Forensic Chemist

Applicants must meet all of the required qualification requirements described below by the closing of this announcement. If you are qualifying based on education or if there are mandatory education requirements listed below, you MUST submit a copy of your college transcript with your application that clearly display conferred degrees and/or relevant credit hours. All applicants must meet one of the basic qualification requirements described below for this position. Basic Qualification Requirements: A. Degree: Physical sciences, life sciences, or engineering that included 30 semester hours in chemistry, supplemented by course work in mathematics through differential and integral calculus, and at least 6 semester hours of physics. OR B. Combination of education and experience: Course work equivalent to a major as shown in A above, including at least 30 semester hours in chemistry, supplemented by mathematics through differential and integral calculus, and at least 6 semester hours of physics, plus appropriate experience or additional education. In addition to meeting the basic requirements listed above, to qualify for this position the applicant MUST have at least one year of specialized experience that has equipped them with the particular knowledge, skills, and abilities to successfully perform the duties of the position. Candidates with a baccalaureate or an advanced degree in a chemical, physical, or biological science or forensic science are preferred, but not required. For the GS-13 level: This experience is related to the work of the position and equivalent to at least the GS-12 level in the Federal service. Qualifying specialized experience must demonstrate the following: 1) independently determining an approach to chemically analyzing specified or unknown substances and samples based on research, personal experiences, knowledge, and/or established laboratory protocols; 2) performing a full range of chemical analyses and physical tests on a variety of unknown substances for identification utilizing modern analytical techniques, instrumentation and following laboratory procedures; 3) calibrating and operating analytical instrumentation, such as the gas chromatograph, mass spectrometer, liquid chromatograph, or other laboratory equipment; and 4) generating reports which describes all tests performed, calculations and conclusions. There is no substitute of education for specialized experience for the GS-13 position. Additional information on the position qualification requirements are located in the Office of Personnel Management’s (OPM) Qualifications Standards Handbook.
This position is located in the Department of Justice (DOJ), Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), Office of Forensic Sciences, Forensic Laboratories. The incumbent conducts visual, physical, chemical, photographic, and other scientific and instrumental examinations of complex submissions of physical evidence to form an opinion in the primary area of forensic drug chemistry and other trace evidence materials.