Summary
The Smithsonian Institution is the world’s largest museum, education, and research complex, with 21 museums and the National Zoo. The mission of the National Zoo and Conservation Biology Institute (NZCBI) is to save species by using cutting-edge science, sharing knowledge and providing inspirational experiences for our guests.
This job is open to
Clarification from the agency
This position is open to all U.S. Citizens or U.S. Nationals.
Note: Federal employees with permanent status or individuals eligible for special appointing authorities may also apply to Job Announcement #24R-LJ-310691-MPA-NZP.
More than one selection may be made from this announcement.
Duties
The Supervisory Biologist serves as a Senior Curator supporting a wide variety of animal departments, with responsibility for the conception, formulation, leadership and conduct of all animal care, breeding, conservation, exhibition, and associated public education for the living collection under the Department's care.
In this position, you will:
- Serve as Senior Curator supervising subordinate Curators responsible for all aspects of daily care, enrichment, breeding, exhibition, research use, and habitat care of a wide variety of animal species.
- Prepare and submit annual operating budget for units.
- Serve as principal spokesperson and principal media coordinator and contact point for public information within Animal Care Sciences (ACS) department.
- Work with Education Department, Animal Care Staff and other NZCBI staff to develop education and outreach programs using the collection.
- Facilitate the collection and evaluation of data to guide animal husbandry and management.
Requirements
Conditions of Employment
- Pass Pre-employment Background Investigation
- May need to complete a Probationary Period
- Maintain a Bank Account for Direct Deposit/Electronic Transfer
- Males born after 12/31/59 must be registered with Selective Service.
Conditions of Employment
Qualification requirements must be met by the closing date of the announcement.
For information on qualification requirements, see Qualification Standards Handbook for General Schedule Positions on OPM website.
Qualifications
Basic Qualifications:
Degree: biological sciences, agriculture, natural resource management, chemistry, or related disciplines appropriate to the position.
or
Combination of education and experience: Courses equivalent to a major, as shown in A above, plus appropriate experience or additional education.
In addition to the basic qualification requirement above:
Experience: You qualify for this position if you have one year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the GS-13 level in the Federal Service. For this position, specialized experience is defined as supervising staff tasked with a wide variety of responsibilities including animal care, breeding, conservation, exhibition, and public presentations for a living collection of animals.
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.
Part-time and/or unpaid experience related to this position will be considered to determine the total number of years and months of experience. Be sure to note the number of paid or unpaid hours worked each week.
Education
This position has positive education requirements.
How You Will Be Evaluated
You will be evaluated for this job based on how well you meet the qualifications above.
Applicants for this position may be evaluated in multiple stages. The first stage is an evaluation of your responses to the online multiple-choice questions that assess your experience, education, and/or training for the job related competencies below:
- Ability to supervise and manage a curatorial staff in a zoo setting.
- Knowledge in overseeing all aspects of wide variety of animal species to include daily care, research, exhibition, and preparation of annual operation budget.
- Ability to communicate and disseminate biological and historical knowledge of all species within collection.
- Ability to develop and implement a plan in animal care management, reproduction, behavior, and population sustainability.
Applicants who meet or exceed minimum qualifications will be assigned to one of three category groups based on job-related criteria:
- Best Category - Meets the minimum qualification requirements and excels in most of the job related competencies above.
- Better Category - Meets the minimum qualification requirements and satisfies most of the job related competencies above.
- Good Category - Meets the minimum qualification requirements, but does not satisfy most of the job related competencies above to a substantive degree.
This category rating process does not add veterans' preference points or apply the "rule of three", but protects the rights of veterans by placing them ahead of non-preference eligibles within each category. A selecting official may make selections from the highest quality category (Best Category) provided no preference eligible in that category is passed over to select a non-preference eligible in that category unless the requirements of 5 U.S.C. 3317(b) or 3318(b) are satisfied. Preference eligibles who meet minimum qualification requirements and who have a compensable service-connected disability of at least 10 percent must be listed in the highest quality category, except when the position being filled is scientific or professional at the GS-9 grade level or higher. Applicants who have not submitted a resume in the USAjobs system and/or have not answered all of the vacancy questions will not be considered for this position.
Important Note:
Your resume and supporting documentation will be compared to your responses to the occupational questionnaire or other assessment tool for consistency. If a determination is made that you have rated yourself higher than is supported by your resume, you will be assigned a rating commensurate to your described experience. Your resume should provide sufficient information regarding how your education and experience relate to this position, including the major duties and qualifications criteria listed. You may preview questions for this vacancy.
Required Documents
Your application package should include the following documents:
-
Resume - Your resume can be uploaded and attached to your application or created using the USA Jobs on-line resume builder. Ensure your resume contains the job title (including the occupational series and grade if it is Federal), job-related qualifications, starting and ending dates (month and year), hours worked per week, and salary for each employment period. It is your responsibility to ensure all information is submitted. Failure to include this information may result in disqualification for the position.
For assistance with creating a resume, please click here.
- Proof of Veteran's Preference - DD214 (Member 4 Copy), if you are a veteran. Additionally, applicants claiming 10-point preference must complete Standard Form (SF) 15, Application for 10-Point Veteran Preference, as well as additional documentation required by the SF-15, such as a VA letter.
- Unofficial school transcripts, if the position has an education requirement or if you are using education to qualify. If selected for the position, you must provide an official transcript before appointment.
- Proof of U.S. accreditation for foreign study, if applicable.
If you are relying on your education to meet qualification requirements:
Education must be accredited by an accrediting institution recognized by the U.S. Department of Education in order for it to be credited towards qualifications. Therefore, provide only the attendance and/or degrees from
schools accredited by accrediting institutions recognized by the U.S. Department of Education.
Failure to provide all of the required information as stated in this vacancy announcement may result in an ineligible rating or may affect the overall rating.
How to Apply
Click on the "Apply Online" button on the upper right side of the page. Please Note:
- You must apply for this position online through the 'Apply Online' button and submit required supplemental documents (if they are relevant to you).
- You may submit required documents by uploading them online during the application process.
- The complete application package, including any required documents, is due in the Smithsonian Office of Human Resources on the closing date of the announcement by 11:59 PM Eastern Time.
- If you are unable to apply online, paper applications may be accepted with prior approval of the Contact Person listed below.
Next steps
At the end of the application process you will be able to create and save a PDF file that contains your responses to the assessment questions. You may save this file as initial receipt of your application. After the job announcement closes, you will receive an email from the Smithsonian with confirmation of receipt. The Smithsonian receives many applications for each job. Each application is reviewed carefully which may take a few weeks. We will send you an e-mail to update you as we go through phases of the application review process. You may also check your application status by logging into www.usajobs.gov and selecting the tab "My USAJOBS;" e-mailing vacancy.info@si.edu; or by contacting the Office of Human Resources Representative listed. Additional Information:
- Tips on applying for Smithsonian jobs are available at https://www.si.edu/OHR/howtoapply.
- The Smithsonian does not pay relocation expenses but recruitment incentives may be authorized.
- The Smithsonian embraces diversity and equal employment opportunity (www.si.edu/oeema).
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