Summary

NSA's development programs help employees enhance their skills and improve their understanding of a specific discipline. The programs are generally three years long and feature rotational tours throughout the Agency. Designed for entry to mid-level employees, development program participants are afforded the opportunity to receive tailored training, often with a cohort, and multiple assignments across Agency Directorates to develop skills and experience to ground their career at the NSA.

Learn more about this agency

This job is open to

The public

U.S. Citizens, Nationals or those who owe allegiance to the U.S.

Federal employees - Excepted service

Current federal employees whose agencies have their own hiring rules, pay scales and evaluation criteria.

Veterans

Veterans of the U.S. Armed Forces or a spouse, widow, widower or parent of a veteran, who may be eligible for derived preference

Duties

**Applicants selected for interview as a result of this ad will be invited to attend an in-person interview event. Please apply to this ad only if you are available to attend an in-person interview.**

NSA's mission requires persistent engagement to anticipate and understand complex threats in real-time, on a global scale. Our Computer Scientists face technical challenges well beyond the wildest imaginations of most people. NSA's Computer Science community creates novel, cutting-edge solutions that advance science and underpin every aspect of our foreign intelligence and cybersecurity missions. Solving these extraordinary problems provides tremendous benefit to our Nation.

NSA's development programs help employees enhance their skills and improve their understanding of a specific discipline. The programs are generally three years long and feature rotational tours throughout the Agency. Designed for entry to mid-level employees, development program participants are afforded the opportunity to receive tailored training, often with a cohort, and multiple assignments across Agency Directorates to develop skills and experience to ground their career at the NSA.

Applicants will be considered for the Cryptanalytic Computer Network Operations Development Program (C2DP).

For additional information on development programs please visit: www.intelligencecareers.gov/NSA/nsadevprograms.html

For any questions regarding the C2DP, please email [email protected].

As an NSA development program participant your responsibilities may include:

• creating analytic applications that scale across multiple, very large, data sets from disparate sources
• leveraging and integrating open source, commercial off-the-shelf, and government developed software
• analyzing user/customer requirements related to software and/or software system design
• building software prototypes
• designing, developing, and debugging software applications
• troubleshooting and debugging computer code
• applying mathematical or computational methods and lines of reasoning to complex software systems
• identifying target communications within the global network
• designing and optimizing algorithms, data structures, modeling, and analytics to solve real-world scientific problems
• solving cryptanalytic, high-performance computing, and computer network problems

Leading new advances in computer science, such as:

• microprocessor-based advances
• beyond the horizon supercomputers
• signals processing (including analog control)
• user interfaces
• deep learning
• cybersecurity
• design and implementation of encryption
• advanced algorithms
• detecting, identifying, and evaluating vulnerabilities in cyberspace systems and/or networks
• developing software and/or hardware exploitation capabilities that enable collection of foreign intelligence from target networks and systems
• analyzing sophisticated malware to thwart cyber-attacks and identify new threats
• developing methods and applications for tools to exploit and analyze computer systems

Requirements

Conditions of employment

• All applicants and employees are subject to random drug testing in accordance with Executive Order 12564.

Qualifications

The qualifications listed are the minimum acceptable to be considered for the position.

Relevant experience must be in one or more of the following: cryptanalysis, computer science, computer network operations, ethical hacking, math, statistics, data science, engineering, programming, or hands on experience in network domains and operating systems.

ENTRY/DEVELOPMENTAL

Entry is with an Associate's degree plus 2 years of relevant experience, or a Bachelor's degree and no experience.

Education

Degree must be in Computer Science, Computer Engineering, Electrical Engineering, Software Engineering, Mathematics. Related fields (for example, Cybersecurity, Engineering, Information Technology, Information Systems, Physics, or Statistics) may be considered relevant if the programs contain, at minimum, courses in 4 of the following 6 Computer Science/Math areas: algorithms; computer architecture (not network architecture); logic and computation; programming methodologies and languages; data structures; and mathematics (calculus or above) or statistics.

???????** Please upload a copy of your transcripts from all schools attended into your candidate profile, prior to applying for this position. Unofficial transcripts are fine at this stage. Minimum qualifications for this position require a specific degree that demonstrates a concentration of Computer Science and Math courses.**

Additional information

Pay: Salary offers are based on candidates' education level and years of experience relevant to the position and also take into account information provided by the hiring manager/organization regarding the work level for the position.

Salary Range: $87,362 - $123,388 (Entry/Developmental)

Salary range varies by location, work level, and relevant experience to the position.

Training will be provided based on the selectee's needs and experience.

