The USDA Forest Service has legislative authority to recruit and fill Permanent (Career/Career-Conditional), Temporary, and Term Appointments under the USDA Demonstration Project. Under this authority, any U.S. citizen may apply. This position is located on [enter unit name, branch/division, etc].
This position is located the USDA Forest Service, Research Work Unit (RWU) FS-FPL-4851 (Economics, Statistics and Life Cycle Analysis Research) located at the U.S. Forest Products Laboratory in Madison, Wisconsin.
For additional information about the duties of this position, please contact Richard Bergman at 608-231-9477 or e-mail rbergman@fs.fed.us.
This is a research scientist position and is classified under the scientist career plan. Research scientists have open-ended promotion potential. Research accomplishments and their impact on the duties and responsibilities of positions are evaluated periodically. The grade level is limited only by the individual's demonstrated ability to perform research of recognized importance to science and technology. Final grade level will be determined by a peer review panel. The purpose of the initial review panel is to determine the grade level upon entry into a position.
Candidates being considered for this research position should provide a list of publications for which you have been an author, co-author, or contributor. If providing curriculum vitae, please incorporate all resume requirements identified in the REQUIRED DOCUMENTS section of this announcement, or submit a supplemental resume which includes all information required in addition to the curriculum vitae.
Summary
The USDA Forest Service has legislative authority to recruit and fill Permanent (Career/Career-Conditional), Temporary, and Term Appointments under the USDA Demonstration Project. Under this authority, any U.S. citizen may apply. This position is located on [enter unit name, branch/division, etc].
This position is located the USDA Forest Service, Research Work Unit (RWU) FS-FPL-4851 (Economics, Statistics and Life Cycle Analysis Research) located at the U.S. Forest Products Laboratory in Madison, Wisconsin.
For additional information about the duties of this position, please contact Richard Bergman at 608-231-9477 or e-mail rbergman@fs.fed.us.
This is a research scientist position and is classified under the scientist career plan. Research scientists have open-ended promotion potential. Research accomplishments and their impact on the duties and responsibilities of positions are evaluated periodically. The grade level is limited only by the individual's demonstrated ability to perform research of recognized importance to science and technology. Final grade level will be determined by a peer review panel. The purpose of the initial review panel is to determine the grade level upon entry into a position.
Candidates being considered for this research position should provide a list of publications for which you have been an author, co-author, or contributor. If providing curriculum vitae, please incorporate all resume requirements identified in the REQUIRED DOCUMENTS section of this announcement, or submit a supplemental resume which includes all information required in addition to the curriculum vitae.
Occasional travel - Travel may be required 3 to 4 times a year for training or meeting attendance.
Relocation expenses reimbursed
Yes—Entitlements for payment of basic moving expenses, as required and to the extent allowed by the Federal Travel Regulations (FTR) 302-3.101, are authorized for eligible applicants changing duty station when the change meets the distance tests as provided in FTR 302-1.1 and 302-2.6. In addition, the following relocation benefits are available: house hunting trip, temporary quarters and use of relocation services company. Other relocation benefits may be negotiated with selectee.
The Research Work Uunit mission is to provide economic information, analysis, and projections indicating how and why the markets and technologies for wood products change over time, implications for natural resources management, and selected broad environmental and social impacts; and to enhance the integrity and efficiency of the Forest Products Laboratory’s research efforts through development, evaluation, and application of modern statistical methods; and to provide life cycle analysis of the environmental impacts of wood-based products and uses.
The seven research problem areas assigned to RWU-FPL-4851, include: (1) applying statistical methods to enhance the quality of FPL's wood utilization research and economics research, and (2) developing new statistical tools and evaluating existing tools, (3) analyzing and modeling impacts on forest product markets of structural changes, technology changes, and policy changes, (4) understanding effects of production capacity trends, market trends and technology changes in wood industries and end use industries, (5) developing basic information about nationwide forest product market trends and timber uses, (6) providing knowledge about economic feasibility of new technologies for converting wood into new or improved wood products, and (7) evaluating the environmental impacts of wood-based product production and use including carbon mitigation benefits. A continuing complementary mission of the unit is to evaluate the forest sector role in sustainable management of natural systems.
