We will be collecting applications for this position at an on-site event. Please see "How to Apply".
The Recent Graduates Program affords developmental experiences in the Federal Government intended to promote possible careers in the civil service to individuals who have recently graduated from qualifying education institutions or programs. Successful applicants are placed in a dynamic, developmental program with the potential to lead a civil service career in the Federal Government.
Summary
We will be collecting applications for this position at an on-site event. Please see "How to Apply".
The Recent Graduates Program affords developmental experiences in the Federal Government intended to promote possible careers in the civil service to individuals who have recently graduated from qualifying education institutions or programs. Successful applicants are placed in a dynamic, developmental program with the potential to lead a civil service career in the Federal Government.
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. Current students who will complete their degree by June 30, 2019, may also apply.
The duties described are for the full-performance level. At developmental grade levels, assignments will be of more limited scope, performed with less independence and limited complexity.
The duties may include, but are not limited to:
Independently, examines meat (in carcass or in cases where the USDA standards permit whole sale cut form)
Determines the yield or the grade of carcasses and applicable cuts by applying official standards involving such factors as carcass weight, amount of fat, and area of the ribeyes.
Reevaluates carcasses previously identified for a grade after they have been ribbed.
Follows prescribed procedures, selects samples, and examines meat food products for compliance with contact specifications.
Direct Deposit: Per Public Law 104-134 all Federal employees are required to have federal payments made by direct deposit to their financial institution
Successfully pass the E-Verify employment verification check. To learn more about E-Verify, including your rights and responsibilities, visit https://www.e-verify.gov/
Selectee will be subject to a pre-employment medical statement and/or exam.
Prior to an official offer, selectee will be required to sign a memorandum of understanding (MOU) acknowledging/accepting that geographic mobility is a condition of employment. Failure to sign the MOU will result in withdrawal of the job offer.
The work environment includes exposure to cold temperatures of coolers, which are 25 to 30 degrees Fahrenheit (and on occasion for short periods at subzero temperatures) and other processing areas.
Successful completion of one-year trial period
Qualifications
To qualify, you MUST meet all program and qualification requirements by the closing date of the announcement.
To be eligible, applicants 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 (2) years. or
Current students who will complete their degree by June 30, 2019 will be considered. or
Individuals who, due to military service obligation, were precluded from applying to the Recent Graduates Program during any portion of the 2-year eligibility period described above shall have a full 2-year period of eligibility upon release or discharge from active duty. This eligibility period cannot extend more than 6 years from the date on which the requirements for the academic course of study were met.
IN ADDITION TO MEETING THE BASIC REQUIREMENTS LISTED ABOVE: Applicants must meet the following specialized experience and/or education requirements listed below:
FOR THE GS-5 LEVEL: Applicants must have three years of progressively responsible experience, one year of which was equivalent in level of difficulty and responsibility to the GS-4 level in the Federal Service. Experience may have been obtained in private or public sectors, demonstrating the ability to:
1) Analyze problems to identify significant factors, gather pertinent data, and recognize solutions.
2) Plan and organize work.
3) Communicate effectively (orally and in writing)
OR have a 4-year course of study leading to a bachelor's degree.
Please note: Equivalent combinations of education and experience are qualifying for this grade level.
FOR THE GS-7 LEVEL: Applicants must have one year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the GS-5 level in the Federal Sector that demonstrates:
Experience grading any agricultural products and/or inspecting, storing, packaging, transporting, and processing conditions.
Experience grading and inspection of meat or poultry products for standards and contract specifications to grade such products and identify and describe common product defects of these products or product types.
Identifying and determining the cause of common defects of these products or product types.
Recognizing, identifying, and describing common product characteristics to standards or contract specifications to make consistent determinations.
OR 1 full year of progressively higher level graduate education leading to a degree in Animal Science, Meat Science, Agronomy, Agriculture, Botany, or Economics.
OR Superior Academic Achievement: To qualify based on superior academic achievement, you must have completed the requirements for a bachelor's degree from an accredited institution AND must meet certain equivalent combinations of education and experience.
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 and can provide valuable training and experience that translates directly to paid employment. You will receive credit for all qualifying experience, including volunteer experience.
COMBINATION OF EDUCATION AND EXPERIENCE AT THE GS-5/7 GRADE LEVELS:
Applicants must have combinations of successfully completed education and specialized experience to meet total qualification requirements. The total percentages must equal at least 100 percent to qualify for that grade level. To learn more about combining education and experience, click the following: Combining Education and Experience for Administrative and Management Positions https://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/classification-qualifications/general-schedule-qualification-standards/#url=GS-ADMIN
Education
Please see above for education qualification requirement information.
Transcripts including the date your degree was conferred are required. Applications will not be considered without this documentation. For those graduating this semester by June 30, 2019 you will have to provide proof of conferment prior to entrance on duty.
