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Cartographic Technician

Department of Agriculture
Natural Resources Conservation Service
This job announcement has closed

Summary

This position is assigned to a Remote Sensing Laboratory (RSL), with a duty station of Portland, OR (West RSL); Fort Worth, TX (Central RSL); or Greensboro, NC (East RSL), Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS), U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA).
The purpose of this position is to conduct image interpretations and registration, construct site and support maps and assist with other data collection functions in accordance with established procedures/protocols and complete inventories.

Overview

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Hiring complete
Open & closing dates
02/28/2023 to 03/06/2023
Salary
$37,696 to - $65,846 per year
Pay scale & grade
GS 5 - 7
Locations
Greensboro, NC
8 vacancies
Portland, OR
4 vacancies
Fort Worth
4 vacancies
Remote job
No
Telework eligible
Yes—as determined by the agency policy.
Travel Required
Occasional travel - You may be expected to travel for this position.
Relocation expenses reimbursed
No
Appointment type
Permanent
Work schedule
Full-time
Service
Competitive
Promotion potential
7
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
NRCS-23-11840974-DE-SS-CM
Control number
708642100

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Duties

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  • Performs NRI data collection activities using remote sensing photo interpretation techniques.
  • Constructs support and site maps from a variety of current and historical digital data to be used for onsite field data. collection.
  • Performs local data collection integration by comparing remotely sensed data and field collected data.
  • Performs image-to-image registration of scanned aerial photography using established agency protocols.

Requirements

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Conditions of employment

  • You must be a US Citizen or US National.
  • Males born after 12/31/1959 must be Selective Service registered or exempt.
  • Subject to satisfactory adjudication of background investigation and/or fingerprint check. If selected you will be sent instructions on obtaining fingerprints. Please note we are not able to reimburse any fees incurred for fingerprints.
  • Successful completion of one-year probationary period, unless previously served.
  • 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 E-Verify at https://www.e-verify.gov/.
  • Must possess and maintain a valid state motor vehicle operator's license for the type of vehicle(s) operated to perform the duties of this position.

Qualifications

Applicants must meet all qualifications and eligibility requirements by the closing date of the announcement including specialized experience and/or education, as defined below.

Basic Education: For the GS-05 level,
Successfully completed a full 4-year course of study leading to a bachelor's degree that included at least 18 semester hours in courses such as cartography, relevant mathematical and statistical sciences, or related sciences, e.g., physical geography or geodesy. Examples of acceptable courses include cartography, astronomy, geodesy, photogrammetry, oceanography, computer science, land surveying, geophysics, remote sensing, algebra, trigonometry, and calculus. Not more than 9 of the 18 semester hours should have been in mathematics or statistics.
OR
Specialized Experience (For the GS 5):
Possess at least one year of specialized experience, equivalent to the GS-04 grade level in the Federal service, or comparable experience not gained through federal service that demonstrates experience conducting image interpretations and registration; constructing site and support maps; assisting with other data collection functions (e.g. completing inventories).
OR
Possess a combination of education and experience, as described above, which totals at least 100% when combined.

Specialized Experience: For the GS-06 level, you must possess at least one year of specialized experience equivalent to the GS-05 level or higher in Federal service, or comparable experience not gained through Federal service. This experience must include experience conducting image interpretations and registration; constructing site and support maps; assisting with other data collection functions (e.g. completing inventories), agriculture, natural resource management, cartography, GIS, remote sensing, or other similar experience.

Specialized Experience: For the GS-07 level, you must possess at least one year of specialized experience equivalent to the GS-06 level or higher in Federal service, or comparable experience not gained through Federal service. This experience must include 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. Examples of specialized experience include:

  • Conducting image interpretations and registration
  • Constructing site and support maps
  • Identifying and resolving discrepancies among source materials
  • Assisting with other data collection functions (e.g. completing inventories)
OR,
Education: One full year of graduate education meets the requirements if the education is directly related to the work of the position. One year of full-time graduate education is considered to be the number of credit hours that the school attended has determined to represent 1 year of full-time study. If that information cannot be obtained from the school, 18 semester hours should be considered as satisfying the 1 year of full-time study requirement.

Note: There is no education substitution for the GS-06 level.

