Clarification from the agency

Recent graduate who has, within the previous two years, completed a qualifying Associate's, Bachelors, Masters, Doctorate, professional, vocational or technical degree or certificate program. Veterans unable to apply within two years of receiving their degree due to military service obligation have up to six years after degree completion to apply.

• This position performs a variety of routine and frequently complex tasks involving techniques and practices relating to natural resources management programs, (i.e., timber and silviculture, recreation, wildlife, range, and fire and fuels management)
• Successful accomplishment of the following assignments supports field projects and program planning activities
• Performs timber marking, cruising and scaling of forest products, planting, site preparation, and timber land improvement projects.
• Collects, summarizes and prepares requested timber reports and maps which provide information in planting units concerning topography, livestock trespass, invasive species and general conditions of the area.
• Makes group and individual contacts in providing forest recreation information and answering questions about recreation management on the unit.
• Provides specific information concerning camping or swimming and other area regulations such as fire, safety and sanitation. Notifies visitors of violations and potential violations.
• Makes wildlife and fish habitat surveys and implements coordination measure such as marking key areas.
• Performs independently, or as leader of a small project crew in construction or completing wildlife habitat improvement projects such as water developments, fish attractors.
• clearing and planting site preparation areas for establishment of more desirable food or cover and other similar tasks.
• Participates in plant control or type conversion by flagging boundaries, operating equipment, carrying our kill studies, or reseeding.
• Makes range analysis to determine utilization and grazing impact, and maps out key use areas.
• Checks allotments for compliance with permit and management plan and contacts permittee about maintenance and/or construction needs.
• Performs maintenance on range fences, lays out location for fence construction or cattle-guards and other range structural improvements.
• Locates areas suitable for the construction of range ponds or works on re-vegetation or plan control projects.
• Participates in noxious plant control, seeding, or similar projects by flagging boundaries, operating equipment, and carrying out kill studies. Identifies plant specimens in the field and collects and prepares specimens.
• Identifies plants and noxious weeds and determines how they grow. Applies the proper chemicals to control noxious weeds. Uses botanical key to identify plants encountered during field trips or surveys of forest and range areas.
• Compiles and summarizes the vegetation types obtained from ground surveys including forest health monitoring, biological evaluations, and range surveys. Layout of experimental plots by taking measurements and marking corners and boundaries.
• Executes fuel treatment plans, slash hazard appraisals and hazard reduction plans. Records fuel treatment activity records for required reports and final project completion.
• Operates motor vehicles and equipment in support of fire suppression activities. Leads a small crew measuring and laying out the boundary of small areas designated for planting, site preparation, and timber stand improvement contracts.
• Performs work or inspects work performed under site preparation, planting, and timber stand improvement contracts following established procedures and which involve standard requirements and are limited in size.

Conditions of employment

• Must be at least 16 years of age and meet education requirements.
• Must be suitable for Federal employment as determined by a background investigation.
• Must be a U.S. Citizen or National or be lawfully permitted to the U.S. as a permanent resident or otherwise authorized to be employed.
• Per Public Law 104-134 all Federal employees are required to have federal payments made by direct deposit to a financial institution of their choosing.
• Successfully pass the E-Verify employment verification check. To learn more about E-Verify, including your rights and responsibilities, visit www.dhs.gov/E-Verify/.
• The incumbents of Recent Graduate positions may be reassigned/relocated to any geographical location where the employee's services are needed as determined by management. Mobility agreement may be required.
• Males born after 12-31-59 must be registered for Selective Service.
• May be required to successfully complete a probationary/trial period.
• A signed participant agreement is required for employment under Pathways.
• This is a bargaining unit position represented by the National Federation of Federal Employees, IAMAW.
• Must be fully vaccinated against COVID-19. If selected, must submit proof of vaccination or request a religious or reasonable accommodation.

Qualifications

You are required to meet the eligibility requirements of the Recent Graduate program, as described below in order to be considered for this position. You must meet all the eligibility and qualification requirements by the closing date of the announcement. For more information on the qualifications for this position, go to:https://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/classification-qualifications/general-schedule-qualification-standards/0400/forestry-technician-series-0462The minimum qualification requirements for each grade level of this vacancy announcement are described below:

RECENT GRADUATES PROGRAM ELIGIBILITY

To be eligible, you must meet one of the following requirements:

Completed all requirements for an associates, bachelors, masters, professional, doctorate, vocational, or technical degree or certificate from a qualifying educational institution within the previous two years of the closing date of this announcement; OR

If you are a current student who is in the process of completing your degree, academic documentation must accompany your application package to validate your upcoming graduation date (you must complete all degree requirements within nine months of the application closing date to be considered a Recent Graduate); OR

Due to military service obligation, you were precluded from applying to the Recent Graduate Program during any portion of the two-year eligibility period described above. This eligibility period cannot extend more than six years from the date on which the requirement for the academic degree or certificate was received.