Additional information
Recent Graduate appointments are intended to last for 1 year. Recent Graduates who satisfactorily complete all the USDA Recent Graduates Program requirements may be non-competitively converted to a Term or Permanent appointment in the competitive service. Conversion is not guaranteed. Recent Graduates converted to Term appointments may later be non-competitively converted to a Permanent competitive service position.
If selected, official transcripts will be required prior to entrance on duty.
A Pathways Participant Agreement will be required if you are selected for a position. The agreement must be signed by all applicable parties prior to entrance on duty.
First time hires to the federal government normally start at the lowest rate of the salary range for the grade selected.
Travel, transportation, and relocation expenses will not be paid. Any travel, transportation, and relocation expense associated with reporting for duty will be the responsibility of the selected employee.
Locality pay will vary based upon the selectee's duty location. A final salary determination will be made upon selection.
Selection will be at GS-1980-5 or GS-1980-7 with the possibility of conversion to a term or permanent Agricultural Commodity Grader (Meat), with promotion potential to the GS-1980-9 level. Conversion eligibility and position is not guaranteed and depends upon the program unit's needs.
A career with the U.S. government provides employees with a comprehensive benefits package. As a federal employee, you and your family will have access to a range of benefits that are designed to make your federal career very rewarding. Opens in a new windowLearn more about federal benefits.
Eligibility for benefits depends on the type of position you hold and whether your position is full-time, part-time or intermittent. Contact the hiring agency for more information on the specific benefits offered.
How you will be evaluated
You will be evaluated for this job based on how well you meet the qualifications above.
Before you submit an application for this vacancy, please carefully review the position requirements. Please apply only if you meet the required minimum qualifications AND Recent Graduates program eligibility requirements described in the announcement. Your application will be reviewed to determine if you meet the minimum qualification requirements. Your resume must clearly support your responses to all the questions addressing experience and education relevant to this position.
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 always provide all the information needed to determine your status, you should create a more detailed resume to use when applying to Federal positions. Your resume should include:
Type of degree and date it was received or is expected to be received
Statement of U.S. citizenship
Job announcement number
Work and/or volunteer experience including employment dates, hours worked per week, salary and supervisor information
References
Please ensure that your resume contains your full name, permanent address, contact phone number and email address.
Applicants who meet the eligibility requirements of the Recent Graduates program and the basic qualification requirements established for the position may be referred to the selecting official for consideration. Qualified applicants with veterans' preference are listed ahead of applicants who do not have veterans' preference.
Note: Please follow all instructions carefully. Errors or omissions may affect your rating. Providing inaccurate information on Federal documents could be grounds for non-selection or disciplinary action up to including removal from the Federal service.
A career with the U.S. government provides employees with a comprehensive benefits package. As a federal employee, you and your family will have access to a range of benefits that are designed to make your federal career very rewarding. Opens in a new windowLearn more about federal benefits.
Eligibility for benefits depends on the type of position you hold and whether your position is full-time, part-time or intermittent. Contact the hiring agency for more information on the specific benefits offered.
The following documents are required for your applicant package to be complete. Our office cannot be responsible for incompatible software, your system failure or downtime, etc. Encrypted documents will not be accepted. Failure to submit required, legible documents may result in loss of consideration.
Resume that includes:1) personal information such as name, address, contact information; 2) education; 3) detailed work experience related to this position as described in the major duties including work schedule, hours worked per week, dates of employment; title, series, grade (if applicable); 4) other qualifications; and 5) supervisors name and phone number for each work period listed and whether or not they may be contacted for reference checks.
College Transcripts You must submit a copy of your college transcripts. An unofficial copy is sufficient with the application; however, if you are selected, you will be required to submit official transcripts prior to entering on duty. Education must have been successfully obtained from an accredited school, college or university.
If claiming veterans' preference, you must submit a DD214, Certificate of Release from Active Duty, which shows dates of service and discharge under honorable conditions. If currently on active duty you must submit a certification of expected discharge or release from active duty service under honorable conditions within 120 days after the date the certification is submitted. The certification must be on the letterhead of the appropriate military branch and include the dates of military service. Veterans' preference must be verified prior to appointment. Without this documentation, you will not receive veteran's preference and your application will be evaluated based on the material(s) submitted.
If claiming 10-point veterans' preference you must provide the DD214 or certification requirements (see above bullet), plus the proof of entitlement of this preference as listed on the SF-15 Application for 10-point Veterans' Preference. The SF-15 should be included but is not required. Failure to submit these documents could result in the determination that there is insufficient documentation to support your claim for 10-point preference. For more information on veterans' preference visit FEDSHIREVETS
Please read the entire announcement and all instructions before you begin. The following instructions outline our application process for this announcement.
