Economist

Summary

This position is in the Department of Labor (DOL), Employment and Training Administration (ETA), Office of Policy Development and Research (OPDR). This position is inside the bargaining unit.

Duties

• Facilitate the design, collection, and assembly of large datasets on public workforce system participants. Provide expertise on the computational needs associated with the collection and maintenance of very large datasets. Lead activities on the design and execution of data validation methodologies. Develop documentation detailing the collection of program data and ensuring compliance with applicable federal policies. Write and manage code used for the analysis of large datasets. Conduct econometric analyses of public workforce system data to draw inferences on program performance. Design econometric models guiding the development of program goals. Develop analytical plans and methodological approaches for research, evaluation, and data validation activities. Analyze findings and develop recommendations to guide new research datasets, validation techniques, and program initiatives. Develop materials describing research and evaluation agendas. Lead the production of publishable economic reports applicable to issues concerning workforce development activities. Prepare official documents to provide guidance on workforce development matters on behalf of Employment and Training Administration. Review, develop, and refine policy proposals and other related materials.

Qualifications

You must meet the Basic Requirements and the Specialized Experience to qualify for the Economist, GS-0110-14 Basic Requirements: 1. Degree: economics, that included at least 21 semester hours in economics and 3 semester hours in statistics, accounting, or calculus. OR 2. Combination of education and experience: courses equivalent to a major in economics, as shown in A above, plus appropriate experience as listed below or additional education. Examples of qualifying experience include: individual economic research assignments requiring planning, information assembly, analysis and evaluation, conclusions and report preparation; supervisory or project coordination assignments involving a staff of professional economists, and requiring the evaluation and interpretation of economic information; or teaching assignments in a college or university that included both class instruction in economics subjects and one of the following (1) personal research that produced evidence of results, (2) direction of graduate theses in economics, or (3) service as a consultant or advisor on technical economics problems. Experience in related fields that did not involve the use and understanding of economic principles and theories may not be used as qualifying experience for these positions. Special attention on this point should be given to certain types of work that may or may not have provided professional economic experience. The following examples of work require special care in such determinations: economic statistics; industrial surveys; management of individual business enterprises, including farms; industrial planning; writing or editorial work in economic subjects; and financial market analysis. In addition to meeting the basic qualification requirements above, applicants must also meet the specialized experience shown below: Applicants must have 52 weeks of specialized experience equivalent to at least the next lower grade level GS-13, in the Federal Service. Specialized Experience is typically in or directly related to the work of the position to be filled and which has equipped the applicant with the particular knowledge, skills, and actual experience to perform successfully the duties of the position, and that is typically in or related to the work of the position. Qualifying specialized experience for GS-14 includes all of the following: (Note: Your resume must CLEARLY demonstrate this experience.) 1. Validating economic data for accuracy and completeness. 2. Applying statistical or computational methods (e.g., R or Python) to analyze economic data from a variety of sources. 3. Preparing reports or presentations exploring economic patterns or trends. 4. Advising on workforce development matters to government officials and/or private organizations. WHEN DOCUMENTING EXPERIENCE IN YOUR RESUME, PLEASE BE CLEAR AND SPECIFIC. NO ASSUMPTIONS WILL BE MADE ABOUT YOUR WORK EXPERIENCE. There is no substitution of education in lieu of specialized experience at the GS-14 grade level.

Education

Any applicant falsely claiming an academic degree from an accredited school will be subject to actions ranging from disqualification from federal employment to removal from federal service. If your education was completed at a foreign college or university, you must show comparability to education received in accredited educational institutions in the United States and comparability to applicable minimum coursework requirements for this position. Click Evaluation of Foreign Education for more information. Unofficial Transcript(s) (in English) - If you are using education as a basis for qualifying for this position, you must submit all applicable academic transcripts demonstrating that you meet the qualifying educational requirements (ex. BA/BS, MA, JD, Ph.D., etc.). If specific coursework is required to qualify, you must supply an unofficial transcript from each academic institution in which the required courses were taken in order to receive credit. You may upload your unofficial transcript(s) as one document with a maximum size limit of 5 MB. NOTE: The OFFICIAL Transcript(s) MUST BE RECEIVED, if you are selected, and prior to receiving the firm offer with a start date.

