Skip to main content
U.S. flag
Back to results

Visual Information Specialist

Department of the Interior
National Park Service
Inflation Reduction Act
This job announcement has closed

Summary

This position serves as a visual information specialist who supports visitor services through the design of park exhibits, waysides, publications, and a variety of online offerings. This position is located in Big Bend National Park, within the Division of Interpretation & Visitor Services.

The position is a RE Advertisement announcement with previous Job Opportunity Announcement Number: IRA-NPS-23-11989285-IMP.

Overview

Help
Hiring complete
Open & closing dates
09/15/2023 to 09/28/2023
This job will close when we have received 50 applications which may be sooner than the closing date. Learn more
Salary
$57,118 to - $74,250 per year
Pay scale & grade
GS 9
Location
1 vacancy in the following location:
Big Bend National Park, TX
Remote job
No
Telework eligible
Yes—Situational as determined by the agency policy.
Travel Required
Occasional travel - You may be expected to travel for this position.
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
None
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
IRA-NPS-23-12120285-MP
Control number
749021800

This job is open to

Help

Clarification from the agency

All current or former career/career-conditional federal employees with competitive/reinstatement eligibility; Eligible applicants under: Veterans' Employment Opportunity Act (VEOA); CTAP/ICTAP within the local commuting area; Special Hiring Authorities; Current or former time-limited employees under PL-114-47, Land Management Workforce Flexibility Act (LMWFA); Public Land Corps (PLC) members.

Videos

Duties

Help

The major duties of this position include the following:

  • Works directly with park staff, resource experts, and partners to identify and develop interpretive media that conveys important interpretive themes and visitor safety and orientation information.
  • Develops and maintains the park's interpretive media portfolio, including website, the NPS App, videos, waysides, exhibits, signs and publications.
  • Selects visual materials (photographs, illustrations, maps, charts, diagrams, video, etc.) to support text and enhance aesthetic appeal of publications and presentations (ideas and concepts).
  • Using digital images, video, and graphics created electronically, is responsible for the day-to-day maintenance of the media project components of the park website.
  • Serves as a leader in championing new ways of communicating with visitors through interpretive media.
Big Bend National Park

Area Information


Big Bend National Park is a spectacular and very remote national park, situated on the US-Mexico border. Encompassing 800,000 acres, Big Bend along with Rio Grande Wild & Scenic River protects the finest and most extensive expanse of Chihuahuan desert and mountain topography in the United States. This is a land of dramatic contrasts - of lofty, wooded peaks and river-swept floodplains - dominated by great expanses of Chihuahuan Desert, containing spectacular geologic features and other impressive landforms. Average visitation is 500,000 and growing! Big Bend NP is beloved as one of the few large public lands in Texas. Major activities include camping, backpacking, hiking, birdwatching, river trips, enjoying the spring cactus bloom, exploring backcountry roads, and simply getting away from it all. Open year-round, Big Bend is primarily a winter park. The main visitor season runs from November through April. The climate is generally dry and pleasant with beautiful mild winters (40-70 degrees F.) and hot summers (90-110+ degrees F.). Visitor facilities include five visitor centers, post office, two gas stations, three camper stores, three NPS campgrounds, concession-operated lodge, restaurant and RV park.). A port of entry provides pedestrian access to the small village of Boquillas, Mexico. Although remote, Big Bend has an active residential community. The Park community consists of ~250 people, including employees of the NPS, Concession, Cooperating Association, U.S. Border Patrol, Postal Service, San Vicente School personnel, and their families living in four housing areas: Panther Junction, Chisos Basin, Castolon, and Rio Grande Village. The park's employee association, Casa Grande, provides a variety of social events, potlucks, and community get togethers throughout the year.
A state-accredited elementary school (K-8) is located at Panther Junction. Day care may be available. Cellular phone service is spotty throughout the park area. Satellite radio and television, as well as DSL internet service, are available for purchase. Terlingua (30 miles away) has a state-accredited High School (no bus service), lodging, restaurants, hardware store, small grocery, churches, and a bank. Alpine, Texas (100 miles away) has most necessities, including supermarkets, a variety of stores, hospital, pharmacies, churches, movie theater, and university. The nearest larger cities are Midland/Odessa (225 miles away) and El Paso (325 miles away).

