OPEN PERIOD: Monday, January 10, 2011 to Friday, January 14, 2011

SERIES & GRADE: GS-0601-13/14

POSITION INFORMATION: Full-Time  Permanent

DUTY LOCATIONS: – Bethesda, MD (NIH Campus

WHO MAY BE CONSIDERED: U.S. Citizens 

JOB SUMMARY: 

The National Institute of Nursing Research (NINR) is particularly interested in those whose expertise is in neuroscience (basic and applied), symptom biology, comparative effectiveness research, or strong expertise in biobehavioral approaches in research on health and illness.  Individuals highly skilled in the conduction of clinical research are especially being sought to serve as Health Scientist Administrator/Program Officer in the Office of Extramural Programs (OEP,) Division of Extramural Activities (DEA).  For more information, please visit: http://www.ninr.nih.gov

The NIH is the premiere biomedical research center for the nation and the world. The 27 Institutes and Centers at NIH employ approximately 18,000 employees doing a vast array of jobs, all supporting efforts for a healthy nation. For information on the NIH mission, goals, and Institutes and Centers, visit
NIH Overview. For more about working at NIH, visit Life at NIH.

KEY REQUIREMENTS:

U.S. Citizenship requirement met by closing date.

Position is subject to a background investigation

DUTIES:

As the Program Officer, your major duties will include but are not limited to the following:

• Serve as an expert scientist with primary responsibility for direction and coordination of the planning, scientific management, and evaluation of extramural research programs;
• Coordinate day-to-day scientific activities, discussions with institutional officials and evaluation of programs segments;
• Develop and implement policies that represent and interpret the goals objectives, research programs, and priorities of the NINR;
• Contribute to the development and justification of annual budgets and allocation of funds for grant, contract, and cooperative agreement support for the NINR’s programs;
• Responsible for the development of new scientific recommendations concerning activities of the program for which there is responsibility, as well as for activities of the NINR;
• Serve as a member of various committees, and participates in activities of other Federal agencies, private organizations, and the scientific community;
• Prepare responses to relevant inquires made by Congress, OMB, NIH, the nursing community, and the public;
• Other duties as assigned.

QUALIFICATIONS REQUIRED:

Applicants for all grades must be U.S. Citizens and must meet the requirements described in paragraphs A or B below:

A.   Successful completion of all requirements for a Ph.D. (or equivalent doctoral degree), in an accredited college or university, including acceptance of the dissertation, in an academic field of the health or pertinent sciences (i.e., biochemistry, molecular biology, physiology, etc.) allied to health or health related research; OR

B.   Successful completion of a full 4-year course of study in an accredited college or university, leading to a bachelor’s or higher degree, with major study in an academic field of the health or pertinent sciences which have been applied and utilized by the applicant in health or health-related research and, in addition, at least 1 year of qualifying progressively responsible experience; or any equivalent combination of graduate study and research experience in these fields. This education and experience must demonstrate that the applicant has acquired the scientific knowledge, skills and abilities to apply and utilize them successfully in health or health-related research at a level which is the qualitative equivalent of that acquired in meeting all the requirements for the Ph.D. degree (or equivalent doctoral degree), including the dissertation as indicated above. The appropriate doctoral equivalency must be supported by publications in health or health-related research accomplishment in appropriate scientific journals; or other objective evidence in such form that it may be reviewed and evaluated.

Applicants must demonstrate that they have:

1.   worked independently in planning, organizing, and conducting biomedical behavioral health, or health-related research;
2.   served effectively, in research program administration in these fields; and
3.   acquired an understanding of the history, interests, internal dynamics, and relationships of organizations in which health research is conducted. This experience may be gained as a principal investigator of a grant or contract, or may otherwise be gained through active involvement in initiating research projects, developing protocols, conducting studies, documenting findings, interpreting results in a published report (journal), supervising staff, and managing the budget.

The background of the applicant must show progressively responsible and successful experience (complexity of work in independent research and research program administration), to be eligible for each successively higher grade level.

Requirements for applicants to the GS-13 level:

In addition to meeting the basic requirements, applicants must possess at least one year of professional experience that includes:

Examples of Qualifying Experience
Academic Environment: management of significant independent research projects (analogous to an RO1 and R29 grant) and supervision of graduate researchers or technicians; publications in refereed journals, presenting published work to scientific organizations and teaching graduate level courses in biomedical/behavioral or health-related disciplines; served as a reviewer on peer-review panels or journals; held position of Assistant or Associate Professor or equivalent.
Intramural Environment: responsible for multiple scientific projects, supervising graduate researchers or technicians; publications in refereed journals, presenting published work to scientific organizations and teaching graduate level course in biomedical/behavioral or health related disciplines; served as a reviewer on peer-review panels or journals; held position of Research Scientist (permanent position), Section Chief, or equivalent.
Private Sector (Profit/Nonprofit): evidence of increasing responsibility in research or administration within the company; held position of Senior Research Scientist/Project Manager or equivalent.

