Background

The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) is proud to be ranked among the best places to work for compensation, work-life balance, and performance for mid-sized agencies in the Federal Government. We've earned our top ratings by creating a work environment rich in opportunity, diversity, leadership training, teamwork, and work life balance. Help guide our nation into the next generation of nuclear safety! Begin a challenging career with the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission where you can be part of a select group of professionals who protect people and the environment with the peaceful use of nuclear materials in medicine, industry, and research.

These Project Manager positions are in various divisions in the Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation, and various divisions in the Office of Nuclear Material Safety and Safeguards, NRC Headquarters, Rockville, MD.

Duties

As a Project Manager you will perform the full range of project management duties and will act as an advisor for issues and policies associated with NRC�s regulations of nuclear facilities, nuclear material licensees, or certificate of compliance (CoC) holders. You will also have the opportunity to plan, lead, participate, and coordinate in projects developing regulations, regulatory analyses, policies, procedures and staff recommendations related to safety and security of NRC licensees and protection of the environment.

Project Managers in these positions also coordinate with State and local governments and Federal partners on issues related to the safety and security of NRC licensees and CoC holders. They may lead reviews of controversial matters related to licensing and oversight of nuclear facilities, materials licensees or CoC holders. They will rely on the management directives, office instructions, rules, regulations, and procedures in carrying out assigned duties.

Duties include but are not limited to:

Serve as project manager for one or multiple projects or liaison relationships involving applicants, licensees, one or more industry groups, owner groups, vendors or CoC holders as well as agency stakeholders. Manage and resolve unusual and/or highly complex technical problems and regulatory/licensing issues that may include complicated and precedent-setting tasks.

Manage, coordinate, and perform safety and environmental reviews of licensing actions. Independently manages the resolution of unique, first-of-a-kind technical issues identified in the review.
Prepare work requests and integrate technical inputs into a single safety evaluation.

Prepare safety evaluations, public notices, routine correspondence, etc., for final processing by administrative staff. In response to requests from current and prospective licensees, industry groups, owner's groups, vendors or CoC holders, manages, coordinates, and routinely performs safety reviews of applications for review and endorsement of licenses, permits, CoCs, Topical Reports, Task Interface Agreements, or changes to the technical specifications (TSs).

Prepare briefing packages for drop-in visits by senior management of applicants, licensees, industry group, owner's group, or vendor officials with Commissioners and senior NRC management and provides input to regional briefing packages for site visits by Commissioners and senior NRC management.

Maintain liaison, and control the flow of information, between applicants, licenses, industry groups, owner's groups, vendors or CoC holders, representatives, and staff technical organizations.

Schedule, participate in, and chair meetings with applicants, licensees, industry groups, owner's groups, vendors or CoC holders, the NRC staff, representatives of other government offices, and agency stakeholders.

Develop, assess, and modify office positions, including licensing decisions and inspection support.

Represent the NRC at internal and external meetings, as appropriate.

Identify the need for new policies, requirements, or guidance relevant to the assigned subject area.

Qualifications

In order to qualify for this position, you must have at least one year of specialized experience at the next lower grade level (13) in the Federal service or equivalent experience in the private or public sector.
SPECIALIZED EXPERIENCE is defined as experience with the licensing, design, operation, regulation, or inspection of commercial power nuclear plants, related vendors, or other nuclear facilities.

The ideal candidate will be able to demonstrate the following:

Demonstrated knowledge of the principles, theory, practices and/or rules and regulations in the field of engineering, health physics, science, nuclear and/or byproduct materials (nuclear facilities, such as, operating reactors, decommissioning reactors, new reactors, advanced reactors, fuel facilities, transportation or nuclear materials, or industrial, commercial, or academic uses of nuclear or byproduct materials etc.) sufficient to identify, analyze, and develop conclusions regarding assessments of regulatory programs or licensee performance in implementing radiation safety or security programs and controls. (Examples may include specific training, education, and work experience that demonstrate knowledge and skills in the areas of engineering, health physics, science, byproduct or nuclear materials, or nuclear facility regulation and demonstrated ability to identify safety or security issues and recommend sound regulatory approaches as they relate to regulatory programs or licensee activities or operations. This should include how the knowledge was applied.)

Demonstrated ability to quickly and independently evaluate and review unique technical issues, regulatory issues, or programs that document program performance, set precedent, or establish policy; and to advocate for solutions. (Candidates should be specific in describing the breadth and depth of their experience in the areas of independent reviews, licensing reviews, or development of safety, security, programmatic, and/or policy issues. Candidates should describe their experience in performing special, time-sensitive projects which resulted in high-quality products.)

Ability to prioritize, plan, schedule, manage and resolve problems relative to complex projects while implementing successful approaches to problem solving and conflict resolution. (Candidates should describe specific experiences that demonstrate their ability to prioritize, plan, schedule, manage, and resolve issues relative to complex projects or competing priorities with diverse groups. Describe experience with identifying and resolving problems and give instances where your problem solving and conflict resolution skills were successfully demonstrated.)

Demonstrated ability to communicate clearly and effectively, both orally and in writing; demonstrated ability to establish effective working relationships with managers, coworkers, and external organizations such as professional committees, licensees, and Federal, State, and local government agencies. (Examples may include specific experience, training, and accomplishments that demonstrate the candidate's communication skills. Candidates should describe in detail their ability to: (1) use formal and informal networks to build support for programs; (2) lead complex technical discussions and consolidate complex and diverse opinions into concise presentations; (3) work in a team or group atmosphere; (4) formulate balanced and well-founded recommendations; (5) establish effective work-relationships with colleagues, managers, and other government and industry officials of diverse backgrounds. Candidates should describe the kinds of oral and written presentations they have made internal and external to their organization, including published technical documents they have authored and presentations they have made to the public.)

Education

This opportunity will be filled either as an 0801 (engineering) job or a 1301 (physical science) job.

Qualification for 0801 Series:

Basic Requirements:

A. 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
B. 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:
1. 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.
2. 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.
3. 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.
4. 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.)

Qualification for 1301 series:

Basic Requirements:

A. Degree: 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 -- education equivalent to one of the majors 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.

How to Apply

Visit www.nrc.gov Review the NRC Career Opportunities page, click on Apply Now then find the Project Manager Job Announcement Number ALL OFC-2024-0017 and apply on-line via the USAJOBS application system by February 7, 2024. We strongly encourage you to read the entire announcement before you submit your application for this position so that you correctly submit all necessary materials and documentation, online, per the How to Apply section of the official announcement. If you are viewing this opportunity after February 7th. please visit NRC's website and discover additional opportunities for which you might be interested.