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INTERDISCIPLINARY PHYSICAL SCIENTIST/ OCEANOGRAPHER

Department of the Navy
United States Fleet Forces Command

Summary

You will serve as a INTERDISCIPLINARY PHYSICAL SCIENTIST/ OCEANOGRAPHER in the Ocean Projects Department (N9) of NAVOCEANO BAY ST LOUIS.

Overview

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Open & closing dates
05/06/2026 to 05/11/2026
Salary
$89,508 - $116,362 per year
Pay scale & grade
GS 12
Location
Stennis Space Center, MS
1 vacancy
Remote job
No
Telework eligible
No
Travel Required
50% or less - You may be expected to travel for this position.
Relocation expenses reimbursed
No
Appointment type
Permanent
Work schedule
Full-time
Service
Competitive
Promotion potential
12
Supervisory status
No
Security clearance
Top Secret
Drug test
Yes
Financial disclosure
No
Bargaining unit status
No
Announcement number
ST-12953138-26-RMM
Control number
867860600

Duties

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  • You will work with seafloor bottom mapping or physical oceanography to provide direct support to departmental programs.
  • You will comprehend side scan sonar survey-based mapping techniques to include collection and processing of acoustic imagery for applications in naval operations.
  • You will perform GIS data analysis, image along with geospatial mapping of bathymetric and acoustic imagery and physical properties to develop environmental support products for the department programs.
  • You will learn software processing tools and packages which will be used to correlate marine seafloor and subsurface properties, bathymetric, and physical oceanographic properties.

Requirements

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Conditions of employment

  • Must be a US Citizen.
  • Must be determined suitable for federal employment.
  • Must participate in the direct deposit pay program.
  • New employees to the Department of the Navy will be required to successfully pass the E-Verify employment verification check. To learn more about E-Verify, including your rights and responsibilities, visit e-verify.gov
  • Generally, current federal employees applying for GS jobs must serve at least one year at the next lower grade level. This requirement is called time-in-grade. Time-in-grade requirements must be met by the closing date of this announcement.
  • Within the Department of Defense (DoD), the appointment of retired military members within 180 days immediately following retirement date to a civilian position is subject to the provisions of 5 United States Code 3326.
  • Males born after 12-31-59 must be registered for Selective Service.
  • You will be required to successfully complete a pre-appointment physical examination.
  • You will be required to obtain and maintain an interim and/or final security clearance prior to entrance on duty. Failure to obtain and maintain the required level of clearance may result in the withdrawal of a job offer or removal.
  • MSP/PPP applicants must currently hold the required security clearance.
  • Successful completion of a pre-employment drug test (including marijuana) is required. A tentative offer of employment will be rescinded if you fail to report to the drug test appointment or fail the test. You will be subject to random testing.
  • This position may require travel from normal duty station to CONUS and OCONUS and may include remote or isolated sites. You must be able to travel on military and commercial aircraft for extended periods of time.

Qualifications

In addition to the Basic Requirements for this position, your resume must also demonstrate at least one year of specialized experience at or equivalent to the GS-11 grade level or pay band in the Federal service or equivalent experience in the private or public sector. Specialized experience must demonstrate the following:

1301:

  • Experience implementing environmental survey data collection techniques of high-resolution side-scan sonar imagery data, bathymetric data, and other physical data types for departmental products.
  • Experience coordinating and implementing new and improved methods for more efficient data processing using state of the art, proprietary or commercial software packages to perform data manipulation to achieve correct interpretation.
  • Experience utilizing geographic information system (GIS) technology to perform data processing while developing and adhering to standardized processes for data ingesting into geospatial data sets from other agencies.
  • Experience participating in remote environmental monitoring unit's autonomous underwater vehicles (REMUS AUV) surveys to provide technical data collection assistance, imagery data download and processing support as REMUS watch stander.

1360:
  • Experience collecting data and processing including calibration of systems, navigation, data acquisition with quality control and processing along with handling high resolution seafloor data and imagery from collection systems such as towed side scan systems, UUV and AUV vehicles.
  • Experience performing spatial analysis, geo-processing and geodata development on survey data sets uploaded post mission while at sea.
  • Experience developing environmental survey products by compiling and integrating side scan sonar imagery geotechnical, hydrographic and bathymetric, and oceanographic environmental data sets to find a specific product.
  • Experience developing data products with GIS based analysis by cross referencing new acquired data with previously processed data, validating the quality, reviewing the previous data, and comparing the reports.

Additional qualification information can be found from the following Office of Personnel Management website:
https://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/classification-qualifications/general-schedule-qualification-standards/#url=List-by-Occupational-Series

https://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/classification-qualifications/general-schedule-qualification-standards/1300/general-physical-science-series-1301/

https://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/classification-qualifications/general-schedule-qualification-standards/1300/oceanography-series-1360/

Experience refers to paid and unpaid experience, including volunteer work done through National Service programs (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.

