Trainee Instrumentation Engineer Jobs in Virginia

Organizational Location: This position is with the Department of Homeland Security, within U.S. Customs and Border Protection, Operations Support (OS, Laboratories and Scientific Services (LSS) in Savannah, GA; Newark, NJ; Houston, TX; and Ashburn, VA.Qualifications:Individual Occupational Requirements: To be eligible for consideration, you must submit the required documentation with your application package showing that you meet the requirements such as college transcripts from an accredited institution (must show you meet the educational requirements outlined in this announcement), certifications, proof of training, statements of qualifications, etc.
Basic Requirements:
A. Degree: physical sciences, life sciences, or engineering that included 30 semester hours in chemistry, supplemented by course work in mathematics through differential and integral calculus, and at least 6 semester hours of physics.
OR
B. Combination of education and experience -- course work equivalent to a major as shown in A above, including at least 30 semester hours in chemistry, supplemented by mathematics through differential and integral calculus, and at least 6 semester hours of physics, plus appropriate experience or additional education.
Experience: You qualify for the GS-07 grade level if you possess 1 year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the next lower grade level, performing duties such as:

• Serving as a chemist trainee performing routine chemical analysis on a limited range of samples;
• Assisting higher level chemists by preparing samples for analysis;
• Setting the controls of and making adjustments to instrumentation and automated equipment;
• Checking the laboratory equipment for readiness; and
• Compiling, reducing and making routine interpretations of field data

Education Substitution: A bachelor's degree with superior academic achievement from an accredited or pre-accredited college or university with a grade point average of 3.0 or higher on a 4.0 scale, class standing in the upper third of a graduating class or major subdivision, or membership in a national honor society; OR one full year of graduate level education at an accredited or pre-accredited college or university.
Combining Experience and Education: A combination of successfully completed graduate level education and experience that totals one year.
Experience: You qualify for the GS-09 grade level if you possess 1 year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the next lower grade level, performing duties such as:

• Serving as an advanced chemist trainee and selecting appropriate test samples;
• Performing preliminary chemical analysis; and
• Making computations and applying correction factors and plotting preliminary prediction values

Education Substitution: A master's or equivalent degree or 2 full years of progressively higher graduate education leading to such a degree from an accredited or pre-accredited college or university.
Combining Experience and Education: A combination of successfully completed graduate school education in excess of one year and required experience that totals one year.
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; religious; 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. You will receive credit for all qualifying experience, including volunteer experience.
You must meet all qualification requirements, including education if applicable to this position, subject to verification at any stage of the application process by 05/28/2026.
In order to be considered for this position, you must complete all required steps in the process. In addition to the application and application questionnaire, this position requires an online assessment. The online assessment measures critical general competencies required to perform the job.
You are eligible for this appointing authority if you are an individual who: Completed, within the previous two years by 05/28/2026, a qualifying associate's, bachelor's, master's, professional, doctorate, vocational or technical degree or certificate from a qualifying educational institution or completed a qualifying career or technical education program (which may include Registered Apprenticeship Programs, Job Corps, AmeriCorps, and Peace Corps) . Review Recent Graduates for additional eligibility information. If you are a veteran who was unable to apply within two years of receiving your degree due to military service obligation, you have as long as six years after degree completion to apply. You must submit a copy of your transcripts showing type of degree received and date degree was received. In addition, if you are a veteran who was unable to apply within two years of receiving your degree due to military service obligation, please provide a copy of your DD-214 or a written statement from the armed forces certifying your dates of service and your rank, expected type of discharge and anticipated date of separation.
To be eligible for conversion, Recent Graduates must:

• Successfully complete at least year of continuous service in addition to all requirements of the program;
• Meet the qualification standards for the position to which the Recent Graduate will be converted;
• Meet agency-specific requirements and expectations as specified in the Participant's Agreement; and
• Perform their job successfully.

EXPECTED TRAINING AND DEVELOPMENT:

• Orientation program for Recent Graduates hired for the program;
• Mentorship throughout the program;
• Individual Development Plan to create and track Recent Graduates' career planning, professional development, and training activities;
• At least 40 hours of formal, interactive training each year of the program;
• Positions offer opportunity for career advancement.

Recent Grad Promotions: Per CBP Policy, Recent Graduates are not eligible for promotions while in the one (1) year program.A Recent Graduate may be eligible for a promotion upon successful completion of the program if he/she meets the OPM qualification requirements for the position for which the Recent Graduate is being considered. Advancement to the next level upon successful program completion is approved by the Recent Graduate's supervisor and certified by HRM.
The Office of Personnel Management (OPM) must authorize employment offers made to current or former political appointees. If you are currently, or have been within the last 5 years, a political Schedule A, Schedule C, Non-career SES or Presidential Appointee employee in the Executive Branch, you must disclose this information to the Human Resources Office.
Background Investigation: U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) is a federal law enforcement agency that requires all applicants to undergo a thorough background investigation prior to employment in order to promote the agency's core values of vigilance, service to country, and integrity. During the screening and/or background investigation process, you will be asked questions regarding any felony criminal convictions or current felony charges, the use of illegal drugs (e.g., marijuana, cocaine, heroin, LSD, methamphetamines, ecstasy), and the use of non-prescribed controlled substances including any experimentation, possession, sale, receipt, manufacture, cultivation, production, transfer, shipping, trafficking, or distribution of controlled substances.
For additional information on the preemployment process, review the following link: Applicant Resources | CBP Careers
Trial Period: The entire period served under the Recent Graduate Program counts as the participant's trial period.Education:Please see the Qualifications and Required Documents sections for more information.Employment Type: OTHER