The Agricultural Marketing Service will be at USDA Career Fair, located at the Sheraton Hotel, 6100 College Boulevard, Overland Park, KS 66211, accepting applications for this position. This is a vacancy announcement for one of several positions that will be available during the event which are in various locations across the organization.
If applying in person you may submit your application at the USDA Career Fair, located at the Sheraton Hotel, 6100 College Blvd, Overland Park, KS 66211. You may apply on April 4th in the Linden Room (Lower Level) or April 5th in the Exhibit Hall (Booth 318), from 10:30 am to 4:00pm. If you require directions to the location, please contact the Sheraton Hotel at (913) 234-2100 or visit https://www.marriott.com/hotels/travel/mcicc-sheraton-overland-park-hotel-at-the-convention-center/
If you cannot apply in person, you may submit your complete application online. You must complete this application process and submit all required documents electronically by 11:59p.m. Eastern Time (ET) on the closing date of this announcement.
This agency provides reasonable accommodation to applicants with disabilities on an as-needed basis. Please contact us if you require this for any part of the application and hiring process.
AMS conducts hiring events such as this one throughout the year as part of our overall recruitment strategy. We will announce additional Pathways job opportunities in the future. You are encouraged to monitor USAJOBS for future vacancy announcements.
What to expect next: After the conclusion of the event and deadline for alternative submission, your application package will be reviewed to verify that you meet the qualification and eligibility requirements for the position. Qualified veterans' preference eligibles will receive selection priority over non-veterans. You will be notified if you are referred to the selecting official for consideration, and then if you were selected or not selected. If further evaluation or interviews are required, you will be contacted.
If applying in person or online poses a hardship, contact the Agency Contact listed below well before the closing date for an alternate method. All hardship application packages must be complete and submitted no later than noon ET on the closing date of the announcement in order to be entered into the system prior to its closing.
Step 1: Create a USAJOBS account (if you do not already have one) at www.usajobs.gov. It is recommended that as part of your profile you set up automatic email notification to be informed when the status of your application changes. If you choose not to set up this automatic notification, then you will have to log into your USAJOBS account to check on the status of your application.
Step 2: Create a Resume with USAJOBS or upload a Resume into your USAJOBS account. You may want to customize your resume to ensure it documents duties and accomplishments you have gained that are directly related to this position in order to verify that qualifications are met. In addition, your resume must support your responses to the online questionnaire (you may preview the online questionnaire by clicking on the link at the end of the How You Will Be Evaluated section of the job announcement).
Step 3: Click "Apply Online" and follow the prompts to complete the Occupational Questionnaire and attach any additional documents that may be required. You can update your application or documents anytime while the announcement is open. Simply log into your USAJOBS account and click on "Application Status." Click on the position title, and then select "Update Application" to continue.
NOTE: If a document is resubmitted, it replaces the previous submission, which means the previous document is no longer available to the Human Resources Office. If you are adding to, rather than replacing a previous submission, you must upload both the old document and the new document. You must verify that uploaded documents from USAJOBS transfer into the Agency's staffing system as there is a limitation to the number of documents that can be transferred. However, once in the Agency's staffing system, you will have the opportunity to upload additional documents. Applicants may combine all like required documents (e.g. SF-50s or veteran docs) into one or more files and scan for uploading into the application. Each file must not exceed 3MB. Grouping like documents into files will simplify the application process. Documents must be in one of the following formats: GIF, JPEG, JPG, PDF, PNG, RTF, or Word (DOC or DOCX). Uploaded documents may not require a password, digital signature, or other encryption to open.
Agricultural Marketing Service
USDA APHIS MRPBS
250 Marquette Avenue, Suite 410
Minneapolis, MN 55401
US
Next steps
Your application will be reviewed to verify that you meet the eligibility and qualification requirements for the position prior to issuing referral lists to the selecting official. If further evaluation or interviews are required, you will be contacted.
Multiple positions may be filled from this announcement
The Federal hiring process is set up to be fair and transparent. Please read the following guidance.
The following documents are required for your applicant package to be complete. Our office cannot be responsible for incompatible software, your system failure or downtime, etc. Encrypted documents will not be accepted. Failure to submit required, legible documents may result in loss of consideration.
Resume that includes:1) personal information such as name, address, contact information; 2) education; 3) detailed work experience related to this position as described in the major duties including work schedule, hours worked per week, dates of employment; title, series, grade (if applicable); 4) other qualifications; and 5) supervisors name and phone number for each work period listed and whether or not they may be contacted for reference checks.
College Transcripts You must submit a copy of your college transcripts. An unofficial copy is sufficient with the application; however, if you are selected, you will be required to submit official transcripts prior to entering on duty. Education must have been successfully obtained from an accredited school, college or university.
