Health Physicist (Assistant Radiation Safety Officer)

This position is primarily responsible for serving as a subject matter expert for the Radiation Safety Service to ensure that safety is maintained, policy is implemented, and that compliance with regulations is occurring. Ionizing and non‑ionizing radiation is employed in the acquisition of medical images. The BVAHCS makes extensive use of radioactive material and machine sources of ionizing radiation in both the diagnosis and treatment of disease in the veteran population. To qualify for this position, applicants must meet all requirements by the closing date of this announcement, 07/16/2026. Time-In-Grade Requirement Applicants who are current Federal employees and have held a GS grade at any time in the past 52 weeks must also meet time-in-grade requirements by the closing date of this announcement. For a GS‑12 position you must have served 52 weeks at the GS‑11. 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. Time‑In‑Grade requirements also apply to former Federal employees applying for reinstatement as well as current employees applying for Veterans Employment Opportunities Act of 1998 (VEOA) appointment. Individual Occupational Requirement (IOR) In order to meet the basic requirement of the Health Physicist, 1306 Occupational series, you must possess: Degree: natural science or engineering that included at least 30 semester hours in health physics, engineering, radiological science, chemistry, physics, biology, mathematics, and/or calculus. (Copy of transcript required) OR, Combination of education and experience – courses as shown in the degree requirement, plus appropriate experience or other education; or certification as a health physicist by the American Board of Health Physics, plus appropriate experience and other education that provided an understanding of sciences applicable to health physics comparable to that described in the degree requirement. (Copy of transcript required) In addition to the above IOR, you may qualify based on your experience as described below: Specialized Experience Must have one year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the next lower grade GS‑11 in the normal line of progression for the occupation in the organization. Examples of specialized experience include, but are not limited to: Professional knowledge of health physics as it relates to a medical environment, adapting standard practices, equipment, or techniques to solve a variety of health physics problems. Planning and conducting work that requires judgment in evaluating, selecting, and adapting precedents and in modifying procedures and criteria. Knowledge of health protection standards, theories, and practices and operation of instruments used for measuring radiation and radioactive materials. Identifying and solving complex scientific problems in medical and research laboratory functions and activities involving numerous and varied sources of radiation. Ensuring proper use of radioactive materials. Advising researchers and medical staff on how to design and conduct procedures. Identifying and evaluating radiation hazards and taking measures to eliminate or control exposure to those hazards. Evaluating, overseeing, and recommending proper safety measures for laser use. 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. All qualifying experience, including volunteer experience, will be credited. 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 per week spent in such employment. Physical Requirements The work involves considerable walking, standing, bending, and lifting in all areas of the Medic ’31 Center. The work is divided approximately equally between sedentary desk work and walking, bending, and climbing required to inspect laboratory and equipment installations. Some occasional crouching, stooping, reaching, and pushing of moderately heavy items such as carts may be required. Often required to wear heavy, leaded radiation‑protective garments for periods of one hour or more. Lifting up to 50 pounds in weight may occasionally be required. For more information on these qualification standards, please visit the United States Office of Personnel Management's website at #J-18808-Ljbffr