The statistical portion of the mission is specifically addressed in problem areas 1 and 2. The statistics team members provide professional support to other subject-matter specialists by developing experimental designs for research problems, providing statistical analysis of experimental results, aiding in the interpretation of experimental results, helping to write the statistical sections of research papers, and providing statistical review of manuscripts. The team is responsible for: (1) initiation, planning, and execution of statistical and/or probabilistic research needed to solve forest products utilization problems, (2) research in partnership with other subject-matter specialists, which includes developing experimental designs and interpretation of experimental results throughout the research programs of the laboratory and (3) providing scientific and technical consultation, guidance, and assistance to the Director's staff, project leaders, and scientists on the application of statistical and mathematical methods.
The scientist’s work will focus on studies primarily under problem areas 1 and 2 of the unit.
Selectee will be responsible for tax obligations related to payments for moving expenses - 2017 Tax Cuts and Job Act, Public Law 115-97. Questions should be directed to the Travel Help Desk, 877-372-7248, Option 1, or email asc_tos@fs.fed.us.
Qualifications
You must possess the Basic Requirements identified below to be considered for all positions at the GS-5 grade level and above. Transcripts must be provided with the application to validate that coursework requirements are met.
Degree: Successful completion of a full 4-year course of study in an accredited college or university leading to a bachelor's or higher degree with a major field of study that included 24 semester hours of mathematics and statistics, of which at least 12 semester hours were in mathematics and 6 semester hours were in statistics.
OR
Combination of education and experience -- at least 24 semester hours of mathematics and statistics, including at least 12 hours in mathematics and 6 hours in statistics, as shown above, plus appropriate experience or additional education.
Evaluation of Education:
Courses acceptable toward meeting the mathematics course requirement above must have included at least four of the following: differential calculus, integral calculus, advanced calculus, theory of equations, vector analysis, advanced algebra, linear algebra, mathematical logic, differential equations, or any other advanced course in mathematics for which one of these was a prerequisite. Courses in mathematical statistics or probability theory with a prerequisite of elementary calculus or more advanced courses will be accepted toward meeting the mathematics requirements, with the provision that the same course cannot be counted toward both the mathematics and the statistics requirement.
Evaluation of Experience:
The experience offered in combination with educational courses to meet the requirements above should include evidence of statistical work such as (a) sampling, (b) collecting, computing, and analyzing statistical data, and (c) applying known statistical techniques to data such as measurement of central tendency, dispersion, skewness, sampling error, simple and multiple correlation, analysis of variance, and tests of significance.
Without other indications of statistical experience, work required in the processing of numerical or quantified information by other than statistical methods is not considered appropriate qualifying experience. Examples of such nonqualifying work include statistical clerical work; statistical drafting; calculation of totals, averages, percentages, or other arithmetic summations; preparation of simple tables or charts; or verification of data by simple comparison or proofreading.
In addition to meeting the basic requirements for the GS 12: described above, applicants must possess one year of specialized experience that is equivalent to at least the GS-11 grade level.
Specialized experience is defined as --applying statistical techniques and methods in a consulting environment on data sets from physical science, engineering, or biological science sources. Statistical techniques used must include inferential statistics, design of experiments, and mixed effects models. In addition, experience must include at least three of the following: sample survey methods, nonparametric data analysis, multivariate methods, reliability analyses, non-linear regression, generalized linear models, simulation, and numerical optimization; --adapting and/or developing statistical methods and/or theory to improve the statistical field as documented in a statistical thesis or refereed publication; AND --writing statistical computer programs to generate analyses and data displays, including publication quality graphics. Experience must include the use of SAS, R, or other major statistical package and experience programming in a language such as Fortran, Java, C++ or C. OR - EDUCATION: Ph.D. or equivalent doctoral degree directly related to the work of the position. The education must have been obtained in an accredited college or university by the U.S. Department of Education and demonstrate the knowledge, skills, and abilities necessary to do the work.
