Biologist

Clarification from the agency

This is a Merit Promotion announcement open to career and career conditional National Park Service (NPS) employees, Career Transition eligibles (CTAP), and NPS Land Management Workforce Flexibility Act (LMWFA) eligibles. Refer to Required Documents section for more information.

As a Biologist, you will perform the following duties:

• Inventories, monitors, restores, and manages activities to support the conservation of park natural resources.
• Assesses vegetation conditions, invasive species, insect pests, diseases, and other natural resource concerns; recommends and implements appropriate management actions.
• Plans and conducts biological field studies.
• Collects, analyzes, and manages scientific data.
• Develops work plans, restoration strategies, technical reports, and other resource management documents.
• Prepares environmental compliance documents, including Environmental Assessments (EAs).
• Reviews Environmental Impact Statements (EISs).
• Utilizes Geographic Information Systems (GIS) and other resource management technologies.
• Oversees contract work as a Contracting Officer's Representative (COR).

Duties will be developmental in nature when filled below the full performance level.

Conditions of employment

• Must be a U.S. Citizen or National.
• Appointment subject to background investigation and favorable adjudication.
• Males born after 12-31-59 must be registered for Selective Service.
• Direct Deposit participation required.
• Successfully pass the E-Verify employment verification check. To learn more, visit https://www.e-verify.gov/.
• You are required to wear a uniform and comply with uniform standards. A uniform allowance will be provided.
• You are required to complete training, obtain and maintain a government credit card with travel and purchase authority.
• You will be required to obtain and maintain a valid driver's license.
• You may be required to travel overnight away from home up to 5 nights per month.

As a condition of employment for accepting this position, you may be required to serve a one-year probationary period to evaluate your fitness and whether your continuation of employment advances the public interest.

This probationary period 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 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.

Qualifications

All qualifications must be met by the closing date of this announcement-10/20/2026-unless otherwise stated in this vacancy announcement.

To receive credit for experience, your resume MUST state either "full-time" (or "40 hours a week") or "part-time" with the number of hours worked per week to ensure proper crediting of specialized experience. Failure to adequately provide information needed to determine number of hours worked in each position may result in that time not being credited when evaluating qualifying experience. For periods of time that reflect military service, the DD-214 or Statement of Service is sufficient to meet the full and/or part-time hours requirement as the service dates will be reflected.

To qualify for this position at either grade, you must meet the following Basic Requirements for the 0401 Series:

Basic Requirements: In addition to the specialized experience requirements for this position, you must meet at least one of the following:

1. Degree: Successful completion of a full 4-year course of study in an accredited college or university leading to a bachelor's or higher degree in a major such as biological sciences, agriculture, natural resource management, chemistry, or related disciplines appropriate to the position. You must submit transcripts.

-OR-

2. Combination of education and experience: course work as shown in A above, plus appropriate experience or additional education.

To qualify for this position at the GS-07 grade level: In addition to meeting one of the Basic Requirements listed above,you must meet one of the following minimum qualifications:

Experience: To qualify, you must possess at least one full year of specialized experience equivalent to the GS-05 level in the Federal service (obtained in either the public or private sectors). Specialized experience is defined as demonstrated experience: Collecting field data contributing to basic natural or cultural resources inventory; Assisting with investigating cultural sites, natural resources, or historic scenes; and Writing correspondence such as text, letters, and illustrations.

-OR-

Education: Successful completion of at least 1 year of graduate-level education or superior academic achievement in a major such as biological sciences, agriculture, natural resource management, chemistry, or related disciplines appropriate to the position. You must include transcripts.

-OR-

Combination of education and experience: Combinations of successfully completed education and specialized experience may be used to meet total experience requirements. To compute this percentage, first divide the total months of qualifying experience by 12. Then divide the number of completed higher level graduate education semester hours of education (that are in excess of 9 semester hours) by 18. Add the two percentages together; the total percentage must equal at least 100 percent to qualify. NOTE: Only higher-level graduate education in excess of more than one-half year may be used to qualify for this position and must be in a major such as those listed above. You must include a copy of your transcripts.

-OR-

*Superior Academic Achievement (SAA): Successfully completed a bachelor's degree in a directly related field AND meet one of the following: (1) Class Standing: rank in the upper 3rd of the graduating class in the college, university, or major subdivision, based on the completed courses; OR (2) Grade-Point Average (GPA): earn a GPA of (a) 3.0 or higher out of a possible 4.0 ("B" or better) based on 4 years of education, or based on courses completed during the final 2 years of the curriculum -or- (b) 3.5 or higher out of a possible 4.0 ("B" or better) based on the average of the required courses completed in the major field, or the required courses completed during the final two years. Note: GPA will be rounded to one decimal place, for example, 2.95 = 3.0, 2.94 = 2.9; OR (3) Membership in a National Scholastic Honor Society. You must include a copy of your transcripts.

To qualify for this position at the GS-09 grade level: In addition to meeting one of the Basic Requirements listed above,you must meet one of the following minimum qualifications:

Specialized Experience Requirement: You must possess at least one full year of specialized experience equivalent to the GS-07 level in the Federal service (obtained in either the public or private sectors). Specialized experience is defined as demonstrated experience: Assisting with natural resource management activities such as implementing inventory, monitoring, protection, and restoration projects using established scientific protocols and standard data collection and analysis methods; Ability to prepare scientific or management reports, utilize GIS and other digital tools, and coordinate resource activities with partners and adjacent land managers; Participating in National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) compliance by assisting in the preparation or review of environmental assessments or related documents.

