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Technical Information Specialist

Department of the Interior
Geological Survey
USGS - Woods Hole Coastal & Marine Science Center
This job announcement has closed

Summary

What General Information Do I Need To Know About This Position?
This is a term appointment not to exceed 13 months/years with possible extensions up to a total of 4 years without further competition. Appointment to this position will not convey permanent status in the Federal service.

Salary For The GS-09: $58,909.00 (Step 01) to $76,583 (Step 10);
Salary For The GS-11:$71,274 (Step 01) to $92,655.00 (Step 10);
NOTE: First time hires to the Federal Government are typically hired at the Step 01.

Overview

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Hiring complete
Open & closing dates
08/17/2020 to 09/01/2020
Salary
$58,909 to - $92,655 per year
Pay scale & grade
GS 9 - 11
Location
many vacancies in the following location:
Woods Hole, MA
Telework eligible
Yes—as determined by the agency policy.
Travel Required
Occasional travel - You may be expected to travel 1 nights per month for this position.
Relocation expenses reimbursed
No
Appointment type
Term - 13 months
Work schedule
Full-Time
Service
Competitive
Promotion potential
11
Supervisory status
No
Security clearance
Not Required
Drug test
No
Position sensitivity and risk
Non-sensitive (NS)/Low Risk
Trust determination process
Announcement number
USGS-RES-20-10878160-DE-DG
Control number
576094000

Duties

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As a Technical Information Specialist within the USGS - Woods Hole Coastal & Marine Science Center, some of your specific duties will include:

  • Serves as data manager for data archives and distribution of oceanographic sensor data collected by WHCMSC to ensure that project and science needs are met.
  • Develops new and innovative workflows that leverage the rapidly advancing field of information technology to ensure long term viability and access of WHCMSC data at a national level.
  • Responsible for QA/QC of all data and metadata entering the archive.
  • Attends meetings to influence trends and program interests in new instrumentation, data processing, analysis, archive and information systems. Keeps abreast of and ensures compliance with regulatory standards.
  • As an expert in oceanographic processing techniques and standards, trains others in data processing, archival, standards and new innovative workflows.
  • Advises scientists in the development of data plans, and coordinates logistics for data collection and archival for oceanographic field studies.
  • Interprets data, prepares and publishes data and reports, and interacts with others who process and prepare data reports.
  • Participates in field activities to deploy and recover instrumentation.
  • Operates a motor vehicle as an incidental driver.
Physical Demands & Work Environment: Field assignments will involve outdoor work where there is considerable walking, climbing over rough or wet terrain, and heavy lifting of equipment. Field work involves work outdoors in the coastal environment including at sea, in coastal marshes, on slippery and uneven surfaces, and may expose the incumbent to harsh conditions. Field and laboratory duties may require the use of special protective gear.

Requirements

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Conditions of employment

Key Requirements:

  1. Applicants must be U.S. Citizens.
  2. Suitable for Federal employment, as determined by background investigation.
  3. Selectee may be subject to serving a one-year probationary period.
  4. More requirements are listed under Qualifications and Other Information.
  5. Selectee must provide a valid state driver's license & safe driving record.
  6. Selectee subject to successful completion of a pre-employment medical exam.
Are There Any Special Requirements For This Position
  • Because this position requires travel for official business, the selectee will be required to apply for a charge card within 30 calendar days of appointment. Individuals who have delinquent account balances from a previous Government charge card will be required to satisfy their existing obligation before a new card can be issued.
  • A background investigation will be required for this position. Continued employment will be subject to the applicant's successful completion of a background security investigation and favorable adjudication. Failure to successfully meet these requirements will be grounds for termination.
  • Throughout the recruitment and hiring process we will be communicating with you via email; therefore, it is imperative that the email address you provide when applying for this vacancy remains active. Should your email address change, please notify the point of contact identified in the vacancy announcement as soon as possible so that we can update our system.

Qualifications

Basic Requirement: Applicants must meet A or B or C below to satisfy the basic requirement:

A. A full 4-year course of study that meets all the requirements for a bachelor's degree with major study in the subject matter field of the position to be filled.

B. Four years of experience that provided a knowledge of the basic principles, theories, practices, techniques, and terminology of a discipline or subject matter field of the position to be filled; an understanding of the standard methods, procedures, and techniques of research and analysis in the subject-matter field of the position to be filled; and where appropriate, ability to read and comprehend nontechnical material in one or more foreign languages. Such experience must have been equivalent to that which would have been gained through a 4-year college curriculum.

C. A combination of education and experience as described above. The combined education and experience must be comparable in type, scope and thoroughness to that acquired through successful completion of a 4-year course of study as described in "A" above.

In addition to the basic requirement stated above, applicants must meet one of the following to qualify for the GS-09 level:

Possess 2 full years of progressively higher level graduate education or master's or equivalent graduate degree, e.g., LL.B. or J.D., related to the position to be filled that demonstrates the knowledge, skills, and abilities necessary for successful job performance.

