Help
Duties

Summary

This position is located in Smithsonian Institute, National Zoological Park. The employee provides supervision to a staff of animal caretakers, who is responsible for maintaining excellence in all aspects of the care and welfare of the animals in these areas, including gorillas, orangutans and an assortment of other exotic animals.
Learn more about this agency

Responsibilities
As the Supervisory Biologist, the incumbent will perform the following duties and other assigned duties::
- Plans and carries out the full range of supervisory authorities related to the assignment and scheduling of work, such as leave approval/disapproval, coordination with other programs, technical work direction, establishment of priorities and deadlines, creation of performance standards, evaluation of subordinate’s performance, counseling regarding performance and behavior, recommending selections for vacancies, resolving complaints, proposing disciplinary actions and effecting minor disciplinary actions such as warnings, determining or approving training needs, approving expenditures of funds, recommending awards and bonuses and other delegated authorities.
- Oversees the husbandry of the mammal collection, many of which may be threatened and/or endangered. This includes developing and directing the implementation of techniques and procedures for housing, social groupings, introductions, separations, transfers, acquisitions dispositions, pairings, enrichment and training.
- Annually reviews the collection plan in response to changing program directions and new opportunities. Assesses costs and benefits of changes in collection composition through a consideration of priorities, reproductive performance and required resources and facilities.
- Instructs employees in care and husbandry practices and fosters keeper participation in appropriate substrate, habitat simulations, and other factors addressing the locomotory, behavioral, psychological, training, enrichment and physical requirements of collection animals.
- Serves as a spokesperson to the public for information about animals in the collection.
Travel Required

Not required

Supervisory status

Yes

Promotion Potential

13
Job family (Series)

0401 General Natural Resources Management And Biological Sciences
Help
Requirements

Conditions of Employment
- Pass Pre-employment Background Investigation
- May need to complete a Probationary Period
- Maintain a Bank Account for Direct Deposit/Electronic Transfer
- Males born after 12/31/59 must be registered with Selective Service.
- May be required to serve an 18-month probationary period for supervisors.
Qualification requirements must be met within 30 days of the job announcement closing date.

For information on qualification requirements, see Qualification Standards Handbook for General Schedule Positions viewable on the web at http://www.opm.gov/qualifications.
Qualifications
Individual Occupational Requirements:

Basic Requirements
- Degree: biological sciences, agriculture, natural resource management, chemistry, or related disciplines appropriate to the position.
or
- Combination of education and experience: Courses equivalent to a major, as shown in A above, plus appropriate experience or additional education.
AND

Experience: You qualify for this position if you have one year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the GS-11 level in the Federal Service or comparable pay band system. For this position Specialized experience is defined as developing plans for primates and/or large exotic carnivores management, which reflects the needs of the exhibition, education, research and conservation; managing facilitates recruitment, training, scheduling and evaluating of employees/volunteers; and providing guidance and procedures for enclosure cleaning/sanitation and appropriate preparation for daily animal exhibition, proper diet preparation and food presentation, capture, restraint, shipping, enrichment, training, moving, introduction and separation of animals.

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.

Part-time and/or unpaid experience related to this position will be considered to determine the total number of years and months of experience. Be sure to note the number of paid or unpaid hours worked each week.
Education

Additional information

Flexible Spending Accounts - https://www.fsafeds.com/
Health Insurance - http://www.opm.gov/insure/health/index.asp
Leave - http://www.opm.gov/oca/leave/index.asp
Life Insurance - http://www.opm.gov/insure/life/index.asp
Long Term Care Insurance - http://www.ltcfeds.com
Retirement Program - https://www.opm.gov/retirement-services/

Read more
How You Will Be Evaluated
You will be evaluated for this job based on how well you meet the qualifications above.

Your application will be evaluated first for the basic qualifications described above. The applications that meet the basic qualifications will be evaluated further against the following criteria:
1. Ability to supervise a diverse Animal Care Staff.
2. Ability to oversee a complex animal care and management program for exotic carnivores.
3. Ability to plan and direct exhibit maintenance, improvements and design.
4. Ability to collect husbandry and management data and to facilitate and promote research.
5. Ability to communicate to the media and general public.
Applicants who meet or exceed minimum qualifications will be assigned to one of three category groups based on job-related criteria:
- Best Category - Meets the minimum qualification requirements and excels in most of the job related competencies above.
- Better Category - Meets the minimum qualification requirements and satisfies most of the job related competencies above.
- Good Category - Meets the minimum qualification requirements, but does not satisfy most of the job related competencies above to a substantive degree.
This category rating process does not add veterans' preference points or apply the "rule of three", but protects the rights of veterans by placing them ahead of non-preference eligibles within each category. A selecting official may make selections from the highest quality category (Best Category) provided no preference eligible in that category is passed over to select a non-preference eligible in that category unless the requirements of 5 U.S.C. 3317(b) or 3318(b) are satisfied. Preference eligibles who meet minimum qualification requirements and who have a compensable service-connected disability of at least 10 percent must be listed in the highest quality category, except when the position being filled is scientific or professional at the GS-9 grade level or higher. Applicants who have not submitted a resume in the USAjobs system and/or have not answered all of the vacancy questions will not be considered for this position.

Important Note:

Your resume and supporting documentation will be compared to your responses to the occupational questionnaire or other assessment tool for consistency. If a determination is made that you have rated yourself higher than is supported by your resume, you will be assigned a rating commensurate to your described experience. Your resume should provide sufficient information regarding how your education and experience relate to this position, including the major duties and qualifications criteria listed.

