Hydrologic Technician Job

Vacancy No. BOR-LCB-26-FUL-12986848-NW Department Bureau of Reclamation
Salary $51,542.00 to $67,006.00 Grade 7 to 7
Perm/Temp Permanent FT/PT Full-time
Open Date 6/22/2026 Close Date 7/3/2026
Job Link Apply Online Who may apply Public
Locations:
Blythe, CABoulder City, NV


Hydrologic Technician

Department of the Interior
Bureau of Reclamation
Lower Colorado Basin Region, Boulder Canyon Operations Office

Summary

Reclamation is seeking a career professional looking for an opportunity to capitalize on their expertise as a Hydrologic Technician. You can make a difference in the West by assisting in meeting increasing water demands while protecting the environment.

Duty Location: Boulder Canyon Operations Office, located in Boulder City, NV OR Blythe, CA.

To be considered you must currently reside within 50 miles of Boulder City, NV OR 50 miles of Blythe, CA.

This job is open to

The public

U.S. Citizens, Nationals or those who owe allegiance to the U.S.

Clarification from the agency

This position is being filled under the Field Unit Local Hiring Authority and is open to U.S. citizens and nationals who meet all eligibility requirements, including permanent and exclusive residency within the defined vicinity of the field unit as described in this announcement. Under this authority, veterans' preference and traditional rating and ranking procedures do not apply.

Duties

Gathers hydrologic data concerning the quantity, quality, availability, movement, and distribution of water.
Reviews hydrologic records that have been collected and computed.
Performs a variety of computations and analysis of water resource data to prepare the data for interpretive use or inclusion in reports.
Conducts monthly visits to field sites for the purposes of calibrating, adjusting, and repairing remote telemetry units (RTUs), ADVMs, and data collection platforms (DCPs); extracts, validates, and transfers data/information from the field site to the office and downloads data into the database; computes daily, monthly, and annual figures used for water accounting and/or operational needs.

Salary Range Information (Per Annum): *First time hires to the federal government typically start at the beginning salary in the range for their respective grade level.

Boulder City NV salary range: $51,542 - $67,006 per year
Blythe CA salary range: $58,827 - $76,476 per year

One vacancy available in each duty location.

Requirements

Conditions of employment

You must be a U.S. Citizen or U.S. National.
You must be suitable for federal employment, determined by a background investigation. You must submit a resume and supporting documentation (see Required Documents).
You must maintain a valid State Driver's License at all times as the position requires operation of government vehicles on government and public roads. Failure to maintain a valid State Driver's License at all times will result in removal from the position.
You will be required to obtain a successful pre-employment physical examination by a licensed physician certifying your ability to perform the duties of this position. A physical exam may not be required if a comparable agency approved examination was performed within the last 12 months. The cost of the exam will be reimbursed by the agency.
Field work is required 50% of the time - operation of, in and around boats is required.
Overtime is regular and recurring.
You must currently reside within 50 miles of Boulder City, NV OR 50 miles of Blythe, CA; proof of residency required at time of application.
Continue to the Additional Information section for the Condition of Employment For Probationary Period.

Qualifications

To qualify for the GS-07 grade level, your resume must reflect 1 year of full time experience performing 3 of the following duties: 1) Collecting water quality samples; 2) Extracting, validating, and transferring data/information from the field site to the office and downloads data into the database; computes daily, monthly, and annual figures used for water accounting and/or operational needs; 3) Performing acoustic doppler current profiler (ADCP) discharge measurements; 4) Compiling shift adjustments and re-establishes rating tables when the cumulative shift adjustments invalidate the existing tables; 5) Inputting data on discharge measurements, shift adjustments, and changes to rating tables via computer into the variety of software programs utilized for the operations database and for analysis and reporting purposes; 6)Maintaining specified reports including detailed documentation of field measurements, data logs, files, maintenance, and calibration procedures of electronic and mechanical hydrologic equipment; and 7) Assisting in performing differential leveling circuits.
OR

Education: Successful completion of at least one full year (18 semester hours/27 quarter hours) of graduate level education leading to a master's degree in a field directly related to the work of the position, such as science, engineering or industrial technology, construction, physics, drafting, surveying, physical science, biology, or mathematics (or equivalent). NOTE: You must include transcripts.
OR
Combination: Successful completion of a combination of education and experience as described above. To calculate the education percentage, first total your semester hours and divide by 60; then take the number of months of full-time experience and divide by 12 (part-time will be prorated). Add the percentages together. The total must equal at least 100 percent to qualify. Note: You must submit copies of your college transcript.

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.

Time-In-Grade: Current career or career-conditional employees of the Federal government, or former career or career-conditional employees, who have a break in service of less than one year, are required to meet the time-in-grade restriction of one year of Federal experience at the next lower-grade, with few exceptions outlined in 5 CFR 300.603(b).

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.

Accreditation: Only education from an accredited college or university recognized by the Department of Education is acceptable to meet education requirements or to substitute for experience, if applicable. For additional info, refer to the Office of Personnel Management and U.S. Department of Education.

Additional information

This position will be filled under the Field Unit Local Hiring Authority. Eligibility is limited to applicants who reside within the defined local commuting area at the time of application. For this announcement, the local commuting area is the area from which individuals can reasonably commute to the duty station under normal conditions.

The defined vicinity for this announcement is as follows:
within 50 miles of Boulder City, NV OR
within 50 miles of Blythe, CA

The Hydrologic Crew operates out of Blythe, CA. If selected for the Boulder City, NV position, the selectee will work in an office separate from the rest of the crew.

See the Required Documents section for information on how to verify current residence.

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.

This announcement may be used to fill additional positions.

