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Land Surveyor

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

Summary

These are advanced-skill level surveyor positions at BLM Eastern States Office. Our office encompasses the 31 states east of and bordering on the Mississippi River.

Overview

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Hiring complete
Open date: 08/22/2022
Closed date: 09/13/2022
This job will close when we have received 50 applications which may be sooner than the closing date. Learn more
Location
2 vacancies in the following locations:
Work site options
Telework eligible
Yes—as determined by the agency policy.
Remote job
No
Relocation expenses reimbursed
Yes—You may qualify for reimbursement of relocation expenses in accordance with agency policy.
Salary
$54,727 - $97,430 per year
Pay scale & grade
GS 9 - 11
Promotion potential
11
Pay scale and grade determines the salary of the job.
Work schedule
Full-time
Travel Required
50% or less - You may be expected to travel for this position.
Appointment type
Permanent
Occupations and job series
Supervisory status
No
Federal service type
This job is in the Competitive Service
Drug test
No
Security clearance
Not Required
Position sensitivity and risk
Moderate Risk (MR)
Jobs require a background check and some require a security clearance. The type depends on the job.
Background check type
Announcement number
ES-DE-11485578-22-OPM
Control number
672390700

Duties

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  • Plan the execution of survey projects related to boundary disputes or title claims cases, but also including high-order geodetic surveys, right-of-way, and engineering surveys.
  • Provide technical direction in the planning and arranging surveys of property and delineation by posting and marking boundaries.
  • Research administrative and historical records to interpret land records and legal decisions.
  • Serve as a subject matter expert in land boundary and ownership meetings with internal and external stakeholders.
  • Provide input for planning and programming of land surveying priorities.

Requirements

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Conditions of employment

  • U.S. Citizenship required.
  • May be required to complete background investigation.
  • Meet Selective Service Registration Act requirement for males.
  • Must provide resume and supporting documents (See required documents).
  • You cannot hold an active real estate license, nor can you have an interest or hold stocks in firms with interest in Federal Lands.

Qualifications

BASIC QUALIFICATION REQUIREMENT for the 1373 series:

In order to qualify, select the response that best describes your education and/or combination of education and experience as it relates to meeting the basic qualifications requirement for the GS-1373 Series.

A. You have successfully completed a 4-year bachelor's degree or higher in land surveying; or civil engineering with a surveying option/emphasis. The civil engineering major must have included at least 6 semester hours of surveying, 3 semester hours of land law, and 21 additional semester hours in any combination of the following: surveying, photogrammetry, geodetic surveying, geodesy, route surveying, remote sensing, cartography, survey astronomy, land information systems, computer-aided mapping, aerial photo interpretation, and survey analysis and adjustments. Note: You must submit a complete copy of your transcripts.

-OR-

B. You possess a combination of education and experience -- courses equivalent to a major in land surveying or civil engineering as described in paragraph A, plus appropriate experience or additional education that furnished a thorough knowledge of the physical and mathematical sciences underlying professional land surveying. Note: You must submit your transcripts.

-OR-

C. You possess a current registration as a land surveyor in a State, territory, or the District of Columbia obtained by written examination. Such registration must have been obtained under conditions outlined in the National Council of Engineering Examiners (NCEE) Unified Model Law for Registration of Surveyors. Applicants wishing to be considered under this provision must show evidence of registration based on successful completion of the written examinations. Registrations granted prior to adoption of a registration law with qualification requirements equivalent to the NCEE Model Law by the State, territory, or District of Columbia are not acceptable under this option. To be considered equivalent to the NCEE Model law, registration laws must include the four options listed within the NCEE Unified Model Law in the section specifying "General Requirements for Registration" as a Professional Land Surveyor. Note: You must submit proof of your registration to show completion of your written examinations.

MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS: To be considered minimally qualified for this position, you must demonstrate that you have the required specialized experience and/or education for the respective grade level in which you are applying:

Specialized Experience for GS-09:
A.
You have one full year of specialized experience comparable in scope and responsibility to the GS-07 grade level in the Federal service (obtained either in the private or public sectors) performing the following:(1) compiling and processing field survey data; (2) applying mathematical computations for boundary closures; (3) conducting routine analysis on land areas and/or other natural resources; and (4) applying basic land surveying techniques to establish land and/or property boundaries.


