CHIEF DATA SCIENTIST

Summary

The position of Chief Data Scientist is in the Office of the Chief Information Officer, Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS), U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA). The Office of the Chief Information Officer (OCIO) has primary responsibility for information technology and information management for FSIS. **USDA Employees: Please refer to the Next Steps section**

Duties

Advises on scientific issues pertaining to the development, planning, coordination, and implementation of statistical analyses of food safety and public health related to the full range of FSIS program areas. Conducts or directs full and comprehensive data science lifecycle, data analyses and performs integration studies that require detailed knowledge of food safety and public health issues. Cultivates and maintains contacts in the public health, food safety, data science/analytics, and scientific community, and with professional organizations and academic institutions, in an effort to complement and expand FSIS programs. Serves as the liaison with nationally and internationally recognized authorities and organizations whose policies impact the agency’s data infrastructure, analytics, and activities in support of food safety and public health initiatives. Supports in coordinating, evaluating, and improving the development and implementation of data analytics and the life cycle process model to support policy development and scientific policies as it relates to food safety and food defense. Reviews and scientifically evaluates new and proposed policies, procedures, regulations, and legislation that impact data analytics integration and food defense and safety programs. Collaborates with other Agency officials to ensure that decisions made and actions taken are fully supported by scientific and credible data and respond to the interests and needs of other programs and organizations.

Qualifications and evaluation

You will be evaluated for this job based on how well you meet the qualifications above. You will be evaluated on the quality and extent of your total accomplishments, experience, and education. Your application will be rated and ranked by an Executive Review Board (ERB) Panel, using only the information submitted within the application package. Applicants who do not demonstrate in their application sufficient possession of the TQs will be determined ineligible for further consideration. Your resume must not exceed two (2) pages in length. Applicants may be required to participate in selection interviews.

Education

Degree: Mathematics, statistics, computer science, data science or field directly related to the position. The degree must be in a major field of study (at least at the baccalaureate level) that is appropriate for the position. or Combination of education and experience: Courses equivalent to a major field of study (30 semester hours) as shown in paragraph A above, plus additional education or appropriate experience.

How to apply

ONLY SUBMIT THE MATERIALS REQUESTED BY THIS ANNOUNCEMENT. To apply for this position, you must provide a complete Application Package which includes: - Complete Resume - Other supporting documentation as required. Please see the "REQUIRED DOCUMENTS" section and review the applicant checklist link to determine if there other documents you are required to submit. Please read the entire announcement and all the instructions before you begin. Failure to submit the required documentation by 11:59 pm EST of the closing date will result in loss of consideration. We are available to assist you during business hours (normally 8:00 a.m. - 4:00 p.m., Monday - Friday). Applying online is highly encouraged. If applying online poses a hardship, please contact our office during business hours well before the closing date for an alternate method. All hardship application packages with supporting documents must be submitted no later than noon on the closing date of the announcement in order to be entered into the system prior to its closing. This agency provides reasonable accommodation to applicants with disabilities on a case-by-case basis; contact us if you are requesting this. It is important that you are complete and thorough in your resume. Please be sure to include and address all ECQs and TQs in your resume. A sample 2-page resume that incorporates ECQs can be viewed at this link: Guide to SES Qualifications Candidates who do not submit a complete application package as indicated in this announcement will not be considered. Please be sure to remove all PII (e.g. SNN, DOB, etc.) from all documentation. Spell out acronyms the first time used. Please do not submit documents that are not requested in the vacancy announcement. Step 1: Create a USAJOBS account (if you do not have one) at www.usajobs.gov. It is recommended that as part of your profile you set up automatic email notification to be informed when the status of your application changes. If you choose not to set up this automatic notification, then you will have to log into your USAJOBS account to check on the status of your application. Step 2: Create a resume with USAJOBS or upload a resume into your USAJOBS account. Customize your resume to ensure it documents duties and accomplishments you have gained that are directly related to this position in order to verify that qualifications are met. Your resume must support your responses to the online questionnaire (you may preview the online questionnaire by clicking on the link at the end of the How You Will Be Evaluated section of the job announcement). Step 3: Click "Apply Online" and follow the prompts to complete the Occupational Questionnaire and attach any additional documents that may be required. You can update your application or documents anytime while the announcement is open. Log into your USAJOBS account and click on "Application Status." Click on the position title, and then select "Update Application" to continue. NOTE: Please verify that documents you are uploading from USAJOBs transfer into the Agency's staffing system as there is a limitation to the number of documents that can be transferred. However, once in the Agency's staffing system, you will have the opportunity to upload additional documents. Uploaded documents must be less than 5MB and in one of the following document formats: GIF, JPG, JPEG, PNG, RTF, PDF, TXT or Word (DOC or DOCX). Do not upload Adobe Portfolio documents because they are not viewable.