Benefits: NSA offers a comprehensive benefits package.

Work Schedule: This is a full-time position, Monday - Friday, with basic 8hr/day work requirement between 6:00 a.m. and 6:00 p.m. (flexible).

Candidates should be committed to improving the efficiency of the Federal government, passionate about the ideals of our American republic, and committed to upholding the rule of law and the United States Constitution.

Benefits

A career with the U.S. government provides employees with a comprehensive benefits package. As a federal employee, you and your family will have access to a range of benefits that are designed to make your federal career very rewarding. Opens in a new windowLearn more about federal benefits.

Eligibility for benefits depends on the type of position you hold and whether your position is full-time, part-time or intermittent. Contact the hiring agency for more information on the specific benefits offered.

How you will be evaluated

You will be evaluated for this job based on how well you meet the qualifications above.

The ideal candidate is someone who thrives on solving hard problems, has excellent communication and interpersonal skills, and is able to:

• work independently as well as in a team environment to build solutions
• handle multiple assignments
• synthesize information to solve complex problems
• apply knowledge of data structures and algorithms to software engineering problems
• develop, diagnose, and operate complex computer systems
• identify customer needs and validate product design

Additionally, the ideal candidate is someone with knowledge and experience in one or more of the following:

• programming and scripting experience (e.g., C, C++, Java, Assembly, Python, Perl, Ruby, Bash, Node.js, Spark, Puppet, SALT, KAFKA, HADOOP, VHDL, Verilog)
• building user facing services, middleware, and backend systems
• full-stack development
• protocol analysis (e.g. Wireshark, tcpdump)
• data spaces, data modeling, data analysis, storage design, and administration
• simulation/model development & prototyping
• information retrieval, machine learning, artificial intelligence, statistics and analytics
• hardware and software vulnerability analysis
• software reverse engineering/interactive debugging tools (e.g., Ghidra, IDA Pro, Ollydbg, gdb)
• hardware reverse engineering tools (e.g., JTAG, Oscilloscopes)
• software development life-cycle (design, develop, implementation, debug, testing)
• kernel and device driver development
• network/socket programming
• embedded systems development
• operating systems
• computational science
• algorithm analysis and design
• reverse engineering
• cryptanalysis
• high performance computing

Required Documents

The National Security Agency (NSA) is part of the DoD Intelligence Community Defense Civilian Intelligence Personnel System (DCIPS). All positions in the NSA are in the Excepted Services under 10 United States Codes (USC) 1601 appointment authority. DoD Components with DCIPS positions apply Veterans' Preference to eligible candidates as defined by Section 2108 of Title 5 USC, in accordance with the procedures provided in DoD Instruction 1400.25, Volume 2005, DCIPS Employment and Placement. If you are a veteran claiming veterans' preference, as defined by Section 2108 of Title 5 U.S.C., you may be asked to submit documents verifying your eligibility.

If you are relying on your education to meet qualification requirements:

Education must be accredited by an accrediting institution recognized by the U.S. Department of Education in order for it to be credited towards qualifications. Therefore, provide only the attendance and/or degrees from schools accredited by accrediting institutions recognized by the U.S. Department of Education.

Failure to provide all of the required information as stated in this vacancy announcement may result in an ineligible rating or may affect the overall rating.

How to Apply

https://apply.intelligencecareers.gov/job-description/1263613

Agency contact information

NSA POC

Phone

1-844-424-4737

Email

[email protected]

Next steps

https://apply.intelligencecareers.gov/job-description/1263613

Overview

Accepting applications

Location

Many vacancies in the following location:

Fort Meade, MD

No matching locations found.

Work site options

Telework eligible

No

Remote job

No

Relocation expenses reimbursed

Yes—You may qualify for reimbursement of relocation expenses in accordance with agency policy.

Salary

$87,362 - $123,388 per year

Pay scale & grade

GG 7 - 9

Promotion potential

None

Learn more about pay scale and grade

Pay scale and grade determines the salary of the job.

Work schedule

Full-time

Travel Required

Occasional travel - You may be expected to travel for this position.

Appointment type

Permanent

Occupations and job series

• 0132 Intelligence

Supervisory status

No

Federal service type

This job is in the Excepted Service

Represented by a union

No

Drug test

Yes

Security clearance

Top Secret

Position sensitivity and risk

Critical-Sensitive (CS)/High Risk

Jobs require a background check and some require a security clearance. The type depends on the job.

Background check type

• National security

Financial disclosure required

Yes

Some jobs require financial disclosure to identify conflicts of interests.

Announcement number

1263613

Control number

888304000