qualification determinations, and you must highlight your most relevant and significant work experience and education (if applicable), as it relates to this job opportunity. Please use your own words, be clear, and specific when describing your work history. We cannot make assumptions regarding your experience.

• Benefits
  Help
  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 window Learn more about federal benefits .
  
  Review our 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.
  
  

How You Will Be Evaluated

You will be evaluated for this job based on how well you meet the qualifications above.

Are you qualifying based on your work experience?

• Qualifications are based on your ability to demonstrate in your resume that you possess one year of the specialized experience for this announcement at a comparable scope and responsibility. To ensure all of the essential information is in your resume, we encourage you to use the USAJOBS online Resume Builder . If you choose to use your own resume, it must contain the following information organized by experience/position: (1) job title, (2) name of employer, (3) start and end dates of each period of employment (from MM/DD/YY to MM/DD/YY), (4) detailed description of duties performed, accomplishments, and related skills, and (5) hours worked per week (part-time employment will be prorated in crediting experience). Federal experience/positions must also include the occupational series, grade level, and dates in which you held each grade level.
• Are you a current or former FEMA Reservist/Disaster Assistance Employee (DAE)? To accurately credit your experience from intermittent positions and Reservist Deployments, you must list the dates (from MM/DD/YY to MM/DD/YY) of deployments that are relevant to your qualifying experience, along with the job title and specific duties you were responsible for during each deployment.
• Determining length of General or Specialized Experience is dependent on the above information. Failure to provide the above information in your resume may result in your application being found "not qualified."
• 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 provides valuable training and experience that translates directly to paid employment. You will receive credit for all qualifying experience, including volunteer experience.
• For additional information on crediting experience and/or education, please reference the OPM General Schedule Qualification Standards

We will review your resume , supporting documentation, and your responses to the occupational questionnaire to ensure you meet the minimum qualification requirements listed in the announcement. If you are qualified, you may be referred to a hiring manager for consideration.

We recommend that you preview the online questions for this announcement before you start the application process. To preview, please review: .

• Benefits
  Help
  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 window Learn more about federal benefits .
  
  Review our 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.
  
  
• Required Documents
  
  As a new or existing federal employee, you and your family may have access to a range of benefits. Your benefits depend on the type of position you have - whether you're a permanent, part-time, temporary or an intermittent employee. You may be eligible for the following benefits, however, check with your agency to make sure you're eligible under their policies.
  
  Do not include any photos, personally identifying information (PII) (including birthday and social security numbers), or personal information such as age, gender, religious affiliation, medical history, etc.
  
• Your resume. Please limit your resume to five pages. If more than five pages are submitted, only the first five pages will be reviewed to determine your eligibility and qualifications. For resume writing guidance, please review the requirements section of this announcement or visit the USAJobs Resource Center.
• Your responses to the job questionnaire. You will be directed to the online job questionnaire once you begin the application process for this position.
• Are you a current or former federal employee? This position does not have any competitive eligibility requirements. However, you will need to submit a Standard Form (SF)-50, Notification of Personnel Action , which demonstrates your current/highest grade level. Examples of appropriate SF-50s include promotions, within-grade increases and accessions. Award SF-50's will not be accepted.
• Are you qualifying based on education? Submit a copy of your college transcripts (unofficial are acceptable) from accredited institutions. Once selected and prior to appointment, applicants must provide official college transcripts.
It is your responsibility to verify that any information entered or uploaded is received and is accurate. Determining your eligibility and qualifications is dependent on the supporting documentation and information provided, which may impact your referral for further consideration. If a document is not legible, Human Resources will not be able to view it in your application. All application materials, including transcripts, must be in English.

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 .

Failure to provide all of the required information as stated in this vacancy announcement may result in an ineligible rating or may affect the overall rating.


• How to Apply
  
  To apply for this position, you must complete the online application and submit the documentation specified in the Required Documents section above by 11:59pm (EST) on 04/30/2024.
  
  Please note that this announcement may close sooner than the published close date if the application limit is reached.
  
  • To begin, click the "Apply Online" button on the job announcement posting.
  • Follow the directions to register or login if you have an existing account.
  • Submit all required documents and complete the assessment questionnaire.
  • Upon completion of your application, you will receive an acknowledgement email.
  
  Note: One or more positions may be filled using this vacancy announcement. Applying to this announcement certifies that you give permission for DHS to share your application with others in DHS for similar positions.
  
  If you have questions about this announcement or the application process, please contact the Human Resources Specialist listed in the Agency Contact Information prior to the close of the announcement.
  
  An employee, job applicant, or an individual acting on behalf of the employee, may request a Reasonable Accommodation by emailing with "time sensitive" in the subject line.
  
  To review the common definitions of terms found in this announcement, please visit the DHS Common Definitions page.
  
  Agency contact information
  
  Alyssa Gillespy
  
  Email
  
  
  
  Learn more about this agency
  
  Next steps
  
  If you are found qualified, you may be referred to the hiring manager for further consideration. The hiring manager will review the list of qualified candidates and may conduct interviews of some candidates. Failure to complete the interview may result in removal from consideration.
  
