Clarification from the agency

U.S. Citizens

• This is a developmental position. The duties of this position lead to the full performance level of GS-XXXX-12.
• Typical GS-12 Duties:
• Establishes, and controls technical policies, procedures and basic guidelines for the preparation of meteorological, hydro-logical, and water management portions of planning studies, reconnaissance and feasibility studies, and design memorandum.
• Determines work schedules, funding requirements, criteria to be used, extent of coordination required, and considerations to be given to unique and special functional meteorological, hydro-logical, and water management requirements.
• Performs hydro meteorological investigations as they pertain to the effects on precipitation, runoff, stream flow, downstream conditions, water use requirements, other types of improvements and flood control, and multi-purpose reservoir space.
• Implements and uses Geographic Information Systems (GIS) for studies requiring surface water hydrologic modeling.
• Establishes a quality assurance/quality control program (QA/QC) and monitors work in progress to assure QA/QC, budget administration, achievement of scheduled work by established deadlines and providing technical guidance.
• Prepares status reports, project study plans, quality control plans, and documentation of work performed.

Conditions of employment

• Appointment may be subject to a suitability or fitness determination, as determined by a completed background investigation.
• Must obtain and maintain a valid state issued driver's license.
• Incumbent may be required to work weekends, nights, and holidays during flood periods or other emergency situations.

Qualifications

Direct Hire Authority for Certain Personnel of the Department of Defense (1109).

Position may be filled under one of the following position titles:
-Civil Engineer (0810)
-Physical Scientist (1301)
-Hydrologist (1315)

Who May Apply: US Citizens

In order to qualify, you must meet the education and experience requirements described below. 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). You will receive credit for all qualifying experience, including volunteer experience. Your resume must clearly describe your relevant experience; if qualifying based on education, your transcripts will be required as part of your application. Additional information about transcripts is in this document

Basic Requirement for CIVIL ENGINEER (0810):
Please refer to the General Schedule Qualification Standards Basic Requirements for Engineering Series for education requirements. (NOTE: Applicants MUST submit/upload a copy of the transcripts with the application package. For application purposes, unofficial transcripts are acceptable.)

Basic Educational Requirement for PHYSICAL SCIENTIST (1301):
Please refer to the General Schedule Qualification Standards Basic Requirements for General Physical Science Series for education requirements. (NOTE: Applicants MUST submit/upload a copy of the transcripts with the application package. For application purposes, unofficial transcripts are acceptable.)

Basic Educational Requirement for HYDROLOGIST (1315):
Please refer to the General Schedule Qualification Standards Basic Requirements for Hydrology Series for education requirements. (NOTE: Applicants MUST submit/upload a copy of the transcripts with the application package. For application purposes, unofficial transcripts are acceptable.)

In addition to meeting the basic requirement above, to qualify for this position you must also meet the qualification requirements listed below:

Minimum Qualifications for the GS-05:

Education: Meet or exceed the education as listed in the Basic Requirement for Civil Engineer, Physical Scientist and/or Hydrologist (links above).

Minimum Qualifications for the GS-07:

Specialized Experience: One year of specialized experience which includes supporting engineering projects by collecting data through field activities, preparing reports and summarizing data, and assisting in the development of water management and/or feasibility studies. This definition of specialized experience is typical of work performed at the second lower grade/level position in the federal service (GS-05).

OR

Education: One full year of graduate level education in a field which demonstrates the knowledge, skills, and abilities necessary to do the work of the position, such as: Civil Engineering or related discipline.

