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Supervisory Hydrologic Technician

Department of the Interior
Geological Survey
Central Plains Water Science Center

Summary

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

GS-12 Salary: Salary: $89,508 (Step 01) to $116,362 (Step 10);

Overview

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Accepting applications
Posted today · Apply by 07/10/26
Due by 11:59 p.m. ET on July 10, 2026
Location
1 vacancy in the following location:
Work site options
Telework eligible
Yes—as determined by the agency policy.
Remote job
No
Relocation expenses reimbursed
No
Salary
$89,508 - $116,362 per year
Pay scale & grade
GS 12
Promotion potential
None
Pay scale and grade determines the salary of the job.
Work schedule
Full-time
Travel Required
25% or less - You may be expected to travel on average 5-7 nights per month for this position.
Appointment type
Permanent
Occupations and job series
Supervisory status
Yes
Federal service type
This job is in the Competitive Service
Represented by a union
No
Drug test
No
Security clearance
Not Required
Position sensitivity and risk
Non-sensitive (NS)/Low Risk
Jobs require a background check and some require a security clearance. The type depends on the job.
Background check type
Financial disclosure required
No
Some jobs require financial disclosure to identify conflicts of interests.
Announcement number
USGS-RES-26-12997569-IMP-SW
Control number
875256100

This job is open to

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Clarification from the agency

Open only to current USGS employees serving on perm competitive service appts; OR current USGS employees, regardless of current status, who are elig for consideration under a noncompetitive auth such as those specific to 30% disabled vets, Individuals with Disabilities, Pathways Interns & Recent Grads who are elig for noncomp conversion, etc.

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Duties

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As a Supervisory Hydrologic Technician within the Central Plains Water Science Center, some of your specific duties will include:

  • Supervises office and field work involving the collection, computation, and analysis of surface-water, groundwater and water-quality data.
    • Plans and schedules data collection and records computation and construction, installation, and maintenance of stations and equipment. Assigns work by setting priorities and considering the capabilities of employees.
  • Reviews work of technical staff. Gives advice and counsel to employees on both work and administrative matters.
  • Ensures that employees are kept informed on all matters which affect their employment. Interviews candidates, recommends selections, promotions, awards, and disciplinary actions. Evaluates performance; establishes and revises position descriptions to ensure that the most economic and effective position structure is maintained
Physical Demands: Field work is physically active and regularly requires considerable dexterity, agility, and strenuous physical exertion and may include, but is not limited to: climbing rocky and steep terrain, climbing and/ or working from tall ladders and scaffolding; wading streams; work in areas where footing is treacherous (slippery or icy riverbanks, steep rocky terrain, fast-moving water); and crouching or crawling in restricted areas and lifting equipment weighing up to 100 pounds. Field work also involves moderate risks such as measuring from highway bridges, in swift streams, and from boats or cableways.

Work Environment: Field and laboratory work exposes the incumbent to extreme weather conditions including, but not limited to, rain, snow, and extreme temperatures; and hazards including, but not limited to, flooding, ice, insect bites, and exposure to toxic chemicals. Special safety precautions are required in many cases, and incumbent typically wears a life jacket, reflective rain gear, safety glasses, etc. Field areas are often isolated and occasionally difficult to reach.

Conditions of Employment for this Position:
As a condition of employment for accepting this position, you will be required to serve a 1-year probationary period during which your fitness and whether your continued employment advances the public interest will be evaluated.

Thisprobationaryperiod is an extension of the appointment process and therefore requires the agency to determine if continued employment would advance the public interest, meet the organization goals and mission of the agency, and/or otherwise promote the efficiency of the service. In determining if your employment advances the public interest, the agency will 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.

Under applicable law, the employment of an individual serving a probationary or trial period automatically terminates when that period ends unless the agency affirmatively certifies, in writing, that the individual's employment should continue and that their appointment should be finalized. In the absence of agency action to affirmatively certify continued employment beyond the probationary or trial period, such appointments are terminated.

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.

Requirements

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Conditions of employment

Key Requirements:

  1. Supervisory Probationary Period - This position requires completion of a one year supervisory/managerial probationary period, if one has not previously been completed.
  2. More requirements are listed under Qualifications and Other Information.
  3. Selectee must provide a valid state driver's license & safe driving record.
  4. Selectee subject to successful completion of a pre-employment medical exam.

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.
  • Taking and passing a pre-employment medical examination at Federal expense is required due to the physical demands of this job.
  • 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.
  • 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.
  • If you are a Federal employee applying for a promotion (under merit promotion procedures) you must meet time-in-grade requirements by the closing date of the announcement.

Qualifications

For GS-12:

Applicants must meet the following to qualify for the GS-12 level:

One year of specialized experience equivalent to the GS-11 in the Federal service. Examples of such experience may include: planning and conducting the computation and collection of data from approximately thirty or more gaging stations; determining stage-discharge relations, computing rating tables and mean daily, monthly and annual discharge rates from these stations. Acting as a party chief and making indirect measurements of flood flows under extremely difficult conditions. Collecting data including that required to compute flood flows by the slope-area method, by measurement of flow over dams, by flow through culverts and by flow over embankments. Obtaining hydrologic data from published and unpublished sources and conducting hydrologic studies relative to the frequency of flood and droughts. Planning and coordinating a ground water survey program for an area that may be either a small area with complex features or a larger area with planning and coordinating problems related to the scope of the ground water survey operations.


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/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.
  • 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.
  • As part of the application process, a series of four short essay questions will be included. Applicants must certify that their own words were used to answer the questions.
  • Applicants who apply under this job opportunity announcement agree to have their application, associated documents and applicable personal information shared with other Bureaus/Offices within the Department of the Interior (DOI) who have vacancies within the same occupational series, grade, full performance level and in the same geographic location(s), including within the same metro/commuting area. Applying to this announcement does not replace the need to apply to other job opportunity announcements for which you wish to receive consideration.
Agency Benefits:

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.

--Resume Length:
Please limit your resume to no more than 2 pages. If more than 2 pages are submitted, only the first 2 pages will be reviewed to determine your eligibility/qualifications.

--Basis of Rating:
Your qualifications will be evaluated based on your application materials (e.g., resume, supporting documents), the result of the assessment required for this position. Your responses must be substantiated by your resume. If you do not respond to the application questions you may be rated ineligible.

Resume Review Assessment Required: If you meet the eligibility and basic qualification requirements for this position subject-matter-experts 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.

Due weight will be given to performance appraisals and awards during the interview/selection process conducted by the hiring manager. If referred, all relevant documents including performance appraisals and awards submitted with your application package will be forwarded to the hiring official for review.

--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/12997569

Geological Survey

Agency contact information

Selena Waterman
Phone
703 648-7449
Email
selena_waterman@ios.doi.gov
Address
KANSAS WATER SCI CTR
12201 Sunrise Valley Drive
Mail Stop 600
Reston, VA 20192
US

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