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***THIS IS NOT A VIRTUAL POSITION, YOU MUST LIVE WITHIN OR BE WILLING TO RELOCATE WITHIN A COMMUTABLE DISTANCE OF THE DUTY LOCATION***

Duties include, but are not limited to, the following:

• Serves as the lead floor manager of the animal facility assisting the VMU Supervisor in daily operations of animal husbandry processes;
• Organizes and implements a post approval compliance program for IACUC approved protocols;
• Monitors a wide range of complex and innovative protocols (surgical procedures, postoperative care, tumor maintenance, agent delivery by gavage or injection, behavioral training, etc.);
• Coordinates and monitors the administration of multiple biomedical research projects;
• Develops a systematic quality assurance and improvement program;
• Coordinates and monitors daily health checks, administers medications, treatments, post-surgical care, and oversees experiments by staff;
• Distributes and balances the workload among employees in accordance with established workflow;
• Monitors and reviews highly complex examinations and tests on a variety of laboratory animals such as dogs, rats, mice, pigs, and other species;
• Performs other duties as assigned

Work Schedule: Monday-Friday; 4:00am-12:30pm
Recruitment & Relocation Incentives: Not authorized
Critical Skills Incentive (CSI): Not approved

Conditions of employment

• You must be a U.S. Citizen to apply for this job
• Selective Service Registration is required for males born after 12/31/1959
• Subject to background/security investigation
• Selected applicants will be required to complete an online onboarding process. Acceptable form(s) of identification will be required to complete pre-employment requirements (https://www.uscis.gov/i-9-central/form-i-9-acceptable-documents). Effective May 7, 2025, driver's licenses or state-issued dentification cards that are not REAL ID compliant cannot be utilized as an acceptable form of identification for employment.
• Participation in the seasonal influenza vaccination program is a requirement for all Department of Veterans Affairs Health Care Personnel (HCP)

As a condition of employment for accepting this position, you will be required to serve a 1-year probationary period during which we will evaluate your fitness and whether your continued employment advances the public interest. In determining if your employment advances the public interest, we may consider:

• your performance and conduct;
• the needs and interests of the agency;
• whether your continued employment would advance organizational goals of the agency or the Government; and
• whether your continued employment would advance the efficiency of the Federal service.

Upon completion of your probationary period, your employment will be terminated unless you receive certification, in writing, that your continued employment advances the public interest.

Qualifications

TO QUALIFY FOR THIS POSITION AT THE GS-10 GRADE LEVEL, YOU MUST MEET ONE OF THE FOLLOWING:

SPECIALIZED EXPERIENCE: Have one year of specialized experience equivalent to the next lower grade level (GS-9) in the Federal Service, that equipped you with the particular knowledge, skills and abilities to perform successfully the duties of the position, and that is typically in or related to the work of the position to be filled. Specialized experience includes work such as a laborer, manager, or owner of a livestock ranch or farm involving direct work with livestock, with livestock in a feed lot; as a Livestock Market Inspector; as an Animal Welfare Inspector; or as an assistant to a veterinarian who works with livestock.

Additional Specialized Experience at this grade level is supporting veterinarians within a research facility; coordinating and evaluating the operational and environmental procedures of an animal research facility; and communicating with Investigators, biotechnicians, and veterinarians regarding the application of research requirements and training techniques.

-OR-

EDUCATION: Successfully completed two and one-half (2 ½) years of graduate education directly related to the work of this position with a major study or at least 24 semester hours of courses in zoology, biology, chemistry, or agricultural subjects, which are directly related to the work of this Lead Animal Health Technician position. This education must have been obtained in an accredited college or university. NOTE: Transcripts must be submitted with your application materials. Education cannot be credited without documentation. ~OR~

COMBINATION: Equivalent combinations of successfully completed graduate level education (beyond the 2½ year) and specialized experience (as described above) to meet the requirements of this position. NOTE: Transcripts must be submitted with your application materials. Education cannot be credited without documentation.

