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Technical Information Specialist

Department of Agriculture
Forest Service
This job announcement has closed

Summary

This position is located in the USDA Forest Service, Rocky Mountain Research Station.

The library serves as a documentation center as its collection of forestry and ecology materials is one of the largest in the western hemisphere. The employee will serve in the library which supports the professional research staff.

For additional information about the duties of this position, please contact Porsche Schlapper at Porsche.Schlapper@usda.gov or 608-231-9542.

Overview

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Hiring complete
Open & closing dates
03/02/2023 to 03/14/2023
Salary
$63,271 to - $99,513 per year
Pay scale & grade
GS 9 - 11
Location
1 vacancy in the following location:
Fort Collins, CO
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
11
Supervisory status
No
Security clearance
Not Required
Drug test
No
Position sensitivity and risk
Non-sensitive (NS)/Low Risk
Trust determination process
Announcement number
23-RES-11844185-DP-JN
Control number
709816100

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Duties

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  • Performs responsible duties in acquiring scientific technical material and is responsible for providing reader's services including general and specialized reference services, circulation, and bibliographic instruction.
  • Implementing, pursuing and maintaining an international forestry information network is one of the primary functions of this position.
  • Provides reference services such as responding to selective and comprehensive reference questions calling for subject and bibliographic competence, including the evaluation of timeliness, relevance, and authoritativeness.
  • Reference service may range from brief consultation of general or specialized reference tools to elusive and involved questions requiring extensive searching both within and without the library.
  • Conducts library orientation program for NSFL staff and general users' and instructs library clientele in reference methods and information sources.
  • Answers requests by telephone and by mail from institutions and people all over the world.
  • The precarious library situations in most tropical countries are such that a great deal of reliance for assistance is placed on the Institute?s facilities.
  • Analyzes, indexes, and catalogs all incoming material as to momentary and/or permanent value, cross-referencing material in order to be able to retrieve as much pertinent information as possible on a given request.
  • Handles all routine duties such as charging out items borrowed from the library and checking on overdue loans, selecting and preparing publications for classifying books according to the Library of Congress classification system.
  • Duties are listed at the full performance level at GS-11.

Requirements

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Conditions of employment

  • Must be a U.S. Citizen or National.
  • Males born after 12-31-59 must be registered for Selective Service or exempt.
  • Subject to satisfactory adjudication of background investigation and/or fingerprint check.
  • Successful completion of one-year probationary period, unless previously served.
  • 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.

Qualifications

In order to qualify, you must meet the eligibility and qualifications requirements as defined below by the closing date of the announcement. For more information on the qualifications for this position, visit the Office of Personnel Management's General Schedule Qualification Standards.

Your application and resume must clearly show that you possess the experience requirements. Transcripts must be provided for qualifications based on education. Provide course descriptions as necessary.

Basic Requirement:

Individual Occupational Requirements

Basic Requirements:
Education: A full 4-year course of study that meets all the requirements for a bachelor's degree with major study in the subject-matter field of the position to be filled.
or

Experience: Four years of experience that provided a knowledge of the basic principles, theories, practices, techniques, and terminology of a discipline or subject-matter field; an understanding of the standard methods, procedures, and techniques of research and analysis in the subject-matter field; and where appropriate, ability to read and comprehend nontechnical material in one or more foreign languages. Such experience must have been equivalent to that which would have been gained through a 4-year college curriculum.
or

A combination of education and experience as described above.

GS-9: 2 full years of progressively higher level graduate education or master's or equivalent graduate degree, e.g., LL.B. or J.D., related to the position1 year equivalent to at least GS-7

GS-11: 3 full years of progressively higher level graduate education or doctoral degree (Ph.D., M.D., or equivalent) related to the position1 year equivalent to at least GS-9

Equivalent combinations of education and experience are qualifying for all grade levels for which both education and experience are acceptable.

Evaluation of Specialized Experience (for positions at GS-7 and above):

Experience must have demonstrated the ability to perform, supervise, or direct one or more of the functional areas of work covered by this series; to understand the concepts, theories, new developments, and co-relationship of information in related fields; and to maintain up-to-date information on the state of the art. For positions where foreign language proficiency is needed, applicants must be able to read and/or translate material in the appropriate specialized subject-matter field.

In addition to meeting the basic requirement, you must also possess experience and/or directly related education in the amounts listed below.

GS-9 Specialized Experience: At least one year of specialized experience equivalent to the GS-7 level in the federal service. To qualify for this position, the experience listed in your resume must include all of the following and be within the last five years:
-Cataloging and classifying materials in a library or archive. Resume must describe related scope of duties and responsibilities.
-Supporting, planning, developing, and/or implementing library automation and/or digitization initiatives.
-Supporting library web initiatives, such as serving as an administrator for a website.

GS-11 Specialized Experience: At least one year of specialized experience equivalent to the GS-9 level in the federal service. To qualify for this position, the experience listed in your resume must include all of the following and be within the last five years:
-Implementing library methods and procedures, including policies and procedures
-Identifies & assesses problem areas with new or unusual circumstances associated with a large library system.
-Refines methods and techniques and proposes regulatory or procedural changes to improve the effectiveness or efficiency of technical information operations.

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

This job does not have an education qualification requirement.

Additional information

The USDA Forest Service has legislative authority to recruit and fill Permanent (Career/Career-Conditional), Temporary, and Term Appointments under the USDA Demonstration Project. Under this authority, any U.S. citizen may apply.

Career Transition Assistance Plan (CTAP), Reemployment Priority List (RPL), or Interagency Career Transition Assistance Plan (ICTAP): To exercise selection priority for this vacancy, CTAP/RPL/ICTAP candidates must meet the basic eligibility requirements and all selective factors. CTAP/ICTAP eligibles must meet the agency's definition for a quality candidate as provided in the How You Will Be Evaluated section of this announcement to be considered.

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 not guaranteed.

This position may be eligible to telework up to four days per week, based upon the duties of the position. This position may also be eligible for flexible work arrangements as determined by agency policy and any applicable collective bargaining agreements.

This is a bargaining unit position and is represented by either NFFE, AFGE, or NAGE.

Forest Service daycare facilities is not available.

Government Housing is not available.

How you will be evaluated

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

You will be evaluated in accordance with the category rating procedure as defined in the USDA Demonstration Project Plan. Applicants who meet the basic minimum qualification requirements established for the position will be placed in the Eligible category. You will be further evaluated against criteria for placement in the Quality category. This evaluation is based on the level of your experience, education, and/or training as determined by your responses to the Assessment Questionnaire. Individuals with veterans' preference are listed ahead of applicants who do not have veterans' preference within each category.

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.

To view the application form, visit: https://apply.usastaffing.gov/ViewQuestionnaire/11844185

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