This is a lexicon of selected terminology used in connection with the NASA workforce. We are providing it as a reference for users who may not otherwise be familiar with some of the unique human resource and organization terminology used by NASA and the U.S. Federal Government Civil Service.

Information on a host of NASA and space related acronyms can be found in the Space Mission Acronym List and Hyperlink Guide.

Aerospace Technologist (AST)
A job classification and qualification system unique to NASA. Nearly all NASA scientists and engineers are AST's doing the primary work of the Agency.

Buyout
Also known as Voluntary Separation Incentive, the buyout allowed NASA to pay up to $25,000 as a bonus to employees who resigned or retired during set periods. The two buyouts spurred over 2500 voluntary separations.

Center
The principal unit of the NASA organizational structure. A major NASA field installation and employment locus. NASA Centers

Center Acronyms, Names and Locations:

• HQ - Headquarters, Washington, DC
• ARC - Ames Research Center, Mountain View, California
• DFRC - Dryden Flight Research Center, Edwards AFB, California (part of ARC between 1982 and 1994)
• LaRC - Langley Research Center, Hampton, Virginia
• GRC - Glenn Research Center, Cleveland, Ohio (formerly the Lewis Research Center)
• GSFC - Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, Maryland
• MSFC - Marshall Space Flight Center, Huntsville, Alabama
• SSC - Stennis Space Center, Bay St. Louis, Mississippi
• JSC - Johnson Space Center, Houston, Texas
• KSC - Kennedy Space Center, Merritt Island, Florida
• IG - NASA Office of Inspector, headquartered in Washington with field offices at each NASA field installation

Diversity
The composition of the workforce in terms of race, ethnicity, gender and handicap. See "Minorities"

Employment Level
The headcount of employees working in the Agency.

Fiscal Year (FY)
The financial year for the US Government. Fiscal years begin October 1 and end on September 30 of the following year. Fiscal Year 1998 began on October 1, 2002, and ended on September 30, 2003.

Full Time Equivalent (FTE)
A measure of staff hours equal to those of a full-time employee working 40 hours per week over the course of a year. In NASA this is 2087 hours per year.

Full-Time Permanent (FTP)
The type of work schedule (full-time) and appointment (permanent) most common in NASA; or an employee on such an appointment and schedule.

Installation (Field Installation)
See Center

Minorities
The specific race and ethnic identifications recognized by the Government as minorities in the United States. These are:

• Black, not of Hispanic Origin; also referred to as African American
• Hispanic
• Asian or Pacific Islander
• American Indian or Alaskan Native

Occupations
The principal job groups recognized by NASA as comprising the Agency workforce.

• Scientists and Engineers (S&E) - Professional scientific and engineering positions engaged in aerospace research, development, operations and related activities. Also included are life science professionals such as physicians, nurses, psychologists and biologists. Nearly all NASA S&E's are in the Aerospace Technologist (AST) job categories.
• Professional Administrative (Prof'l Admin) - Specialists in such functions as financial management, contracting, human resources, law, public affairs and the like for which a college degree or equivalent specialized training and experience is required.
• Clerical - Secretarial, clerical, and administrative technician positions, including specialized clerical and technical positions in administrative functions such as supply, purchasing, accounting, personnel, etc.
• GS Technicians (GS Tech) - White collar engineering and laboratory technicians and specialists in technical support functions such as drafting, photography, illustrating, quality assurance, etc. These technicians are paid according to the General Schedule (GS).
• Wage System (Wage) -Skilled trade and mechanic positions paid at prevailing local hourly rates according to provisions of the Federal Wage System. Once a major component of the civil service workforce, now very few wage grade employees remain in NASA.
• Professional Staff - Includes all S&E and Professional Administrative personnel. Support Staff - Includes all Clerical, GS Technicians, and Wage System personnel.

Pay Grade
Civil Service positions are classified to a variety of pay plans and grades based on the complexity, difficulty and level of responsibility. The most common pay plan is the General Schedule (hence 'GS') which is comprised of 15 pay grades from GS-1 (low) to GS-15 (high). Other common NASA pay plans include the Senior Executive Schedule (SES) and various Federal Wage System pay plans (wage grade (WG), wage leader (WL), and wage supervisor (WS), collectively labeled "wage").

Supervisory Ratio
A formula for measuring the relative proportion of supervisory employees in the workforce. Usually it is expressed as a 1 to n ratio, i.e., one supervisor for every n employees. The ratio is calculated by dividing the total number of supervisors into the total number of nonsupervisors.