Electronics Technician

This position is located in the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), Veterans Health Administration (VHA},Ralph H Johnson VA Medical Center. The purpose of the position is to convert theoretical ideas of engineers into practical approaches for the development and modification of units or electronic devices in support of complex electronic systems and to test and maintain equipment.Qualifications:To qualify for this position, applicants must meet all requirements by the closing date of this announcement, 04/04/2024.
Time-In-Grade Requirement: Applicants who are current Federal employees and have held a GS grade any time in the past 52 weeks must also meet time-in-grade requirements by the closing date of this announcement. For a GS-07 position you must have served 52 weeks at the GS-06. For a GS-08 position you must have served 52 weeks at the GS-07. For a GS-09 position you must have served 52 weeks at the GS-08. For a GS-10 position you must have served 52 weeks at the GS-09. For a GS-11 position you must have served 52 weeks at the GS-10. The grade may have been in any occupation, but must have been held in the Federal service. An SF-50 that shows your time-in-grade eligibility must be submitted with your application materials. If the most recent SF-50 has an effective date within the past year, it may not clearly demonstrate you possess one-year time-in-grade, as required by the announcement. In this instance, you must provide an additional SF-50 that clearly demonstrates one-year time-in-grade.
GS-7
Specialized Experience Requirement: Do you have the required Specialized Experience equivalent to the next lower grade? For a GS-7 grade level, your specialized experience MUST be at the GS-06 grade level or equivalent in order to meet this requirement. Examples of qualifying specialized experience includes: Knowledge of specialized electronics principles, concepts, methods, and equipment requiring extensive training or experience sufficient to gather and research technical data and information on unusual design characteristics; analyze technical data to determine applicability to design problems; determine and advise engineers on relative practicality of developing new or adapting existing equipment; and test and evaluate for electromagnetic characteristics and performance in a varied spectrum environment.
GS-8
Specialized Experience Requirement: Do you have the required Specialized Experience equivalent to the next lower grade? For a GS-08 grade level, your specialized experience MUST be at the GS-07 grade level or equivalent in order to meet this requirement. Examples of qualifying specialized experience includes: Typical contacts are with operating officials and employees throughout the medical facility. Contacts are to plan, coordinate, or advise on work efforts or to resolve operating problems by influencing or motivating individuals or groups who are working toward mutual goals and who have basically cooperative attitudes. In the performance of official duties, the employee has regular access to printed and electronic files containing sensitive data which must be protected under the provisions of the Privacy Act of 1974 and other applicable laws, federal regulations, VA statutes and policy, and VHA policy. The employee is responsible for (1) protecting that data from unauthorized release or from loss, alteration, or unauthorized deletion, and (2) following applicable regulations and instructions regarding access to computerized files, release of access codes, etc. as set out in a computer access agreement which the employee signs.
GS-9
Specialized Experience Requirement: Do you have the required Specialized Experience equivalent to the next lower grade? For a GS-09 grade level, your specialized experience MUST be at the GS-08 grade level or equivalent in order to meet this requirement. Examples of qualifying specialized experience includes: Knowledge of a wide range of specialized methods, techniques, and principles of electronics and equipment sufficient to determine specific requirements to design, redesign, fabricate, and modify electronic systems and equipment; select circuit configuration and determine equipment placement, cable routing, and perform integration for various equipment or systems; maintain on line operational reliability of a variety of complex electronic equipment and systems; test, align, and repair a wide variety of specialized test equipment; determine fabrication and construction requirements regarding test equipment; perform preventative and nonscheduled corrective maintenance by diagnosing malfunctions and operating difficulties; develop methods and procedures for maintenance and testing of systems and subsystem components; and maintain modification records for associated systems and equipment.
GS-10
Specialized Experience Requirement: Do you have the required Specialized Experience equivalent to the next lower grade? For a GS-10 grade level, your specialized experience MUST be at the GS-09 grade level or equivalent. in order to meet this requirement. Examples of qualifying specialized experience includes: Incumbent possesses understanding and working knowledge of Electronic systems, Mechanics and Networking similar to that gained through experience, education or a combination of both. The incumbent will have the skill and ability to manage limited projects, apply a variety of troubleshooting techniques, ensure system operation and use judgement to interpret guidelines that may lack specificity. The incumbent uses their in-depth knowledge of Electronics to advise their supervisor of any issues not covered under direct instructions. Incumbent will follow guidelines, including VA and Medical Center policies, regulations, procedures, Joint Commission standards, all NFPA codes as applicable and any other codes inherent in the operation of HealthCare Technology Management. Guidelines are often general in nature and not always specific to the problem at hand, requiring the incumbent to exercise ingenuity and judgment when selecting the appropriate solution.
GS-11
Specialized Experience Requirement: Do you have the required Specialized Experience equivalent to the next lower grade? For a GS-11 grade level, your specialized experience MUST be at the GS-10 grade level or equivalent in order to meet this requirement. Examples of qualifying specialized experience includes medical equipment analysis support through preventive maintenance inspections, assessments, instructional repairs, calibrations, installations, modification designations, and user training. Maintaining complex computer-based research systems and equipment functioning accurately and reliably.
You will be rated on the following Competencies for this position:

• Electronics
• Network Management

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; religions; spiritual; community; student; social). Volunteer work helps build critical competencies, knowledge, and skills and can provide valuable training and experience that translates directly to paid employment. You will receive credit for all qualifying experience, including volunteer experience.
Note: A full year of work is considered to be 35-40 hours of work per week. Part-time experience will be credited on the basis of time actually spent in appropriate activities. Applicants wishing to receive credit for such experience must indicate clearly the nature of their duties and responsibilities in each position and the number of hours a week spent in such employment.
Physical Requirements: Physical demands of this position involves walking, stooping, sitting, climbing ladders, standing, and long periods of intense concentration. Routinely required to crawl on rooftops and under buildings to investigate equipment malfunctions and recommend alternate methods and or other resolutions as applicable.
For more information on these qualification standards, please visit the United States Office of Personnel Management's website at https://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/classification-qualifications/general-schedule-qualification-standards/.Education:Applicants may substitute education for the required experience. To qualify based on education for this grade level you must have Successful completion of (a) all the requirements for a bachelor's degree in electrical engineering, electronics engineering, or electronics technology, or (b) 3 years of study in an accredited (by the Accreditation Board of Engineering and Technology, Inc. (ABET) curriculum in electronics, or (c) a full 4-year course of study leading to a bachelor's degree that included major study or at least 24 semester hours in any combination of courses such as those shown above.
A transcript must be submitted with your application if you are basing all or part of your qualifications on education.
Note: Only education or degrees recognized by the U.S. Department of Education from accredited colleges, universities, schools, or institutions may be used to qualify for Federal employment. You can verify your education here: http://ope.ed.gov/accreditation/. If you are using foreign education to meet qualification requirements, you must send a Certificate of Foreign Equivalency with your transcript in order to receive credit for that education. For further information, visit: https://sites.ed.gov/international/recognition-of-foreign-qualifications/.Employment Type: FULL_TIME