**OR Possess one year of specialized experience that is equivalent to at least the GS-07 level in the Federal service. Specialized experience must have demonstrated the ability to perform, supervise, or direct on or more of the functional areas of work covered by this series; to understand the concepts, theories, new developments, and co-relationship of information in related fields; and to maintain up-to-date information on the state of the art. For positions where foreign language proficiency is needed, applicants must be able to read and/or translate material in the appropriate specialized subject-matter field. Examples of GS-07 level work may include: 1) analyze scientific articles containing commonly understood scientific concepts and principles; 2) organize information using standard reference tools and established techniques and practices, such as application of existing indexing terms, and customary reference interviewing techniques; 3) participate in workshops, technical meetings, and related outreach functions; 4) respond to a broad range of general requests from other Federal agencies; and 5) research scientific and technical publications, bibliographies, indexes, card catalogs, trade journals, and reference books.

**OR Possess a combination of education and experience described above.

In addition to the basic requirement as stated above, applicants must meet one of the following to qualify for the GS-11 level:

Possess 3 full years of progressively higher-level graduate education (54 semester hours, 81 quarter hours or the equivalent) or doctoral degree (Ph.D., M.D., or equivalent) related to the position to be filled that demonstrates the knowledge, skills, and abilities necessary for successful job performance.

**OR Possess one year of specialized experience that is equivalent to at least the GS-09 level in the Federal service. Specialized experience must have demonstrated the ability to perform, supervise, or direct one or more of the functional areas of work covered by this series; to understand the concepts, theories, new developments, and co-relationship of information in related fields; and to maintain up-to-date information on the state of the art. For positions where foreign language proficiency is needed, applicants must be able to read and/or translate material in the appropriate specialized subject-matter field. Examples of GS-9 level work may include: 1) retrieving physical science information that was readily available using standard search strategies; 2) finding background information on earth science issues where information sources were readily available, of limited technical complexity and involved concepts and principles that were fairly well understood; 3) assigning indexing terms where the decisions on choice and number of terms were apparent from the content of the article. For examples 1-3, the supervisor made assignments by defining objectives, priorities, and deadlines and assisted with unusual situations that did not have clear precedents. Problems and deviations in these work assignments were handled in accordance with instructions, policies, previous training or accepted information practices. Interpretation and adaptation of the guidelines to specific cases, problems or situations was required. Completed work was usually evaluated for technical soundness, appropriateness, and conformity to policy and requirements.

**OR Possess a combination of successfully completed graduate level education, as described above, that is beyond the second year of progressive graduate study and specialized experience, as described above.

You must meet all qualification and eligibility requirements for the position by the closing date of the announcement.

Education

  • 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.
  • Education completed in colleges or universities outside the United States may be used to meet the above requirements. You must provide acceptable documentation that the foreign education is comparable to that received in an accredited educational institution in the United States. For more information on how foreign education is evaluated, visit: https://www.usgs.gov/about/organization/science-support/human-capital/how-foreign-education-evaluated-federal-jobs .

Additional information

Other Information:

  • Applicants who include vulgar, offensive, or inappropriate language or information in their application package will be ineligible for further consideration for this position.
  • Under Executive Order 11935, only United States citizens and nationals (residents of American Samoa and Swains Island) may compete for civil service jobs. Agencies are permitted to hire non-citizens only in very limited circumstances where there are no qualified citizens available for the position.
  • USGS employees are subject to Title 43, USC Section 31(a) and may not: (a) have any personal, private, direct or indirect interest in lands or mineral wealth of lands under survey; (b) have any substantial personal, private, direct or indirect interests in any private mining or mineral enterprise doing business with the United States; or (c) execute surveys or examinations for private parties or corporations.
  • The application contains information subject to the Privacy Act (P.L. 93-579, 5 USC 552a). The information is used to determine qualifications for employment, and is authorized under Title 5, USC, Section 3302 and 3361.
  • DOI uses E-Verify to confirm the employment eligibility of all newly hired employees. To learn more about E-Verify, including your rights and responsibilities, please visit www.dhs.gov/E-Verify.
  • THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT IS AN EQUAL OPPORTUNITY EMPLOYER.
Agency Benefits:

How you will be evaluated

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

--Vacancy Related Questions: As part of the online application process, you will need to respond to a series of questions designed to assess your possession of the following knowledge skills, abilities and/or competencies: Compute/Analyze Data, Information Management, Interpersonal Communications, Program/project management, Scientific Knowledge, Teamwork, Technology application, Written Communications.

--Basis of Rating: Category rating will be used in the ranking and selection process for this position. The quality categories are Best Qualified, Well Qualified, and Qualified. You will be rated on the extent and quality of your experience, education, and training relevant to the duties of the position. If you are eligible, your on-line responses to the application questions will determine your placement in the appropriate quality category described above. Your responses must be substantiated by your resume. If you do not respond to the application questions you may be rated ineligible. Veterans' preference rules for category rating will be applied.

--NOTE: If it is determined that you have rated yourself higher than is supported in your description of experience and/or education as described in your resume/application, or that your resume or application is incomplete, you may be rated ineligible, not qualified, or your score may be lowered.

To preview the announcement questionnaire, click here: https://apply.usastaffing.gov/ViewQuestionnaire/10878160

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