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Engineering Technician (Civil)

Department of Agriculture
Forest Service
This job announcement has closed

Summary

Multiple positions being filled throughout the Northern Region, Region 1.

This position serves as a Civil Engineering Technician on a Forest Service unit responsible for performing a variety of engineering projects.

For individual duty location contact information, please see the Education section below.

Overview

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Hiring complete
Open & closing dates
08/31/2023 to 09/22/2023
This job will close when we have received 200 applications which may be sooner than the closing date. Learn more
Salary
$62,898 to - $89,835 per year
Pay scale & grade
GS 10 - 11
Locations
28 vacancies in the following locations:
Avery, ID
Bonners Ferry, ID
Coeur d'Alene, ID
Grangeville, ID
Remote job
No
Telework eligible
Yes—as determined by the agency policy.
Travel Required
Occasional travel - You may be expected to travel for site work, meetings, and training.
Relocation expenses reimbursed
Yes—You may qualify for reimbursement of relocation expenses in accordance with agency policy.
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
Non-sensitive (NS)/Low Risk
Trust determination process
Announcement number
23-R1GV-12108943-G-DC
Control number
746583900

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Duties

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  • Duties listed below are at the full performance level.
  • Performs technical engineering work on bridges, pavements, drainage structures.
  • Performs or leads survey and investigations at project sites.
  • Assists senior engineers with data or suggestions in developing alternative designs that seek to solve problems encountered during data collection.
  • Prepares complex or unconventional designs and specifications for various engineering projects or systems.
  • Responsible for the development of a forest-wide road sign plan to implement individual road management objectives, forest plan, and/or travel management decisions.

Requirements

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Conditions of employment

  • Must be a U.S. Citizen or 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.
  • 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.gov

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.

For the GS-10: Applicants must have one (1) year of specialized experience equivalent to the GS-09 grade level in the Federal service. Examples of specialized experience include meeting one or more of the following:

  • Assessed and documented road maintenance and repair needs including culverts, ditches, surface and subgrade and other road infrastructure for maintenance and repair to provide data for civil engineering project designs;
  • Conducted detailed site surveys, informed contractor and/or resource of requirements concerning construction scheduling, progress reporting, safety measures, wage and labor relations, and/or payroll records;
  • Assisted in the preparation of plan and construction documents;
  • Provided recommendations for solutions to routine construction project problems that could be resolved by calculations typical to civil engineering projects;
  • Engaged in factual, technical information exchanges with coworkers who were performing related work;
  • Prepared engineering data reports and recommends priorities, which were used in the formulation of cost estimates and bills of materials; and/or
  • Used engineering drafting and computation software;
OR
Successful completion of a Ph.D. or equivalent doctoral degree or 3 full years of progressively higher-level graduate education leading to such a degree or LL.M.,(coursework must be directly related to the position being filled such as civil engineering or transportation engineering).

OR
A combination of specialized experience and graduate level education (beyond what is required for a master's degree, i.e., more than 36 semester/54 quarter hours leading to a Ph.D.). The education must have been obtained in an accredited college or university and demonstrate the knowledge, skills, and abilities necessary to do the work.

For the GS-11: Applicants must have one (1) yearof specialized experience equivalent to at least the GS-10. Examples of specialized experience include one or more of the following:
  • Coordinated with other resource area personnel to assess road maintenance requirements and needs;
  • Provided technical engineering expertise to manage road and bridge system which included transportation operations and deferred maintenance improvements;
  • Prepared conventional designs and specifications for various engineering projects or systems;
  • Administered construction and maintenance contracts to ensure compliance with the terms and conditions of the contract, and for resolving controversial issues/problems before and during construction;
  • Prepared complete detailed designs, drawings, and specifications for projects such as roads, trails, bridges, or other miscellaneous facilities and structures; and/or
  • Conducted safety inspections and condition surveys of structures and facilities such as buildings, water and wastewater systems, recreation site facilities, utilities, and transportations systems according to agency requirements;
OR
Successful completion of a Ph.D. or equivalent doctoral degree or 3 full years of progressively higher-level graduate education leading to such a degree or LL.M.,(coursework must be directly related to the position being filled such as civil engineering or transportation engineering).

OR
A combination of specialized experience and graduate level education (beyond what is required for a master's degree, i.e., more than 36 semester/54 quarter hours leading to a Ph.D.). The education must have been obtained in an accredited college or university and demonstrate the knowledge, skills, and abilities necessary to do the work.

Work Experience: Your resume must clearly document the following for each block of work experience; the beginning day, month and year the work assignment started and ended; the hours worked per week; position title, and series and grade if applicable; and description of duties performed. This information must be provided for each permanent, temporary or seasonal appointment/work assignment or volunteer work and should be clearly documented as a separate block of time. Incomplete, inaccurate or conflicting work history may not be credited for qualifications purposes. This can result in an applicant not being considered for the position.