In addition to meeting the basic requirements for the GS 13: described above, applicants must possess one year of specialized experience that is equivalent to at least the GS-12 grade level.
Specialized experience is defined as --applying statistical techniques and methods in a consulting environment on data sets from physical science, engineering, or biological science sources. Statistical techniques used must include inferential statistics, design of experiments, and mixed effects models. In addition, experience must include at least three of the following: sample survey methods, nonparametric data analysis, multivariate methods, reliability analyses, non-linear regression, generalized linear models, simulation, and numerical optimization; --adapting and/or developing statistical methods and/or theory to improve the statistical field as documented in a statistical thesis or refereed publication; AND --writing statistical computer programs to generate analyses and data displays, including publication quality graphics. Experience must include the use of SAS, R, or other major statistical package and experience programming in a language such as Fortran, Java, C++ or C.--received external funding and led multi-disciplinary projects
Work Experience: Your resume must clearly document the following for each block of work experience the beginning month and year the work assignment started and ended; the hours worked per week; position title, and series and grade if applicable; and description of duties performed. This information must be provided for each temporary or seasonal appointment/work assignment and must be clearly documented as a separate block of time.
Incomplete applications or those that provide vague and/or conflicting information may not be evaluated for consideration.
Concurrent experience in more than one position: If any of your positions included mixed duties, for example Forestry Technician timber and fire experience, please indicate the start and end dates and approximate percent of time you spent performing each different type of duty.
Part-Time or Unpaid Experience: Credit will be given for all appropriate qualifying experience regardless of whether compensation was received or whether the experience was gained in a part-time or full-time occupation, however you must indicate the number of hours the work was performed each week to receive credit. Full-time work is generally considered to be 35 to 40 hours of work per week.
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.
To receive consideration for this position, you must meet all qualification requirements by the closing date of the announcement.
Additional information
BACKGROUND INVESTIGATION AND FINGERPRINT CHECK: Selection and retention in this position is contingent on a successfully adjudicated FBI National Criminal History Check (fingerprint check) and a background investigation.
Direct Deposit - Per Public Law 104-134 all Federal employees are required to have federal payments made by direct deposit to a financial institution of your choosing.
E-Verify: Federal law requires agencies to use the E-Verify system to confirm the employment eligibility of all new hires. If you are selected as a newly hired employee, the documentation you present for purposes of completing the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Form I-9 on your entry-on-duty date will be verified through the DHS 'E-VERIFY' system. Under the system, the new hire is required to resolve any identified discrepancies as a condition of continued employment.
This position is eligible for telework and other flexible work arrangements.
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.
You will be evaluated in accordance with the category rating procedure as defined in the USDA Demonstration Project Plan. Applicants who meet the basic minimum qualification requirements established for the position will be placed in the Eligible category. Eligible applicants will be further evaluated against criteria for placement in the Quality category. This evaluation is based on the level of your experience, education, and/or training as determined by your responses to the Assessment Questionnaire. Applicants with veterans' preference are listed ahead of applicants who do not have veterans' preference within each category.
Note: If, after reviewing your resume and/or supporting documentation, a determination is made that you have inflated your qualifications and or experience, your rating may be lowered to more accurately reflect the submitted documentation. Please follow all instructions carefully. Errors or omissions may affect your rating. Providing inaccurate information on Federal documents could be grounds for non-selection or disciplinary action up to including removal from the Federal service.
Clicking the link below will present a preview of the application form; i.e. the online questionnaire. The application form link below will only provide a preview and does not initiate the application process. To initiate the online application process, click the "Apply" button to the right.
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.
The following documents are required for your applicant package to be complete. Our office cannot be responsible for incompatible software, illegible fax transmissions, delays in the mail service, your system failure, etc. Encrypted documents will not be accepted. Failure to submit required, legible documents may result in loss of consideration.
