If you are interested in becoming a Health Scientist Administrator at NIGMS, this page will help you understand how to find open vacancies and navigate the federal job application process.
NIGMS hires Health Scientist Administrators to fill two types of positions: Scientific Review Officers (SROs) and Program Officers (POs).
An SRO conducts the initial administrative and scientific merit review of grant applications for research programs and/or research training and career development grants. An SRO ensures the fairness and consistency of the scientific peer review process and provides guidance to applicants, reviewers, and Institute staff on peer review policies and procedures.
A PO is responsible for stimulating, planning, directing, and evaluating a portfolio of activities for research projects, research program and other grants/awards, cooperative agreements, and/or contracts in the assigned program area. To learn more about this role, you can read this journal essay.
All NIGMS and NIH job openings are posted on www.USAJOBS.gov, which is the site where all federal agencies list their vacancy announcements. While creating an account is required in order to submit an application, having an account provides many different benefits including saving your searches, creating notifications of future job announcements, and saving documents such as your resume and unofficial transcripts which can help make submitting job applications easier. In addition to using USAJOBS, NIGMS advertises job openings in our Feedback Loop Blog. If you want to get alerts of new blog posts, you can subscribe to receive individual posts notifications or a digest of recent posts notifications via email.
At NIH, job openings for Health Scientist Administrators are coordinated centrally by the NIH Office of Human Resources (OHR) in what is called a “global recruitment.” A global recruitment is a way NIH hires for common positions by creating a single announcement in USAJOBS.gov, which can be used by any Institute, Center, or Office (ICO) with an approved vacancy. Applying to a global recruitment means that, with a single announcement, hiring officials throughout NIH will have access to your application. We have a tip sheet to help you learn more about global recruitments [PDF].
To prepare a successful job application for a Health Scientist Administrator job vacancy announcement, you need to start by carefully reading the announcement. Pay close attention to the duties, qualifications, closing date, documents required with your application, and location. All applications submitted through USAJOBS are first reviewed by OHR to ensure applicants meet the necessary qualifications and have submitted all required documentation. Therefore, your resume must show that you meet the required qualifications and that your experience has prepared you to perform the duties of the job. The NIGMS Tip Sheet [PDF] has more information on how to create a federal resume and how it differs from an academic CV.
Once you submit your application, USAJOBS will send you email notifications about the status. If you meet the necessary qualifications, you will receive a message indicating you have been referred to the hiring official.
At NIGMS, we’re always looking for a wide range of talented candidates. Visit our website to learn about NIGMS’ research and training programs or to learn more about global recruitments [PDF]. You can also search public sites such as NIH RePORTER to learn more about the grants we fund.