  If you are selected, you will be notified by phone or email with a tentative job offer. If you fail to respond, fail to meet the conditions of employment, or fail any other pre-employment requirements (such as the background investigation), we may rescind a tentative job offer.
  
  For information on the Federal employment application process, please visit the USA Jobs Help Center . Any offers of employment made pursuant to this announcement will be consistent with all applicable authorities, including Presidential Memoranda, Executive Orders, interpretive U.S. Office of Personnel Management (OPM) guidance and U.S. Office of Management and Budget plans and policies concerning hiring. These authorities are subject to change.
  
  The OPM must authorize employment offers made to current or former political appointees. If you are currently, or have been within the last 5 years, a political Schedule A, Schedule C, Non-career SES or Presidential Appointee employee in the Executive Branch, you must disclose this information to the Human Resources Office.
  
  
• Fair and Transparent
  
  The Federal hiring process is set up to be fair and transparent. Please read the following guidance.
  
  • Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO) Policy
  • Reasonable accommodation policy
  • Financial suitability
  • Selective Service
  • New employee probationary period
  • Signature and false statements
  • Privacy Act
  • Social security number request
  
  

Required Documents

Do not include any photos, personally identifying information (PII) (including birthday and social security numbers), or personal information such as age, gender, religious affiliation, medical history, etc.

Your resume. Please limit your resume to five pages. If more than five pages are submitted, only the first five pages will be reviewed to determine your eligibility and qualifications. For resume writing guidance, please review the requirements section of this announcement or visit the USAJobs Resource Center.

Your responses to the job questionnaire. You will be directed to the online job questionnaire once you begin the application process for this position.

Are you a current or former federal employee? This position does not have any competitive eligibility requirements. However, you will need to submit a Standard Form (SF)-50, Notification of Personnel Action , which demonstrates your current/highest grade level. Examples of appropriate SF-50s include promotions, within-grade increases and accessions. Award SF-50's will not be accepted.

Are you qualifying based on education? Submit a copy of your college transcripts (unofficial are acceptable) from accredited institutions. Once selected and prior to appointment, applicants must provide official college transcripts.

It is your responsibility to verify that any information entered or uploaded is received and is accurate. Determining your eligibility and qualifications is dependent on the supporting documentation and information provided, which may impact your referral for further consideration. If a document is not legible, Human Resources will not be able to view it in your application. All application materials, including transcripts, must be in English.

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 .

Failure to provide all of the required information as stated in this vacancy announcement may result in an ineligible rating or may affect the overall rating.

How to Apply

To apply for this position, you must complete the online application and submit the documentation specified in the Required Documents section above by 11:59pm (EST) on 04/30/2024.

Please note that this announcement may close sooner than the published close date if the application limit is reached.

• To begin, click the "Apply Online" button on the job announcement posting.
• Follow the directions to register or login if you have an existing account.
• Submit all required documents and complete the assessment questionnaire.
• Upon completion of your application, you will receive an acknowledgement email.

Note: One or more positions may be filled using this vacancy announcement. Applying to this announcement certifies that you give permission for DHS to share your application with others in DHS for similar positions.

If you have questions about this announcement or the application process, please contact the Human Resources Specialist listed in the Agency Contact Information prior to the close of the announcement.

An employee, job applicant, or an individual acting on behalf of the employee, may request a Reasonable Accommodation by emailing with "time sensitive" in the subject line.

To review the common definitions of terms found in this announcement, please visit the DHS Common Definitions page.

Agency contact information

Alyssa Gillespy

Email



Learn more about this agency

Next steps

If you are found qualified, you may be referred to the hiring manager for further consideration. The hiring manager will review the list of qualified candidates and may conduct interviews of some candidates. Failure to complete the interview may result in removal from consideration.

If you are selected, you will be notified by phone or email with a tentative job offer. If you fail to respond, fail to meet the conditions of employment, or fail any other pre-employment requirements (such as the background investigation), we may rescind a tentative job offer.

For information on the Federal employment application process, please visit the USA Jobs Help Center . Any offers of employment made pursuant to this announcement will be consistent with all applicable authorities, including Presidential Memoranda, Executive Orders, interpretive U.S. Office of Personnel Management (OPM) guidance and U.S. Office of Management and Budget plans and policies concerning hiring. These authorities are subject to change.

The OPM must authorize employment offers made to current or former political appointees. If you are currently, or have been within the last 5 years, a political Schedule A, Schedule C, Non-career SES or Presidential Appointee employee in the Executive Branch, you must disclose this information to the Human Resources Office.

Fair & Transparent

The Federal hiring process is set up to be fair and transparent. Please read the following guidance.

• Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO) Policy
• Reasonable accommodation policy
• Financial suitability
• Selective Service
• New employee probationary period
• Signature and false statements
• Privacy Act
• Social security number request