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Biologist / Physical Scientist (Assistant Administrator)

Department of the Interior
Geological Survey
National Climate Adaptation Science Center
This job announcement has closed

Summary

Salary Information:

The salary range listed is based on the associated General Schedule Locality pay tables as determined by the Locality Pay Area Definitions. See the Additional Information section for more information.

First time hires to the Federal Government are typically hired at the Step 01.

Overview

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Hiring complete
Open & closing dates
12/12/2023 to 12/29/2023
Salary
$116,393 to - $176,842 per year
Pay scale & grade
GS 14
Location
2 vacancies in the following location:
Location Negotiable After Selection,
Remote job
No
Telework eligible
Yes—as determined by the agency policy.
Travel Required
25% or less - You may be expected to travel up to 5 nights per month for this position.
Relocation expenses reimbursed
Yes—Relocation expenses are authorized.
Appointment type
Permanent
Work schedule
Full-time
Service
Competitive
Promotion potential
None
Supervisory status
No
Security clearance
Not Required
Drug test
No
Position sensitivity and risk
Non-sensitive (NS)/Low Risk
Trust determination process
Announcement number
USGS-DEN-24-12135075-DE-CK
Control number
765470500

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Duties

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As a regional Assistant Administrator within the National Climate Adaptation Science Center in the Midwest or Northeast Region, some of your duties will include:

  • Assist with the development, negotiation, and implementation of all aspects of regional strategic operations and investigations.
  • Handle technical and coordination issues; determine levels of effort for program components; and evaluate program results. This involves providing day-to-day program and operational guidance in the development and implementation of annual work plans necessary and leading the production of reports to document regional performance and describing outputs.
  • Convene and participate in cooperative partnerships in the region, working closely with university partners, senior executives from state and other federal agencies, and tribal leadership in guiding and managing a collaborative climate adaptation program.
  • Assist in leading the formulation, revision, and implementation of the regional Strategic Plan and all major strategy documents and other guidance materials. This includes developing recommendations for major changes, efficiencies, streamlining, or improvement of operations and plans; and presenting a comprehensive overview of the regional program.
  • Operate a government vehicle as an incidental driver.

Requirements

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Conditions of employment

Key Requirements:

  1. Applicants must be U.S. Citizens.
  2. Suitable for Federal employment, as determined by background investigation.
  3. Selectee may be subject to serving a one-year probationary period.
  4. More requirements are listed under Qualifications and Other Information.
  5. Selectee must provide a valid state driver's license & safe driving record.
Are There Any Special Requirements for This Position?
  • You will be required to operate a government-owned or leased vehicle in the performance of your official duties. Applicants for this position must meet the following requirements: (1) possess a valid State license, and (2) possess a safe driving record. If selected, you will be required to provide proof of a valid State license & a copy of your driving record.
  • Because this position requires travel for official business, the selectee will be required to apply for a charge card within 30 calendar days of appointment. Individuals who have delinquent account balances from a previous Government charge card will be required to satisfy their existing obligation before a new card can be issued.
  • A background investigation will be required for this position. Continued employment will be subject to the applicant's successful completion of a background security investigation and favorable adjudication. Failure to successfully meet these requirements will be grounds for termination.

Qualifications

UNDERGRADUATE EDUCATION: A year of undergraduate education is 30 semester hours, 45 quarter hours or the equivalent of college study. This education must have been obtained in an accredited college or university for which high school graduation or the equivalent was a prerequisite.

EXPERIENCE: One year of work experience is twelve months working full-time (at least 35-40 hours per week). Part-time experience can be pro-rated (i.e., a year at 20 hours per week is credited as 6 months of experience). If your position consisted of mixed duties, experience credit is given for the percentage of time that you spent on qualifying duties (i.e., if you held a position for 2 years, full-time, consisting of 25% personnel work and 75% budget work, and then applied for a budget position you could calculate your experience as follows: 2 years = 24 months. 24 months x 75% [percentage of time spent on budget duties] = 18 months of qualifying experience.)

GRADUATE EDUCATION: In the absence of specific graduate program information, a year of graduate education is 18 semester hours or 27 quarter hours of graduate level college course work, or the number of credit hours the school attended has determined to represent 1 year of full-time study. This education must have been obtained in an accredited college or university.

This position is interdisciplinary and may be filled in either of the occupational job series listed. You must meet the educational requirements of at least one of these occupational series, in additional to the Minimum Requirement listed below in order to be found qualified and referred for consideration.

BASIC EDUCATION REQUIREMENT:

GS-0401--BASIC REQUIREMENT: Applicants must meet A or B below to satisfy the basic education requirement for Biologist occupational series.

A. Degree in biological sciences, agriculture, natural resource management, chemistry, or related disciplines appropriate to the position; OR

B. Combination of education and experience--courses equivalent to a major, as shown in A above (24 semester hours or the equivalent in biological sciences, agriculture, natural resource management, chemistry, or related disciplines appropriate to the position), plus appropriate experience and/or additional education for a total of 4 years. The education or combined education and experience must be comparable in type, scope and thoroughness to that acquired through successful completion of a 4-year course of study as described in "A" above. (CLICK HERE FOR DETAILS ON HOW TO COMBINE EDUCATION AND EXPERIENCE).

