Geographer/Biologist/Physical Scientist/Cartographer Job in Washington, DC

Vacancy No. NC-1616-NAMA-25-12645911-DE Department National Park Service
Salary $55,924.00 to $107,590.00 Grade 7 to 11
Perm/Temp Permanent FT/PT Full-time
Open Date 12/20/2024 Close Date 1/3/2025
Job Link Apply Online Who may apply Public
Locations:
Washington, DC


Summary

The incumbent is responsible for the development, management, coordination, and implementation of the Geographic Information System (GIS) for one or more parks. The interdisciplinary nature of this position requires the programmatic integration of the knowledge of biological and physical resources, digital cartography, and geography to the development, analysis, and use of geographic and relational databases that are pertinent to the park resources and themes.

Duties

The major duties of the position Geographer/Biologist/Physical Scientist/Cartographer include, but are not limited to, the following:

  • Document, analyze, and integrate the management of natural and cultural resources using GIS.
  • Prepares GIS plans, data dictionaries, project proposals, and GIS-related contract and agreement specifications.
  • Develop user interface for data input.
  • Collect GIS data in field.
  • Prepares written documents on GIS matters.
Duties will be developmental in nature when filled below the full performance level.

Requirements

Conditions of Employment

  • U.S. Citizenship required.
  • Appointment subject to background investigation and favorable adjudication.
  • Meet Selective Service Registration Act requirement for males.
  • Selectee will be required to participate in the Direct Deposit Electronics Funds Transfer Program.
  • You may be required to operate a government (or private) motor vehicle as part of your official duties. Prior to your first official motor vehicle operation, and again every year thereafter (or more frequently if management determines such need exists), you will be required to sign an affidavit certifying to your possession of a valid State issued driver's license that is current and has not been revoked, suspended, canceled, or otherwise disqualified in any way to prohibit your operation of a motor vehicle. You will also submit a photocopy of your valid State issued driver's license prior to your first official motor vehicle operation, and again every year, or more frequently if management determines such need exists. Lastly, you may be required to submit (within a State sealed envelope or submitted directly by the State authorities), and at your own expense, all certified driving records from all States that discloses all valid driver's licenses, whether current or past, possessed by you.
  • You will be required to wear a uniform and comply with the National Park Service uniform standards. A uniform allowance will be provided.
  • If you are a new employee or supervisor in the Federal government, you will be required to complete a one-year probationary period.

Qualifications

All qualifications must be met by the closing date of this announcement-01/03/2025-unless otherwise stated in this vacancy announcement.

Credit will be given for all appropriate qualifying experience. To receive credit for experience, your resume MUST clearly indicate the nature of the duties and responsibilities for each position, starting and ending dates of employment (month/year), and the resume must reflect full and/or part-time or total number of hours worked (i.e., work 40+ hours a week, rather than indicating full-time). If part-time, the hours must be annotated to be able to pro-rate the amount of qualified specialized experience.

BASIC QUALIFICATIONS: If you do not meet these basic requirements, you will be considered not qualified and will not receive consideration for this position.

-AND-

To qualify for this position at the GS-07 grade level, you must possess all of the following minimum qualifications by close of the announcement:

GS-07 EXPERIENCE: At least one full year of specialized experience comparable in scope and responsibility to the GS-05 grade level in the Federal service (obtained in either the public or private sectors). This experience must include all of the following activities: 1) Using 3D modeling; 2) Mapping; and 3) Surveying.
-OR-
EDUCATION: Successful completion of at least one (1) full year of Graduate Education, with a major that is related to the duties of this position. You must include transcripts.
-OR-
Successful completion of a combination of education and experience as described above. You must include transcripts.
-OR-
Superior Academic Achievement: To qualify, you must have successful completed a bachelor's degree in a field directly related to the duties of this position AND meet one of the following Superior Academic Achievement provisions: (1) Class Standing: rank in the upper third of the graduating class in the college, university, or major subdivision , such as College of Liberal Arts or School of Business Administration, based on the completed courses; OR (2) Grad-Point Average: earn a grade-point average of (a) 3.0 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 of the curriculum. Note: grade-point averages will be rounded to the one decimal place, for example, 2.95 = 3.0, 2.94 = 2.9, and 3.45 = 3.5; OR (3) Membership in a National Scholastic Honor Society: elected membership in one of the national scholastic honor societies. Freshman scholastic honor societies cannot be used to meet the requirements of this provision.