-OR-

Education: B. Have successfully completed two full years of progressively higher-level graduate education leading to a master's degree or equivalent graduate degree in land surveying or civil engineering. One year of graduate education is considered to be 18 semester hours, or the number of credit hours your graduate school has determined to represent one academic year of full-time study. This education must demonstrate the knowledge, skills, and abilities necessary to do the work of this position. Note: You must submit a copy of your transcripts.
-OR-

Combination: C. Possess a combination of specialized experience as described in A and graduate level education as described in B that, when combined, equal 100% of the total requirement. To combine education and experience, first determine your total qualifying experience as a percentage of the experience required for the grade level; then determine your education as a percentage of the education required for the grade level; and then add the two percentages. The total percentages must equal at least 100 percent to qualify you for the grade level. Only graduate education in excess of 18 semester hours may be used. This education must demonstrate the knowledge, skills, and abilities necessary to do the work of this position. Note: You must submit a copy of your transcripts.

Specialized Experience for GS-11:
A.
Applicants must have one full year of specialized experience comparable in scope and responsibility to the GS-09 grade level in the Federal service (obtained either in the private or public sectors) performing the following: (1) analyzing field survey data; (2) manually calculating mathematical computations for boundary closures; (3) conducting routine analysis on land areas and/or other natural resources; (4) leading the implementation of cadastral surveys according to law, technical, and/ or administrative standards; and (5) applying basic land surveying techniques to establish land and/or property boundaries.

-OR-
Education: B. possess three years of progressively higher-level graduate education leading to a PhD degree or Ph.D. or equivalent doctoral degree in a closely related field which provided the knowledge, skills, and abilities necessary to do the work of the position. Note: You must submit a copy of your transcripts.

-OR-
Combination: C. possess a combination of specialized experience as described in A and graduate level education as described in B that, when combined, equal 100% of the total requirement. To combine education and experience, first determine your total qualifying experience as a percentage of the experience required for the grade level; then determine your education as a percentage of the education required for the grade level; and then add the two percentages. The total percentages must equal at least 100 percent to qualify you for the grade level. This education must demonstrate the knowledge, skills, and abilities necessary to do the work of this position. Note: You must submit a copy of your transcripts.

Applicants must meet all qualifications and eligibility requirements by the closing date of the announcement.

IN DESCRIBING YOUR EXPERIENCE, PLEASE BE CLEAR AND SPECIFIC. WE MAY NOT MAKE ASSUMPTIONS REGARDING YOUR EXPERIENCE. If your resume does not support your questionnaire answers, we will not allow credit for your response(s).

Volunteer 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, 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 include months, years and hours per week worked to receive credit for your work and/or volunteer experience. One year of specialized experience is equivalent to 12 months at 40 hours per week. Part-time hours are prorated. You will not receive any credit for experience that does not indicate exact hours per week or is listed as "varies".

Education

To qualify based on education, you must submit a legible copy of transcripts from an accredited institution with your name, school name, credit hours, course level, major(s), and grade-point average or class ranking. Transcripts do not need to be official, but if you are selected for this position and you used your education to qualify, you must provide official transcripts before you begin work.

If you are using education completed in foreign colleges or universities to meet qualification requirements, you must show that your education credentials have been evaluated by a private organization that specializes in interpretation of foreign education programs and such education has been deemed equivalent to that gained in an accredited U.S. education program; or full credit has been given for the courses at a U.S. accredited college or university.

PASS/FAIL COURSES: If more than 10 percent of your undergraduate course work (credit hours) were taken on a pass/fail basis, your claim of superior academic achievement must be based upon class standing or membership in an honor society.

GRADUATE EDUCATION: One academic year of graduate education is considered to be the number of credits hours your graduate school has determined to represent one academic year of full-time study. Such study may have been performed on a full-time or part-time basis. If you cannot obtain your graduate school's definition of one year of graduate study, 18 semester hours (or 27 quarter hours) should be considered as satisfying the requirement for one year of full-time graduate study.

