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Archeologist

Department of the Interior
Bureau of Land Management
This job announcement has closed

Summary

The COVID-19 vaccination requirement for federal employees pursuant to Executive Order 14043 does not currently apply. Click here for more information.

Explore a new career with the BLM - where our people are our greatest natural resource.

These positions are located in multiple locations throughout Idaho. Information about Idaho can be found here. We expect to fill 4 vacancies at this time; however, additional positions may be filled from this announcement if they become available.

Overview

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Hiring complete
Open & closing dates
05/10/2022 to 05/24/2022
This job will close when we have received 50 applications which may be sooner than the closing date. Learn more
Salary
$54,727 to - $86,074 per year
Pay scale & grade
GS 9 - 11
Locations
Few vacancies in the following locations:
Boise, ID
Marsing, ID
Salmon, ID
Shoshone, ID
Remote job
No
Telework eligible
Yes—as determined by the agency policy.
Travel Required
25% or less - Travel may be required to attend trainings, conferences, workshops, and/or field visits
Relocation expenses reimbursed
No
Appointment type
Permanent
Work schedule
Full-time
Service
Competitive
Promotion potential
11
Job family (Series)
Supervisory status
No
Security clearance
Not Required
Drug test
No
Position sensitivity and risk
High Risk (HR)
Trust determination process
Announcement number
ID-MP-22-11479456-AL
Control number
653494100

Duties

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  • Works with interested historic preservation groups and individuals to develop partnerships for historic preservation efforts.
  • Coordinates with the State Historic Preservation Office on determination of eligibility ratings for pre and post-contact cultural resource sites.
  • Participates in Tribal consultation meetings with interested Native American Tribes to represent the Field Office.
  • Maintains archaeological site and inventory GIS layers for the Field Office.
  • Uses spatial data to assist with land use planning, decision making, and day to day management activities.
  • Completes site forms to document newly recorded cultural resources and updates previously recorded sites.

Requirements

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Conditions of employment

  • U.S. Citizenship is required.
  • Be sure to read the 'How to Apply' and 'Required Documents' Sections.
  • You cannot hold an active real estate license: nor can you have an interest or hold stocks in firms with interest in Federal Lands.
  • Direct Deposit Required.
  • Appointment will be subject to a favorably adjudicated background/suitability investigation/determination.
  • Your resume must contain enough information to show that you meet the qualification requirements as defined in the announcement. In addition, your responses to the questions must adequately reflect in your resume.
  • An applicant appointed to this position must possess (or obtain within 30 days of entrance on duty) and maintain a valid state driver's license while employed in this position.
  • May require a one year probationary period.
  • For Boise, ID ONLY: This is a Bargaining Unit position.

Qualifications

Selective Placement Factors: This position requires a special qualification that has been determined to be essential to perform the duties and will be used as a screen out element. Those who do not provide evidence they possess the following selective factor(s) will be rated not qualified:
Selective Placement Factor 1: must possess (or obtain within 30 days of entrance on duty) and maintain a valid state driver's license while employed in this position.

In order to be rated as qualified for this position, we must be able to determine that you meet the qualification requirements - please be sure to include this information in your resume. No assumptions will be made about your experience.

For GS-09: In addition to meeting the education requirement, you must possess one (1) full year of specialized experience at or equivalent to the GS-07 level that is equivalent in difficulty and complexity as indicated by the following examples: Conduct Section 106 cultural resource inventories for a wide variety of projects, including realty, recreation, and range developments, complete Section 106 and Section 110 reports for the State Historic Preservation Office to document the results of field inventories and use spatial data to assist with land use planning, decision making, and day to day management activities. OR
Education: Have completed 2 years of progressively higher-level graduate education leading to a master's degree or master's or equivalent graduate degree. OR
Combination of Education and Experience: You may meet qualifications requirement for this position with an equivalent combination of specialized experience and appropriate graduate education. Graduate level education must demonstrate the knowledge, skills, and abilities necessary to do the work of this position.

For GS-11: In addition to meeting the education requirement, you must possess one (1) full year of specialized experience at or equivalent to the GS-07 level that is equivalent in difficulty and complexity as indicated by the following examples: Author or review cultural resource sections of resource management plans; develop mitigation strategies to resolve adverse effects to historic properties; supervise activities to protect and improve the conditions of cultural resources. OR
Education: Have completed 3 years of progressively higher-level graduate education leading to a Ph.D. degree or Ph.D. or equivalent related doctoral degree. OR
Combination of Education and Experience: You may meet qualifications requirement for this position with an equivalent combination of specialized experience and appropriate graduate education. Graduate level education must demonstrate the knowledge, skills, and abilities necessary to do the work of this position.