To qualify for this position at the GS-09 grade level, you must possess all of the following minimum qualifications by close of the announcement:GS-09 EXPERIENCE: At least one full year of specialized experience comparable in scope and responsibility to the GS-07 grade level in the Federal service (obtained in either the public or private sectors). This experience must include all of the following activities:
  • Intermediate experience using Geographic Information System (GIS) and/or Computer Aided Design (CAD) software. Intermediate experience includes both obtaining existing and creating new geospatial data from non-digital sources for the design, creation, and revision of maps, charts, and related cartographic products and geospatial parcel databases.
  • Develops custom map products under supervision from more experienced GIS staff.
-OR-
EDUCATION: Successful completion of at least two (2) years of progressively higher level graduate education leading to a master's degree or master's or equivalent graduate degree, with a major that is related to the duties of this position. You must include transcripts .-OR-
Successful completion of a combination of education and experience as described above. You must include transcripts.

To qualify for this position at the GS-11 grade level, you must possess all of the following minimum qualifications by close of the announcement:GS-11 EXPERIENCE: At least one full year of specialized experience comparable in scope and responsibility to the GS-09 grade level in the Federal service (obtained in either the public or private sectors). This experience must include all of the following activities: 1) using Geographic Information Systems (GIS); and (2) Using models that utilize GIS data.
-OR-
EDUCATION: Successful completion of three (3) years of progressively higher level graduate education leading to a Ph.D. degree or Ph.D. or equivalent doctoral degree, with a major that is related to the duties of this position. You must include transcripts.--OR--Successful completion of a combination of education and experience as described above. You must include transcripts.

You must include months, years and hours per week worked to receive credit for your work and/or volunteer experience. One year of specialized experience is equivalent to 12 months at 40 hours per week. Part-time hours are prorated. You will not receive any credit for experience that does not indicate exact hours per week or is listed as "varies". Experience listed as full-time will be credited at 40 hours per week.

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.

Education

To qualify based on education, you must submit a legible copy of transcripts from an accredited institution with your name, school name, credit hours, course level, major(s), and grade-point average or class ranking. Transcripts do not need to be official, but if you are selected for this position and you used your education to qualify, you must provide official transcripts before you begin work.

If you are using education completed in foreign colleges or universities to meet qualification requirements, you must show that your education credentials have been evaluated by a private organization that specializes in interpretation of foreign education programs and such education has been deemed equivalent to that gained in an accredited U.S. education program; or full credit has been given for the courses at a U.S. accredited college or university.

Additional information

A selectee receiving a first appointment to the Federal Government (Civil Service) is entitled only to the lowest step of the grade for which selected The display of a salary range on this vacancy shall not be construed as granting an entitlement to a higher rate of pay.

A Recruitment Incentive May Be Authorized for a newly selected employee when appointed to a permanent, temporary, or term position. A Federal employee who is transferring to the National Park Service from another component, bureau or Federal agency and who does not meet the conditions under 5 CFR §575.102 is not eligible for a recruitment incentive.

A Relocation Incentive May Be Authorized for a Federal employee when the employee must move, as directed by the National Park Service (NPS) either through a management directed reassignment or selection for employment, to a different location at least 50 miles away from the one where his/her position of record held at time of selection is currently located, due to a need of the NPS. A relocation incentive is not the same as a Permanent Change of Station (PCS) move and, as such, may be granted in conjunction with one another.

This announcement may be used to fill additional positions if identical vacancies occur within 90 days of the issue date of the referral certificate.

Promotion to the full performance level is neither guaranteed nor implied and will be based solely on your ability to satisfactorily perform the work of the position, existing work at the higher grade level, and recommendation by the position's supervisor.


Physical Demands: The work is often sedentary but field work occasionally requires some physical exertion such as long periods of standing, walking over rough, muddy, uneven, swampy or mountainous terrain; recurring periods of bending, crouching, stooping, stretching, reaching or similar activities; and recurring lifting of moderately heavy items weighing up to 50 pounds. Computer work is sedentary, which entails the ability to concentrate and use computers for long periods of time.

Working Conditions: Work is primarily performed indoors in a climate controlled office environment. Outdoor work may occur in hot, cold, humid, or dry weather conditions. Outdoor work may also be required
during periods of rain, snow, sleet, fog or other adverse weather conditions.

The National Park Service has determined that the duties of this position are suitable for telework and the selectee may be allowed to telework with supervisor approval.

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.

You will be evaluated based on how well you meet the qualifications listed in this vacancy announcement. 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 assessments required for this position. A review of your resume and supporting documentation will be made and compared against your responses to the Assessment Questionnaire to determine if you are qualified for this job. If your resume is incomplete or does not support the responses provided in the Assessment Questionnaire, or if you fail to submit all required documentation, you will be rated 'ineligible', 'not qualified', or your score will be adjusted accordingly. If a determination is made that you have inflated your qualifications or experience, you can lose consideration for this position. Please follow all instructions carefully; errors or omissions can affect your rating.

