Clarification from the agency

This position is open to all U.S. Citizens or U.S. Nationals . Note: Federal employees with permanent status or individuals eligible for special appointing authorities may also apply to Job Announcement #23A-JW-309089-MPA-NMNH. More than one selection may be made from this announcement.

The Archeologist serves as a museum representative to Native American tribal representatives in the mandated consultation phase of the repatriation process.

In this position, you will:

• Conducts repatriation-related research and associated outreach activities related to the inventory, documentation, tribal consultation, and repatriation of human remains, archaeological objects and ethnographic objects from one or more subregions of the United States.
• Generates and presents scholarly documentation necessary to make decisions concerning the repatriation of human remains and objects in the collections; and produces relevant database management records and written reports as needed.
• Applies activities mandated by the repatriation provisions of the 1989 federal legislation establishing the National Museum of the American Indian (NMAI Act, 20 U.S.C.Sec.80q [PL 101-185]) and its amendment in 1996 (PL 104-278).
• Provides tribal consultations to include outreach activities that involves travel to Native American communities and to other locations beyond the immediate scope of repatriation.

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.

Conditions of Employment

COVID-19 VACCINATION REQUIREMENTS:

For the latest information on the COVID-19 vaccination requirements and its impact on your application, click on Smithsonian Institution’s Frequently Asked Questions. 

Qualification requirements must be met by the closing date of the announcement.

For information on qualification requirements, see Qualification Standards Handbook for General Schedule Positions on OPM website.

Qualifications

Individual Occupational Requirements:

Basic Requirements:

A. Education

1. Degree that included 3 semester hours each in the following course areas:
   • History of archeology.
   • Archeology of a major geographical area such as North America or Africa.
   • Regional archeology, archeological cultures, or sites in a specific part or portion of a major geographical area to acquire or develop a foundation for regional specialization for professional development.
   • Theory and methods of archeology. Methods include, but are not limited to, typology, classification, sampling, cultural evolution, diffusion, dating, and analytical techniques.
   • Archeological field school, to provide a basic understanding of theoretical and practical approaches to research design implementation, field preservation techniques, and report preparation by participation in actual field work.

and

• Six semester hours of related course work in:
  • geography, geology, or cultural geography;
  • history, historiography, or historical archeology;
  • environmental studies;
  • scientific writing (nonfiction English composition); and/or
  • surveying;

and

• Archeological field school.

2. Related Curriculum:degree in anthropology (with emphasis on ethnology, physical anthropology, or scientific linguistics), history, American studies, or a related discipline may be accepted as satisfying in full the educational requirements, provided the curriculum supplied academic course work sufficiently similar to the requirements in A.1 (including archeological field school).

or

B. Combination of Education and Experience

College-level education or training that provided knowledge equivalent to that described in A above, plus appropriate technical experience or additional education.

or

C. Experience

Four years of archeological work experience that demonstrated a thorough knowledge of the fundamental principles and theories of professional archeology. The work experience must have included archeology field experience, which may include that gained in an archeological field school. Field experience should have included a combination of professional experience in archeological survey, excavation, laboratory analysis, and preparation of written materials. Applicants with such field experience should, after additional experience under the direction of a higher grade archeologist, be able to demonstrate the ability to be a crew chief, directing the work of others at a single location as a part of a larger archeological project.

In addition to the basic qualification requirement above:

Experience: You qualify for this position if you have one year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the GS-9 level in the Federal Service.  For this position, specialized experience is defined as research on archaeological Native American collections from one or more subregions of the United States. 

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.

Or Education: Three years of progressively higher level graduate education leading to a Ph.D. degree or Ph.D. or equivalent doctoral degree in a related curriculum described above.

Or a Combination: Education and experience may be combined to meet the basic qualifications. For a full explanation of this option please see the Qualification Standards. Special Instructions for Foreign Education: If you are qualifying by education and/or you have education completed in a foreign college/university described above, it is your responsibility to provide transcripts and proof of U.S. accreditation for foreign study. For instructions on where to fax these documents, see the "Required Documents" section of this announcement.

SPECIAL NOTE:

• Unofficial school transcripts (undergraduate and graduate) must be submitted with your application package by the closing date of the vacancy announcement.
• If you have foreign education, you must show proof by the closing date of the vacancy announcement that education credentials have been evaluated by a private organization that specializes in interpretation of foreign educational credentials. Transcripts and proof of the evaluations must be submitted within your application package as indicated under “Required Documents”. Applicants may use the following websites http://www.fceatlanta.com/ or www.ies.aacrao.org to obtain these evaluations.

How you will be evaluated

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

Your resume will be used to evaluate your experience, education, and/or training that address the competencies below:

• Knowledge of Native American archaeology from one or more subregions of the United States.

• Ability to communicate in writing in order to produce written reports for scholarly review or publication.

• Ability to apply federal repatriation legislation to archaeological collections.

• Ability to communicate orally with individuals of diverse backgrounds and cultures.

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:

The review of your resume will determine your final rating and should provide sufficient information regarding how your education and experience relate to this position, including the major duties and qualifications criteria listed.