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You are viewing a Dear Colleague Letter.

A Dear Colleague Letter (DCL) is an informal correspondence which is written by a Requesting Office and distributed to communities within a specific program area, to attract individuals eligible under a Visiting Scientist, Engineer, and Educator (VSEE) appointment, an Intergovernmental Personnel Act (IPA) assignment and/or a Federal Temporary appointment. These letters may be circulated in paper form through internal mail, distributed electronically using listservs or accessed through NSF.gov’s Career Page.

Program Director (Physical Scientist)

Division: Materials Research (MPS/DMR)
Directorate: Mathematical and Physical Sciences (MPS)
Job Type:
STEM
Appointment Type:
Temporary / Rotator
Pay Grade/Scale:
AD-04
Salary Range:
$169,430 - $204,000
This job is open to the public

Application timeline

Date Posted:
Closing date: Open until filled

Position Summary

The Division of Materials Research (DMR) announces a nationwide search for senior-level researchers to serve as a Program Director for the National Facilities and Instrumentation program. Formal consideration of interested applications will begin at time of posting and will continue until a selection is made.

For the DMR mission statement and additional information about the above program, please see www.nsf.gov/materials.

Position Description

The National Facilities program supports the operation of national user facilities: National Facilities are research facilities with specialized instrumentation available to the scientific research community, in general, and the materials research community in particular. Responsibilities of the Program Director include long-range planning, budget development, and oversight for the scientific facilities and science & technology centers managed by the Division of Materials Research, the administration of the merit review process and proposal recommendations, the preparation of press releases, feature articles and material describing advances in the research supported, and coordination and liaison with other programs within NSF, and other Federal agencies and organizations.

NSF Program Directors bear the primary responsibility for carrying out the Agency's overall mission. To fulfill this responsibility requires not only knowledge in the appropriate disciplines, but also a commitment to high standards, a considerable breadth of interest and receptivity to new ideas, a strong sense of fairness, good judgment, and a high degree of personal integrity.

The position recruited under this announcement will be filled under the following appointment option(s):

Temporary Excepted Service Appointment: Appointment to this position will be made under the Excepted Authority of the NSF Act. Candidates who do not have civil service status or reinstatement eligibility will not obtain civil service status if selected. Candidates currently in the competitive service will be required to waive competitive civil service rights if selected. Usual civil service benefits (retirement, health benefits and life insurance) are applicable for appointments of more than one year. Temporary appointments may not exceed three years.

Visiting Scientist, Engineer, and Educator (VSEE) Program: Appointment to this position will be made under the Excepted Authority of the NSF Act. Visiting Scientists are on non-paid leave status from their home institution and placed on the NSF payroll. NSF withholds Social Security taxes and pays the home institution's contributions to maintain retirement and fringe benefits (i.e., health benefits and life insurance), either directly to the home institution or to the carrier. Appointments are usually made for a one-year period and may be extended for an additional year by mutual agreement.

It is NSF policy that NSF personnel employed at or IPAs detailed to NSF are not permitted to participate in foreign government talent recruitment programs.  Failure to comply with this NSF policy could result in disciplinary action up to and including removal from Federal Service or termination of an IPA assignment and referral to the Office of Inspector General. https://www.nsf.gov/careers/Definition-of-Foreign-Talent-HRM.pdf.

Applications will be accepted from U.S. Citizens. Recent changes in Federal Appropriations Law require Non-Citizens to meet certain eligibility criteria to be considered. Therefore, Non-Citizens must certify eligibility by signing and attaching this Citizenship Affidavit to their application. Non-Citizens who do not provide the affidavit at the time of application will not be considered eligible. Non-Citizens are not eligible for positions requiring a security clearance.

To ensure compliance with an applicable preliminary nationwide injunction, which may be supplemented, modified, or vacated, depending on the course of ongoing litigation, the Federal Government will take no action to implement or enforce the COVID-19 vaccination requirement pursuant to Executive Order 14043 on Requiring Coronavirus Disease 2019 Vaccination for Federal Employees. Federal agencies may request information regarding the vaccination status of selected applicants for the purposes of implementing other workplace safety protocols, such as protocols related to masking, physical distancing, testing, travel, and quarantine.

Candidates must have a Ph.D. or equivalent experience in the physical sciences or a closely related field, plus six or more years of successful research, research administration, and/or managerial experience pertinent to the position after the award of the degree. 

Candidates with effective oral and written communication skills, and familiarity with NSF programs, activities, and facilities management and operation are highly desired. In addition, a successful candidate should have strong analytical and organizational abilities, significant experience in project management, construction, and the ability to develop a holistic strategic outlook for the wide range of activities under the purview of the National Facilities program.

Applicants should indicate which program they are applying to within their cover letter and the subject line of the email. Please submit your curriculum vitae to dmr-recruit@nsf.gov. Applications are reviewed by DMR's Division Director and Deputy Division Director. A few candidates are selected for telephone and/or NSF on-site or virtual interviews. Applicants will receive an acknowledgment of their application and a status update by email when selections occur. For more information about these openings, you may send an inquiry to dmr-recruit@nsf.gov or contact Miriam Deutsch. Nominations from the community are also encouraged. A nomination email can be sent to dmr-recruit@nsf.gov.

 

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