The Unofficial SMART Scholarship Forum

I'm in the process of transitioning from Phase 1 to Phase 2. My SF contact has been helpful as best as he can in keeping me in the loop with the process. He's confirmed that a position is available for me, allowed me to be flexible on the start date (within the confines of SMART's requirements), and stated my pay grade. The salary and nonexistent relocation assistance are non-negotiable for me. I asked if I could start at a higher step due to my summer internships, but I was told that the only experience that counts are ones I've gained after obtaining my degree (and having just graduated means I have *no* experience).

I graduated in mid-May and had my final transcript mailed shortly thereafter, and my SF received the transcript a week later. However, I have yet to receive an official, written offer letter, and I am expected to start in about two weeks. Luckily for me, I am not financially constrained or bound to a set lease so I can accommodate a later start date if that's what ends up happening.

As far as the lab demo pay system, I just found this web page today, and I came onto the forum for the express purpose of posting about it since hardly any information is known about it:
http://www.wpafb.af.mil/library/factshe ... sp?id=8080

Many of the Labs use the "Demo Pay" system. This bands the GS series (eg, 9,11,12) into a single band. This allows them to bring you in at a dynamically scalable pay (in theory). In reality, they will fix it at what they have traditionally hired at. You could ask if they do a "Watson Wyatt Salary Survey" which would let them compare commercial employers to the salary proposed for you.

The length of time it takes to hire you is directly correlated to how hard your new boss worked prior to you getting there. Can appear (to you) to take one day, or 3 months. Getting them to start the process before your last semester is always a great idea.

Not sure if anyone ever PM'd you about this, but I can try and answer a little bit from my own experience.
I've been in Phase II for about 10 months now. All in all, the hiring process actually went better than expected, although things were a bit stressful for awhile, because of the hiring freeze and not knowing how long it would take to actually create the position because of the freeze. That being said, I graduated at the beginning of May, my degree was conferred at the end of May (with my my SF getting the official notification about a week or two after that) and I started at the end of July (it would have been sooner, except that they made a mistake in my job description, so they had to go back and fix it). It takes awhile, but it's not horrible. Of course, if you told that to me a year ago, I would have said it was the most stressful thing on the planet, but again, with the freeze, there was a chance I might not have started until October of last year. Once you get the paperwork to fill out, it's pretty quick, and you start as quickly as they can get you in. The longest part (with the least communication to you) is the creation of the position.

In terms of negotiating salary, I wouldn't be optimistic, it is what it is. My Director tried to get me a GS-11/12/13 since it makes the most sense for what I do (my SF starts PhDs at 11, unfortunately) for my position, but HR basically said those don't exist for us, you can't do it, it has to be a GS-11/12 and you can apply for a GS-13 when you can. I'm not sure where you fall with the pay band system, but I think it's either a mid-GS-11 or a GS-12.

Hope that's somewhat helpful! Good luck!

Any other SMART participants in the midst of their transition to full-time employment?

I am about to graduate after a loooong time in the program and I've been told that the base commander is supposed to approve the creation of my position this month. That's all I know for now. Thus far my SF contacts (mostly my mentor) have been very helpful through the process, but after reading some of the horror stories on here I thought I would ask how the process is progressing for others in similar situations.

A few general questions:

How long does the hiring process take? Do people have good experiences in addition to the negative ones often posted?

I will be coming on with my PhD into a research position, which should be ~GS-12 by my understanding. But apparently my lab uses the Lab Demo paybands rather than the GS... Has anyone dealt with the payband system? I can't seem to find a lot of info about it online.

I have seen a few threads about salary negotiation, with the general theme being that there is no room for it since both sides already expect us to sign on. Has anyone had any experience actually trying to negotiate a salary? Did it work? Can you use experience such as previous employment, internships (SMART and others), etc?