Biological Science Laboratory Technician (Animal) Job in Fort Sam Houston, TX

Vacancy No. HQKF245774773181D Department Defense Health Agency
Salary $60,823.00 to $95,665.00 Grade 3 to 3
Perm/Temp Permanent FT/PT Full-time
Open Date 12/18/2024 Close Date 1/6/2025
Job Link Apply Online Who may apply Public
Locations:
Fort Sam Houston, TX


Summary

About the Position: U.S. Army Institute of Surgical Research (USAISR), a Defense Health Agency (DHA) Research & Development (R&D) asset, is collocated with the San Antonio Military Medical Center (SAMMC), Fort Sam Houston, Texas.

Duties

  • Provide support in the execution of research protocols and subsequent analyses of data for a biomedical research facility.
  • Prepare animals for research or training procedures.
  • Responsible for data collection and documentation during animal experiments.
  • Manage all aspects of the operation of the Veterinary Surgery and Intensive Care Unit to include fully equipped operating suites and Computed Tomography (CT) suite.
  • Perform multiple veterinary medical procedures to include advanced imaging (such as Computed Tomography (CT) and Fluoroscopy) on research animals.
  • Provide specialized veterinary nursing care to complex, critically ill patients/animals having numerous complicating conditions to include patients presenting real or potential life-threatening health problems.
  • Manage and maintain medical supplies and equipment relating to laboratory animal care in a research facility.
  • Manage prolonged veterinary nursing care of anesthetized and instrumented veterinary patients.
  • Serve as Team Leader to ensure work of assigned team is carried out.
  • Compose and review Standard Operating Procedures (SOP) for the Veterinary Support Group.

Requirements

Conditions of Employment

  • Appointment may be subject to a suitability or fitness determination, as determined by a completed background investigation.
  • This position has been designated "Mission Essential".
  • This position requires the completion of a pre-employment physical examination and an annual examination thereafter to ensure the continued required level of physical health and ability or fitness to perform the duties of the position.
  • Heavy lifting up to 25 lbs. is required.
  • May be required to work rotating shifts to include evenings, weekends, and holidays.
  • Appointment to this position is subject to a two-year probationary period unless the appointee has previously met the requirements as described in 5 CFR Part 315. While probationary the incumbent can be terminated with limited appeal rights.
  • Appointment to this position is subject to a background investigation to determine your suitability for Federal employment.

Qualifications

Who May Apply: US Citizens

In order to qualify, you must meet the experience requirements described below. 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). You will receive credit for all qualifying experience, including volunteer experience. Your resume must clearly describe your relevant experience; if qualifying based on education, your transcripts will be required as part of your application. Additional information about transcripts is in this document.

MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS:

Specialized Experience

One year of specialized experience which includes:

#1. Experience managing the study schedules to support animal research care operations.

#2. Experience using ventilator machines such as, Drager Ventilator in a research setting.

#3. Experience utilizing anesthesia machines such as Drager anesthesia to provide appropriate anesthetic.

#4. Experience performing injections, such as Total Intravenous Anesthesia (TIVA), in various animal species during surgical procedures.

This definition of specialized experience is typical of work performed at the next lower grade/level position in the federal service (DE-02/GS-08).

You will be evaluated on the basis of your level of competency in the following areas:
  • Biological Laboratory Investigation
  • Data Entry and Analysis
  • Facilities Operations and Maintenance

Education

Some federal jobs allow you to substitute your education for the required experience in order to qualify. For this job, you must meet the qualification requirement using experience alone--no substitution of education for experience is permitted.

The USAISR is dedicated to BOTH laboratory and clinical trauma research. Its mission to provide requirements-driven combat casualty care medical solutions and products for injured service members, from self-aid through definitive care across the full spectrum of military operations; provide state-of-the-art trauma, burn, and critical care to Department of Defense beneficiaries around the world and civilians in our trauma region; and provide Burn Special Medical Augmentation Response Teams. Please visit our website USAISR (health.mil)

USAISR is participating in an alternative personnel system known as the Personnel Demonstration Project (PDP). The DE-03 payband is equivalent to GS-09 step 1 to GS-11 step 10 level. In keeping with the Demonstration pay fixing policies, employees earning a salary that falls within this payband equivalent, may not receive an immediate pay increase (promotion) if appointed to this position. Future pay increases within the payband will be accomplished through the pay for performance management system.

Additional information

  • Male applicants born after December 31, 1959, must complete a Pre-Employment Certification Statement for Selective Service Registration.
  • You will be required to provide proof of U.S. Citizenship.
  • Two-year probationary period may be required.
  • Direct Deposit of Pay is required.
  • Selection is subject to restrictions resulting from Department of Defense referral system for displaced employees.
  • If you have retired from federal service and you are interested in employment as a reemployed annuitant, see the information in the Reemployed Annuitant information sheet.
  • Multiple positions may be filled from this announcement.
  • Salary includes applicable locality pay or Local Market Supplement.
  • Permanent Change of Station (PCS) allowances may be authorized, subject to the provisions of the Joint Travel Regulations and an agency determination that a PCS move is in the Government interest.
  • This position has been designated "Mission Essential". In the event of severe weather conditions or other such emergency type situations (natural or man-made disaster) the incumbent is required to report to work or remain at work as scheduled to support mission operations
  • This position requires the completion of a pre-employment physical examination and an annual examination thereafter to ensure the continued required level of physical health & ability or fitness to perform the duties of the position.
  • Heavy lifting up to 25 lbs. is required.
  • May be required to work rotating shifts to include evenings, weekends, and holidays.
  • Extended Probationary Period: The length of the probationary period for the Engineers and Scientists Technicians (DE) Occupational family will be two years.