Resume that includes: 1) personal information such as name, address, contact information; 2) education; 3) detailed work experience related to this position as described in the major duties including work schedule, hours worked per week, dates of employment; title, series, grade (if applicable); 4) supervisor's phone number and whether or not the supervisor may be contacted for a reference check; 5) other qualifications.
If education is required or you are using education to qualify, you must submit a copy of your college transcripts. An unofficial copy is sufficient with the application; however, if you are selected, you will be required to submit official transcripts prior to entering on duty. Education must have been successfully obtained from an accredited school, college or university. If any education was completed at a foreign institute, you must submit with your application evidence that the institute was appropriately accredited by an accrediting body recognized by the U.S. Department of Education as equivalent to U.S. education standards. There are private organizations that specialize in this evaluation and a fee is normally associated with this service. All transcripts must be in English or include an English translation.
If claiming veteran's preference, you must submit a DD214, Certificate of Release from Active Duty, which shows dates of service and discharge under honorable conditions. If currently on active duty you must submit a certification of expected discharge or release from active duty service under honorable conditions not later than 120 days after the date the certification is submitted. Veteran's preference must be verified prior to appointment. Without this documentation, you will not receive veteran's preference and your application will be evaluated based on the material(s) submitted.
If claiming 10-point veteran's preference you must provide the DD214 or certification requirements (see above bullet), plus the proof of entitlement of this preference as listed on the SF-15 Application for 10-point Veterans' Preference. The SF-15 should be included but is not required. Failure to submit these documents could result in the determination that there is insufficient documentation to support your claim for 10-point preference.
Surplus or displaced employees eligible for CTAP, RPL, or ICTAP priority must provide: proof of eligibility (RIF separation notice, notice of proposed removal for declining a transfer of function or directed reassignment to another commuting area, notice of disability annuity termination), SF-50 documenting separation (as applicable), and your most recent SF-50 noting position, grade level, and duty location with your application per 5 CFR 330.
If you are relying on your education to meet qualification requirements:
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.
Please view Tips for Applicants – a guide to the Forest Service application process. Please read the entire announcement and all instructions before you begin. You must complete this application process and submit all required documents electronically by 11:59p.m. Eastern Time (ET) on the closing date of this announcement.
Applying online is highly encouraged. We are available to assist you during business hours (normally 8:00a.m. - 4:00p.m., Monday - Friday). If applying online poses a hardship, contact the Agency Contact listed below well before the closing date for an alternate method. All hardship application packages must be complete and submitted no later than noon ET on the closing date of the announcement in order to be entered into the system prior to its closing.
This agency provides reasonable accommodation to applicants with disabilities on a case-by-case basis; contact the Agency Contact to request this.
To begin, click "Apply Online" and follow the instructions to complete the Assessment Questionnaire and attach your resume and all required documents.
NOTE: You must verify that uploaded documents from USAJOBS transfer into the Agency's staffing system. Applicants may combine all like required documents (e.g., all SF-50s) into one or more files and scan for uploading into the application. Each file must not exceed 3MB. Grouping like documents into files will simplify the application process. Documents must be in one of the following formats: GIF, JPEG, JPG, PDF, PNG, RTF, or Word (DOC or DOCX). Uploaded documents may not require a password, digital signature, or other encryption to open.
USDA Forest Service
Do not mail in applications, see instructions under the How to Apply Tab.
Albuquerque, 87109
NM
Next steps
Your application will be reviewed to verify that you meet the eligibility and qualification requirements for the position prior to issuing referral lists to the selecting official. If further evaluation or interviews are required, you will be contacted. Log in to your USAJOBS account to check your application status. We expect to make a final job offer approximately 40 days after the deadline for applications.
The Federal hiring process is set up to be fair and transparent. Please read the following guidance.