Full performance level of this position is GS-10; 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.

DOI uses E-Verify to confirm the employment eligibility of all newly hired employees. To learn more about E-Verify, including applicant rights and responsibilities, please visit https://www.e-verify.gov/

This position is designated as a MODERATE RISK Public Trust position. It requires a fully completed and favorably adjudicated Public Trust Suitability Background Investigation (T2S or T2RS or equivalent) that is current (within the last 5 years). This is a condition of employment.

Male applicants born after December 31, 1959 must certify registration with the Selective Service System or that the applicant is exempt from having to do so under the Selective Service Law. Go to: https://www.sss.gov

This is a bargaining unit position represented by AFGE Local 1978.

Candidates should be committed to improving the efficiency of the Federal government, passionate about the ideals of our American republic, and committed to upholding the rule of law and the United States Constitution.

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.

Applicants will be evaluated based on how well they meet the qualification requirements for the position.

Upon receipt of a completed application package, the Servicing Human Resources Office will review your resume and supporting documentation to determine whether you meet the minimum qualification requirements described in this announcement.

Resumes must not exceed two single-sided pages. Resumes longer than two pages will not be reviewed. Applicants may submit only one resume. Only the document submitted as the "Resume" under the Documents section will be used to determine qualifications and eligibility. If more than one resume is submitted, only the most recent submission will be reviewed.

This position is being filled under the Field Unit Local Hiring Authority. Under this authority, competitive rating, ranking, and veterans' preference procedures do not apply. The Servicing Human Resources Office will determine whether applicants meet the qualification and eligibility requirements described in this announcement. Applicants who meet these requirements may be referred to the selecting official on a certificate of eligibles for consideration.

You must certify that you will maintain a permanent and exclusive residence within the defined vicinity of the field unit(s) listed in this announcement.

If your resume is incomplete or does not demonstrate that you meet the qualification requirements or specialized experience described in this announcement, you may be determined ineligible or not qualified for further consideration.

Providing false or misleading information on your resume or supporting documentation may result in removal from consideration or other action consistent with applicable federal hiring regulations.

Required Documents

The following documents are required and must be submitted by 11:59 PM (EST) on 07/03/2026:

  1. Two Page 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 qualified specialized experience. If military or civilian, please include your rank and/or grade. Resumes must not exceed two single-sided pages and resumes longer than two pages will not be accepted. The minimum font size is 10-point for all body text. Headers may be slightly larger but must remain legible. 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 to determine your eligibility/qualifications.
  2. Proof of residence (e.g. mortgage or property deed, lease/rental agreement, utility bill, insurance policy). SF-50 cannot be accepted as proof of residence.
  3. Transcripts if qualifying based on education.
  4. Documentation for Interagency/Career Transition Assistance Plan (ICTAP/CTAP) 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 well qualified. ICTAP/CTAP eligibles will be considered well qualified if they exceed minimal qualifications for this position (i.e. Resume supports substantial possession of stated competencies) for the 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.

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 submit the documentation specified in the Required Documents section. To receive consideration, your complete application package must be submitted by 11:59 PM (EST) on 07/03/2026.

You must provide documentation to support your eligibility and qualification claims. Please review the required documentation listed in the eligibility sections to ensure you submit the appropriate information. You will only be considered for eligibilities for which you have provided the required supporting documentation.

Applications may be submitted through USAJOBS or through other authorized methods identified by the agency (e.g., third-party platforms or local outreach efforts) to support targeted recruitment under this authority.

Applicants submitting materials outside of USAJOBS must:

  • Submit a complete application package by the 07/03/2026 of this announcement, and

  • Ensure all materials are formatted and consistent with the application instructions outlined in this announcement, including resume requirements and supporting documentation.

All applications, regardless of submission method, will be evaluated using the same criteria and requirements to ensure a fair and equitable hiring process.

Applications received after the closing date, or that do not meet the requirements outlined in this announcement, will not be considered.

USAJOBS Application Instructions
  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.

Agency contact information

Nicole Wilson
Phone
000-000-0000
Email
nicole_wilson@ios.doi.gov
Address
Lower Colorado Basin
Bureau of Reclamation
PO Box 61470
Boulder City, NV 89006
US

Next steps

Once your application has been received, you will receive an acknowledgment confirming your submission was successful.

Applicants who meet the eligibility and qualification requirements will be referred to the selecting official for consideration. Under this authority, all applicants determined to be qualified may be referred. If your name is referred, you may be contacted directly by the hiring official for a possible interview.

You will be notified of the status of your application at key stages in the process, including when candidates are referred for consideration and when the selection process has been completed.

Bureau of Reclamation

The Bureau of Reclamation is a contemporary water management agency best known for constructing dams, powerplants, and canals in the 17 western United States, having constructed more than 600 dams and reservoirs. We are the largest wholesaler of water and the second-largest producer of hydroelectric power in the United States.

Our mission is to manage, develop, and protect water and related resources in an environmentally and economically sound manner in the interest of the American public. We place great emphasis on fulfilling our water delivery obligations, water conservation, water recycling and reuse, and developing partnerships with our customers, states, and Native American Tribes. We also find ways to bring together various interests to address the competing needs for limited water resources.

Our core values are professional excellence, safety, and respect. We are results-oriented. We share a personal commitment to protecting the safety of each other, contractors, customers, as well as the people and communities served by our projects. We embrace a culture of respect for people through our ethical behavior and with clear, effective communication.

Agency contact information

Nicole Wilson
Phone
000-000-0000
Email
nicole_wilson@ios.doi.gov
Address
Lower Colorado Basin
Bureau of Reclamation
PO Box 61470
Boulder City, NV 89006
US

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