A Quality Ranking Factor* has been requested by the facility to help determine which of the basically qualified applicants are likely to be better qualified for a position. The quality ranking factor for this position is: "a Master's degree in Lab Animal Science." Applicants who meet this quality ranking factor must submit a transcript with their application to support their response.

*Quality Ranking Factors are skills, knowledge, abilities, or other worker characteristics which could be expected to result in superior performance on the job. Quality ranking factors will not be used for screening, but may be used as ranking criteria. Applicants with higher proficiency levels may rank above those with lower proficiency levels on a quality ranking factor.

You will be rated on the following Competencies as part of the assessment questionnaire for this position:

• Animal Husbandry
• Compliance Inspection
• Quality Ranking Factor
• Technical Competence

IMPORTANT: A full year of work is considered to be 35-40 hours of work per week. All experience listed on your resume must include the month and year start/end dates. Part-time experience will be credited on the basis of time actually spent in appropriate activities. Applicants wishing to receive credit for such experience must indicate clearly the nature of their duties and responsibilities in each position and the number of hours a week spent in such employment.

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.

Physical Requirements: Work requires some physical exertion. Most activity will be walking, but other activities will involve standing for extended periods, considerable bending, climbing of step stools/ladders, and carrying of items less than 50 lbs. Involvement in pre-surgical situations may involve some lifting of larger animals such as dogs or pigs. Other situations may involve moving modestly heavy equipment such as portable x-ray machines or cage racks, while using appropriate mechanical assistance (cart, dolly, etc.).

For more information on these qualification standards, please visit the United States Office of Personnel Management's website at https://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/classification-qualifications/general-schedule-qualification-standards/.

How you will be evaluated

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

IN DESCRIBING YOUR EXPERIENCE, PLEASE BE CLEAR AND SPECIFIC. WE WILL NOT MAKE ASSUMPTIONS REGARDING YOUR EXPERIENCE. If your resume does not support your questionnaire answers, we will not allow credit for your response(s).

Your responses to the assessment questionnaire will be reviewed along with the information provided in your resume and supporting documentation to determine if you are qualified for the position. If, after reviewing your resume and/or supporting documentation, a determination is made that you have inflated your qualifications and or experience, your rating may be lowered and/or you may lose consideration for this position. Please follow all instructions carefully. Errors or omissions may affect your eligibility.

The Department of Veterans Affairs performs pre-employment reference checks as an assessment method used in the hiring process to verify information provided by a candidate (e.g., on resume or during interview or hiring process); gain additional knowledge regarding a candidate's abilities; and assist a hiring manager with making a final selection for a position.

Candidates who apply under All U.S. Citizens announcements will be rated and ranked using Category Rating procedures. Qualified candidates will be assigned to a quality category. The categories are defined as follows:

• Best qualified - applicants possessing experience that substantially exceeds the minimum qualifications of the position including all selective factors, and who are highly proficient in all requirements of the job and can perform effectively in the position;
• Highly qualified - applicants possessing experience that exceeds the minimum qualifications of the position including all selective factors, and who are proficient in most of the requirements of the job;
• Well qualified - applicants possessing experience that meets the minimum qualifications of the position including all selective factors, and who are proficient in some, but not all, of the requirements of the job; and
• Qualified - applicants possessing experience and/or education that meets the minimum qualifications of the position including all selective factors.

Application of Veterans' Preference: Category rating and selection procedures place those with veteran's preference above non-preference eligibles within each category. Preference eligible applicants that meet the eligibility and qualification requirements and who have a compensable 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).

It is the policy of the VA to not deny employment to those that have faced financial hardships or periods of unemployment.

Veterans and Transitioning Service Members: Please visit the VA for Vets site for career-search tools for Veterans seeking employment at VA, career development services for our existing Veterans, and coaching and reintegration support for military service members.