If claiming veterans' preference, you must submit a DD214, Certificate of Release from Active Duty, which shows dates of service and discharge under honorable conditions. If currently on active duty you must submit a certification of expected discharge or release from active duty service under honorable conditions within 120 days after the date the certification is submitted. The certification must be on the letterhead of the appropriate military branch and include the dates of military service. Veterans' preference must be verified prior to appointment. Without this documentation, you will not receive veteran's preference and your application will be evaluated based on the material(s) submitted.
If claiming 10-point veterans' preference you must provide the DD214 or certification requirements (see above bullet), plus the proof of entitlement of this preference as listed on the SF-15 Application for 10-point Veterans' Preference. The SF-15 should be included but is not required. Failure to submit these documents could result in the determination that there is insufficient documentation to support your claim for 10-point preference. For more information on veterans' preference visit FEDSHIREVETS
Please read the entire announcement and all instructions before you begin. The following instructions outline our application process for this announcement.
The Agricultural Marketing Service will be at USDA Career Fair, located at the Sheraton Hotel, 6100 College Boulevard, Overland Park, KS 66211, accepting applications for this position. This is a vacancy announcement for one of several positions that will be available during the event which are in various locations across the organization.
If applying in person you may submit your application at the USDA Career Fair, located at the Sheraton Hotel, 6100 College Blvd, Overland Park, KS 66211. You may apply on April 4th in the Linden Room (Lower Level) or April 5th in the Exhibit Hall (Booth 318), from 10:30 am to 4:00pm. If you require directions to the location, please contact the Sheraton Hotel at (913) 234-2100 or visit https://www.marriott.com/hotels/travel/mcicc-sheraton-overland-park-hotel-at-the-convention-center/
If you cannot apply in person, you may submit your complete application online. You must complete this application process and submit all required documents electronically by 11:59p.m. Eastern Time (ET) on the closing date of this announcement.
This agency provides reasonable accommodation to applicants with disabilities on an as-needed basis. Please contact us if you require this for any part of the application and hiring process.
AMS conducts hiring events such as this one throughout the year as part of our overall recruitment strategy. We will announce additional Pathways job opportunities in the future. You are encouraged to monitor USAJOBS for future vacancy announcements.
What to expect next: After the conclusion of the event and deadline for alternative submission, your application package will be reviewed to verify that you meet the qualification and eligibility requirements for the position. Qualified veterans' preference eligibles will receive selection priority over non-veterans. You will be notified if you are referred to the selecting official for consideration, and then if you were selected or not selected. If further evaluation or interviews are required, you will be contacted.
If applying in person or online poses a hardship, contact the Agency Contact listed below well before the closing date for an alternate method. All hardship application packages must be complete and submitted no later than noon ET on the closing date of the announcement in order to be entered into the system prior to its closing.
Step 1: Create a USAJOBS account (if you do not already have one) at www.usajobs.gov. It is recommended that as part of your profile you set up automatic email notification to be informed when the status of your application changes. If you choose not to set up this automatic notification, then you will have to log into your USAJOBS account to check on the status of your application.
Step 2: Create a Resume with USAJOBS or upload a Resume into your USAJOBS account. You may want to customize your resume to ensure it documents duties and accomplishments you have gained that are directly related to this position in order to verify that qualifications are met. In addition, your resume must support your responses to the online questionnaire (you may preview the online questionnaire by clicking on the link at the end of the How You Will Be Evaluated section of the job announcement).
Step 3: Click "Apply Online" and follow the prompts to complete the Occupational Questionnaire and attach any additional documents that may be required. You can update your application or documents anytime while the announcement is open. Simply log into your USAJOBS account and click on "Application Status." Click on the position title, and then select "Update Application" to continue.
NOTE: If a document is resubmitted, it replaces the previous submission, which means the previous document is no longer available to the Human Resources Office. If you are adding to, rather than replacing a previous submission, you must upload both the old document and the new document. You must verify that uploaded documents from USAJOBS transfer into the Agency's staffing system as there is a limitation to the number of documents that can be transferred. However, once in the Agency's staffing system, you will have the opportunity to upload additional documents. Applicants may combine all like required documents (e.g. SF-50s or veteran docs) into one or more files and scan for uploading into the application. Each file must not exceed 3MB. Grouping like documents into files will simplify the application process. Documents must be in one of the following formats: GIF, JPEG, JPG, PDF, PNG, RTF, or Word (DOC or DOCX). Uploaded documents may not require a password, digital signature, or other encryption to open.
Agricultural Marketing Service
USDA APHIS MRPBS
250 Marquette Avenue, Suite 410
Minneapolis, MN 55401
US
Next steps
Your application will be reviewed to verify that you meet the eligibility and qualification requirements for the position prior to issuing referral lists to the selecting official. If further evaluation or interviews are required, you will be contacted.
Multiple positions may be filled from this announcement
Fair and transparent
The Federal hiring process is set up to be fair and transparent. Please read the following guidance.