TIME IN GRADE REQUIREMENT: If you are a current federal employee in the General Schedule (GS) pay plan and applying for a promotion opportunity, you must meet time-in-grade (TIG) requirements of 52 weeks of service at the next lower grade level in the normal line of progression for the position being filled. This requirement must be met by the closing date of this announcement.

Education

See above for education that may be qualifying for the specific grade level.

Contact Information:

-Flathead National Forest, Supervisors Office, Duty Location: Kalispell, MT. Supervisor: Jennifer Brady, jennifer.brady@usda.gov

-Flathead National Forest, Supervisors Office (2 positions), Duty Location: Kalispell, MT. Supervisor: Christopher Steen, christopher.steen@usda.gov

-Idaho Panhandle National Forest, Duty Location: Coeur d'Alene, ID or Sandpoint, ID. Supervisor: Rick Driggs, rick.driggs@usda.gov

-Idaho Panhandle National Forest, Coeur d'Alene River Ranger District, Duty Location: Coeur d'Alene, ID. Supervisor: Josh Nelson, joshua.nelson@usda.gov

-Idaho Panhandle National Forest, Supervisors Office, Duty Location (9 positions): Coeur d'Alene, ID; Bonners Ferry, ID; Priest River, ID; Sandpoint, ID; Avery, ID; or St. Maries, ID. Supervisor: Sean Cristen, sean.cristen@usda.gov

-Kootenai National Forest (9 positions), Duty Location: Libby, MT; Troy, MT; Trout Creek, MT; and Eureka, MT. Supervisor: Kenneth Wickward, kenneth.wickward@usda.gov

-Nez Perce-Clearwater National Forest, Duty Location: Grangeville, ID or Kooskia, ID or Orofino, ID or White Bird, ID. Supervisor: Susan Graves, susan.graves@usda.gov

-Dakota Prairie Grasslands, Duty Location (2 positions): Watford City, ND; Bismarck, ND or Dickinson, ND. Supervisor: Curtis Grudniewski, curtis.grudniewski@usda.gov

-Beaverhead-Deerlodge National Forest, Supervisors Office (4 positions), Duty Location: Butte, MT; Dillon, MT; Philipsburg, MT; Ennis, MT; Wisdom, MT; or Wise River, MT. Supervisor: Matthew McCabe, matthew.mccabe@usda.gov

-Lolo National Forest, Duty Location: Missoula, MT. Supervisor: Catina Mclean, catina.mclean@usda.gov

Additional information

LOCATION NEGOTIABLE OPTION:This announcement may be used to fill future positions within Region 1. By selecting the option "Location Negotiable" your application package will be reviewed for eligibility and possible submission on a certificate for consideration if additional positions need to be filled at a later date. Please select all duty locations for which you wish to considered

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 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.

Veterans who are preference eligible or who have been separated from the armed forces under honorable conditions after three years or more of continuous active service are eligible for consideration under the Veteran's Employment Opportunity Act (VEOA).

Land Management Workforce Flexibility Act (LMWFA) provides current or former temporary or term employees of federal land management agencies opportunity to compete for permanent competitive service positions. Individuals must have more than 24 months of service without a break between appointments of two or more years. Service must be in the competitive service and have been at a successful level of performance or better. Part-time and intermittent service will be credited only for time actually worked. Non-pay status such as leave without pay is credited for up to six months in a calendar year; anything beyond six months is not credited. Applicants are responsible for providing sufficient information/documentation to determine if the 24 month criteria is met.

Farm Service Agency (FSA) County Employees: Permanent County employees without prior Federal tenure who are selected for a Civil Service position under Public Law 105-277 will be given a career-conditional appointment and must serve a 1-year probationary period.

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 or 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.

The Forest Service may use certain incentives and hiring flexibilities, currently offered by the Federal government, to attract highly qualified candidates. Additional information is available at https://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/pay-leave/pay-and-leave-flexibilities-for-recruitment-and-retention/


Positions filled from this announcement may be a bargaining or a non-bargaining unit position represented by either NFFE, AFGE or NAGE.

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 based on your qualifications for this position as evidenced by the experience, education, and training you described in your application package, as well as the responses to the Assessment Questionnaire to determine the degree to which you possess the competencies listed below:

  • Building and Construction
  • Civil Engineering
  • Contracting/Procurement
  • Oral Communication
  • Quality Management


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.

If you meet the qualification requirements and are determined to be among the best qualified, you will be referred to the hiring manager for consideration. Noncompetitive candidates and applicants under some special hiring authorities must meet minimum qualifications to be referred.

Note: If, after reviewing your resume and/or supporting documentation, a determination is made that you inflated your qualifications and or experience, your rating may be lowered to more accurately reflect the submitted documentation. 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.

To view the application form, visit: https://apply.usastaffing.gov/ViewQuestionnaire/12108943

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