The following documents are required for your applicant package to be complete. Our office cannot be responsible for incompatible software, illegible fax transmissions, delays in the mail service, your system failure, etc. Encrypted documents will not be accepted. Failure to submit required, legible documents may result in loss of consideration.
Resume that includes: 1) personal information such as name, address, contact information; 2) education; 3) detailed work experience related to this position as described in the major duties including work schedule, hours worked per week, dates of employment; title, series, grade (if applicable); 4) supervisor's phone number and whether or not the supervisor may be contacted for a reference check; 5) other qualifications.
If education is required or you are using education to qualify, you must submit a copy of your college transcripts. An unofficial copy is sufficient with the application; however, if you are selected, you will be required to submit official transcripts prior to entering on duty. Education must have been successfully obtained from an accredited school, college or university. If any education was completed at a foreign institute, you must submit with your application evidence that the institute was appropriately accredited by an accrediting body recognized by the U.S. Department of Education as equivalent to U.S. education standards. There are private organizations that specialize in this evaluation and a fee is normally associated with this service. All transcripts must be in English or include an English translation.
If claiming veteran's preference, you must submit a DD214, Certificate of Release from Active Duty, which shows dates of service and discharge under honorable conditions. If currently on active duty you must submit a certification of expected discharge or release from active duty service under honorable conditions not later than 120 days after the date the certification is submitted. Veteran's preference must be verified prior to appointment. Without this documentation, you will not receive veteran's preference and your application will be evaluated based on the material(s) submitted.
If claiming 10-point veteran's preference you must provide the DD214 or certification requirements (see above bullet), plus the proof of entitlement of this preference as listed on the SF-15 Application for 10-point Veterans' Preference. The SF-15 should be included but is not required. Failure to submit these documents could result in the determination that there is insufficient documentation to support your claim for 10-point preference.
Surplus or displaced employees eligible for CTAP, RPL, or ICTAP priority must provide: proof of eligibility (RIF separation notice, notice of proposed removal for declining a transfer of function or directed reassignment to another commuting area, notice of disability annuity termination), SF-50 documenting separation (as applicable), and your most recent SF-50 noting position, grade level, and duty location with your application per 5 CFR 330.
If you are relying on your education to meet qualification requirements:
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.
Please view Tips for Applicants – a guide to the Forest Service application process. Please read the entire announcement and all instructions before you begin. You must complete this application process and submit all required documents electronically by 11:59p.m. Eastern Time (ET) on the closing date of this announcement.
Applying online is highly encouraged. We are available to assist you during business hours (normally 8:00a.m. - 4:00p.m., Monday - Friday). If applying online poses a hardship, contact the Agency Contact listed below well before the closing date for an alternate method. All hardship application packages must be complete and submitted no later than noon ET on the closing date of the announcement in order to be entered into the system prior to its closing.
This agency provides reasonable accommodation to applicants with disabilities on a case-by-case basis; contact the Agency Contact to request this.
To begin, click "Apply Online" and follow the instructions to complete the Assessment Questionnaire and attach your resume and all required documents.
NOTE: You must verify that uploaded documents from USAJOBS transfer into the Agency's staffing system. Applicants may combine all like required documents (e.g., all SF-50s) into one or more files and scan for uploading into the application. Each file must not exceed 3MB. Grouping like documents into files will simplify the application process. Documents must be in one of the following formats: GIF, JPEG, JPG, PDF, PNG, RTF, or Word (DOC or DOCX). Uploaded documents may not require a password, digital signature, or other encryption to open.
USDA Forest Service
Do not mail in applications, see instructions under the How to Apply Tab.
Albuquerque, 87109
NM
Next steps
Your application will be reviewed to verify that you meet the eligibility and qualification requirements for the position prior to issuing referral lists to the selecting official. If further evaluation or interviews are required, you will be contacted. Log in to your USAJOBS account to check your application status. We expect to make a final job offer approximately 40 days after the deadline for applications.
Fair and transparent
The Federal hiring process is set up to be fair and transparent. Please read the following guidance.