Education

Applicants must meet the following positive education qualifications requirements of the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) Qualifications Standards Manual: Applicants must possess


General Physical Science Series, 1301

Basic Requirements:

  1. Degree: physical science, engineering, or mathematics that included 24 semester hours in physical science and/or related engineering science such as mechanics, dynamics, properties of materials, and electronics.
or
  1. Combination of education and experience -- education equivalent to one of the majors shown in A above that included at least 24 semester hours in physical science and/or related engineering science, plus appropriate experience or additional education.
***A transcript must be submitted with your application if qualifying using education. See Required Documents for additional information.***



Oceanography Series 1360


Basic Requirements:
  1. Degree: major study of at least 24 semester hours in oceanography or a related discipline such as physics, meteorology, geophysics, mathematics, chemistry, engineering, geology, or biology, plus 20 additional semester hours in any combination of oceanography, physics, geophysics, chemistry, mathematics, meteorology, computer science, and engineering sciences.
or
  1. Combination of education and experience -- course work as shown in A above, plus appropriate experience or additional education.
Applicants who qualify on the basis of major study in biology or geology must have had at least 6 semester hours in the major directly concerned with marine science or 6 semester hours in oceanography; applicants who qualify on the basis of other physical sciences or engineering must have had differential and integral calculus and at least 6 semester hours in physics.

***A transcript must be submitted with your application if qualifying using education. See Required Documents for additional information.***

Additional information

This position is covered by the Department of Defense Priority Placement Program.

Additional vacancies may be filled by this announcement.

A tentative offer of employment will be rescinded if the selectee fails to meet the pre-employment requirements, including failure to report to any of the scheduled appointments.

During the application process you will have the ability to opt-in to make your resume available to hiring managers in the agency who have similar positions in the local commuting area. Depending on the hiring organization and the position being filled, job requirements (e.g., security clearance, travel, drug testing, financial disclosure filing, bargaining unit status, etc.) may vary. Other hiring managers filling similar positions may offer relocation expense reimbursement and/or may offer recruitment incentives for new employees, depending on funding availability and in accordance with policy. If you opt-in and are referred on a certificate, your resume will be available to other hiring managers for 180-days from the date the job announcement closes. Opting in does not impact your application for this announcement, nor does it guarantee further consideration for additional positions.

Federal annuitant information: The selection of an annuitant is subject to the Department of Defense and Department of the Navy policy on the employment of annuitants. Policy information may be found at: http://www.secnav.navy.mil/donhr/Documents/CivilianJobs/FedCivAnnuitants.pdf

PPP applicants will be placed at the FPL, if determined Well Qualified (WQ). To receive priority consideration, the FPL must be the same grade level or equivalent of the retained grade or the grade held immediately prior to separation.

ICTAP Applicants: To be considered well-qualified and exercise selection priority as an ICTAP candidate, displaced Federal employees must satisfy all qualification requirements for the position and receive a rating in the highly qualified category (score 85) or higher. ICTAP candidates must provide copies of all of the following documentation at the time of application: 1) agency notice; 2) most recent performance appraisal; and 3) most recent SF-50 or notification of personnel action that includes position, grade level, and duty location. Applicants who do not provide this documentation will not receive consideration as an ICTAP candidate. For more information about ICTAP eligibility please review the following link: https://www.usajobs.gov/Help/working-in-government/unique-hiring-paths/federal-employees/career-transition/

Military Spouse Preference applicants will be placed at the highest grade for which they have applied and are determined Best Qualified (BQ). A BQ military spouse possesses knowledge, skills, abilities, and competencies comparable to others who meet the competitive referral criteria for the specific position.

Candidates should be committed to improving the efficiency of the Federal government, passionate about the ideals of our American republic, and committed to upholding the rule of law and the United States Constitution.

How you will be evaluated

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

In order to qualify for this position, your resume must provide sufficient experience and/or education, knowledge, skills, and abilities to perform the duties of the specific position for which you are being considered. Your resume is the key means we have for evaluating your skills, knowledge, and abilities as they relate to this position. Therefore, we encourage you to be clear and specific when describing your experience.

When the application process is complete, we will review your resume to ensure you meet the hiring eligibility and qualification requirements listed in this announcement. You will be rated based on the information provided in your resume and application package, along with your supporting documentation to determine your ability to demonstrate the following competencies:





This recruitment will utilize the following technical assessment tools: Structured Resume Review and Structured Interview.

You should list any relevant performance appraisals and incentive awards in your resume as that information may be taken into consideration during the selection process. If selected, you may be required to provide supporting documentation.

Please follow all instructions carefully. Errors or omissions may affect your rating or consideration for employment.

All eligibility, qualifications, and time-in-grade requirements must be met by the closing date of this announcement.

United States Fleet Forces Command

The Navy and Marine Corps team offers innovative, exciting and meaningful work linking military and civilian talents to achieve our mission and safeguard our freedoms. Department of the Navy provides competitive salaries, comprehensive benefits, and extensive professional development and training. From pipefitters to accountants, scientists to engineers, doctors to nurses-the careers and opportunities to make a difference are endless.

Civilian careers-where purpose and patriotism unite!

Agency contact information

Department of Navy EIC
Email
doneic@us.navy.mil
Address
NAVOCEANO BAY ST LOUIS
1002 Balch Blvd
Stennis Space Center, MS 39522
US

Visit our careers page

Learn more about what it's like to work at United States Fleet Forces Command, what the agency does, and about the types of careers this agency offers.

http://www.secnav.navy.mil/donhr/Pages/Default.aspx

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