Additional information

  • Selectee will be required to participate in the Direct Deposit Electronics Funds Transfer Program.
  • If you are a new employee or supervisor in the Federal government, you will be required to complete a one-year probationary period.
  • Driver's License: You will be required to obtain and maintain a valid state driver's license.
  • Travel: You will be required to travel overnight away from home up to 5 nights per month. You must obtain a government charge card for travel purposes. NOTE: Based on the nature of the job, travel duration is project specific. There may be times that travel will extend from several days to weeks or months.
Career Ladder: Promotion to the full performance level is neither guaranteed nor implied and will be based solely on your ability to satisfactorily perform the work of the position, existing work at the higher grade level, and recommendation by the position's supervisor.

Physical Demands: Work is either in an office setting or out-of-doors involving extensive hiking, carrying heavy loads, and cutting and clearing brush and debris with axes, brush hooks, and chain saws.

Working Conditions: The work environment varies from an office setting to out-of-doors. The outdoor environment varies from flat, barren desert land or open prairie to extremely steep, rugged and broken mountains covered with dense brush and timber. The temperatures fluctuate from extremely hot to uncomfortably cold. At times, crews are required to work in rain and snow. Individuals are exposed to poisonous plants, snakes, insects, and most animals common to outdoors.

Telework: The Bureau of Land Management has determined that the duties of this position are suitable for telework and 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.

Interagency Career Transition Assistance Program (ICTAP) or Career Transition Assistance Program (CTAP): For information on how to apply as an ICTAP or CTAP eligible see http://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/workforce-restructuring/employee-guide-to-career-transition/ctap_guideline.pdf. To be well-qualified and exercise selection priority for this vacancy, displaced Federal employees must be rated at 90 or above on the rating criteria for this position.

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 Alternate Application

How you will be evaluated

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

A review of your resume and supporting documentation will be made and compared against your responses to the Occupational Questionnaire to determine if you are qualified for this job. If your resume is incomplete or does not support the responses provided in the Occupational Questionnaire, or if you fail to submit all required documentation, you will be rated 'ineligible', 'not qualified', or your score may be adjusted accordingly. If a determination is made that you have inflated your qualifications or experience, you may lose consideration for this position. Please follow all instructions carefully; errors or omissions may affect your rating.

You will be evaluated based on how well you meet the qualifications listed in this vacancy announcement. Your qualifications will be evaluated based on your application materials (e.g., resume, supporting documents), the responses you provide on the application questionnaire, and the result of the additional assessments required for this position.

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 additional assessments, including a subject matter expert resume review. These assessments measure the critical competencies listed below that are required to successfully perform the job.

Candidates will be rated and ranked using Category Rating procedures. These procedures place candidates with veteran's preference above non-preference eligibles within each category. Veterans with a service connected disability of at least 10 percent are listed in the highest quality category, except when the position being filled is scientific or professional at the GS-09 grade level or higher. Under Category Rating, candidates will be rated and ranked into one of three categories:

  • Best Qualified - applicants possessing experience that substantially exceeds the minimum qualifications of the position including all selective factors and are highly proficient in all requirements of the job and can perform effectively in the position
  • Well Qualified - applicants possessing experience that exceeds the minimum qualifications of the position including all selective factors and are proficient in most of the requirements of the job
  • Qualified - applicants possessing experience that meets the minimum qualifications of the position including all selective factors and are proficient in some, but not all of the requirements of the job.
You will be evaluated on the following competencies:
  • Data Management
  • Surveying
  • Technical Competence
  • Writing

Bureau of Land Management

The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) was established in 1946, but its roots go back to the years after America's independence, when the young nation began acquiring additional lands.

OUR MISSION: The Bureau of Land Management's mission is to sustain the health, diversity, and productivity of public lands for the use and enjoyment of present and future generations.
OUR VISION: To enhance the quality of life for all citizens through the balanced stewardship of America's public lands and resources.
OUR VALUES: To serve with honesty, integrity, accountability, respect, courage, and commitment to make a difference.

The Department of the Interior (DOI) 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.

Agency contact information

San Antonio Services Branch
Phone
816-541-8101
Email
SASBMailbox@opm.gov
Address
BLM Eastern States Office
BLM Eastern States, ID-953
1387 South Vinnell Way
Boise, ID 83709-3904
US

Visit our careers page

Learn more about what it's like to work at Bureau of Land Management, what the agency does, and about the types of careers this agency offers.

https://www.blm.gov/

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