Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration
General Engineer - Direct Hire - SME
Department of Transportation · Anywhere in the U.S. (remote job)
- Salary
- $102,415 - $158,322 per year
- Pay grade
- GS-12 to 13
- Schedule
- Full-time
- Appointment
- Permanent
- Opened
- Oct 30, 2026
- Closes
- Nov 13, 2026
- Remote
- Yes
- Telework eligible
- No
- Openings
- 2
- Security clearance
- Other
- Promotion potential
- 13
- Announcement
- PHMSA.PSRG-2027-0003
Who may apply: Career transition (CTAP, ICTAP, RPL) · Open to the public
Applications are submitted on USAJOBS.gov, not on Careers.org. Always confirm details in the official announcement.
Summary
This position is within PHMSA's Office of Pipeline Safety. PHMSA protects people and the environment from risks related to hazardous materials transportation by pipeline. The Accident Investigation Division (AID) leads investigations of pipeline, underground natural gas storage, and Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) events, the identification of accident trends and the sharing of lessons learned to enhance pipeline safety.
Duties
- As a General Engineer (Accident Investigator), you will: Accident and Incident Investigations - Conducts and oversees the investigation of pipeline related failure and safety investigations. May serve as a Primary Operations Supervisor (OPS) Investigator on Federally regulated pipeline failure investigations. Serves as the Federal OPS Coordinator on state regulated pipeline failure investigations. Failure Analysis and Sharing Lessons Learned - Ensures OPS collects the data, technical reports and information needed to conduct thorough and comprehensive failure analysis. Continually monitors the national pipeline infrastructure for incidents and accidents. Gathers information on serious and significant accidents and incidents involving pipelines, providing factual, accurate and timely information. The ideal candidate is an experienced Engineer who is looking for challenging assignments investigating pipeline incidents and accidents. As an Accident Investigator, you will conduct, coordinate, manage and report comprehensive investigations of critical and nationally significant pipeline accidents and safety concerns. This position will coordinate with other federal and state agencies, industry, and the public regarding investigations, accident trends and lessons learned from investigations.
Key requirements
- You must be a U.S. citizen & meet specialized experience to qualify
- Submit application and resume online by 11:59 PM EST on the closing date
- Required documents must be submitted by the closing date.
- Direct Hire Authority/SME will be used to fill this position
Qualifications
To meet the minimum qualifications for this position, you must (1) meet the Education Requirement for the series, (2) provide a copy of transcripts for verification, AND (3) meet either the education or experience qualifications for the grade at which you are requesting consideration. To qualify for the GS-12, you must have at least one year of experience equal or equivalent to the GS-11, it must include: Experience in engineering disciplines concerning the design, construction, operation, maintenance and repair, integrity management, and failure analysis of gas and liquid pipelines. Experience in conducting and/or participating in investigations or projects to improve transportation safety. To qualify for the GS-13, you must have at least one year of experience equal or equivalent to the GS-12, it must include: Experience in engineering disciplines concerning the design, construction, operation, maintenance and repair, integrity management, and failure analysis of gas and liquid pipelines. Experience in conducting and/or participating in investigations or projects to improve transportation safety. Experience in risk management, pipeline integrity management, and management systems principles and practices as they relate to protection of physical facilities and structures with critical environmental and safety impact. KNOWLEDGE, SKILLS AND ABILITIES (KSAs): Your qualifications will be evaluated on the basis of your level of knowledge, skills, abilities and/or competencies in the following areas: Incident Management: Knowledge of the tactics, technologies, principles, and processes to protect, analyze, prioritize, and handle incidents. Technical Problem Solving: Troubleshoots, diagnoses, analyzes, and identifies system malfunctions to determine the source and cause of the problem. Accident Investigation: Knowledge of guidelines, regulations, and procedures associated with an accident investigation including preservation of accident scene, root cause analysis, and evidence detection and handling. 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. For additional information about applying to Federal positions, please click on the following link: https://www.opm.gov/frequently-asked-questions/employment-faq/federal-hiring/how-do-i-apply-for-federal-jobs/ All applicants must meet all qualification requirements by the closing date of this announcement.
Education
MANDATORY EDUCATION REQUIREMENTS: A. DEGREE: ENGINEERING --To be acceptable, the program must: (1) lead to a bachelor's degree in a school of engineering with at least one program accredited by 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. <B>OR</b> 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)1 , 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.…
Job data from USAJOBS.gov. Careers.org is not affiliated with or endorsed by OPM. Retrieved Nov 4, 2026, 6:15 AM EST.