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Biological Science Technician (Wildlife)

Department of the Interior
Bureau of Land Management
This job announcement has closed

Summary

Explore a new career with the BLM - where our people are our greatest natural resource.

For additional information about the BLM, please visit Our website.

There are two positions located in West Valley City, Utah. Information about West Valley City and the area can be found at here.

Overview

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Reviewing applications
Open & closing dates
01/08/2020 to 01/22/2020
Salary
$16.73 to - $16.73 per hour
Pay scale & grade
GS 05
Location
West Valley City, UT
FEW vacancies
Telework eligible
No
Travel Required
75% or less - Travel maybe three weeks per month to the field, using a government vehicles.
Relocation expenses reimbursed
No
Appointment type
Seasonal - This is a temporary appointment. Dates of employment will vary.
Work schedule
Full-Time
Service
Competitive
Promotion potential
No
Supervisory status
No
Security clearance
Not Required
Drug test
No
Position sensitivity and risk
Non-sensitive (NS)/Low Risk
Trust determination process
Announcement number
UT-TEMP-2020-0014
Control number
556126000

This job is open to

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Clarification from the agency

Please see “Required Documentation” for more information on what documents you may need to provide for this position.

Duties

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Biology Technicians (Wildlife) perform any or all of the following or similar duties: research, compile and tabulate wildlife inventory data i.e., population counts, reproductive performance, food habits, prey densities, and habitat distribution; conduct field surveys on proposed actions (timber sales, road construction proposals, land exchanges, add space, etc.) for federally listed and sensitive wildlife species; conduct monitoring of known sites to ascertain site occupation and reproductive success; conduct habitat/vegetation monitoring; conduct inventories for specific species in potential habitat areas, document locations using maps and GIS/GPS technology, enter data into databases and study files; interpret aerial photos, landsat imagery and topographic maps to determine land use and vegetation distribution and to plot nest/herd breeding sites.

Physical Demands / Work Environment: The work is performed outdoors in rugged terrain; to include steep, wet, muddy, rough, uneven or rocky surfaces; positions require physical exertions, such as, bending, crouching, stooping, stretching, reaching, and similar activities. Individuals should be capable of working alone, or with other people, during early morning hours, night, or during the day. 

Salary: Salary shown is taken from the Rest of the U.S. pay table, step 1. You may view the OPM salary tables, with the various locality rates, at 2020 General Schedule (GS) Locality Pay Tables.

If selected from this or a similar competitive, seasonal announcement, your appointment may be creditable for consideration under PL-114-47, Land Management Workforce Flexibility Act (LMWFA)​. The Act allows certain individuals, who have or had time-limited appointments at land management agencies, to compete for any permanent position in the competitive service under “internal” merit promotion procedures. For more information, see the section under Eligibility, which starts with Question #26 (Q26. Who is eligible for appointment under these provisions?).

All positions may not be filled or they may be filled at different times depending on budget, hiring needs, and requirements. These positions are temporary and are expected to last for approximately 6 months. These positions have no promotion potential, if you want to be considered for a higher grade you must apply for the higher grade.

Requirements

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Conditions of employment

  • Direct Deposit Required
  • U.S. Citizenship is required
  • Read the "How to Apply" and "Required Documents" Sections
  • You cannot hold an active real estate license; nor can
  • you have an interest or hold stocks in firms with interest in Federal Land
  • Security Clearance/Background Investigation is required.

You must meet all qualification requirements by the early closing date of the announcement. Your resume must contain enough information to show that you meet the specialized experience as defined in the announcement or vacancy questions. In addition, your responses to the questions must be adequately reflected in your resume.

 

Qualifications

In order to be rated as qualified for this position, we must be able to determine that you meet the one year of specialized experience requirement - please be sure to include this information in your resume. 

GS-5: One year of specialized experience equivalent to at least GS-4 level. Examples of specialized experience may include banding, tagging, and releasing wildlife; inventorying rare and endangered species habitat based on guidelines; OR Successful completion of a full 4 year course of study leading to a bachelor's degree that included at least 24 semester hours in any combination of scientific or technical courses such as biology, chemistry, statistics, entomology, animal husbandry, botany, physics, agriculture or mathematics. At least 6 semester hours of courses must be directly related to this position; OR A combination of experience and education to meet total experience. 

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.

Additional information

Selective Service: Male applicants born after December 31, 1959, must certify that they have registered with the Selective Service System, or are exempt from having to do so under the Selective Service Law.  To register or verify your registration go to the Selective Service System website.

Travel and relocation expenses will not be paid by the Department of the Interior. Any travel, transportation and relocation expenses associated with reporting for duty in this position will be the responsibility of the selected employee.

Career Transition Assistance Plan (CTAP)/Interagency Career Transition Assistance Program (ICTAP):  CTAP provides eligible surplus and displaced Federal competitive service employees with selection priority over other candidates for competitive service vacancies. Information about CTAP/ICTAP eligibility is available from OPM's Career Transition Resources website at CTAP or ICTAP.  If your agency has notified you in writing that you are a surplus or displaced employee eligible for CTAP consideration or that you are a displaced employee eligible for ICTAP consideration, you may receive selection priority if: 1) This vacancy is within your CTAP/ICTAP eligibility; 2) You apply under the instructions in this announcement; and 3) You are found well qualified for this vacancy. You must provide proof of eligibility with your application to receive selection priority. Such proof may include a copy of your written notification of CTAP/ICTAP eligibility, or a copy of your separation personnel action form. CTAP and ICTAP eligibles will be considered well qualified if they fall within the Well or Best Qualified categories on the rating criteria for this position. 

Reemployment Priority List (RPL): The RPL is the mechanism agencies use to give reemployment consideration to their former competitive service employees separated by a RIF or who have fully recovered from a compensable injury after more than one year. If you are currently on a Reemployment Priority List, you may be given priority consideration.

If tentatively selected for this position you will be required to complete and submit a OF-306 Declaration for Federal Employment prior to being appointed to determine your suitability for Federal employment and to authorize a background investigation. In addition, you may be subject to completion of a favorable background investigation. Failure to satisfy the preliminary background check will result in cancellation of the tentative job offer. Failure to satisfy the full investigation requirements may be grounds for termination, once you are placed in the position.

Minimum Age Requirement: Employees required to operate a motor vehicle must be at least 18; otherwise, you must be at least 16 at the time you report for work.

This position is not eligible for Telework.

How you will be evaluated

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

A review of your application will be made to ensure you meet the basic qualification requirements.  Your rating will be based on your responses to the Job Specific Questionnaire and the information stated in your resume. If you meet the qualification requirements, your application will be placed in one of three categories:  Best Qualified, Well Qualified, or Qualified.  Within these categories, applicants eligible for veteran's preference will receive selection priority over non-veterans.    In addition, interviews may be conducted for this position.  The interviews may be conducted on a pass/fail basis or may be scored.  The job specific questions relate to the following knowledge, skills and abilities required to do the work of this position.

GS-05:

  1. Knowledge of and skill in applying theories and practices of wildlife management to resolve wildlife related issues.
  2. Knowledge of basic principles of wildlife sufficient to evaluate data collected for accuracy; determine causes of variances; and applicability of data to the overall program/project.
  3. Knowledge of computer capabilities sufficient to produce reports with graphics; produce simple maps; develop spreadsheets; and enter, retrieve and manipulate data.

To preview questions please click here.

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