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Meteorologist

Department of Commerce
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
National Weather Service (NWS), National Centers for Environmental Prediction (NCEP)
This job announcement has closed

Summary

This position is located in the National Weather Service (NWS), National Centers for Environmental Prediction (NCEP), Operational Monitoring Branch (OMB), Climate Prediction Center (CPC), with one vacancy in College Park, MD.

This position is also announced under vacancy number NWS-NCEP-24-12282242 ST, which is open to Status Candidates. You must apply to both announcements if you want to be considered for both.

Overview

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Hiring complete
Open & closing dates
01/29/2024 to 02/12/2024
Salary
$117,962 to - $153,354 per year
Pay scale & grade
GS 13
Location
1 vacancy in the following location:
College Park, MD
Remote job
No
Telework eligible
Yes—as determined by the agency policy.
Travel Required
Not required
Relocation expenses reimbursed
No
Appointment type
Permanent
Work schedule
Full-time
Service
Competitive
Promotion potential
None
Job family (Series)
Supervisory status
No
Security clearance
Not Required
Drug test
No
Position sensitivity and risk
Non-sensitive (NS)/Low Risk
Trust determination process
Announcement number
NWS-NCEP-24-12282241 DE
Control number
773022400

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Duties

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This position is a Meteorologist. As a Meteorologist you will perform the following:

  • Serve as subject matter expert in the development and transition to operations of new tools and techniques or improvement of existing tools and techniques in one or more of the following subject matter areas: Sub-seasonal to seasonal (S2S) drought monitoring and drought prediction; Sub-seasonal to seasonal (S2S) prediction sensible of weather elements including temperature and precipitation anomalies; Sub-seasonal to seasonal (S2) prediction of major modes of variability such as ENSO,NAO, or MJO; Sub-seasonal to seasonal (S2S) ensemble post-processing or statistical methods; Sub-seasonal to seasonal (S2S) ocean prediction; Sub-seasonal to seasonal (S2S) reanalysis; Sub-seasonal to seasonal (S2S) observational data sets such as precipitation, surface temperature, and outgoing longwave radiation (OLR).
  • Advises on the merits of proposed analytic strategies and research projects. Leads and integrates the efforts of a research team in accomplishing individual components of the development efforts and consults with the CPC Operational Monitoring (OMB) in order to meet their requirements for improved products and services.
  • Coordinates with other scientific program areas within NOAA, and with other subject area specialists for ad hoc collaborative support on projects which require assistance as prioritized by the CPC Director; mentors and provides professional advice to other professional staff in own area of expertise.

Requirements

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Conditions of employment

Key Requirements:
  1. Must be a U.S. Citizen.
  2. Suitable for Federal employment, as determined by backgroung investigation.
  3. Selectee may be subject to serving a one-year probationary period.
  4. More requirements are listed under Qualification and Other Information.
  5. Must be registered for Selective Service, if applicable (www.sss.gov).
  6. Payment of relocation expenses is not authorized.
  7. This position is in the bargaining unit. This position is covered by NWESO 1538.
  • 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.
  • You are strongly encouraged to submit all required supporting documents at the time of application should the vacancy close earlier than stated in this announcement due to the applicant limit being reached. Supporting documents will not be accepted once the vacancy announcement closes.

Qualifications

Qualification requirements in the vacancy announcements are based on the U.S. Office of Personnel Management (OPM) Qualification Standards Handbook, which contains federal qualification standards. This handbook is available on the Office of Personnel Management's website located at: https://www.opm.gov/policy.

BASIC REQUIREMENTS: This position requires applicants to meet a Basic Education Requirement in addition to at least one year of specialized experience in order to be found minimally qualified. You MUST meet one of the following basic education requirements:

SPECIALIZED EXPERIENCE: Applicants must possess one year of specialized experience equivalent in difficulty and responsibility to the next lower grade level in the Federal Service. Specialized experience is experience that has equipped the applicant with the particular competencies/ knowledge, skills and abilities to successfully perform the duties of the position. This experience need not have been in the federal government.

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: This position requires applicants to meet a Basic Education Requirement.

You MUST have a bachelor's degree in meteorology, atmospheric science, or other natural science major that included:
A. Degree: meteorology, atmospheric science, or other natural science major that included:
1. At least 24 semester (36 quarter) hours of credit in meteorology/atmospheric science including a minimum of:
a. Six semester hours of atmospheric dynamics and thermodynamics;*
b. Six semester hours of analysis and prediction of weather systems(synoptic/mesoscale);
c. Three semester hours of physical meteorology; and
d. Two semester hours of remote sensing of the atmosphere and/or instrumentation.
2. Six semester hours of physics, with at least one course that includes laboratory sessions.*
3. Three semester hours of ordinary differential equations.*
4. At least nine semester hours of course work appropriate for a physical science major in any combination of three or more of the following:physical hydrology, statistics, chemistry, physical oceanography, physical climatology, radiative transfer, aeronomy, advanced thermodynamics, advanced electricity and magnetism, light and optics, and computer science.

