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Geophysicist (Earthquake Early Warning Operations Manager)

Department of the Interior
Geological Survey
Earthquake Science Center
This job announcement has closed

Summary

What General Information Do I Need To Know About This Position?

Salary Information:
Moffett Field, CA: $128,717 (Step 01) to $167,336 (Step 10);
Pasadena, CA: $120,246 (Step 01) to $156,323 (Step 10);
Seattle, WA: $115,793 (Step 01) to $150,535 (Step 10);
NOTE: First time hires to the Federal Government are typically hired at the Step 01.

There is one position to fill. The position may be located in any of the duty stations listed above.

Overview

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Hiring complete
Open & closing dates
05/13/2024 to 06/05/2024
Salary
$120,246 to - $167,336 per year
Pay scale & grade
GS 13
Locations
1 vacancy in the following locations:
Moffett Field, CA
Pasadena, CA
Seattle, WA
Remote job
No
Telework eligible
Yes—as determined by the agency policy.
Travel Required
Occasional travel - Overnight travel of up to 4 nights per month may be required.
Relocation expenses reimbursed
No
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
USGS-SAC-24-12398327-DE-ML
Control number
790823600

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Duties

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As the Operations Manager for the ShakeAlert® Earthquake Early Warning (EEW) System within the Earthquake Science Center, some of your specific duties will include:

  • Leads and oversees the scientific aspects of operation and performance of the ShakeAlert® EEW production system.
  • Directs both internal and external staff and coordinates a wide range of cooperative work among geographically distributed technical and scientific partners, end users and other external stakeholders.
  • Analyzes seismic, geodetic, and other geophysical data, system logs, and test results to assess system performance in light of system design goals. This includes proposing improvements and evaluating changes.
  • Oversees the geophysical data acquisition, quality analysis, processing, and product publication activities for complex, multi-state collection of monitoring networks with over 1,675 stations of continuous seismic, geodetic, or other geophysical data.
  • Provides scientific input to establish and apply performance standards and metrics for the ShakeAlert® system as a whole, and for its individual sub-components. This includes participating in the design, documentation, and development of the system.

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.
Are There Any Special Requirements For This Position?
  • 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.
  • 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.

Qualifications

BASIC EDUCATION REQUIREMENT: Applicants must meet A or B below to satisfy the basic education requirement for Physical Scientist, all grade levels.

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)

FOR GS-13: In addition to the Basic Education Requirement as described above, applicants must meet the following to qualify for the GS-13 level:

One year of appropriate professional experience that is in or directly related to the duties of the position to be filled is qualifying if it is equivalent to at least the GS-12 level in the Federal service, and if it equipped the applicant with the knowledge, skills and abilities to perform successfully the duties of the position. At this level, scientists have extensive knowledge of the principles of geophysics, exhibit a highly developed ability in their application, and have wide latitude for the exercise of independent judgment to perform scientific work of marked difficulty and responsibility. The complexity of this work typically required extensive modification and adaptation of standard procedures, methods, and techniques, and the development of totally new methods and techniques to address novel or obscure problems for which guidelines or precedents were not substantially applicable.

Examples of such experience may include: 1) Leading and overseeing the scientific aspects of operation and performance of a geographically distributed, mission critical, real-time system which analyses geophysical data.; 2) Analyzing geophysical data, system logs, and test results to assess system performance in light of system design goals.; 3) Overseeing data acquisition, quality analysis, processing, and product publication activities for complex geophysical monitoring networks.; 4) Establishing and maintaining collaborative relationships with earth scientists and IT professionals to coordinate and advance the operation, performance monitoring, and development of real-time geophysical monitoring systems.; 5) Applying the principles of geophysics to the development and operation of an earthquake early warning system.

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

Education

  • 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 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.
  • 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.
  • A hiring incentive may be authorized for this 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.
  • 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.
  • The Department of the Interior (DOI) places a high value on diversity of experience and cultural perspectives and encourages applications from all interested eligible candidates. Diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility (DEIA) are fundamental principles that guide the Department and allow us to successfully achieve our mission.
  • THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT IS AN EQUAL OPPORTUNITY EMPLOYER.
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 knowledge skills, abilities and/or competencies:

  • Scientific Knowledge
  • Compute/Analyze Data
  • Technology Application
--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. For this reason, you must ensure that your resume includes sufficient details regarding your experience as it relates to the qualifications for this position. We will not be making assumptions regarding your experience.

--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/12398327

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