For more information on the qualifications for this position, click here: https://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/classification-qualifications/general-schedule-qualification-standards/#url=GS-TECH

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.

Education

If you are relying on your education to meet qualification requirements:
You must submit a copy of your transcripts to include course number, title, completion and grade. Education must be accredited by an accrediting institution recognized by the U.S. Department of Education in order for it to be credited towards qualifications. Therefore, provide only the attendance and/or degrees from schools accredited by accrediting institutions recognized by the U.S. Department of Education. If a relevant course is not clearly qualifying (e.g. special topic, seminar, research, thesis, obscure or misleading course title, etc.), please submit an official course syllabi and/or detailed course description from the university/college for that particular course to ensure you are properly evaluated. Please note that qualifications determinations are based solely on the information submitted for each particular vacancy announcement.

Important: If you are using foreign education to meet qualification requirements, you must send a Certificate of Foreign Equivalency with your transcript in order to receive credit for that education. Click on this link for more information.

Failure to provide all of the required documents/information as stated in this vacancy announcement may result in an ineligible rating or may affect the overall rating.

Additional information

  • Location Consideration: You may select up to three locations.
  • Locality Pay: The salary for each location may vary depending on locality. Locality tables may be found at https://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/pay-leave/salaries-wages/.
  • Career Transition Assistance Plan (CTAP), Reemployment Priority List (RPL), or Interagency Career Transition Assistance Plan (ICTAP): Visit the OPM website for information on how to apply as a CTAP, RPL, or ICTAP eligible. To exercise selection priority for this vacancy, CTAP/RPL/ICTAP candidates must meet the basic eligibility requirements and all selective factors. CTAP/ICTAP candidates must be rated and determined to be well qualified (or above) based on an evaluation of the competencies listed in the How You Will Be Evaluated section. When assessed through a score-based category rating method, CTAP/ICTAP applicants must receive a rating of at least 85 out of a possible 100.
  • Promotion Potential: If you are selected for a position with further promotion potential, you will be placed under a career development plan, and may be non-competitively promoted if you successfully complete the requirements and if recommended by management. However, promotion is neither implied nor guaranteed.
  • Physical Demands: Work is primarily sedentary. Work requires some walking, standing and carrying of source materials or small supply items.
  • Work Environment: Work is performed in an office setting where normal temperatures, humidity, adequate lighting and control of noise levels are maintained.
  • PLEASE NOTE: In the interest of filling these positions as efficiently as possible, we are requiring the following:
    • If called for an interview, applicants must be available to interview within 3 business days of being contacted.
    • If a tentative job offer is extended, selectee will have 2 business days in which to accept or decline.
  • This position is eligible for telework within the local commuting area of the position and other flexible work arrangements. Current USDA policy includes telework for an 8 hour work day, 4 days per week; other flexibilities are possible dependent upon availability and/or the position and its associated duties. Employee participation is at the discretion of the supervisor.
  • Recruitment and/or relocation incentives may be authorized.

How you will be evaluated

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

Applications will be evaluated in accordance with Office of Personnel Management's (OPM) Delegated Examining Procedures and USDA policy using category rating. Applicants who meet basic minimum qualifications will be placed in one of three categories: Best Qualified, Well Qualified, or Qualified. Within these categories, applicants eligible for veteran's preference will receive selection priority over non-veterans. Category placement will be determined based on applicants' quality of experience and the extent they possess the following knowledge, skills, and abilities (KSA) or competencies:

  • Cartography
  • Data Collection, Analysis and Research


Your application, including the online Assessment Questionnaire, will be reviewed to determine if you meet (a) minimum qualification requirements and (b) the resume supports the answers provided to the job-specific questions. Your resume must clearly support your responses to all the questions addressing experience and education relevant to this position. Those determined to be in the best qualified category will be referred to the selecting official for consideration.

Note: If, after reviewing your resume and/or supporting documentation, a determination is made that you have inflated your qualifications and or experience, your score may be adjusted to more accurately reflect your abilities, or you may be found ineligible. 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.

Clicking the link below will present a preview of the application form; i.e. the online questionnaire. The application form link below will only provide a preview and does not initiate the application process. To initiate the online application process, click the "Apply" button to the right.

To view the application form, visit: https://apply.usastaffing.gov/ViewQuestionnaire/11840974

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