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Park Guide

Department of the Interior
National Park Service
Appomattox Court House National Historic Park or Booker T. Washington National Monument
This job announcement has closed

Summary

These positions are located in Appomattox Court House National Historic Park or Booker T. Washington National Monument. The primary purpose of these positions are to provide guide services to visitors. The work involves giving talks, interpreting natural and historic features, answering questions, guiding tours, and providing miscellaneous services to visitors.

Overview

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Hiring complete
Open & closing dates
11/07/2024 to 11/09/2024
This job will close when we have received 75 applications which may be sooner than the closing date. Learn more
Salary
$39,576 to - $51,446 per year
Pay scale & grade
GS 5
Locations
2 vacancies in the following locations:
Appomattox, VA
Hardy, VA
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. You may be required to travel overnight away from home up to 3 nights per month. You may be required to complete training and obtain/maintain a government charge card with travel and/or purchase authority.
Relocation expenses reimbursed
No
Appointment type
Permanent
Work schedule
Full-time - You may be required to work weekends and holidays.
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
Financial disclosure
No
Bargaining unit status
Yes
Announcement number
NE-1612-BOWAPCO-12589275-DE
Control number
817224300

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Duties

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MAJOR DUTIES MAY INCLUDE BUT ARE NOT LIMITED TO THE FOLLOWING:

  • Provides pre-established talks normally following a prescribed outline and requiring application of broad subject-matter knowledge of the features of interest peculiar to the site.
  • Guides very large groups (of up to 50 people) in situations where:
    • the physical limitations of the area or facility being explained make it difficult to accommodate the party on trips of two or more hours duration;
    • the work situation is such that there is potential danger of serious accidents or injury or other emergency situations;
    • the trips are of several hours duration, and teams of guides are utilized.
  • Provides a wide range of services to visitors, including assistance with lost articles, car trouble, and first aid; and provides information about weather conditions, highway routes, park and concessioner facilities, and prices.
APPLICANT LIMIT; CLARIFICATION FROM AGENCY
  • Open to the first 75 applicants or until the close date whichever comes first. All applications submitted by 11:59 (EST) on the closing day will receive consideration.

Physical Demands: The work requires standing for long periods of time, walking for long distances, climbing and descending steep inclines, bending, and lifting moderately heavy items. Mental stress and physical fatigue occur due to high volume of personal contacts, occasional emergency responses, and repetitive nature of interpretive programs.

Working Conditions: Work is performed both indoors and outdoors resulting in exposure to a variety of weather conditions.

Requirements

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Conditions of employment

  • U.S. Citizenship required.
  • Appointment subject to background investigation and favorable adjudication.
  • Meet Selective Service Registration Act requirement for males
  • Direct Deposit: Selectee will be required to participate in the Direct Deposit Electronics Funds Transfer Program.
  • Incidental Driving: You may be required to operate a government (or private) motor vehicle as part of your official duties. Prior to your first official motor vehicle operation, and again every year thereafter (or more frequently if management determines such need exists), you will be required to sign an affidavit certifying to your possession of a valid State issued driver's license that is current and has not been revoked, suspended, canceled, or otherwise disqualified in any way to prohibit your operation of a motor vehicle. You will also submit a photocopy of your valid State issued driver's license prior to your first official motor vehicle operation, and again every year, or more frequently if management determines such need exists. Lastly, you may be required to 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 discloses all valid driver's licenses, whether current or past, possessed by you. Please indicate in your application whether you possess a valid State driver's license.
  • Driver's License: 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. 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.
  • Vehicle Operation: You may be required to complete training and operate a four-wheel drive vehicle.
  • Uniform: You will be required to wear a uniform and comply with the National Park Service uniform standards. A uniform allowance will be provided.
  • Probationary Period: If you are a new employee or supervisor in the Federal government, you will be required to complete a one-year probationary period.

Qualifications

All qualifications must be met by the closing date of this announcement-11/21/2024-unless otherwise stated in this vacancy announcement.

Credit will be given for all appropriate qualifying experience. To receive credit for experience, your resume MUST clearly indicate the nature of the duties and responsibilities for each position, starting and ending dates of employment (month/year), and the resume must reflect full and/or part-time or total number of hours worked (i.e., work 40+ hours a week, rather than indicating full-time). If part-time, the hours must be annotated to be able to pro-rate the amount of qualified specialized experience.

To qualify for this position at the GS-05 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-04 grade level in the Federal service (obtained in either the public or private sectors). This experience includes activities that involved oral presentation of historical, scientific, or program information to groups; or developing and/or revising technical, historical, or scientific information for oral presentation to groups. Examples of specialized experience include, but are not limited to, Park Guide or tour leader; naturalist; environmental educator or teacher; or other similar work. You must include hours per week worked.
-OR-
EDUCATION: Successful completion of at least have four years of education above high school (120 semester hour or 180 quarter hours) leading to a bachelor's degree with courses related to the occupation, such as American history, science, and/or public speaking. You must include transcripts.
-OR-
Successful completion of a combination of education and experience as described above. To combine education and experience only education in excess of the first 60 semester hours of a course of study leading to a bachelor's degree is creditable toward meeting the specialized experience requirements. Two full academic years of study, or 60 semester hours, beyond the second year is equivalent to 1 year of specialized experience. For example, you have 6 months of the specialized experience described above (50% of the experience requirement), and 3 years of college study from an accredited institution (50% of the qualifying education) which included at least 12 semester hours of related coursework as specified above (50% of the related coursework required). 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.

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

Telework - 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.

You will be evaluated based on how well you meet the qualifications listed in this vacancy announcement. Your qualifications will be evaluated based on your application materials (e.g., resume, supporting documents), the responses you provide on the application questionnaire, and the result of the additional assessments required for this position. 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 will be rated and ranked using Category Rating procedures. These procedures place candidates with veteran's preference above non-preference eligibles within each category. Veterans with a service connected disability of at least 10 percent are listed in the highest quality category, except when the position being filled is scientific or professional at the GS-09 grade level or higher. Under Category Rating, candidates will be rated and ranked into one of three categories:

  • Best Qualified - applicants possessing experience that substantially exceeds the minimum qualifications of the position including all selective factors and are highly proficient in all requirements of the job and can perform effectively in the position
  • Well Qualified - applicants possessing experience that exceeds the minimum qualifications of the position including all selective factors and are proficient in most of the requirements of the job
  • Qualified - applicants possessing experience that meets the minimum qualifications of the position including all selective factors and are proficient in some, but not all of the requirements of the job.
You will be evaluated on the following competencies:
  • Customer Service (Clerical/Technical)
  • Interpersonal Skills
  • Oral Communication
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 successful completion of additional assessments, including a questionnaire that measures applicant's technical expertise (QTMATE). These assessments measure the critical competencies listed above that are required to successfully perform the job.

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