To preview questions please click here.
Read more

Background checks and security clearance

Security clearance

Other

Drug test required

No

Position sensitivity and risk

Moderate Risk (MR)

Trust determination process

Suitability/Fitness
Help
Required Documents
Your application package should include the following documents:
- Resume - Your resume can be uploaded and attached to your application or created using the USA Jobs on-line resume builder. If you want to receive full credit for relevant experience your resume MUST contain the job title (including the occupational series and grade if it is Federal), duties, starting and ending dates (month and year), hours worked per week, and salary.
  
  USAJOBS has guidance on how to ensure that you submit a complete resume: If you have not written a Federal resume before, you may watch this Resume Writing Tutorial video on the USAJOBS YouTube channel, or read through a helpful Resume Writing FAQ article on the USAJOBS Help Site to learn what details you should, and should not, include in your resume. If any of the above information is not included in your resume we may not be able to fully credit you for your experience.
- Proof of Veteran's Preference - DD214 (Member 4 Copy), if you are a veteran. Additionally, applicants claiming 10-point preference must complete Standard Form (SF) 15, Application for 10-Point Veteran Preference, as well as additional documentation required by the SF-15, such as a VA letter.
- Unofficial school transcripts, if the position has an education requirement or if you are using education to qualify. If selected for the position, you must provide an official transcript before appointment.
- Proof of U.S. accreditation for foreign study, if applicable.
If you are relying on your education to meet qualification requirements:

Education must be accredited by an accrediting institution recognized by the U.S. Department of Education in order for it to be credited towards qualifications. Therefore, provide only the attendance and/or degrees from schools accredited by accrediting institutions recognized by the U.S. Department of Education.

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.
Help
Benefits

The Federal Government offers a comprehensive benefits package.

Please see Benefits at https://www.si.edu/OHR/benefits for a complete description.
Help
How to Apply
Click on the "Apply Online" button on the upper right side of the page.
Please Note:
- You must apply for this position online through the 'Apply Online' button and submit required supplemental documents (if they are relevant to you).
- You may submit required documents by uploading them online during the application process;
  OR
  You may manually fax required documents. Faxes are received by an automated system, not a physical fax machine. Documents that are faxed as part of the application process must be sent with the system generated cover sheet by the closing date. Documents faxed without the system generated coversheet are not retrievable and cannot be considered as part of the application package.
- The complete application package, including any required documents, is due in the Smithsonian Office of Human Resources on the closing date of the announcement by 11:59 PM Eastern Time.
- If you are unable to apply online, paper applications may be accepted with prior approval of the Contact Person listed below.
Read more

Agency contact information

Joseph Wingate

Phone

202-633-6367

TDD

202-633-6409

Fax

000-000-0000

Email

wingatej@si.edu

Address

SMITHSONIAN
Office of Human Resources
POB 37012, 600 Maryland Avenue, MRC 517
Suite 5060
Washington, District of Columbia 20013-7012
United States

Learn more about this agency

Next steps
At the end of the application process you will be able to create and save a PDF file that contains your responses to the assessment questions. You may save this file as initial receipt of your application. After the job announcement closes, you will receive an email from the Smithsonian with confirmation of receipt.
The Smithsonian receives many applications for each job. Each application is reviewed carefully which may take a few weeks. We will send you an e-mail to update you as we go through phases of the application review process. You may also check your application status by logging into www.usajobs.gov and selecting the tab "My USAJOBS;" e-mailing vacancy.info@si.edu; or by contacting the Office of Human Resources Representative listed.
Additional Information:
- Tips on applying for Smithsonian jobs are available at www.sihr.si.edu/jobs.cfm.
- The Smithsonian does not pay relocation expenses.
- The Smithsonian embraces diversity and equal employment opportunity (www.si.edu/oeema).
Read more
Fair & Transparent

The Federal hiring process is setup to be fair and transparent. Please read the following guidance.

Equal Employment Opportunity Policy
The United States Government does not discriminate in employment on the basis of race, color, religion, sex (including pregnancy and gender identity), national origin, political affiliation, sexual orientation, marital status, disability, genetic information, age, membership in an employee organization, retaliation, parental status, military service, or other non-merit factor.
- Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO) for federal employees & job applicants
Read more
Reasonable Accommodation Policy
Federal agencies must provide reasonable accommodation to applicants with disabilities where appropriate. Applicants requiring reasonable accommodation for any part of the application process should follow the instructions in the job opportunity announcement. For any part of the remaining hiring process, applicants should contact the hiring agency directly. Determinations on requests for reasonable accommodation will be made on a case-by-case basis.

A reasonable accommodation is any change to a job, the work environment, or the way things are usually done that enables an individual with a disability to apply for a job, perform job duties or receive equal access to job benefits.

Under the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, federal agencies must provide reasonable accommodations when:
- An applicant with a disability needs an accommodation to have an equal opportunity to apply for a job.
- An employee with a disability needs an accommodation to perform the essential job duties or to gain access to the workplace.
- An employee with a disability needs an accommodation to receive equal access to benefits, such as details, training, and office-sponsored events.
You can request a reasonable accommodation at any time during the application or hiring process or while on the job. Requests are considered on a case-by-case basis.

Learn more about disability employment and reasonable accommodations or how to contact an agency.
Read more
Legal and regulatory guidance

This job originated on www.usajobs.gov. For the full announcement and to apply, visit www.usajobs.gov/GetJob/ViewDetails/596605800. Only resumes submitted according to the instructions on the job announcement listed at www.usajobs.gov will be considered.

Supervisory Biologist

Overview

Open & closing dates

Service

Pay scale & grade

Salary

Appointment type

Work schedule

Location

Relocation expenses reimbursed

Telework eligible

Duties

Summary

Responsibilities

Travel Required

Supervisory status

Promotion Potential

Job family (Series)