How to apply

Persons who are deaf, hard of hearing, blind, or have speech disabilities, please dial 711 to access telecommunications relay services. To apply for this position, you must complete the initial online application, including submission of the required documentation specified in the Required Documents section. Your application and ALL required supplemental documents MUST be received by 11:59 pm Eastern Time on the vacancy closing date to receive consideration. Important - Save your information before the 30 minute system timeout! For help, go to USAJOBS Help Center. STEP 1 - Create USAJOBS Account on www.usajobs.gov, including Resume and Saved Documents. For each employment period, include start/end month & year and note full-time or part-time (if part-time, include # of hours worked per week) otherwise, your application may be considered incomplete. NOTE: In alignment with the Presidential Memorandum titled Merit Hiring Plan, dated May 29, 2025, applicants may only submit a resume limited to two (2) pages. Only the résumé uploaded under the 'Resume" document type in USAJOBS will be reviewed. If the resume submitted exceeds two (2) pages, the application will be deemed ineligible for further consideration. STEP 2 - Complete the 1st part of the application process (USAJOBS). Once you have identified a job on USAJOBS that you wish to apply for, click on the job title and then click the Apply button. For questions about the vacancy, contact the Agency Contact at the bottom of the announcement. Proceed through the steps noted at the top of the USAJOBS page. You will be able to select a resume and documents from your USAJOBS Account that you can submit as a package as part of your DOL application. In the final step, once you have certified your application, click the Continue to agency site button. STEP 3 - Complete the 2nd part of the application process (DOL). On the Department of Labor (DOL) page, create a DOL Account if you have not already and click Apply to this vacancy. Continue through the progress steps at the top of the DOL page. The 2nd progress step is where you answer the vacancy-specific questions. The 3rd progress step Documents is where you submit the required documents (only if applicable to you) specified in the Required Documents section of this vacancy. STEP 4 - On the Review and Submit step, verify each section of your application is complete and correct. In order to submit your application, you must have a check mark next to each section listed. If there is an X, return to the appropriate section and follow the prompts. When it is ready for submission, certify your application and click the Submit Application button. STEP 5 - Edit Application as needed by 11:59 pm Eastern Time of Closing Date by returning to USAJOBS, clicking the vacancy, then Update Application. If you are required to complete any USA Hire Assessments, you will be notified after submitting your application. The notification will be provided in your application submission screen and via email. The notification will include your unique assessment access link to the USA Hire system and the completion deadline. Additionally, in USAJOBS you can click "Track this application" to return to your assessment completion notice. Access USA Hire using your unique assessment link. Access is granted through your USAJOBS login credentials. Review all instructions prior to beginning your assessments. You will have the opportunity to request a testing accommodation before beginning the assessments should you have a disability covered under the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 as amended. Set aside about 2 hours to take the USA Hire Assessments; however, most applicants complete the assessments in less time. If you need to stop the assessments and continue later, you can re-use your unique assessment link. Your responses to the USA Hire Assessments will be reused for one year (in most cases) from the date you complete an assessment. If future applications you submit require completion of the same assessments, your responses will be automatically reused. Visit the USA Hire Applicant Resource Center for practice assessments and assessment preparation resources at https://support-usahire.opm.gov/hc/en-us. To update your application, including supporting documentation: During the announcement open period, return to your USAJOBS account, find your application record, and click Edit my application. This option will no longer be available once the announcement has closed. NOTE: It is your responsibility to ensure your responses and appropriate documentation is submitted prior to the closing date. For more detailed information on applying for positions with DOL click here to view the U.S. Department of Labor, How to Apply website.