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Student Trainee (Biological Sciences)

Department of the Interior
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
This job announcement has closed

Summary

This is a Pathways Intern position not to exceed 3 months in duration working with the Arizona Fish and Wildlife Conservation Office, in Whiteriver, Arizona.

Overview

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Hiring complete
Open & closing dates
11/28/2022 to 12/09/2022
Salary
$32,283 to - $41,967 per year
Pay scale & grade
GS 4
Location
Many vacancies in the following location:
Whiteriver, AZ
Remote job
No
Telework eligible
No
Travel Required
75% or less - You may be expected to travel for this position.
Relocation expenses reimbursed
No
Appointment type
Internships
Work schedule
Full-time
Service
Competitive
Promotion potential
4
Supervisory status
No
Security clearance
Not Required
Drug test
No
Position sensitivity and risk
Non-sensitive (NS)/Low Risk
Trust determination process
Announcement number
R2-23-11735900-KD-Path
Control number
690053500

This job is open to

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Clarification from the agency

Student who have been accepted for enrollment or who are enrolled at least half-time in an accredited high school, college, professional, technical, vocational, or trade school pursuing a qualifying degree or certificate.

Duties

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Only experience and education obtained by 12/09/2022 will be considered.

As a Student Trainee (Biological Sciences) your duties may include, but are not limited to, the following:

  • Assists with fish population monitoring in high elevation streams, including collecting data on various fish species and habitats.
  • Assists with invasive species removal projects, recording and submitting accomplishment data on the process of technical assistance, and habitat restoration activities.

Requirements

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Conditions of employment

  • Must be a U.S. Citizen or National
  • Males born after 12-31-1959 must be registered for Selective Service
  • Resume and supporting documents (See How To Apply)
  • Suitability for employment, as determined by background investigation
  • May be required to successfully complete a probationary period
  • Must meet Pathways eligibility requirements
  • Selectee will be required to sign a Pathways Agreement form
  • Valid state issued driver's license may be required

Qualifications

Only experience and education obtained by 12/09/2022 will be considered.

***This position is not anticipated to start until the timeframe of May of 2023. If you will have completed or will be completing all degree requirements before May of 2023 and do not plan on pursuing additional education, you will be found ineligible for this position. If there is no documentation provided with your application materials indicating that you intend on continuing your education past May of 2023, you will be found ineligible for this position.***

OPM's Qualification standard: http://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/classification-qualifications/general-schedule-qualification-standards/final-groupcoveragequalificationstandardforpathwaysprogramschedule-20d.pdf. Applicants meet the following eligibility requirement, and provide documentation such as a copy of your official transcript and/or veteran's documentation by the closing date of the announcement to be considered:

To be eligible for a Pathways Program internship program, you must meet the following requirements:

  • You must be a student accepted for enrollment or enrolled in a degree or certificate program on at least a half-time basis and in good standing who will be continuing education into the next semester or have received a notice of acceptance for enrollment. (You are required to submit a copy of your transcript or notice of acceptance.)
  • Enrollment must be with an accredited educational institution or state-approved home school. These may include high schools, colleges, universities, technical, trade, vocational, or business schools, and state approved home school secondary and post-secondary programs.
  • Qualifying certificate programs are post-high school programs equivalent to at least one academic year of full-time study that is part of an accredited college-level, technical, trade, vocational, or business school curriculum.
  • Educational institutions must be accredited by organizations recognized by the U.S. Department of Education. To see if your school is accredited, please visit: http://www.ope.ed.gov/accreditation/
Pathways Student Intern: The Department of the Interior Internship Program (Pathways) is designed to provide students enrolled in a wide variety of educational institutions, from high school to graduate level, with opportunities to work in agencies and explore Federal careers while still in school.

Special Provisions for Interns with Previous Related Education or Experience: Previous education and/or experience may be evaluated to determine the highest grade level for which the individual is qualified.

Current students in an accredited high school, college (including 4-year colleges/universities, community colleges, and junior colleges); professional, technical, vocational, and trade school; advanced degree programs; or other qualifying educational institution pursuing a qualifying degree or certificate.

