Rangeland Management Specialist

Clarification from the agency

This is a Merit Promotion announcement for current and former career and career conditional Federal employees, Career Transition eligibles (CTAP & ICTAP) and those who are eligible under the hiring paths listed above. Refer to Required Documents section for more information.

Some of the major duties you will perform include but are not limited to the following:

• Provide expertise and guidance on rangeland management to staff, land users, and the public.
• Plan and carry out assessments of grazing areas and rangeland conditions.
• Review grazing permit applications to make sure they meet applicable laws and requirements.
• Lead and participate in teams that bring together experts from different fields.
• Develop, update, and plan guidance for managing grazing and rangeland resources.
• Serve as the primary point of contact between permittees and field office decision-makers.
• Oversee coordination and planning for range improvements, permit renewals, and other proposed actions.

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/.
• Must possess and maintain a valid driver's license throughout employment.
• You cannot hold an active real estate license, nor can you have an interest or hold stocks in firms with interest in Federal Lands.

As a condition of employment for accepting this position, you may be required to serve a 1-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 or trial 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 - 11/06/2026-unless otherwise stated in this vacancy announcement. Competitive candidates 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, applicants must meet both the Individual Occupational Requirement (1) AND the Minimum Qualifications (2, 3, 4 or 5):

1. Individual Occupational Requirement 0454 series: (See Education Section)

AND
2. Minimum qualifications GS-0454-5:
A. Entry Grade Rule (GS-05): Meeting the IOR alone fully qualifies an applicant for the GS-05 level in the Rangeland Management series. Applicants seeking grades above GS-05 must also meet additional education and/or specialized experience requirements under the group coverage standard. Examples of acceptable experience paired with qualifying coursework include: (1) Assisting in the conservation, regulation, and use of public or federally controlled lands for grazing; (2) Assisting in range inventory and monitoring activities (including field data collection); (3) Assisting in the operation of a livestock ranch or in the management/preservation of lands comparable to the public range.

3. Minimum qualifications GS-0454-7:
A. Experience: You must have one year of specialized experience equivalent to the GS-05 level. Specialized experience is defined as performing all of the following: (1) Assisting in the conservation, regulation, and use of public or federally controlled lands for grazing; (2) Leading range inventory and monitoring activities that include field data collection; (3) Inspecting and inventorying condition of existing range improvements and identifying needed range improvements; (4) Assisting in the operation of a livestock ranch or in the management or preservation of lands comparable to the public range; (5) developing livestock grazing management plans.
OR
B. Education:One year of graduate-level education (18 semester hours) in a field related to the position being filled which demonstrates the knowledge, skills, and abilities necessary to perform the duties of this position. You must include transcripts. This education is clearly supported by my transcripts provided in my application packet.
OR
C. Combination: A combination of specialized experience and graduate education described that when combined totals 100% of the requirements for this position. You must include hours per week and transcripts.
OR
D. Superior Academic Achievement (S.A.A.): Successfully completed a bachelor's degree in a directly related field AND meet one of the following: (1) Class Standing, (2) Grade-Point Average, or (3) Honor Society Membership. (1) Class Standing: Upper one-third of the graduating class in the college, university, or major subdivision based on completed courses. (2) Grade-Point Average: A grade point average of (a) 3.0 or higher out of a possible 4.0 (B or better) as recorded on the official transcript or as computed based on four years of education, or computed based on courses completed during the final two years of the curriculum; -or- (b) 3.5 or higher out of a possible 4.0 0 (B+ or better) based on the average of the required courses completed in the major field or the required courses in the major field completed during the final two years of the curriculum. (3) Election to Membership in a National Scholastic Honor Society: Applicants may be considered eligible based on membership in one of the national scholastic honor societies. Freshman scholastic honor societies cannot be used to meet the requirements of this position. NOTE: Superior Academic Achievement must have been gained in a curriculum that is qualifying for the position to be filled. (See OPM's General Policies, Application of Qualification Standards Section 4.f.) To qualify under this option you must submit transcripts (official or unofficial) to verify your education.

4. Minimum qualifications GS-0454-9:
A. Experience: You must have one year of specialized experience equivalent to the GS-07 level. Specialized experience is defined as performing all of the following: (1) Assisting in the conservation, regulation, and use of public or federally controlled lands for grazing; (2) Assisting range inventory and monitoring activities that include field data collection; (3) Assisting in the operation of a livestock ranch or in the management or preservation of lands comparable to the public rangelands; (4) Assisting in the development of rangeland management plans to improve range condition and minimize invasive species.
OR
B. Education: 2 years of progressively higher-level graduate education leading to a master's degree or master's or equivalent graduate degree in a field related to the position being filled. This education is clearly supported by my transcripts provided in my application packet.
OR
C. Combination: A combination of qualifying education and experience. Only graduate level education in excess of the amount required for the next lower grade level (18 credits) may be combined with experience. You must include hours per week and transcripts.

5. Minimum qualifications GS-0454-11:
A. Experience: You must have one year of specialized experience equivalent to the GS-09 level. Specialized experience is defined as performing all of the following: (1) Assisting in the conservation, regulation, and use of public or federally controlled lands for grazing; (2) Leading range inventory and monitoring activities that include field data collection; (3) Inspecting and inventorying condition of existing range improvements and identifying needed range improvements; (4) Assisting in the operation of a livestock ranch or in the management or preservation of lands comparable to the public range; (5) Developing rangeland management plans to improve range condition and minimize invasive species.
OR
B. Education: Possess three (3) years of progressively higher-level graduate education leading to a Ph.D. degree, or a Ph.D., or equivalent doctoral degree in a field related to the position being filled. This education is clearly supported by my transcripts provided in my application packet.
OR
C. Combination: A Combination of specialized experience and graduate education described that when combined totals 100% of the requirements for this position. You must include hours per week and 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):

• Compliance
• Interpersonal Skills
• Planning and Evaluating
• Plant Ecology
• Rangeland Management

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 review. 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.

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) -11/06/2026-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), if qualifying based on education.
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.
   • 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): you must submit ALL Appointment AND Termination SF-50s for EACH Competitive time-limited appointment (block 34, code 1); AND Documentation of satisfactory performance for each period of 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 (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.

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