Candidates will be rated and ranked using Category Rating procedures. These procedures place candidates with veteran's preference above non-preference eligibles within each category. Veterans with a service connected disability of at least 10 percent are listed in the highest quality category, except when the position being filled is scientific or professional at the GS-09 grade level or higher. Under Category Rating, candidates will be rated and ranked into one of three categories:

  • Best Qualified - applicants possessing experience that substantially exceeds the minimum qualifications of the position including all selective factors and are highly proficient in all requirements of the job and can perform effectively in the position
  • Well Qualified - applicants possessing experience that exceeds the minimum qualifications of the position including all selective factors and are proficient in most of the requirements of the job
  • Qualified - applicants possessing experience that meets the minimum qualifications of the position including all selective factors and are proficient in some, but not all of the requirements of the job.
You will be evaluated on the following competencies:
  • Data Management
  • Information Management
  • Technical Competence


In order 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 assessments, including a panel resume review. These assessments measure the critical competencies listed above that are required to successfully perform the job.

Required Documents

The following documents are required and must be submitted by 11:59 PM (EST) on 01/03/2025:

  1. Resume which includes a list of all significant jobs held and duties performed, dates specified in month and year format, and the resume must reflect full and/or part-time or total number of hours worked (i.e., work 40+ hours a week, rather than indicating full-time). If part-time, the hours must be annotated to be able to pro-rate the amount of qualified specialized experience. If military or civilian, please include your rank and/or grade.
  2. Complete All Required Assessments.
  3. Other Supporting Documents, if applicable, such as:
    • Veterans Preference Documentation:
      • If you are a Discharged, Non-Disabled Veteran, you must submit a copy of your DD-214 showing character of discharge (Member 4 copy), or other Documentation of Service and Separation under Honorable Conditions, as listed on the SF15. If you don't have your DD-214, you may request it after discharge from the National Archives.
      • 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.
      • If you are a Disabled Veteran, Purple Heart Recipient, or Mother or Spouse of a Disabled or Deceased Veteran, you must submit all additional proof required by the SF15, and if applicable, a completed SF15. You may request a copy of your Department of Veterans Affairs letter from www.ebenefits.va.gov or call 1-800-827-1000 to establish proof of disability.
  4. College transcripts, if qualifying based on education.
  5. Documentation for Interagency/Career Transition Assistance Plan consideration if you are a displaced Federal employee within the local commuting area. You must include: 1) Proof you are a displaced Federal employee, 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 rated well-qualified or above 85 on the rating criteria for this position.
Do not submit photographs with your application package. Documents with photographs may not be seen by hiring officials - you must remove your image from any badges, licenses, etc.

Do not upload Adobe portfolio documents. Adobe portfolio documents are not viewable by our agency's staffing offices.

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 occupational questionnaire and submit the documentation specified in the Required Documents section below. To receive consideration, the complete application package must be submitted by 11:59 PM (EST) on 01/03/2025. You must provide documentation to support your claim for each eligibility selected. Please review the required documentation listed in the eligibilities language to ensure you submit the appropriate information. Note: You will only be marked eligible for those eligibilities that you selected and provided the appropriate supporting documentation.

WE DO NOT ACCEPT HARD-COPY OR E-MAIL APPLICATION PACKAGES.

  1. Select Apply. If you are not logged in, you will be prompted to login or create an account.
  2. Prompted to Start the Application Process by selecting "Start Application."
  3. Select or add the resume you want to use for this application. Click here on how to build a resume in USAJOBS.
  4. Select documents you want included in this application.
  5. Review package to acknowledge your documents were reviewed.
  6. Select if you want to include your demographic information.
  7. After reading and certifying the application is true and submitted in good faith, select "Continue to Agency Site."
  8. Follow onscreen prompts and instructions to complete your application.
  9. Add the supporting documents by indexing your documents with the dropdown.
    • Upload any missing required documents or optional documents.
  10. Review and Submit Application.
  11. While logged in, you can check the status of your application by selecting "+" next to the job title for this position.
  12. You can review or revise your application at any point during the open period of the announcement.
    • To update an application, you should log into your USAJOBS account and select "+" next to the job title for this position. Select "Update Application" for this job.
    • Note: When you click Update Application, you will be prompted to re-select your documents from USAJOBS. Documents submitted with the first application will no longer be associated with the applicant record. So it is important that you select all documents you want to use in the re-application.
Please note: The eligibility section of the application process is designed to allow you to choose how you wish to be considered for this vacancy announcement. You will ONLY be considered for the appointment eligibilities that you select. You must provide the supporting documentation to support your claim. Please review the list of documentation provided in the eligibilities language to ensure you provide the appropriate information. You may choose more than one eligibility.

Agency contact information

Kara Gulvas
Address
National Mall and Memorial Parks
1100 Ohio Drive SW
WASHINGTON, DC 20024
US
Learn more about this agency

Next steps

Once the Occupational Questionnaire is received you will receive acknowledgement that your submission was successful. If you are among the most qualified candidates and your name is referred to the hiring official, you may be contacted directly for a possible interview. You will be notified of the status of your Application Package at the time candidates are referred for consideration, and when the selection process is complete.


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


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