Benefits

A career with the U.S. government provides employees with a comprehensive benefits package. As a federal employee, you and your family will have access to a range of benefits that are designed to make your federal career very rewarding. Opens in a new windowLearn more about federal benefits.

Review our benefits

Eligibility for benefits depends on the type of position you hold and whether your position is full-time, part-time or intermittent. Contact the hiring agency for more information on the specific benefits offered.

How You Will Be Evaluated

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

Once the announcement has closed, a review of your application package (resume, supporting documents, and responses to the questionnaire) will be used to determine whether you meet the qualification requirements listed on this announcement. If you are minimally qualified, your resume and supporting documentation will be compared against your responses to the assessment questionnaire to determine your level of experience. If, after reviewing your resume and/or supporting documentation, a determination is made that you have inflated your qualifications and/or experience, you may lose consideration for this position. Please follow all instructions carefully when applying, errors or omissions may affect your eligibility.

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.

Basis for Rating: Qualified candidates will be assigned to one of three quality categories: Best Qualified, Highly Qualified and Qualified. Veteran preference eligibles are listed ahead of non-preference eligibles within each quality category.

  • Best Qualified. Candidates in this category possess exceptional skills and experience to exceed well above the minimum requirements for the announced position.
  • Highly Qualified. Candidates in this category possess good skills and experience above the minimum requirements for the announced position.
  • Qualified. Candidates in this category meet the minimum experience requirements for the announced position.
You may claim Military Spouse preference.

You may claim Priority Placement Program (PPP) preference.

Interagency Career Transition Assistance Program (ICTAP). If you are a Federal employee in the competitive service and your agency has notified you in writing that you are a displaced employee eligible for ICTAP consideration, you may receive selection priority for this position. To receive selection priority, you must: (1) meet ICTAP eligibility criteria (2) be rated well-qualified for the position and; (3) submit the appropriate documentation to support your ICTAP eligibility. To be considered well-qualified and receive selection priority applicants must satisfy all qualification requirements for the position and receive a score of 90 or above. Additional information about the program is on OPM's Career Transition Resources website.

Required Documents

The documents you are required to submit vary based on whether or not you are eligible for preference in federal employment. A complete description of preference categories and the associated required documents is in the Applicant Checklist for Public Announcements.

As described above, your complete application includes your resume, your responses to the online questionnaire, and documents which prove your eligibility to apply. If you fail to provide these documents, you will be marked as having an incomplete application package and you will not be considered any further.

1. Your resume:

  • Your resume may be submitted in any format and must support the specialized experience described in this announcement.
  • If your resume includes a photograph or other inappropriate material or content, it will not be used to make eligibility and qualification determinations and you may not be considered for this vacancy.
  • For qualifications determinations your resume must contain hours worked per week and the dates of employment (i.e., HRS per week and month/year to month/year or month/year to present). If your resume does not contain this information, your application may be marked as incomplete and you may not receive consideration for this position.
  • For additional information see: What to include in your resume.
2. Other supporting documents:
  • Cover Letter, optional
  • Most recent Performance Appraisal, if applicable
NOTE: Documents submitted as part of the application package, to include supplemental documents, may be shared beyond the Human Resources Office. Some supplemental documents such as military orders and marriage certificates may contain personal information for someone other than you. You may sanitize these documents to remove another person's personal information before you submit your application. You may be asked to provide an un-sanitized version of the documents if you are selected to confirm your eligibility.

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

To apply for this position, you must complete the online questionnaire and submit the documentation specified in the Required Documents section above.

The complete application package must be submitted by 11:59 PM (EST) on 01/06/2025 to receive consideration

  • To begin, click Apply to access the online application. You will need to be logged into your USAJOBS account to apply. If you do not have a USAJOBS account, you will need to create one before beginning the application (https://apply.usastaffing.gov/ViewQuestionnaire/12643181).
  • Follow the prompts to select your resume and/or other supporting documents to be included with your application package. You will have the opportunity to upload additional documents to include in your application before it is submitted. Your uploaded documents may take several hours to clear the virus scan process.
  • After acknowledging you have reviewed your application package, complete the Include Personal Information section as you deem appropriate and click to continue with the application process.
  • You will be taken to the online application which you must complete in order to apply for the position. Complete the online application, verify the required documentation is included with your application package, and submit the application. You must re-select your resume and/or other documents from your USAJOBS account or your application will be incomplete.
  • It is your responsibility to verify that your application package (resume, supporting documents, and responses to the questionnaire) is complete, accurate, and submitted by the closing date. Uploaded documents may take up to one hour to clear the virus scan.
  • Additional information on how to complete the online application process and submit your online application may be found on the USA Staffing Applicant Resource Center.
To verify the status of your application, log into your USAJOBS account (https://my.usajobs.gov/Account/Login), all of your applications will appear on the Welcome screen. The Application Status will appear along with the date your application was last updated. For information on what each Application Status means, visit: https://www.usajobs.gov/Help/how-to/application/status/.

Agency contact information

Army Applicant Help Desk
Address
KF-DHA-DD60RB DHA R/D ACT-USAISR
DO NOT MAIL
Fort Sam Houston, TX 78234
US
Learn more about this agency

Next steps

If you provided an email address, you will receive an email message acknowledging receipt of your application. Your application package will be used to determine your eligibility, qualifications, and quality ranking for this position. If you are determined to be ineligible or not qualified, your application will receive no further consideration.


Note: We cannot accept applications on behalf of Federal Agencies. Application instructions are listed within the Job Description.


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