-OR-

Education: Successful completion of at least 2 years of progressively higher-level graduate education leading to a master's degree or equivalent graduate degree in a major such as biological sciences, agriculture, natural resource management, chemistry, or related disciplines appropriate to the position. You must include transcripts.

-OR-

Combination of Education and Experience: Combinations of successfully completed education and specialized experience may be used to meet total experience requirements. To compute this percentage, first divide the total months of qualifying experience by 12. Then divide the number of completed higher level graduate education semester hours of education (that are in excess of 18 semester hours) by 36. Add the two percentages together; the total percentage must equal at least 100 percent to qualify. NOTE: Only higher-level graduate education in excess of more than one-year may be used to qualify for this position and must be in a major such as those listed above. You must include a copy of your transcripts.

Volunteer Experience: 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.

How you will be evaluated

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

Your qualifications will be evaluated based on your application materials (e.g. resume, supporting documents), the responses you provide on the application questionnaire, and the result of the additional assessment(s) required for this position. To be considered for this position, you must complete all required steps in the process.

Your resume must not exceed 2 pages. Only the document submitted as the "Resume" under the Documents section will be used to determine your qualifications/eligibility and for rating purposes. In the event you submit more than one resume, only the latest submission will be reviewed.

You will be assessed in the following competencies (knowledge, skills, abilities, and other characteristics):

• Attention to Detail
• Decision Making
• Flexibility
• Integrity/Honesty
• Interpersonal Skills
• Learning
• Reading Comprehension
• Reasoning
• Self-Management
• Teamwork

In addition to the application and application questionnaire, this position requires successful completion of the USA Hire Assessment, if required.

All qualified non-competitive applicants and the best-qualified Merit Promotion applicants will be referred to the hiring manager for consideration.

Overstating your qualifications and/or experience in your application materials or application questionnaire may result in your removal from consideration or your score may be lowered. Cheating on an assessment may also result in your removal from consideration. Applicants who include vulgar, offensive, or inappropriate language or information in their application package will be ineligible for further consideration for this position.

Current or former displaced Federal employees who are surplus, displaced, or involuntarily separated have special priority selection rights under the Agency Career Transition Assistance Program (CTAP) or the Interagency Career Transition Assistance Program (ICTAP). To be considered under CTAP/ICTAP, you must be well-qualified, score at least 85 (i.e., meet the minimum qualification requirements, including any selective placement factors; education, and experience requirements), and be able to perform the duties of the position upon entry.

The following documents are required and must be submitted by 11:59 PM (ET) -10/20/2026-unless otherwise stated in this vacancy announcement:

1. Resume which includes a list of all significant jobs held and duties performed, with dates in month-year format (include month/day/year format if needed for 52 weeks of experience), and indicate hours worked per week (or full-time). Your resume must clearly show how long you have held each grade/rank. Resumes must not exceed 2 single-sided pages and resumes longer than 2 pages will not be accepted. The minimum font size is 10-point for all body text. All resumes must maintain a minimum 0.5-inch margins on all sides to ensure readability and prevent excessive content compression. Including supplemental pages or attachments disguised as resume extensions are prohibited and will not be reviewed. Your 2-page resume must contain information sufficient to make a valid determination that you fully meet the specialized experience requirements. Resume Builder: https://help.usajobs.gov/faq/application/documents/resume/what-to-include
2. Complete All Required Assessment(s).
3. Performance Appraisals and Awards: You must submit your most recent performance appraisal showing the official rating of record and signed by a supervisor dated within the past 18 months. If unavailable, a written explanation is required (including if any prior performance appraisals/evaluations were at an acceptable level). Performance awards dated within the past 5 years may also be submitted for due weight consideration.
4. All College Transcript(s), required.
5. Eligibility Documentation:
   • Current and former Federal employees must submit latest SF-50 (i.e. Promotion, Separation, Within Grade Increase (WGI)) showing tenure 1 or 2 in block 24, grade, and if applicable, an additional SF-50 showing the highest grade or promotion potential held. Time in grade will be determined by reviewing your resume and required SF-50s. If your SF-50 showing highest permanent grade held has an effective date within the past year, your resume must clearly show that you held that grade for one year. Do not submit award SF-50s.
   • Land Management Workforce Flexibility Act (LMWFA): If you are applying under LMWFA, you must submit ALL Appointment AND Termination SF-50s for EACH appointment verifying the Position Occupied code 1-Competitive Service (block 34); AND Documentation of satisfactory performance for each period of temporary employment claimed, such as, performance evaluations, memorandum of record, whereas the supervisor(s) documented an acceptable performance level for a specified rating/employment period.
   • Interagency Career Transition (ICTAP) and Career Transition Assistance Plan (CTAP): You MUST submit proof of eligibility including 1) copy of the agency notice, e.g., RIF Separation Notice, Notice of Proposed Removal, etc.; 2) SF-50s (Notifications of Personnel Action) showing career/conditional tenure competitive status, promotion potential and duty location; and 3) your most recent performance appraisal. To exercise selection priority, displaced or surplus Federal employees must be well qualified. For more information visit: USAJOBS Help Center - Career Transition Programs (CTAP, ICTAP, RPL).

Failure to submit any of the above-mentioned required documents will result in loss of consideration due to an incomplete application package. It is your responsibility to ensure all required documents have been submitted.

Do not submit photographs with your application package. Do not upload Adobe portfolio documents.

Next steps