Social Scientist
What you'd do
This position is located in the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), Food and Drug Administration (FDA), Center for Tobacco Products, Office of Health Communication and Education, Division of Research and Evaluation which is located in Silver Spring, Maryland.
Major duties
Provide leadership and administrative oversight of programmatic functions, support project monitoring and tracking of activities in Division research portfolio and ensure division program activities comply with organizational protocols and standards. Provide expertise and guide process and policy development, problem-solves complex organization topics, and aids leadership in organizational and strategic planning while ensuring alignment to broader Agency and/or Center priorities. Provide authoritative and technical expertise in the conceptualization, development, implementation, and evaluation of scientific projects to inform public health communication and marketing programs, campaigns, and other research activities. Develop and implement comprehensive and systematic approaches for gathering external and internal feedback to research and evaluation projects. Serve as an expert in research and evaluation to provide consultation to project leads, including providing recommendations related to framing research questions.
What you need to qualify
The position of Social Scientist falls within the 0101 occupational series. To qualify for this position at grade GS-14, you must meet Time-in-Grade requirements by 11:59 pm EST on 07/24/2026. BASIC QUALIFICATION REQUIREMENTS: Degree: Behavioral or Social Science; or related disciplines appropriate to the position. -OR- Combination of education and experience that provided the applicant with knowledge of one or more of the behavioral or social sciences equivalent to a major in the field. -OR- Four years of appropriate experience that demonstrated that the applicant has acquired knowledge of one or more of the behavioral or social sciences equivalent to a major in the field. -AND- MINIMUM QUALIFICATION REQUIREMENTS: GS-14: You must have one (1) year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the GS-13 grade level in the Federal Service, which includes planning and leading a behavioral or social science research program to perform tobacco product or other regulated product policy development; providing strategic planning to an organization on social science theories and methodology affecting public health; and analyzing and integrating scientific evidence to inform regulatory science decision-makers of an organization. Specialized experience is experience that equipped the applicant with the particular knowledge, skills, and abilities to perform successfully the duties of the position, and that is typically in or related to the work of the position to be filled. The specialized experience must demonstrate one year of full-time work experience , or the equivalent if part-time (for example, an employee working 20 hours per week for a 12-month period should be credited with 6 months of experience.) Experience may have been obtained in either the federal service or its equivalent with state or local government, the private sector, or nongovernmental organizations. In accordance with Office of Personnel Management policy, federal employees are assumed to have gained experience by performing duties and responsibilities appropriate for their official series and grade level as described in their position description. Experience that would not normally be part of the employee's position is creditable, however, when documented by satisfactory evidence, such as a signed memorandum from the employee's supervisor or an SF-50 or SF-52 documenting an official detail or other official assignment. The documentation must indicate whether the duties were performed full time or, if part time, the percentage of times the other duties were performed. It is expected that this documentation is included in the employee's official personnel record. In order to receive credit for experience in your resume that is not within the official series and grade level of your official position, you must provide a copy of the appropriate documentation of such experience as indicated above. PHS Commissioned Corps Officers interested in performing the duties of this position within the Commissioned Corps may apply online to this announcement. Candidates will be referred to (CC) personnel and not as candidates for conversion to a permanent career or career-conditional appointment. NOTE: It is your responsibility to ensure your responses and appropriate documentation is submitted prior to the closing date. To verify your application is complete, log into your USAJOBS account,https://secure.login.gov/ select the Application Status link and then select the More Information link for this position. The Details page will display the status of your application, the documentation received and processed, and any correspondence the agency has sent related to this application. Your uploaded documents may take several hours to clear the virus scan process. IN DESCRIBING YOUR EXPERIENCE, PLEASE BE CLEAR AND SPECIFIC. WE WILL NOT MAKE ASSUMPTIONS REGARDING YOUR EXPERIENCE. Qualifications are based on breadth/level of experience. In addition to describing duties performed, applicants must provide the exact dates of each period of employment (from MM/YY to MM/YY) and the number of hours worked per week if part time. As qualification determinations cannot be made when resumes do not include the required information, failure to provide this information may result in disqualification. Applicants are encouraged to use the USAJOBS Resume Builder to develop their federal resume. 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). 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. You must submit supporting documentation to verify your eligibility to apply for this vacancy. For internal applicants an SF-50 will be required. If Educational requirements are listed, you must submit a Transcript, even if you occupy the series/grade in question. See the Required Documents section for full details.
Before you apply
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