Engineering Technician (Petroleum)

Clarification from the agency

This is a Merit Promotion announcement for career and career conditional Federal employees, I/CTAP eligibles and those who are eligible under the hiring paths listed above. Refer to Required Documents section for more information.

This job is also open in another announcement to:

The public

Career transition (CTAP, ICTAP, RPL)

Special authorities

Duties will be developmental in nature when filled below the full performance level. The duties below are at the full performance level.

• Inspect all aspects of drilling operations to ensure that operator's equipment, safety systems, and operations are in compliance with the approved regulations.
• Inspect commingled production sites and venting/flaring operations to verify handling of production per approvals.
• Inspect undesirable events such as spills or production losses, to document and determine cause, remedial action to be taken, and volume loss.
• Document problems and determines corrective action.
• This position requires a considerable amount of math at the high school algebra level to verify volume and height of cement, other drilling fluids, oil, and gas volumes to account for production from Federal oil and gas leases, and other assignments.

Conditions of employment

• U.S. Citizenship is required. Must provide proof of U.S. citizenship during onboarding.
• Appointment subject to background investigation and favorable adjudication.
• Males born after 12-31-59 must be registered for Selective Service. To verify registration, visit SSS.gov.
• Direct Deposit participation required.
• Successfully pass the E-Verify employment verification check. To learn more, visit https://www.e-verify.gov/.
• Must possess and maintain a valid driver's license throughout employment.
• An applicant appointed to this position must possess (or obtain within 30 days of entrance on duty) and maintain a US Government Motor Vehicle Operator's Identification Card.
• An applicant must be able to operate 4-wheel drive vehicles in order to perform site inspections.
• A financial disclosure report, Confidential Financial Disclosure Report OGE-450, will be required within 30 days of appointment.
• You cannot hold an active real estate license, nor can you have an interest or hold stocks in firms with interest in Federal Lands.
• PET POSITIONS ONLY-0802: You must successfully complete the BLM Petroleum Engineering Technician (PET) Certification Program and continue service in the Federal Government for 2 years from the date of obtaining PET certification.
• PET certification is required at the GS-10 and GS-11 grades and must be maintained.
• Your resume must contain enough information to show that you meet the qualification requirements as defined in the announcement. In addition, your responses to the questions must adequately reflect in your resume.

As a condition of employment for accepting this position, you may be required to serve a 1-year probationary period or 2-year trial period to evaluate your fitness and whether your continuation of employment advances the public interest.

This probationary or trial 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.

*Additional Requirements located under Qualifications*

Qualifications

Conditions of Employment continued
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, 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 or trial period your employment will be terminated unless you receive certification, in writing, that your continued employment advances the public interest.

All qualifications must be met by the closing date of this announcement - 07/21/2026-unless otherwise stated in this announcement. Competitive applicants must also meet Time-in-Grade requirements as defined in 5 CFR 300, Subpart F.

For current Federal employees, if hours worked per week are not included on your resume, you must submit a non-award SF-50 as part of your application to be used to validate your work schedule and determine the amount of specialized experience that you will be granted. An award SF-50 will not be acceptable documentation for which to consider your amount of qualifying experience. For periods of time that reflect military service, the DD-214 or Statement of Service is sufficient to meet the work schedule requirement as the service dates will be reflected. For all other applicants who are not current federal employees, 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.

Minimum Qualification Requirements: To qualify for this position, you must meet the following minimum qualifications:

To qualify for this position at the GS-7 grade level:
Experience: To qualify, you must possess at least one full year of specialized experience equivalent to the GS-6 level in the Federal service (obtained in either the public or private sectors). Specialized experience is defined as demonstrated experience as indicated by two of the following four duties:
1. Utilize monitoring systems for drilling fluids
2. Operate and maintain drilling and production equipment
3. Safety compliance (i.e. follow procedures, check surface casing, and check cementing operations)
4. Work closely with engineers and other technical teams to optimize production methods
You must include hours per week worked
-OR-
Education: Successful completion of at least one full year of graduate education directly related to the work of this position (i.e. major study in petroleum engineering or a related field). You must include transcripts.
-OR-
Combination of education and experience as listed above. The total must equal at least 100 percent to qualify. You must include hours per week and transcripts.

To qualify for this position at the GS-8 grade level:
Experience: To qualify, you must possess at least one full year of specialized experience equivalent to the GS-7 level in the Federal service (obtained in either the public or private sectors). Specialized experience is defined as demonstrated experience as indicated by three of the following four duties:
1. Utilize monitoring systems for drilling fluids
2. Operate and maintain drilling and production equipment
3. Safety compliance (i.e. follow procedures, check surface casing, and check cementing operations)
4. Work closely with engineers and other technical teams to optimize production methods
You must include hours per week worked.
-OR-
Education: Successful completion of at least one full year of graduate education directly related to the work of this position (i.e. major study in petroleum engineering or a related field). You must include transcripts.
-OR-
Combination of education and experience as listed above. The total must equal at least 100 percent to qualify. You must include hours per week and transcripts.

To qualify for this position at the GS-9 grade level:
Experience: To qualify, you must possess at least one full year of specialized experience equivalent to the GS-8 level in the Federal service (obtained in either the public or private sectors). Specialized experience is defined as demonstrated experience as indicated by four of the following five duties:
1. Utilize monitoring systems for drilling fluids
2. Operate and maintain drilling and production equipment
3. Safety compliance (i.e. follow procedures, check surface casing, and check cementing operations)
4. Work closely with engineers and other technical teams to optimize production methods
5. Drafting correspondence such as reports, inspections, violations, etc. for gas and oil operations
You must include hours per week worked.
-OR-
Education: Successful completion of at least two full years of graduate education or a master's degree directly related to the work of this position (i.e. major study in petroleum engineering or a related field). You must include transcripts.
-OR-
Combination of education and experience as listed above. The total must equal at least 100 percent to qualify. You must include hours per week and transcripts.