For additional information about living/working in Big Bend, please visit: https://go.nps.gov/bigbendareainfo

To learn more about the wonders of Big Bend National Park, please visit: www.nps.gov/bibe.

Requirements

Help

Conditions of employment

  • U.S. Citizenship required.
  • Appointment subject to background investigation and favorable adjudication.
  • Meet Selective Service Registration Act requirement for males.
  • Complete the initial online assessment.
  • Selectee will be required to participate in the Direct Deposit Electronics Funds Transfer Program.
  • Any individual who is currently holding, or has held within the previous 52 weeks, a General Schedule position under non-temporary appointment in the competitive or excepted service, must meet time-in-grade requirements (must have served 52 weeks at the next lower grade or equivalent in the Federal service). Time-in-grade requirements must be met by the closing date of this announcement. Time-In-Grade requirements also apply to former Federal civilian employees applying for reinstatement as well as current employees applying for Veterans Employment Opportunities Act of 1998 (VEOA) appointment.
  • You will be required to operate a government (or private) motor vehicle as part of your official duties; a valid driver's license is required. You will be required to submit a Motor Vehicle Operator's License and Driving Record. If selected, you must also submit (within a State sealed envelope or submitted directly by the State authorities), and at your own expense, all certified driving records from all States that disclose all valid driver's licenses, whether current or past, possessed by you.
  • You will be required to wear a uniform and comply with the National Park Service uniform standards. A uniform allowance will be provided.
  • You may be required to work on-call, evenings, weekends, holidays, overtime and shift work.
  • If you are a new employee or supervisor in the Federal government, you will be required to complete a one-year probationary period.
  • You may be required to travel overnight occasionally. You must obtain a government charge card for travel purposes.
  • You may be required to complete training and obtain/maintain a government charge card with travel and/or purchase authority.

Qualifications

All qualifications must be met by the closing date of this announcement-09/28/2023-unless otherwise stated in this vacancy announcement.

Credit will be given for all appropriate qualifying experience. For current Federal employees, if hours worked per week are not included on your resume, you must submit a non-award SF-50 as part of your application to be used to validate your work schedule and determine the amount of specialized experience that you will be granted. An award SF-50 will not be acceptable documentation for which to consider your amount of qualifying experience. For all other applicants who are not current federal employees, your resume must state either "full-time" (or "40 hours a week") or "part-time" with the number of hours worked per week to ensure proper crediting of specialized experience. For periods of time that reflect military service, the DD-214 or Statement of Service is sufficient to meet the full and/or part-time hours requirement as the service dates will be reflected.

Candidates who do not meet this requirement by close of this announcement will receive no further consideration for this position.

- AND-

To qualify for this position at the GS-09 grade level, you must possess at least one of the following minimum qualifications by close of the announcement:

EXPERIENCE: At least one full year of specialized experience comparable in scope and responsibility to the GS-07 grade level in the Federal service (obtained in either the public or private sectors). To qualify, applicants must demonstrate experience using at least two of the following specialized skills (In your resume, clearly indicate the amount of time spent using these skills (i.e.; if a collateral duty, indicate the percentage of time over the course of the year that you spend doing publications, social media, producing web content, etc.):

  1. Producing digital media such as web pages, app content, videos, or social media posts.
  2. Laying out publications (with industry standard design software) such as site bulletins, newspapers, booklets, pamphlets, posters or interpretive exhibits; AND
  3. Developing original graphics, charts, designs, or logos.
-OR-

EDUCATION: Master's or equivalent graduate degree or two full years of progressively higher-level graduate education leading to such a degree or LL.B. or J.D., if related. Master's degree must be in major studies - commercial art, fine arts, art history, industrial design, architecture, drafting, interior design, photography, visual communication, or other fields related to the position. Some positions may also require subject-matter knowledge of medicine, science, or technical equipment. You must include transcripts.