You must possess the qualifications requirements identified below to be considered qualified for this position. Your application or resume must clearly show that you possess the experience requirements. Transcripts must be provided for qualifications based on education. Provide course descriptions as necessary.

Basic Requirement:

Basic Requirement: Applicants must meet all qualifications and eligibility requirements by the closing date of the announcement as defined below. For more information on the qualifications for this position, go to: http://www.opm.gov/qualifications/Standards/group-stds/gs-admin.asp

For the GS-4 level: Applicants must have six months of general experience (any type of work that demonstrated the ability to perform the work of the position, or experience that provided a familiarity with the subject matter or processes of the broad subject area of the occupation. AND six months of specialized experience that is directly related to the work of the position; OR successful completion of 2 years of study that included at least 12 semester hours in any combination of courses such as forestry, agriculture, crop or plant science, range management or conservation, wildlife management, watershed management, soil science, natural resources (except marine fisheries and oceanography), outdoor recreation management, civil or forest engineering, or wildland fire science (no more than 3 semester hours in mathematics is creditable); OR an appropriate combination of experience and education above high school as described above. The education must have been obtained in an accredited business, secretarial or technical school, junior college, college or university and include courses that are related to the occupation of the position.

Examples of general qualifying experience are: Performed farm/ranch labor, such as feeding and tending livestock or general maintenance of farm/ranch facilities; Cleaned tools and equipment; Worked in a greenhouse or nursery moving, watering, and tending plants and performing other general labor; or Worked on a landscape or construction crew)

Specialized experience for the GS-04 is defined as: Preformed natural resource support work in areas such as: timber, silviculture, recreation, wildlife, range, vegetation, or fire. Performing crew based forestry related support.

For the GS-5: Applicants must have one year of specialized experience equivalent to at least GS-4 grade level; OR a bachelor's degree or 4 years of successfully completed education above high school (120 semester/180 quarter hours) with major study in forestry, range management, agriculture, or a subject-matter field directly related to the position, or that included at least 24 semester hours in any combination of courses such as forestry, agriculture, crop or plant science, range management or conservation, wildlife management, watershed management, soil science, natural resources, outdoor recreation management, civil or forest engineering, or wildland fire science (no more than 6 semester hours in mathematics is creditable); OR combinations of successfully completed post-high school education (in excess of the first 60 semester/90 quarter hours) and specialized experience. The education must have been obtained in an accredited college or university.

Specialized experience for the GS-05 level is defined as:

Examples of qualifying specialized experience include two or more of the following: assisting in preparing timber reports and maps which provide information concerning topography, livestock trespass, invasive species and general conditions of the area; assisting in executing fuel treatment plans, slash hazard appraisals and hazard reduction plans; assuring recreation areas are maintained in accordance with standards and reporting on condition; and performing maintenance on range fences or other structural range improvements.


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.

How you will be evaluated

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

Please note, this position is targeted toward graduates who have been awarded their bachelor's degrees or who have completed one full year of graduate level education.

This position has a targeted effective date of Spring 2022 .

Before you submit an application for any of our vacancies, you should completely review the announcement and the requirements. You should only apply for position if you meet the required minimum qualifications AND program requirements described in the announcement. Do not apply to a duty location if you are not willing to accept or travel to that location.

If you have reviewed the announcement and believe that you meet both the minimum qualifications and the program requirements, you should document your experience and education in your resume. Since traditional resumes do not provide all the information needed to determine your status, you should create a more detailed resume to use when applying to Federal positions.

Please ensure that your resume contains your full name, permanent address, contact phone number and email address.

If you meet the eligibility requirements of the Recent Graduate program and the basic minimum requirements established for the position, you may be referred to the selecting official for consideration. Qualified individuals with veteran's preference are listed ahead of individuals who do not have veteran's preference.

To view the application form, visit: https://apply.usastaffing.gov/ViewQuestionnaire/11216356