Applicants meet the following eligibility requirement, and provide documentation such as a copy of your official transcript and/or veteran's documentation by the closing date of the announcement to be considered:

Minimum Qualification [GS-04]
  1. I possess 6 months general experience and 6 months specialized experience. General experience is defined as (1) any type of work that demonstrates the applicant's ability to perform the work of the position, or (2) experience that provided a familiarity with the subject matter or processes of the broad subject area of the occupation. Specialized experience is defined as experience that equipped the applicant with the particular knowledge, skills, and abilities (KSA's) to perform successfully the duties of the position, and that is typically in or related to the work of the position to be filled. To be creditable, specialized experience must have been equivalent to grade GS-3 in the Federal service. Examples of specialized experience may include: Assisting with fish and wildlife and/or plant surveys and monitoring; Assisting with biological studies of fish and wildlife populations; Using field equipment for field surveys; Recording and compiling data. OR
  2. I have completed 2 full academic years of post-high school study or an associate's degree. OR
  3. A combination of education and experience as described in 1 and 2 above which together equals 100% of the requirement
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

PROOF OF EDUCATION: All applicants who are using education or a combination of education and experience to qualify must submit copies of official or unofficial transcripts which include grades, credit hours earned, major(s), grade point average or class ranking, institution name, and student name. If any required coursework is not easily recognizable on transcripts, or if you believe a portion of a particular course can be credited toward meeting an educational requirement, you must also provide a memorandum on letterhead from the institution's registrar, dean, or other appropriate official stating the percentage of the course that should be considered to meet the requirement and the equivalent number of units. Unofficial transcripts are acceptable; however, if you are selected for the position, you will be required to produce the original official transcripts.

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.

FOREIGN EDUCATION: If you are using education completed in foreign colleges or universities to meet the qualification requirements, you must show the education credentials have been evaluated by a private organization that specializes in interpretation of foreign education. For further information, visit: http://www.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ous/international/usnei/us/edlite-visitus-forrecog.html

Additional information

To register or verify your registration go to the Selective Service System at: Link
Pathways Intern -The Department of the Interior Internship Program (Pathways) is designed to provide students enrolled in a wide variety of educational institutions, from high school to graduate level, with opportunities to work in agencies and explore Federal careers while still in school and while getting paid for the work performed.

Student Interns must continue to meet the Pathways Program requirements throughout the duration of the appointment. Incumbents will be required to provide proof of continued enrollment and good standing (as Defined by the educational institution),each semester or grading period throughout the internship program.

Interns may be non-competitively converted to a term, career-conditional or career appointment within 120 days following successful completion of all their educational and work requirements in accordance with 5 CFR 362.204.

An agency is not required to convert any individual in a Pathways position to a position in the competitive service, whether upon completion of degree requirements or otherwise. Conversion to a competitive service position is not a guarantee.

Pathways Intern NTE: This is a Temporary Pathways Internship Program position not to exceed 3 months. This position may be terminated at any time or may be extended at management's discretion without further competition if the employee remains eligible for employment in the Pathways Intern Program.

Telework:
This position is not suitable for telework.

Additional Vacancies: One or more positions may be filled from applications received under this announcement in the advertised office or other U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service offices in the local commuting area.

A PCS move is not authorized. 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: https://help.usastaffing.gov/Apply/index.php?title=Alternate_Application_Information.

How you will be evaluated

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

Once the announcement has closed, a review of your resume and supporting documentation will be used to determine whether you meet the basic qualification requirements listed on this announcement. If you meet the basic qualifications your resume and supporting documentation will be compared against your responses to the assessment questionnaire to determine your level of experience. If, after reviewing your resume and/or supporting documentation, a determination is made that you have inflated your qualifications and/or experience which resulted in you being listed in the highest quality category, you may lose consideration, or be assigned to a lower quality category for this position. Please follow all instructions carefully when applying, errors or omissions may affect your eligibility.

Your qualifications will be evaluated on the following competencies (knowledge, skills, abilities and other characteristics):

  • Knowledge of standard scientific methods, techniques, tools and equipment used in wildlife/plant surveys, studies, and other wildlife management projects.
  • Ability to record, compile and organize data using arithmetical and standard statistical procedures.
  • Ability to use computer technology to maintain and retrieve information from automated data systems, develop spreadsheets, and use word processing software programs.
If you are a veteran with preference eligibility and you are claiming 5-point veterans' preference, you must attach a copy of your DD-214 showing you were honorably discharged. If you are claiming 10-point veterans' preference, you must attach an SF-15," Application for 10-Point Veterans' Preference" in addition to the proof required by that form.

Unranked list: Applicants who meet basic eligibility criteria are listed by veterans' preference category: 10 percent or more compensable disabled veterans, 10-point preference eligible veterans, 5-point preference eligible veterans and non-preference eligible veterans. Agencies must consider the candidates in the highest preference group first. Agencies cannot select non-preference eligible veterans until the preference eligible veterans are exhausted or the agency has gone through the proper pass over procedures with respect to the remaining preference eligible veterans
§ 302.302 Examination of applicants.
(a)Eligibility. An evaluation of the qualifications of applicants for positions covered by this part may be conducted at any time before an appointment is made. The evaluation may involve only determination of eligibility or ineligibility or may include qualitative rating of candidates. If the evaluation involves only basic eligibility numerical scores will not be assigned and eligible candidates will be referred in accordance with the procedures described in paragraph (b)(5) of § 302.304.

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