Quality Assurance Specialist (Aerospace)

Duties

• Duties described below are at the full-performance level. Duties assigned at a lower grade level will be of more limited scope, performed with less independence and limited complexity; duties will be commensurate with the grade of selected employee.
• Develops and/or supports government mandatory inspection point requirements to ensure contract quality maintains the required standard levels for operations.
• Reviews contractor production activities and capabilities in light of contract quality requirements.
• Verifies that products offered to NASA comply with contractual requirements before they are accepted.
• Conducts audits of products and processes for conformance to specifications and to detect processing and technical documentation deficiencies recommending corrective action, including establishment of acceptable quality levels.
• Supports quality surveillance plans to ensure that contractor understands NASA's contractual requirements.
• Evaluates the implementation and effectiveness of the contractor's quality inspection system and reports those findings via written or verbal, with recommendations to Branch and Division Chief.
• Reviews the contractor's written quality or inspection procedures (when required by the contract) for adequacy.

Requirements

Conditions of Employment

• This position is open to U.S. citizens, nationals or those who owe allegiance to the U.S.
• If selected, the incumbent may be required to complete a background security investigation at the higher/full performance grade level of the position.
• You must meet qualifications requirements by the closing date of this announcement.
• This position may require a one-year trial period.

Qualifications

Specialized experience is experience that has equipped you with the particular ability, skill, and knowledge to successfully perform the duties of this position and is typically in or related to this line of work.

To qualify for GS-11, you must have:

a) One year of directly related specialized experience equivalent to the GS-09 level:

• Working with jet and propeller aircraft and aircraft systems, including a strong emphasis on aircraft quality, maintenance, and logistics;
• Utilizing technical requirements, orders and FAA requirements for maintenance, modifications, inspections, testing, and operation of public and civil aircraft and systems;
• Applying aircraft operations safety requirements and practices for agencies and/or the military.

OR
b) Completed all requirements for a doctoral degree (i.e., Ph.D. or equivalent) with a major in quality assurance, statistics, mathematics, production management, industrial management, computer science, engineering, engineering technology, physical sciences, textiles, or other fields related to the position.
OR
c) Completed 3 full academic years of progressively higher-level graduate education leading to a Ph.D. degree or equivalent doctoral degree with a major in quality assurance, statistics, mathematics, production management, industrial management, computer science, engineering, engineering technology, physical sciences, textiles, or other fields related to the position.
OR
d) LL.M., if related
OR
e) Have an equivalent combination of experience and graduate study as discussed in a), b), c) and d) above

Your resume must include a clear and detailed narrative description, in your own words, of how you meet the required specialized experience. Experience statements copied from a position description, vacancy announcement or other reference material constitutes plagiarism and may result in disqualification and losing consideration for the job.

Education

If you are using education completed in the United States to meet the qualification requirements, your degree must have been awarded from a college or university that is accredited by a recognized accrediting organization. For a list of schools that meet this criteria, go to http://ope.ed.gov/accreditation/.

If you are using education completed in foreign colleges or universities to meet the qualification requirements, you must show that the education credentials have been evaluated by a private organization that specializes in interpretation of foreign education programs. These education credentials must be 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. For further information, visit: https://www2.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ous/international/usnei/us/edlite-visitus-forrecog.html.

All degrees must have been received in the year of, or any year subsequent to the original date of accreditation.

Additional information

Additional selections may be made for similar positions across NASA within the local commuting area(s) of the location(s) identified in this announcement_. By applying, you agree to have your application shared with interested selecting official(s) within NASA. CTAP/ICTAP will be cleared for any additional selection from this announcement._

This appointment may be extended beyond the initial appointment date, for a period not to exceed a total of six years.

Under the NASA Flexibility Act of 2004, individuals appointed under this announcement may be converted to permanent appointment, either non-competitively or through internal agency competitive placement procedures. Conversion is not guaranteed and is contingent on the employee meeting all legal requirements. For more information, see: Term Appointments | NASA

Current Federal civilian employees may apply for this position. If selected, a break in service of at least 4 calendar days may be required prior to appointment to this position.

If you have special priority selection rights under the Agency Career Transition Assistance Program (CTAP) or the Interagency Career Transition Assistance Program (ICTAP), you must:
- Indicate your eligibility when applying for a position. The questionnaire asks you to identify your ICTAP/CTAP eligibility.
- Be well qualified for this position to receive consideration. Candidates rated in the 'Best Qualified' category are considered well-qualified. Please see 'How You Will Be Evaluated' for more information.
- Submit proof that you meet the requirements for CTAP/ICTAP as indicated in 'Required Documents.'

For additional information about CTAP/ICTAP eligibility, click: https://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/workforce-restructuring/employee-guide-to-career-transition/#ictap.

Reasonable Accommodation 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 reasonable accommodation in your online application. Requests for Reasonable Accommodations for the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments and appropriate supporting documentation for Reasonable Accommodation must be received prior to starting the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments. Decisions on requests for Reasonable Accommodations 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. You must complete all assessments within 48 hours of receiving the URL to access the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments, if you receive the link after the close of the announcement. To determine if you need a Reasonable Accommodation, please review the Procedures for Requesting a Reasonable Accommodation for Online Assessments here: https://help.usastaffing.gov/Apply/index.php?title=Reasonable_Accommodations_for_USA_Hire

This is a bargaining unit position. If additional selections are made, those positions may or may not be in a bargaining unit. To learn more about bargaining units at NASA please click here NASA Unions (Bargaining Units) | NASA.

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How You Will Be Evaluated

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

You will be evaluated for this position based on how well you meet the qualifications and eligibility requirements listed in this vacancy announcement. To determine your qualifications and referral status, we may review your resume and supporting documentation and compare it against your responses to the vacancy questionnaire. Your qualifications will be evaluated based on your application materials (e.g., resume, supporting documents), the responses you provide on the application questionnaire, and the result of the online assessments required for this position.

You will be assessed on the following competencies:

• Interpersonal Skills
• Self-Management (Achievement)
• Quality Assurance
• Technical Competence
• Mission Assurance
• Quality Engineering and Assurance
• Reliability and Maintainability Engineering and Assurance
• Attention to Detail
• Customer Service
• Decision Making
• Flexibility
• Integrity/Honesty
• Learning
• Reading
• Reasoning
• Stress Tolerance
• Teamwork

In order to be considered for this position, you must complete all required steps in the process. In addition to the application and application questionnaire, this position requires an online assessment. The online assessment measures critical general competencies required to perform the job.

Overstating your qualifications and/or experience in your application materials or application questionnaire may result in your removal from consideration. Cheating on the online assessment may also result in your removal from consideration.

NASA considers 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 can provide valuable training and experience that translates directly to paid employment. You will receive credit for all qualifying experience, including volunteer experience.

Under NASA's category rating process, applicants will be assessed on the position competencies and placed in one of three categories identified and defined below:

• Best Qualified Category - Applicants who demonstrate a superior level of all evaluation criteria.
• Highly Qualified Category - Applicants who demonstrate a satisfactory level of the evaluation criteria.
• Qualified Category - Applicants who demonstrate the basic qualifications, with general knowledge, skills, and abilities.

Names of all qualified candidates in the Best Qualified category will be sent to the hiring official for employment consideration (unless a sufficient number of qualified veterans are found - in which case only those names will be initially certified ). Candidates within the Best Qualified category who are eligible for veteran preference will receive selection priority over non-veteran preference eligibles.