-OR-

Successful completion of a combination of education and experience as described above. 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 an applicant for that grade level. You must include transcripts.

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.

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.

Additional information

A selectee receiving a first appointment to the Federal Government (Civil Service) is entitled only to the lowest step of the grade for which selected. The display of a salary range on this vacancy shall not be construed as granting an entitlement to a higher rate of pay.

This announcement may be used to fill additional positions if identical vacancies occur within 90 days of the issue date of the referral certificate.

Physical Demands: The work is normally sedentary and requires long period of stationary work at a computer workstation. Work also requires moderate physical exertion fabrication exhibits and signs, working from ladders, and lifting and working with maintenance staff installing signs and exhibits. Field visits are necessary for on-site inspection of phases of the production of a visual product. The incumbent occasionally must lift moderately heavy objects and operates hand tools and power tools such as hammers, screwdrivers, levels, rivet guns, saws, drills, etc.

Working Conditions: Work is normally performed in a typical office setting, however, when work is performed outside the office, it may be in the field environments or at dirty, dusty, cold, hot, wet or some otherwise uncomfortable locations indoors and outdoors, where the exhibit or display is located. Work involves moderate risks or discomforts such as working with power tools.

The National Park Service has determined that the duties of this position are suitable for telework and the selectee may be allowed to telework with supervisor approval.

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

Candidates who apply under Competitive Merit Promotion procedures will undergo a quality review to determine if they are highly qualified based on the content of their resume and their responses to the questionnaire. Best qualified candidates will be referred if all required supporting documentation has been provided.

Candidates who apply under Noncompetitive Merit Promotion procedures will undergo a quality review to determine if they are minimally qualified based on the content of their resume and their responses to the questionnaire. Qualified candidates will be referred if all required supporting documentation has been provided.

Your qualifications will be evaluated based on your responses to the online assessments completed during the application process. You will be assessed on the following competencies (knowledge, skills, abilities and other characteristics):

  • Applies Technology to Tasks
  • Communications and Media
  • Multimedia Technologies
  • Planning and Evaluating
  • Writing


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 a panel resume review. These assessments measure the critical competencies listed above that are required to successfully perform the job.

Please submit 1) a copy of your most recent performance appraisal/evaluation and 2) a list of any awards (e.g., superior performance awards, special act or achievement awards, quality step increase, etc.) you received in the last 5 years. Any performance appraisal/evaluation and award documentation you provide will be forwarded to the selecting official. The selecting official will review this documentation and give it due weight consideration during the overall selection process. If you do not have your most recent performance appraisal/evaluation, please submit a statement as to why it is not available. Please indicate if any prior performance appraisals/evaluations were at an acceptable level.

Documentation for Public Land Corps (PLC) Hiring Authority: The Certificate of Eligibility MUST be certified by the PLC member's last supervisor or an NPS Youth Program Office coordinator. In order to be eligible for PLC non-competitive status, you must provide documentation, as part of your application, verifying your eligibility and meet the following criteria: (a) Served as a qualified youth on an appropriate conservation project completing a minimum of 640 hours of satisfactory service that included at least 120 hours through the PLC; (b) Meet the minimum qualification standards stated in the vacancy announcement for the position; and (c) Completed your most recent Corps service, which included a total of 640 hours, inclusive of 120 hours on a PLC project as defined in 16 USC 1723(d), within the last two (2) years.

Your session is about to expire!

Your USAJOBS session will expire due to inactivity in 8 minutes. Any unsaved data will be lost if you allow the session to expire. Click the button below to continue your session.