Department of Energy Headquarters, Office of Nuclear Energy
Grade: 9-11
Applications close 2026-10-12
Summary
This position is part of the Office of Nuclear Energy - Headquarters, Department of Energy. The Recent Graduates Program is a dynamic, one-year developmental program that promotes careers in the Federal Government to recent graduates. Recent Graduates who successfully complete Program requirements may be eligible for non-competitive conversion to a term or permanent position in the civil service.
Duties
Nuclear energy is one of the most resilient, environmentally sustainable, and reliable energy sources on the grid today. The Office of Nuclear Energy works to advance nuclear energy science and technology to meet the nation's energy, environmental, and economic needs.
As a GS-9 General Engineer (Recent Graduate) you will:
Support program management for the NASA Strategic Partnership Program by developing scopes, budgets, schedules, and milestones for Radioisotope Power Systems (RPS).
Perform engineering analyses, evaluate technical proposals for nuclear infrastructure initiatives, and assist senior engineers on complex Radioisotope Thermoelectric Generator (RTG) projects.
Review and evaluate engineering plans, specifications, inter-agency agreements (IAAs), and memoranda of understanding (MOUs) to resolve discrepancies and ensure technical accuracy.
Participate in interagency and international working groups-coordinating among DOE headquarters, national laboratories, NASA, and field elements and prepare regular technical status reports.
As a GS-11 General Engineer (Recent Graduate) you will:
Serve as technical specialist managing the NASA Strategic Partnership Program-establishing scopes, budgets, schedules, milestones, and procurement packages to support Radioisotope Power Systems (RPS).
Analyze engineering requirements, evaluate new proposals for nuclear infrastructure initiatives, and resolve difficult technical challenges related to Radioisotope Thermoelectric Generators (RTGs).
Manage and review inter-agency agreements (IAAs), memoranda of understanding (MOUs), and technical policies, resolving conflicting requirements across engineering disciplines to maintain project alignment.
Represent the program office in domestic and international working groups (e.g., US-UK working groups), coordinate across DOE labs and NASA, and present technical status reports to diverse audiences.
Conversion Requirements
DOE has the option to non-competitively convert a Recent Graduate to a permanent or term position upon successful completion of program requirements. This is not automatic, nor guaranteed. Conversion is at the discretion of the hiring manager and employing office.
To be eligible to be converted to a permanent or term position you must:
Be a US Citizen or National
Be recommended for conversion by your manager or supervisor.
Complete all training and development requirements within the 1-year appointment period.
Successful completion of 1 year of continuous service.
Demonstrate successful job performance of at least a "Fully Successful" or equivalent on performance appraisal.
Meet the Office of Personnel Management's qualification standards for the position to which the Recent Graduate will be converted (which may include a positive education requirement).
A Recent Graduate may be converted to the highest General Schedule (GS) grade level qualified for at 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
You must meet the eligibility and qualifications within 9 months of the closing date of this announcement.
To be eligible for the Pathways Recent Graduate program you must be a:
Recent graduate who has completed, within the previous two years, a qualifying associates, bachelors, masters, professional, doctorate, vocational, technical degree, or certificate from a qualifying educational institution or completed a qualifying career or technical education program that awards a recognized postsecondary credential (such as a Registered Apprenticeship Program or Job Corps).
OR
Student who within 9 months of the closing date of this announcement will meet the education requirements and will graduate with a qualifying associates, bachelors, masters, professional, doctorate, vocational, technical degree, or certificate from a qualifying educational institution or completed a qualifying career or technical education program. A student may not be appointed to a position until they have graduated.
OR
Preference eligible veterans who were prevented from applying during the two-year period due to their military service obligation may begin their two-year eligibility period upon release or discharge from active duty. Eligibility for these veterans cannot exceed six years after degree or certificate completion. You MUST submit a copy of the DD214 showing the duration and dates of service that precluded you from applying due to the military service obligation.
For the GS-09
You must have one year of specialized experience at a level of difficulty and responsibility equivalent to the GS-07 grade level in the Federal Service. Specialized experience for this position at the GS-9 includes:
Conducting Engineering Analyses and Reviews.; AND
Supporting Technical Projects and Reporting.