OR

B. Combination of education and experience: course work as shown in A above, plus appropriate experience or additional education.

*There is a prerequisite or corequisite of calculus for course work in atmospheric dynamics and thermodynamics, physics, and differential equations. Calculus courses must be appropriate for a physical science major.

To qualify at the GS-13 level:

SPECIALIZED EXPERIENCE:
Applicants must possess one full year (52 weeks) of specialized experience equivalent to the GS-12 in the Federal service.

Specialized experience MUST include all of the following:

  • Analyzing and assessing sub-seasonal to seasonal (S2S) monitoring and outlook tools and techniques; and
  • Leading and collaborating with other scientists to develop new or improve existing tools and techniques for sub-seasonal to seasonal (S2S) process and forecasting.

Education

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: OPM Foreign Education Evaluation.

College Transcript: Submit a copy of your college transcript that lists college courses detailing each course by the number and department (i.e., bio 101, math 210, etc.), course title, number of credit hours and grade earned. You must submit evidence that any education completed in a foreign institution is equivalent to U.S. education standards with your resume. You may submit an unofficial copy of the transcript at the initial phase of the application process. If course content cannot be easily identified from the title of the course as listed on your transcript, you must submit an official course description from the college/university that reflects the content at the time the course was taken.

Your college transcript is used to verify successful completion of degree, or college course work. An official college transcript will be required before you can report to duty.

Additional information

Well-qualified for CTAP and ICTAP eligibility includes those candidates who have been determined to exceed minimum qualifications for the position by attaining at least a rating of 85, but otherwise may or may not be among the highly or best-qualified candidates. Information about CTAP and ICTAP eligibility is on the Office of Personnel Management's Career Transition Resources website at: http://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/workforce-restructuring/employee-guide-to-career-transition/.

CTAP applicants MUST submit the following documents:

  1. A copy of your specific RIF notice; notice of proposed removal for failure to relocate; a Certificate of Expected Separation (CES); or certification that you are in a surplus organization or occupation (this could be a position abolishment letter, a notice eligibility for discontinued service retirement, or similar notice).
  2. A copy of your SF-50 "Notification of Personnel Action", noting current position, grade level, and duty location;
  3. A copy of your latest performance appraisal including your rating; and
  4. Any documentation from your agency that shows your current promotion potential.
ICTAP applicants MUST submit the following documents:
  1. A copy of your RIF separation notice; notice of proposed removal for failure to relocate; notice of disability annuity termination; certification from your former agency that it cannot place you after your recovery from a compensable injury; or certification from the National Guard Bureau or Military Department that you are eligible for disability retirement;
  2. A copy of your SF-50 "Notification of Personnel Action" documenting your RIF separation, noting your positions, grade level, and duty location, and/or Agency certification of inability to place you through RPL, etc;
  3. A copy of your latest performance appraisal including your rating; and
  4. Any documentation from your agency that shows your current promotion potential.

The Department of the Commerce (DOC) places a high value on diversity of experience and cultural perspectives and encourages applications from all interested eligible candidates. Diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility (DEIA) are fundamental principles that guide the Department and allow us to successfully achieve our mission.

NOAA participates in e-Verify. E-Verify is an Internet based system operated by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) in partnership with the Social Security Administration (SSA) that enables participating employers to electronically verify the employment eligibility of their newly hired employees.

THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT IS AN EQUAL OPPORTUNITY EMPLOYER.

How you will be evaluated

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

We will review your resume, optional cover letter and supporting documentation to determine if you meet the minimum qualifications for the position. If you meet the minimum qualifications stated in the vacancy announcement, we will compare your resume, optional cover letter and supporting documentation to your responses on the scored occupational questionnaire (True/False, Yes/No, Multiple Choice questions) and place you in one of the three pre-defined categories. The categories are "gold", "silver" and "bronze". However, your resume or optional cover letter must support your responses to the scored occupational questionnaire, or your score may be lowered. Candidates placed in the "gold" category will be identified for referral to the hiring manager and may be invited for an interview. The best-qualified candidates will be identified for referral to the hiring manager and may be invited for an interview. The scored occupational questionnaire will evaluate you on the following competencies; please do not provide a separate written response:

  • Meteorology
  • Partnering
  • Problem Solving


How you will be evaluated for preference eligibility: Within each category, those entitled to veterans' preference will be listed at the top of the pre-defined category for which they are placed. Preference eligible with a service-connected disability of 10% or more will be listed at the top of the highest quality category (gold) depending on the position and grade level of the job. For more information on Category Rating, please go to Category Rating.

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 and/or not qualified.

To preview the announcement questionnaire, click here:https://apply.usastaffing.gov/ViewQuestionnaire/12282241

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