To qualify for this position at the GS-10 grade level:
Experience: To qualify, you must possess at least one full year of specialized experience equivalent to the GS-9 level in the Federal service (obtained in either the public or private sectors). Specialized experience is defined as demonstrated experience as indicated by five of the following eight duties:
1. Utilize monitoring systems for drilling fluids
2. Operate and maintain drilling and production equipment
3. Safety compliance (i.e. follow procedures, check surface casing, and check cementing operations)
4. Conducting drill rig inspections
5. Provide technical guidance and assist with on-site onshore oil and gas inspections
6. Utilizing blowout preventer
7. Work closely with engineers and other technical teams to optimize production methods
8. Drafting correspondence such as reports, inspections, violations, etc. for gas and oil operations
You must include hours per week worked.

To qualify for this position at the GS-11 grade level:
Experience: To qualify, you must possess at least one full year of specialized experience equivalent to the GS-10 level in the Federal service (obtained in either the public or private sectors). Specialized experience is defined as demonstrated experience as indicated by six of the following eight duties:
1. Utilize monitoring systems for drilling fluids
2. Operate and maintain drilling and production equipment
3. Safety compliance (i.e. follow procedures, check surface casing, and check cementing operations)
4. Conducting drill rig inspections
5. Provide technical guidance and assist with on-site onshore oil and gas inspections
6. Utilizing blowout preventer
7. Work closely with engineers and other technical teams to optimize production methods
8. Drafting correspondence such as reports, inspections, violations, etc. for gas and oil operations
You must include hours per week worked.

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):

• Compliance Inspection
• Industrial Equipment Operation
• Negotiation
• Petroleum Engineering

To be considered for this position, you must complete all required steps in the process. In addition to the application and application questionnaire, this position requires successful completion of additional assessment(s), including a structured resume. These assessments measure the critical competencies listed above that are required to successfully perform the job.

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

DUE WEIGHT: Please submit 1) a copy of your most recent performance appraisal/evaluation and 2) a list of any awards (e.g. superior performance awards, special act or achievement awards, quality step increase, etc.) you received in the last 5 years. Any performance appraisal/evaluation and award documentation you provide will be forwarded to the selecting official. The selecting official will review this documentation and give it due weight consideration during the overall selection process. If you do not have your most recent performance appraisal/evaluation, you must submit a statement as to why it is not available. Please indicate if any prior performance appraisals/evaluations were at an acceptable level.

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.

Current surplus and current or former displaced Federal individuals who have special priority selection rights under the Agency Career Transition Assistance Program (CTAP) or the Interagency Career Transition Assistance Program (ICTAP) must be well qualified for the position to receive consideration for special priority selection. Well qualified means that the applicant meets the following: OPM qualification standards for the position; all selective placement factors, where applicable; special qualifying conditions that OPM has approved for the position, where applicable; is physically qualified with reasonable accommodation, where appropriate to satisfactorily perform the duties of the position upon entry; and is rated by the organization at least at the well qualified level.

The following documents are required and must be submitted by 11:59 PM (EST) -07/21/2026-unless otherwise stated.

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 Assessments.
3. Performance Appraisals and Awards: All applicants must submit their most recent performance appraisal showing the official rating of record and signed by a supervisor. If the performance appraisal is not dated within the last 18 months OR no performance appraisal is available, you must submit a statement as to why it is not available (including if any prior performance appraisals/evaluations were at an acceptable level).
4. All College Transcript(s), if qualifying based on education.
5. PET Certification/Pending PET documentation.
6. 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.
   • Veterans Preference Documentation: Veterans eligible under VRA (GS-11 & below only), VEOA, 30% or more Disabled, or Disabled Veterans Enrolled in a VA Training Program must submit the most recent Documentation of Service and Separation under Honorable Conditions (e.g. DD-214) as listed on the SF15. If you are a Parent or Spouse of a Disabled or Deceased Veteran, you must submit all documentation as listed on the SF15. You may request a copy of the VA letter from https://www.va.gov/records. If you are a veteran within 120 days of discharge, you must submit signed documentation from the Armed Forces certifying: 1) your expected release/retirement from active duty, 2) under honorable conditions, 3) your pay grade/rank/rate at time of discharge, 4) dates of active-duty service, 5) any campaign or expeditionary medals received, & 6) dated within 120 days of your separation.
   • Public Land Corps: You must provide a copy of your signed Certificate of Non-Competitive Eligibility and clearly state in your resume time served and duties performed on an appropriate conservation project.
   • 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.
   • Special Appointing Authorities: If you are applying under a special appointing authority (i.e. Schedule A, Peace Corps, Military Spouses, etc.), you must submit appropriate documentation to verify your eligibility. If you fail to submit proof, you will not receive consideration. If you're eligible for an authority not listed, you are responsible for submitting documentation that's appropriate for that specific authority.
   • Interagency/Career Transition Assistance Plan (I/CTAP): If you are applying under I/CTAP, you MUST submit proof of eligibility including a copy of the agency notice, most recent performance rating, and most recent SF-50 showing your position, grade level, and duty location. 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.

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