OR YOU MAY QUALIFY FOR THE GS-9 BASED ON EDUCATION:
2 years of progressively higher-level graduate education leading to a master's degree or master's or equivalent graduate degree. Graduate education must provide the knowledge, skills, and abilities to perform in the position. Please see the information under Education.
OR YOU MAY QUALIFY FOR THE GS-9 BASED ON COMBINATION:
If you have some qualifying education and some qualifying experience, but don't fully meet either requirement on its own, you may be able to combine them. Only graduate education in excess of one year (18 semester hours or equivalent) can be used in this calculation. Experience must be reflected in your resume, and transcripts are required. Divide your qualifying graduate semester hours beyond the first 18 by 18. That gives you your education percentage. Divide your months of qualifying experience by 12. That gives you your experience percentage. Add the two together. If the total is 100% or more, you qualify.
For the GS-11
You must have one year of specialized experience at a level of difficulty and responsibility equivalent to the GS-09 grade level in the Federal Service. Specialized experience for this position at the GS-11 includes:
Evaluating and Resolving Engineering Problems.; AND
Coordinating Engineering Project Activities
OR YOU MAY QUALIFY FOR THE GS-11 BASED ON EDUCATION:
3 years of progressively higher-level graduate education leading to a Ph.D. degree or Ph.D. or equivalent doctoral degree. Graduate education must provide the knowledge, skills, and abilities to perform in the position. Please see the information under Education.
OR YOU MAY QUALIFY FOR THE GS-11 BASED ON COMBINATION:
If you have some qualifying education and some qualifying experience, but don't fully meet either requirement on its own, you may be able to combine them. Only graduate education in excess of two years (36 semester hours or equivalent) can be used in this calculation. Experience must be reflected in your resume, and transcripts are required. Divide your qualifying graduate semester hours beyond the first 36 by 18. That gives you your education percentage. Divide your months of qualifying experience by 12. That gives you your experience percentage. Add the two together. If the total is 100% or more, you qualify.
Experience may include paid or unpaid work, including internships, volunteer service, student leadership, military service, apprenticeships, or other relevant activities. Resumes must clearly describe duties, dates, and hours worked per week. You must submit proof of eligibility (e.g., transcripts, certificate of completion) to show that you meet the Pathways Recent Graduate Program requirements. Unofficial transcripts with the degree title, list of courses, grades earned, completion dates, and quarter or semester hours earned can be used as a substitute for official transcripts at the time of application; if you are selected for a position, official transcripts will be required prior to entering on duty.
Note about Graduate Education
One academic year of graduate education is considered to be the number of credits hours your graduate school has determined to represent one academic year of full-time study. Such study may have been performed on a full-time or part-time basis. If you cannot obtain your graduate school's definition of one year of graduate study, 18 semester hours (or 27 quarter hours) should be considered as satisfying the requirement for one year of full-time graduate study. 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; applicants' resumes and supporting documentation should only reflect education received from schools accredited by such institutions. Applicants can verify accreditation at the following website: https://ope.ed.gov/dapip/#/home. If a relevant course is not clearly qualifying (e.g., special topic, seminar, research, thesis, obscure or misleading course title, etc.), please submit an official course syllabus and/or detailed course description from the university/college for that particular course to ensure you are properly evaluated. Provide all relevant transcripts, not just your most recent one.
Special Instructions for Foreign Education
If you are using education completed in foreign colleges or universities to meet Minimum Qualifications, you must show that the education credentials have been evaluated by a private organization that specializes in interpretation of foreign education programs and such education has been deemed equivalent to that gained in an accredited U.S. education program, or full credit has been given for the courses at a U.S. accredited college or university. Failure to provide such documentation with your application will result in lost consideration. For further information, visit: https://sites.ed.gov/international/recognition-of-foreign-qualifications/.
Education
REMINDER: Submit transcripts for all degrees earned. You must meet the following Basic Education Requirement listed below in order to qualify for the 0801 series:
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.)
What constitutes a valid certificate program
The Pathways Programs regulation (see 5 CFR 362.102) defines certificate program as post-secondary education at either:
A qualifying educational institution (trade or vocational school, 2-year or 4-year college or university, or graduate or professional school) equivalent to at least one academic year of full-time study that is part of an accredited college-level, technical, trade, vocational, or business school curriculum.; OR
A qualifying career or technical education program of at least one year that awards a recognized postsecondary credential.