OR

Superior Academic Achievement. In order to be creditable under this provision, Superior Academic Achievement must have been gained in a curriculum that is qualifying for the position to be filled, such as that identified in Education above. Superior Academic Achievement is based on:
(1) Class Standing - Applicants must be in the upper third of the graduating class in the college, university, or major subdivision, such as the College of Liberal Arts or the School of Business Administration, based on completed courses; OR
(2) Grade-Point Average (G.P.A.) - Applicants must have a grade-point average of either (a) 3.0 or higher out of a possible 4.0 ("B" or better) as recorded on your official transcript, or as computed based on 4 years of education, or as computed based on courses completed during the final 2 years of the curriculum; or (b) 3.5 or higher out of a possible 4.0 ("B+" or better) based on the average of the required courses completed in the major field or the required courses in the major field completed during the final 2 years of the curriculum.; OR
(3) Honor Society Membership - Applicants may be considered eligible based on membership in one of the approved national scholastic honor societies listed by the Association of College Honor Societies (https://www.achsnatl.org/).

OR

Combination of Education and Experience: A combination of education and experience may be used to qualify for this position as long as the computed percentage of the requirements is at least 100%. To compute the percentage of the requirements, divide your total months of experience by 12. Then divide the total number of completed graduate semester hours (or equivalent) by 18. Add the two percentages.

Minimum Qualifications for the GS-09:

Specialized Experience: One year of specialized experience which includes conducting a variety of hydraulic and hydrologic analyses in support of water resources projects. This definition of specialized experience is typical of work performed at the second lower grade/level position in the federal service (GS-07).

OR

Education: Master's or equivalent graduate degree or 2 full years of progressively higher level graduate education leading to such a degree in a field which demonstrates the knowledge, skills, and abilities necessary to do the work of the position, such as: Civil Engineering or related discipline.

OR

Combination of Education and Experience: A combination of education and experience may be used to qualify for this position as long as the computed percentage of the requirements is at least 100%. To compute the percentage of the requirements, divide your total months of experience by 12. Then divide the total number of completed graduate semester hours (or equivalent) beyond the first year (total graduate semester hours minus 18) by 18. Add the two percentages.

Minimum Qualifications for the GS-11:

Specialized Experience: One year of specialized experience which includes experience providing assistance in preparing hydraulic design memoranda and conducting various studies such as geomorphic, sediment transport, and/or hydropower studies. This definition of specialized experience is typical of work performed at the second lower grade/level position in the federal service (GS-09).

OR

Education: Ph.D. or equivalent doctoral degree or 3 full years of progressively higher level graduate education leading to such a degree in a field which demonstrates the knowledge, skills, and abilities necessary to do the work of the position, such as: Civil Engineering or related discipline

OR

Combination of Education and Experience: A combination of education and experience may be used to qualify for this position as long as the computed percentage of the requirements is at least 100%. To compute the percentage of the requirements, divide your total months of experience by 12. Then divide the total number of completed graduate semester hours (or equivalent) beyond the second year (total graduate semester hours minus 36) by 18. Add the two percentages.

Minimum Qualifications for the for the GS-12:

Specialized Experience: One year of specialized experience which includes preparing hydrological, and water management studies, and/or preparing feasibility studies and design memoranda related to water resource or flood damage reduction projects, and/or performing hydro-meteorological investigations. This definition of specialized experience is typical of work performed at the next lower grade/level position in the federal service (GS-11).

Some federal jobs allow you to substitute your education for the required experience in order to qualify. For this job, you must meet the qualification requirement using experience alone--no substitution of education for experience is permitted at the GS-12 level.

How you will be evaluated

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

Once the announcement has closed, a review of your application package (resume, supporting documents, and responses to the questionnaire) will be used to determine whether you meet the qualification requirements listed on this announcement. If you are minimally qualified, your résumé and supporting documentation will be compared against your responses to the assessment questionnaire to determine your level of experience. If, after reviewing your résumé and/or supporting documentation, a determination is made that you have inflated your qualifications and/or experience, you may lose consideration for this position. Please follow all instructions carefully when applying, errors or omissions may affect your eligibility.

You should list any relevant performance appraisals and incentive awards in your resume as that information may be taken into consideration during the selection process. If selected, you may be required to provide supporting documentation.

Basis for Rating: Direct Hire Authority (DHA) for Certain Personnel of the DoD Workforce is open to all U.S. Citizens. The category rating, veterans preference and traditional rating and ranking of applicants does not apply to this vacancy.