Requirements for applicants to the GS-14 level:

In addition to meeting the basic requirements, applicants must possess at least one year of professional experience that includes:

Examples of Qualifying Experience
experience that demonstrates extensive scientific expertise incorporating research; experience with varied responsibilities for providing leadership in a scientific area
functioning as a leader for a variety of efforts, such as directing research and coordinating committee and teaching activities, and organizing and chairing sessions at national scientific meetings.

Academic Environment: serves as an appointed member of a scientific peer-review panel or editorial board; held position of Associate Professor, Professor or equivalent.
Intramural Environment: responsible for at least two concurrent research projects with separate staff and budgets and supervising doctoral level staff; held position of Section Chief or equivalent for at least 2 years.
Private Sector (Profit/Nonprofit): evidence of increasing responsibility in research or administration within the company; held position of Senior Research Scientist/Project Manager or equivalent.

For detailed examples of qualifying experience information about this job series, access the following link:  http://www.jobs.nih.gov/announcement-links/healthadministrator.htm

This position has an education requirement. You must submit a copy of your transcripts (or a list of your courses including titles, credit hours completed and grades). Unofficial transcripts will be accepted in the application package; however, official transcripts will be required prior to receiving an official offer.    Click here for information on Foreign Education.  If you are currently or were previously in this occupation series you do not need to submit transcripts.  Instead, submit an SF-50 showing the appointment in this occupational series. 

Males born after December 31, 1959 must be registered with Selective Service.

HOW YOU WILL BE EVALUATED:

If you meet the minimum qualifications for this position, your application and responses to the online questionnaire will be evaluated under Category Rating and Selection procedures for placement in one of the following categories:  Best Qualified, for those who are superior in the evaluation criteria; Well Qualified, for those who excel in the evaluation criteria; and Qualified, for those who only meet the minimum qualification requirements.  Candidates determined to be Best Qualified will be referred to the hiring manager for further consideration and possible interview.  The Category Rating Process does not add veterans’ preference points, but protects the rights of veterans by placing them ahead of non-preference eligibles within each category.  If you are a veteran, CTAP or ICTAP eligible, or an individual with a disability, please refer to the following links for additional information and required documents:   Veterans’>http://www.jobs.nih.gov/announcement-links/vet.html">Veterans,

CTAP’>http://www.jobs.nih.gov/announcement-links/CTAP.htm">CTAP,
ICTAP’>http://www.jobs.nih.gov/announcement-links/ICTAP.htm">ICTAP,
Schedule’>http://www.jobs.nih.gov/announcement-links/special.htm">Schedule A Appointments for the Disabled.  All such documents MUST be received by midnight of the closing date to be considered.

BENEFITS:

The federal government offers a comprehensive benefits package including vacation, sick leave, holidays, life insurance, health benefits, and participation in the Federal Employees Retirement System.  For more information, check out http://hr.od.nih.gov/Benefits/permanentemployee.htm">New Employee Benefits at NIH and http://tiny.cc/saVcr">OPM’s Employee Benefits Information

OTHER INFORMATION:

We are unable to pay relocation expenses.

A one-year probationary period may be required upon selection/placement.

Additional selections may be made through this vacancy announcement.

The National Institutes of Health participates in the USCIS Electronic Employment Eligibility Verification Program
(E-Verify).E-Verify’>http://www.dhs.gov/E-Verify">E-Verify).E-Verify helps employers determine employment eligibility of new hires and the validity of their Social Security numbers.

The NIH maintains a tobacco’>http://tobaccofree.nih.gov/">tobacco free work environment and campus.

HOW TO APPLY:

PHS Commissioned Officers interested in performing the duties of this position within the Commissioned Corps should also apply online to this announcement in order to receive consideration.

The following information must be received by midnight Eastern Time on the closing date of the announcement.

1.   Resume via USAJOBS.com 
2.   Responses to online questionnaire.
3.   If applicable, supporting documentation (including DD214 to support Veterans’ Employment, CTAP/ICTAP, Schedule A, or other information requested in the announcement such as transcripts).  To ensure your information is secure, please block out any Social Security numbers (SSNs).  Clean copies may be requested if you are hired.

Instructions for Applying Online:

1.   In the vacancy announcement, click Apply Online.  If new to the Government application process, please see the First Time Visitors link on USAJOBS.
2.   Choose which resume you wish to submit by selecting it in your resume list.  Select which Attachments you would like to submit (if you have uploaded them to Saved Documents) and click Apply for this Position Now!  Next, complete all questions on the questionnaire. Submission of a resume alone IS NOT a complete application.
3.   When you are finished with the questionnaire, you may submit your supporting documentation by fax or e-mail if you haven’t submitted them online already to the person listed at the bottom of the announcement.
4.   Please provide sufficient details in your resume to enable us to determine if you meet the requirement for qualifying experience (as stated in the Qualifications section) and to support your answers to the online questionnaire.  Providing insufficient details in your resume may result in a lower or ineligible rating.

Please indicate the lowest grade level you are willing to accept. If not indicated, we will consider you for all grade levels for which you qualify.