Department of the Army | PHYSICAL SCIENTIST | fort belvoir, va

DutiesPerform complex analyses and provide practical solutions to challenges such as data scarcity, reality gap, algorithm dependent and diversified training datasets, and training data development for new domains.Create strategic plans in areas such as photonics; focal plane arrays/materials science; optics design; signal and image processing; imaging systems; data generation, data evaluation, and EOIR systems engineering.Technically coordinate and/or manage the development of synthetic data being executed for internal/external efforts or under contract.Establish requirements for data generation and curation technical objectives and characteristics.Apply expert knowledge of techniques, such as random sampling, compositing, generative adversarial networks, and various procedural-generation techniques to generate and advise the development of synthetic data.Devise and evaluate concepts for design approaches: criteria, parameters, characteristics and interrelationships between synthetic data and real data.Replicate task dependent and algorithm dependent statistical properties and distributions within real data into synthetic data.Design experiments to harness the benefits of mixing different data generation techniques.Conduct experiments, investigations, and testing to produce new data, mathematical models, or methods to test concepts, formulate design criteria, and measure and predict natural and social phenomena and performance.Develop training data quality control/ quality check processes, as well as developing training data metrics.Develop standards and test plans to assure accuracy, reliability, traceability, and robustness of synthetic training data solutions.Plan sensor related areas in synthetic data generation, advanced active and passive electro-optic/infrared sensors, sensor suite technologies, sensor fusion techniques under adverse battlefield environments.Develop and prepare professional papers for publication that have a major impact on advancing synthetic data generation; accepted as definitive of important areas of it; or are otherwise recognized as highly innovative and creative.Provide clear and concise technical communications, from a user perspective to a programmatic perspective, for a wide range of audiences (e.g., customers, organization leadership, peers, etc.).Support technology transition through final development and initial fielding.Requirements Conditions of EmploymentAppointment may be subject to a suitability or fitness determination, as determined by a completed background investigation.This position requires a Secret security clearance/access.Travel for duty up to 5%.Extended probationary period for the Engineers and Scientists Occupational Family is three years. unless the appointee has previously met the requirements as described in 5 CFR Part 315.Foundational Career Level Certification or Contracting Professional Certification must be met within 3 years.Advanced Career Level Certification must be met within 4 years.Practitioner Career Level Certification must be met within 5 years.This is an Army Acquisition, Logistics and Technology Workforce position. Selectee must meet position requirements for Engineering Technical Management (ETM) within 60 months as of entrance on duty.Selectee must obtain the highest Career Category Level of certification in the assigned Career Category/Functional Area. QualificationsThis position is being filled under the Direct Hire Authority (DHA) Bachelors Degrees for Scientific and Engineering Positions (STRLs) authorized by 85 FR 78829 dtd 12/07/2020.
Who May Apply: US Citizens
In order to qualify, you must meet the education and experience requirements described below. 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). You will receive credit for all qualifying experience, including volunteer experience. Your resume must clearly describe your relevant experience; if qualifying based on education, your transcripts will be required as part of your application. Additional information about transcripts is in this document.
In addition to meeting the basic education requirement listed below, you must have one year of specialized experience equivalent to the next lower grade or band is required. It is defined as one year of specialized experience equivalent to the DB-03 pay band (GS-13 level and DB/DE-03) in the Federal Service. Includes experience in 1) Designing and executing scientific experiments to quantify the effectiveness of mixing synthetic data with real data for diverse capability and technical domains and across many different environmental conditions, 2) Performing complex analyses to provide practical solutions when using synthetic data, in the context of data-driven applications for data-starved and data-rich scenarios, 3) Solving complex training data related challenges such as data scarcity, data augmentation, algorithm dependent and diversified training datasets, training data development for new domains, and experimental and testing designs to meet customer needs, 4) Demonstrating marked technical leadership and technical competence when applying synthetic data across many diverse capability and technical domains in order to gauge the extent to which the perimeters of the state-of-the-art can be obtained.Basic Requirement for Physical Scientist 1301:
A. Degree: Bachelor's degree (or higher degree) in physical science, engineering, or mathematics that included 24 semester hours in physical science and/or related engineering science such as mechanics, dynamics, properties of materials, and electronics.
OR
B. Combination of Education and Experience: Courses equivalent to one of the majors, as shown in A above, that included at least 24 semester hours in physical science and/or related engineering science, plus appropriate experience or additional education.Transcripts are required to meet the Basic Education for the applicable series.
Some federal jobs allow you to substitute your education for the required experience in order to qualify. For this job, you must meet the qualification requirement using experience alone--no substitution of education for experience is permitted.
EducationFOREIGN EDUCATION: If you are using education completed in foreign colleges or universities to meet the qualification requirements, you must show 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. For further information, visit: .
Additional informationThis announcement uses the DHA- Bachelor's Degrees for Scientific and Engineering Positions (STRLs) direct hire authority to recruit and appoint qualified candidates to certain positions in the competitive service.Male applicants born after December 31, 1959, must complete a Pre-Employment Certification Statement for Selective Service Registration.You will be required to provide proof of U.S. Citizenship.Three year trial/probationary period may be required.Direct Deposit of Pay is required.If you have retired from federal service and you are interested in employment as a reemployed annuitant, see the information in the Reemployed Annuitant information sheet.This is a(n)16 - Engineers and Scientists (Non-Construction) Career Field position.Salary includes applicable locality pay or Local Market SupplementPayment of Permanent Change of Station (PCS) costs is not authorized, based on a determination that a PCS move is not in the Government interest.This position has an education requirement; therefore, Official college or university transcript (or copies) must be submitted to be considered eligible.This is an Army Acquisition, Logistics and Technology Workforce position. Selectee must meet position requirements for Engineering Technical Management (ETM) within 60 months as of entrance on duty. 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 windowLearn more about federal benefits.
Review our benefitsEligibility 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 EvaluatedYou will be evaluated for this job based on how well you meet the qualifications above.
As vacancies occur, the Human Resources Office will review your resume to ensure you meet the hiring eligibility and qualification requirements listed in this flyer. You will be rated based on the information provided in your resume, along with your supporting documentation.
If, after reviewing your rsum and/or supporting documentation, a determination is made that you have inflated your qualifications and/or experience, you may lose consideration for this position. Please follow all instructions carefully when applying, errors or omissions may affect your eligibility.
Veterans and Military Spouses will be considered along with all other candidates.
If selected, you may be required to provide additional supporting documentation.