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.

You must meet all qualification requirements within 30 days of the closing date of the announcement.

Federal employees in the competitive service are also subject to the Time-In-Grade requirement in accordance with 5 CFR 300.604. If you are a current Federal employee in the General Schedule (GS) pay plan and applying for a promotion opportunity, you must have completed a minimum of 52 weeks at the next lower grade level.

Physical Demands: Field work routinely requires physical exertion such as long periods of standing or walking over rough, uneven, rocky surfaces or mountainous terrain; recurring bending, crouching, stooping or reaching; using hand tools such as shovels, trowels, or screening devices; and lifting of moderately heavy items such as equipment and samples.

Work Environment: The work regularly involves moderate risks or discomforts which may require special safety precautions, e.g., adverse weather conditions, hazardous driving conditions, irritating or occasionally hazardous chemicals; hostile wildlife; and travel in off-road vehicles.

Education

This position has a basic education requirement which requires that you have one of the following:

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.

If using education to qualify, you must submit copies of all transcripts or a list of college courses that include hours and grades from an accredited U.S. college/university. See Required Documents section for more information.

Additional information

Career Transition Assistance Plan (CTAP)/lnteragency Career Transition Assistance Program (ICTAP): These programs apply to employees who have been involuntarily separated from a Federal service position within the competitive service or Federal service employees whose positions have been deemed surplus or no longer needed. To receive selection priority, you must: 1) meet CTAP or ICTAP eligibility criteria; 2) be rated well qualified for the position with a score of 90 or above; and 3) submit the appropriate documentation to support your CTAP or ICTAP eligibility. For more information: CTAP or ICTAP

Males born after 12/31/59 must be registered for Selective Service

Travel and relocation expenses will not be paid by the Department of the Interior. Any travel, transportation and relocation expenses associated with reporting for duty in this position will be the responsibility of the selected employee.

The official worksite for the selectee is the duty station identified in this vacancy announcement. The selectee will typically report to this duty location on a regular and recurring weekly basis. The selectee may be allowed to telework with supervisor approval.

BLM may use certain incentives, currently offered by the Federal government, to attract high quality applicants.

If you are unable to apply online or need to fax a document, you do not have in electronic form; view the following link for information regarding an Alternative Application

How you will be evaluated

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

Once the application process is complete, we will review your application to ensure you meet the job requirements. To determine if you are qualified for this job, a review of your resume, supporting documentation and responses to the online questionnaire will be made. Your responses to the online questionnaire will be used to measure the degree to which your background matches the requirements for this position. However, your resume must support your responses to the scored occupational questionnaire, or your score may be lowered. The best qualified candidates will be identified for referral to the hiring manager and may be contacted for an interview.

Your answers to the online questionnaire will be used to evaluate your competencies in the following areas:

Geography: Knowledge of geographical locations, their relationships and characteristics.
History and Archaeology: Knowledge of historical events and their causes, indicators, and impact on particular civilization and cultures, and of preservation and archival techniques.
Oral Communication: Expresses information (for example, ideas or facts) to individuals or groups effectively, taking into account the audience and nature of the information (for example, technical, sensitive, controversial); makes clear and convincing oral presentations; listens to others, attends to nonverbal cues, and responds appropriately.
Writing: Recognizes or uses correct English grammar, punctuation, and spelling; communicates information (for example, facts, ideas, or messages) in a brief, clear, and organized manner; produces written information, which may include technical material, that is appropriate for the intended audience.

In the evaluation process, due weight will be given to job related experience, education, training, incentive awards and performance appraisals. Applicants must have a performance rating of at least the equivalent of fully successful to be eligible for promotion or placement. Applicants may provide a copy of a performance appraisal of record dated within the last 18 months. If the applicant is unable to provide a performance appraisal of record dated within the last 18 months, the applicant may provide a written explanation as to why.

In order to be considered for this position, you must complete all required steps in the process. In addition to the application and application questionnaire, this position requires successful completion of the following additional assessment: Subject Matter Expert Resume Panel Review. These assessments measure the critical competencies listed above that are required to successfully perform the job.

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