What types of programs would meet the eligibility criteria for a qualifying career or technical education program?
Three types of programs meet these criteria:
Federally administered educational programs that provide rigorous academic content, technical skill proficiency, and a recognized postsecondary credential to prepare the individual for further education and/or a career in a current or emerging profession.;
Registered Apprenticeship Programs; and
Federally administered local, state, national, or international volunteer service programs.
What is a Federally administered career or technical education program?
A Federally administered career or technical education program is subject to programmatic oversight by a federal agency that includes:
The nature and scope of work to be performed by participants,
The type(s) and scope of training to be provided to participants,
The types of skills participants will acquire or develop during the program (e.g., teaching, environmental, business, scientific, public health/health care, languages),
The level and extent of mentoring participants will receive, and
The metrics for successful completion of the program.
Programmatic oversight may be reflected in partnership or cooperative agreements.
How to apply
Please read the entire announcement and all the instructions before you begin an application. To apply for this position, you must complete the initial online application, to include submission of the required documentation specified in the Required Documents section. A complete application package must be submitted by 11:59 PM (EST) on the announcement closing date to receive consideration.
The application process is as follows:
Read all instructions before you begin.
Click "Apply Online."
Complete the application and attach all required documents.
Submit by 11:59 PM ET on the 10/12/2026.
If you are required to complete any USA Hire Assessments, you will be notified after submitting your application. The notification will be provided in your application submission screen and via email. The notification will include your unique assessment access link to the USA Hire system and the completion deadline. Additionally, in USAJOBS you can click "Track this application" to return to your assessment completion notice.
Access USA Hire using your unique assessment link. Access is granted through your USAJOBS login credentials. Review all instructions prior to beginning your assessments. You will have the opportunity to request a testing accommodation before beginning the assessments should you have a disability covered under the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 as amended. Set aside about two (2) hours to take the USA Hire Assessments; however, most applicants complete the assessments in less time. If you need to stop the assessments and continue later, you can re-use your unique assessment link. The online assessments must be completed within 48 hours following the closing date of this announcement. Your responses to the USA Hire Assessments will be reused for one year (in most cases) from the date you complete an assessment. If future applications you submit require completion of the same assessments, your responses will be automatically reused. Visit the USA Hire Applicant Resource Center for practice assessments and assessment preparation resources at https://support-usahire.opm.gov/hc/en-us.
Managing Your Application
Update: During the announcement open period, return to your USAJOBS account, find your application record, and click Edit my application. This option will no longer be available once the announcement has closed.
Status: Log into USAJOBS to view your application status. Learn more here: https://www.usajobs.gov/Help/how-to/application/status/. Your application status page is where you can view your application status, USA Hire assessment completion status, and review your notifications sent by the hiring agency regarding your application.
Support: USAJOBS Help: Visit https://www.usajobs.gov/Help/ for login.gov or USAJOBS assistance.
Application Issues: If you have difficulty applying online, contact the Agency Contact listed in this announcement during business hours. Take screenshots of any system errors.
Reasonable Accommodation (RA) Requests: If you believe you have a disability (i.e., physical or mental), covered by the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 as amended that would interfere with completing the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments, you will be granted the opportunity to request a RA in your online application. Requests for RA for the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments and appropriate supporting documentation for RA must be received prior to starting the USA Hire CompetencyBased Assessments. Decisions on requests for RA are made on a case-by-case basis. If you meet the minimum qualifications of the position, after notification of the adjudication of your request, you will receive an email invitation to complete the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments, based on your adjudication decision. You must complete all assessments within 48 hours of receiving the URL to access the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments if you received the link after the close of the announcement. To determine if you need a RA, please review the Procedures for Requesting a Reasonable Accommodation for Online Assessments. (https://appsupport-usastaffing.opm.gov/hc/en-us/sections/45063131363475-Reasonable-Accommodation-Information)
From Department of Energy Headquarters's public posting, laid out for reading by newgrad.ai with the wording unchanged. Check the original before you apply.
