Data Science - Technical

Summary

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) is recruiting professionals to support a range of technical roles in Cybersecurity Data Science, including Data Scientist, Data Engineers, Artificial Intelligence (AI) Specialist, AI Operations Analyst, Data Modeler, Data Security Officer and Operations Research Analyst. All positions are in the DHS Cybersecurity Service.

Learn more about this agency

Duties

Help

There are a variety of Cybersecurity Data Science opportunities across the Department, including supporting several specialized programs at the DHS Office of Strategy, Policy, and Plans (PLCY), the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA), the DHS Office of the Chief Information Officer (OCIO), the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement Agency (ICE) and the U.S. Secret Service. As a DHS Cybersecurity Service employee in the Technical Career Track, you will continually maintain and share your Cybersecurity Data Science expertise to perform a range of critical, complex, routine and non-routine tasks, including:

• Applying knowledge of essential cybersecurity policies to data management to develop data standards, policies, and procedures to facilitate and implement data mining and data warehousing programs to collect, clean, convert and standardize complex data for analysis.
• Conducting hypothesis testing using statistical processes applying quantitative techniques (e.g., descriptive and inferential statistics, sampling, experimental design) to assess the validity of source data and develop strategic insights from large data sets.
• Proactively collaborating with systems analysts, engineers, and programmers to design applications integrating data from several disparate sources that is stored using different technologies to provide a unified view of the data.
• Using a variety of tools, including Google Analytics, to monitor web data, log data, and threat data analytics, to provide a managed flow of relevant information based on cybersecurity mission requirements.
• Analyzing and defining data requirements and specifications using various tools and methodologies (e.g., Statistical Package for Social Sciences [SPSS], Statistical Analysis System [SAS], R Analytics, Statistics and Data [STATA]) to discover new patterns and behaviors providing DHS Headquarters (HQ) and/or Component stakeholders actionable recommendations.
• Planning for anticipated changes in enterprise data capacity requirements and effectively allocating storage capacity in the design of new data management systems, technologies, and architectures.
• Providing technical and nontechnical support to collect metrics and trending data using enterprise data management systems (e.g., SPLUNK) and cloud-based systems (e.g., AWS).
• Using data visualization tools (e.g., R, Tableau, Flare, Google Visualization Application Programming Interface [API], RGIS) to design charts and exhibit graphic representations for the purposes of providing actionable recommendations to critical leadership officials and stakeholders.
• Using various tools (e.g., SPSS, SAS, R, STATA) and methodologies for analyzing and interpreting complex data to discover new patterns and behaviors and provide usable information to decision makers and other users.
• Designing and implementing data pipelines for the analysis of cyber data into systems.
• Structuring, cleaning, enriching, and validating data in preparation for discovery and use.
• Building and maintaining scalable database architecture and data processing systems.

Requirements

Help

Conditions of employment

• You must be a U.S. Citizen or national.
• You must be 18 years of age.
• Must be registered for the Selective Service (if you are a male).
• Must be able to obtain and maintain a security clearance. Security clearance levels may vary.
• Must be able to submit to a drug test and receive a negative result.
• Must be able to comply with ethics and standards of conduct requirements, including completing any applicable financial disclosure.
• May be required to serve a 3 year probationary period.

Qualifications

This position is in the Technical Track across a range of career levels. Employees in this career track generally:

• Have between 5-15 years of cybersecurity work experience.
• Range from experienced cybersecurity professionals who apply technical expertise and independent judgement to perform cybersecurity work - to - recognized Federal cybersecurity technical authorities with uncommon technical expertise who advise on cybersecurity challenged impacting DHS and the Nation.

DHS Cybersecurity Service employees with a technical capability in Cybersecurity Data Science will generally:

• Examine data with the goal of providing new insight for the purposes of cybersecurity.
• Design and implement custom algorithms, flow processes and layouts for complex, enterprise-scale data sets used for modeling, data analytics, and research purposes.
• Apply understanding of cybersecurity field to inform analytical methodologies and algorithms selected for implementation.
• Design, build, implement, integrate, and maintain systems and tools for data trend and pattern analysis of cyber data.
• Apply knowledge of statistics and mathematical theory to develop and integrate new and emerging technologies, such as machine learning and deep learning concepts and techniques.
• Communicate insights gained to mission user.

DHS Cybersecurity Service employees start at career levels and salaries matching their experience and expertise. To learn more about DHS Cybersecurity Service career tracks and levels, visit our application portal.

This position is focused on Cybersecurity Data Science.

DHS Cybersecurity Service jobs are structured cybersecurity specializations - called technical capabilities. To learn more about technical capabilities, visit our application portal.

Education

Degrees are not required for jobs in the DHS Cybersecurity Service, but DHS is interested in your level of education and the topics you studied. As you submit initial application information, you will be asked questions about your education.

Additional information

Salary: Listed salary ranges reflects typical starting salaries available to employees in most of the United States across applicable career levels. Within the provided range, average salaries vary for each career level.

Senior Cybersecurity Specialist: $106,700 - $138,000

Staff Cybersecurity Specialist: $129,700 - $163,000

Principal Cybersecurity Specialist: $154,600 - $196,500

Senior Principal Cybersecurity Specialist: $170,600 - $214,500

In some geographic areas, average starting salaries will be higher because of a local cybersecurity labor market supplement (e.g., metro Washington, D.C. +10%).

Actual salaries of individual employees may be higher or lower than provided figures. For an overview of the salaries available in the DHS Cybersecurity Service, visit Resources.

Benefits: DHS Cybersecurity Service employees receive a range of federal employment benefits designed to support their professional and personal lives. To learn more about benefits, visit our application portal.

More information about the specific benefits available to you will be provided as you progress through the application process.

Background Investigation: To ensure the accomplishment of its mission, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) requires each and every employee to be reliable and trustworthy. To meet those standards, all selected applicants must undergo and successfully complete a background investigation for a security clearance as a condition of placement in this position. This review includes financial issues such as delinquency in the payment of debts, child support and/or tax obligations, as well as certain criminal offenses and illegal use or possession of drugs.

Pursuant to Executive Order 12564 and DHS policy, DHS is committed to maintaining a drug-free workplace and, therefore, conducts random and other drug testing of its employees in order to ensure a safe and healthy work environment. Headquarters personnel in safety- or security-sensitive positions are subject to random drug testing and all applicants tentatively selected for employment at DHS Headquarters are subject to drug testing resulting in a negative test result.

Candidates should be committed to improving the efficiency of the Federal government, passionate about the ideals of our American republic, and committed to upholding the rule of law and the United States Constitution.

Help

A career with the U.S. government provides employees with a comprehensive benefits package. As a federal employee, you and your family will have access to a range of benefits that are designed to make your federal career very rewarding. Opens in a new windowLearn more about federal benefits.

Eligibility for benefits depends on the type of position you hold and whether your position is full-time, part-time or intermittent. Contact the hiring agency for more information on the specific benefits offered.