General Engineer (Planner)

Who May Apply: US Citizens

In order to qualify, you must meet the education and/or 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.


Basic Requirement for General Engineer (Planner):

A. Degree: Bachelor's degree (or higher degree) in engineering. To be acceptable, the program must: (1) lead to a bachelor's degree (or higher degree) in a school of engineering with at least one program accredited by the Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology (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. (Note: You must attach a copy of your transcripts.)

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), 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. (Note: You must attach a copy of your registration or licensure.)

2. Written Test - Evidence of having successfully passed the Fundamentals of Engineering (FE) examination, or any other written test required for professional registration, by an engineering licensure board in the various States, the District of Columbia, Guam, or Puerto Rico. (Note: You must attach a copy of your certificate.)

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 A above. The courses must be fully acceptable toward meeting the requirements of an engineering program. (Note: You must attach a copy of your transcripts.)

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 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. (Note: You must attach a copy of your transcripts.)


In addition to meeting the Minimum Qualifications (Basic Requirement) above, to qualify for this position you must also meet the qualification requirements listed below: (Note: Each grade has different qualifications, which must be met in order to be considered for that grade.)

Specialized Experience:

For the GS-09 Level: One year of specialized experience which includes applying engineering concepts and principles to assist with the preparation of various planning project documentation. This definition of specialized experience is typical of work performed at the second lower grade/level position in the federal service (GS-07).
OPM allows the substitution of education for experience for this grade level and is listed in the Education section below.

For the GS-11 Level: One year of specialized experience which includes applying engineering concepts and principles to assisting with real property management. This definition of specialized experience is typical of work performed at the second lower grade/level position in the federal service (GS-09).
OPM allows the substitution of education for experience for this grade level and is listed in the Education section below.

For the GS-12 Level: One year of specialized experience which includes professional knowledge of a wide range of engineering theories, concepts, principles, standards, and methods sufficient to providing engineering expertise in the development and/or management of real property master plans. This definition of specialized experience is typical of work performed at the second lower grade/level position in the federal service (GS-11).
Some federal jobs allow you to substitute your education for the required experience in order to qualify. For this grade level, you must meet the qualification requirement using experience alone-no substitution of education for experience is permitted.