United States Sentencing Commission

Vacancy Announcement

POSITION: RESEARCH ASSISTANT (Full-time/Permanent)
SALARY RANGE: GS-303-07/08/09 ($34,184 – $54,360)
PROMOTION POTENTIAL: GS-09
ANNOUNCEMENT NO.: #04-09
OPENING DATE: Thursday, October 7, 2004
CLOSING DATE: Thursday, October 28, 2004
AREA OF CONSIDERATION: All Sources
ORGANIZATION LOCATION: U.S. Sentencing Commission, Office of Policy Analysis, Washington, D.C.

ABOUT THE COMMISSION
The U.S. Sentencing Commission is an independent federal agency in the Judicial Branch of government consisting of seven members appointed by the President and confirmed by the Senate, two non-voting members, and approximately 100 employees. The Commission develops and revises guidelines for federal district court judges to follow in sentencing offenders convicted of federal crimes. The Commission monitors and evaluates the impact of the guidelines; conducts research and education programs on guideline application and sentencing matters generally; and recommends improvements in federal sentencing practices. Additional information about the Commission can be accessed via the Commission’s website at http://www.ussc.gov.

BENEFITS
This position is in the excepted service and does not carry the tenure rights of positions in the competitive Civil Service. Federal life insurance, health insurance, retirement, the federal leave program, the Thrift Savings Plan, flexible spending benefit plans, long term care insurance, metrocheck program, unemployment, and workers’ compensation benefits are applicable. All newly appointed employees must serve a one year probationary period.

DUTIES
The duties of this position include but are not limited to the following: 1) Assists the research staff in the preparation and analysis of qualitative and quantitative data for monitoring the application of federal sentencing guidelines and for other related Commission or criminal justice research; 2) Assists with bibliographic work, case file reviews, report preparation, research projects, or special requests; 3) Assists in the preparation of databases, datafile documentation, statistical tables, and graphic displays; and 4) Performs support or administrative tasks as assigned.

MANDATORY QUALIFICATION REQUIREMENTS:
Applicants must have an undergraduate degree, preferably in an empirical science discipline and one year of experience working in a research environment either as an intern or a paid employee. The one year of experience must be equivalent to the next lower level of the grade being applied for. For example, to qualify for the GS-08, one year of experience must have been at the GS-07 level.

PREFERRED QUALIFICATIONS:
Preference will be given to applicants whose research experience includes the production of graphic presentations; spreadsheet design and development; and advanced skill using word processing personal computer programs; experience writing and executing computer program code and working with large data files.

REQUIRED KNOWLEDGE, SKILLS AND ABILITIES (KSAs):
Applicants must address each factor below in a separate narrative statement, which describes or demonstrates the following knowledge, skills, and abilities:

1) Training in and demonstrated experience with standard statistical analysis packages (e.g., SAS, SPSS) in a personal computer environment;
2) Training in and demonstrated experience with quantitative or qualitative methodological research techniques and social science statistical procedures;
3) Ability to handle multiple assignments, focus on details and produce precise work products in a timely manner to ensure deadlines are met;
4) Excellent oral and written communication skills; and
5) Ability to successfully interact with employees at all levels and work effectively as a member of a team.

HOW TO APPLY: Applicants must submit a cover letter, a separate narrative statement which addresses each KSA factor, and a resume to:

U.S. Sentencing Commission
Office of Human Resources
One Columbus Circle, NE
Suite 2-500
Washington, D.C. 20002-8002
ATTN: Announcement #04-09

Applicants may also E-mail their submission (cover letter, KSA narrative statement, and resume in WordPerfect 7.0-11.0 or MSWord 2000 format only) to Vacancy1@ussc.gov. Applicants who submit their application package via E-mail must specify the announcement number in the subject line of their E-mail. All applications must be received in our Human Resources Office by mail or electronic mail by CLOSE OF BUSINESS (5:30 P.M.) on the closing date. The Commission does not accept application materials by facsimile. For further information, a copy of the OF-612 or this vacancy announcement, please visit our Internet web site at www.ussc.gov. Application and enclosure(s) will not be returned. Applicants must be a U.S. citizen or eligible to work in the United States as mandated by the Immigration Reform and Control Act of 1986. Employees are required to participate in electronic fund transfer, mandated by the Federal Compensation Act.

AN EQUAL OPPORTUNITY EMPLOYER