Required documents

Your resume should contain information sufficient to make a valid determination that you fully meet the specialized experience requirements as stated in this vacancy announcement. It is recommended that you include the following information: 1. 2-page TQ based Resume. DO NOT submit Technical Qualifications in lieu of a resume. 1) personal information such as name, address, contact information;2) education;3) detailed work experience related to this position as described in the major duties including work schedule, hours worked per week, dates of employment; title, series, grade (if applicable); 4) all supervisors' phone numbers and if they may be contacted; and 5) starting and ending dates of employment (month and year); 6) salary; 7) information about honors, awards, and special accomplishments. 2. Current or former Federal civilian employees, please provide a copy of your most recent SF-50 (Notification of Personnel Action). Education (if applicable): A copy of your transcript(s) or a separate course listing showing the college name, course title, department, hours earned (quarter or semester), and grade. If you have completed any part of your education outside the U.S., you must submit the evaluation of your foreign education that has been prepared by an accredited organization. The National Association for Credential Evaluation Services (NACES) can provide a list of who can evaluate your foreign education. For additional information, visit DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION.

Additional information

Consideration for competitive selection for this position is open to all persons within the area of consideration who meet the basic qualifications. Race, color, age, national origin, gender, sexual orientation, political beliefs, religion, marital or family status, disability, and other non-merit factors will not be considered. 1. This position is covered under the post-employment restriction of the Ethics in Government Act of 1978 (P.L. 95-521). This law also requires the selectee to file an Executive Personnel Financial Disclosure Report (Standard Form 278), within 30 days of appointment. 2. Applications sent in U.S. Government postage-paid envelope and submitted through Federal Agency courier services will not be considered. 3. The 1993 Hatch Act Reform Amendments prohibit oral and written political recommendations for Federal jobs. 4. Male applicants born after December 31, 1959, must be registered with the Selective Service System before they can be employed by an executive agency of the Federal government. This requirement does not apply to Agency employees appointed before November 8, 1985. 5. All application forms are subject to the provisions of the Privacy Act and become the property of USDA. The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) is an Equal Opportunity Employer. USDA prohibits discrimination in all its programs and activities on the basis of race, color, national origin, gender, religion, age, disability, political beliefs, sexual orientation, and marital or family status. (Not all prohibited bases apply to all programs). Persons with disabilities who require alternative means for communication or program information (Braille, large print, audiotape, etc.) should contact USDA's TARGET Center at 202-720-2600 (voice and TDD). Reasonable Accommodation: This agency provides reasonable accommodation for applicants with disabilities. If you need a reasonable accommodation for any part of the application and hiring process, please notify the agency at 202-260-8128. The decision on granting reasonable accommodation will be on a case-by-case basis. Effective January 1, 2010, OPM must authorize any employment offers we make to current or former (within the last 5 years) political Schedule A, Schedule C, or Non-career SES employees in the executive branch. If you are currently, or have been within the last 5 years, a political Schedule A, Schedule C, or Non-career SES employee in the executive branch, you must disclose that to the Human Resources Office.