GS-1301--BASIC REQUIREMENT: Applicants must meet A or B below to satisfy the basic education requirement for Physical Scientist occupational series:

A. Successful completion of a full 4-year course of study in an accredited college or university leading to a bachelor's or higher degree in physical science, engineering, or mathematics that included 24 semester hours or the equivalent in physical science and/or related engineering science such as mechanics, dynamics, properties of materials, and electronics; OR

B. A combination of education and experience--education equivalent to one of the majors shown in "A" above (24 semester hours or the equivalent in physical science, engineering, or mathematics) that included at least 24 semester hours or the equivalent in physical science and/or related engineering science as described above, plus appropriate experience and/or additional education for a total of 4 years. The education or combined education and experience must be comparable in type, scope and thoroughness to that acquired through successful completion of a 4-year course of study as described in "A" above. (CLICK HERE FOR DETAILS ON HOW TO COMBINE EDUCATION AND EXPERIENCE).

MINIMUM REQUIREMENTS:

GS-14: In addition to meeting on of the Basic Education Requirements stated above, applicants must possess at least one year of specialized experience, at or equal to the next lower grade level, that has equipped them with the knowledge, skills, and abilities to successfully perform the duties of this position. At this level, the work provided wide latitude for the exercise of independent judgment to perform scientific work of marked difficulty and responsibility. These scientists typically represent an authoritative source of consultation for other scientists and program specialists; are called upon to resolve issues that significantly affect physical science programs; make long range and controversial proposals; and defend their findings and recommendations in public or high-level forums.

Examples of GS-13 level experience may include performing biological and/or physical science work such as: 1) serving as a senior expert involved in scientific work for which technical problem definitions, methods and/or data were highly incomplete, controversial, or uncertain and whose evaluations and recommendations were accepted by others as those of a technical expert. 2) planning and leading scientific projects of substantial depth and/or breadth; 3) analyzing and interpreting scientific project data with novel and obscure problems and publishing or preparing results of findings; 4) developing new or significantly modified scientific techniques, methods, or criteria; and 5) providing advisory, planning, or reviewing services as a technical specialist on a scientific issue.

You must meet all qualification and eligibility requirements for the position by the closing date of the announcement.

Education

  • 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.
  • Foreign Education: Education completed in colleges or universities outside the United States may be used to meet the above requirements. You must provide acceptable documentation that the foreign education is comparable to that received in an accredited educational institution in the United States. For more information on how foreign education is evaluated, visit: https://www.usgs.gov/about/organization/science-support/human-capital/how-foreign-education-evaluated-federal-jobs.

Additional information

Other Information:

  • Applicants who include vulgar, offensive, or inappropriate language or information in their application package will be ineligible for further consideration for this position.
  • Number of Vacancies: There are two vacancies to be filled; however, this announcement may be used to fill additional vacancies if they become available.
  • Duty Location: It is anticipated that one position will be filled in the Midwest region and one position will be filled in the Northeast region. The duty stations will be in federal government office space or a CASC consortium member's space. The duty locations will be determined upon hire.
  • Under Executive Order 11935, only United States citizens and nationals (residents of American Samoa and Swains Island) may compete for civil service jobs. Agencies are permitted to hire non-citizens only in very limited circumstances where there are no qualified citizens available for the position.
  • USGS employees are subject to Title 43, USC Section 31(a) and may not: (a) have any personal, private, direct or indirect interest in lands or mineral wealth of lands under survey; (b) have any substantial personal, private, direct or indirect interests in any private mining or mineral enterprise doing business with the United States; or (c) execute surveys or examinations for private parties or corporations.
  • Throughout the recruitment and hiring process we will be communicating with you via email; therefore, it is imperative that the email address you provide when applying for this vacancy remains active. Should your email address change, please notify the point of contact identified in the vacancy announcement as soon as possible so that we can update our system.
  • The application contains information subject to the Privacy Act (P.L. 93-579, 5 USC 552a). The information is used to determine qualifications for employment, and is authorized under Title 5, USC, Section 3302 and 3361.
  • DOI uses E-Verify to confirm the employment eligibility of all newly hired employees. To learn more about E-Verify, including your rights and responsibilities, please visit www.dhs.gov/E-Verify.
Agency Benefits:

How you will be evaluated

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

Vacancy Related Questions: As part of the online application process, you will need to respond to a series of questions designed to assess your possession of the following competencies:

  • Leadership
  • Partnerships
  • Program Operations
  • Research
  • Scientific Knowledge
Basis of Rating:

Category rating will be used in the ranking and selection process for this position. The quality categories are Best Qualified, Well Qualified, and Qualified. You will be rated on the extent and quality of your experience, education, and training relevant to the duties of the position. If you are eligible, your on-line responses to the application questions will determine your placement in the appropriate quality category described above. Your responses must be substantiated by your resume. If you do not respond to the application questions you may be rated ineligible. Veterans' preference rules for category rating will be applied.

Additional Assessment Required: If you meet the eligibility and basic qualification requirements for this position a subject-matter-expert will perform a structured review of your resume to evaluate your knowledge, skills, abilities, and competences as they directly relate to the duties of this position.

Formal Presentation: A presentation may be required as part of the interview process.

NOTE: If it is determined that you have rated yourself higher than is supported in your description of experience and/or education as described in your resume/application, or that your resume or application is incomplete, you may be rated ineligible, not qualified, or your score may be lowered.

To preview the announcement questionnaire, click here: https://apply.usastaffing.gov/ViewQuestionnaire/12135075

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