Summary

This position is located in the United States Department of Agriculture, Economic Research Service, Rural Economy Branch.

In this position, you will be responsible for formulating research plans, developing methodology, determining data needs, and defining resources needed to carry out complex social science research and analysis programs of great significance and difficulty.

This job is open to

The public

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

Career transition (CTAP, ICTAP, RPL)

Federal employees whose job, agency or department was eliminated and are eligible for priority over other applicants.

Clarification from the agency

Applications will be accepted from any U.S. citizen. Direct Hire Authority will be used to fill this position. Veterans Preference and traditional rating and ranking of applicants does not apply to this vacancy.

Duties

Formulates research plans, develops methodology, determines data needs, and defines resources needed to carry out complex social science research and analysis programs of great significance and difficulty.
Conduct analysis of demographic phenomena that have economic and social consequences on various areas within rural America.
May serve as an expert on rural data sources and on definitions of rural necessary for both Federal research and policy applications.
Produce authoritative technical advice and guidance on Departmental actions and policy decisions related to demographic, geographic, and socioeconomic analyses of rural America.
Conduct analysis of population and migration change at both the overall rural level and in individual counties and regions.
Use spatial analyses of various indicators of rural resident and community well-being.
Report findings and provide solutions to problems that have been particularly difficult and unyielding to analysis, validate or modify existing scientific theory.
Lead the development and reporting of analyses of population trends and migration patterns for rural US households.

Requirements

Conditions of employment

You must be a US Citizen or US National
Males born after 12/31/1959 must be Selective Service registered or exempt
Subject to satisfactory adjudication of background investigation and/or fingerprint check
Successful completion of one-year probationary period.
Direct Deposit – Per Public Law 104-134 all Federal employees are required to have federal payments made by direct deposit to their financial institution
Successfully pass the E-Verify employment verification check. To learn more about E-Verify, including your rights and responsibilities, visit E-Verify at https://www.e-verify.gov/

Qualifications

Applicants must meet all qualifications and eligibility requirements by the closing date of the announcement including specialized experience and/or education, as defined below.

Basic Requirements:
Degree: A full 4-year degree of study in behavioral or social science; or related disciplines appropriate to the position. Related disciplines may include demography, sociology, geography, economics, and agricultural economics.

OR

A combination of education and experience that provided the applicant with knowledge of one or more of the behavioral or social sciences equivalent to a major in the field.

AND

In addition to the basic requirements above, all applicants must also meet the following minimum qualification requirements:

Specialized Experience: Specialized experience is experience directly related to the position to be filled. Specialized experience must be described for each grade level advertised. The specialized experience requirements for this position are:

GS-12:
Qualifying experience for GS-12 includes one year of specialized experience comparable to GS-11; or its non-Federal equivalent that includes experience applying advanced social science research methodologies and quantitative analysis techniques to the conduct of complex demographic and/or socioeconomic research and analysis relevant to rural development; communicating research findings through peer-reviewed publications or equivalent government reports.

GS-13:
Qualifying experience for GS-13 includes one year of specialized experience comparable to GS-12 level; or its non-Federal equivalent that includes experience coordinating and analyzing data for the development of policies to implement programs that enhance the health of rural communities; collaborate with various stakeholders to gather information on the performance of rural and agricultural research; and assist in conducting program evaluations to improve the administration and efficacy of research and education programs.

GS-14:
Qualifying experience for GS-14 includes one year of specialized experience comparable to GS-13 level; or its non-Federal equivalent that includes experience developing and providing input and direction for regional or national rural and agricultural science programs; participating in the development of policies to implement programs to enhance health of rural communities; leading workgroups with various stakeholders in the performance of agricultural research or education activities; and participating in conducting program evaluations to improve the administration and efficacy of research and education programs.

GS-15:
Qualifying experience for GS-15 includes one year of specialized experience comparable to GS-14 level; or its non-Federal equivalent that includes experience in primary authorship of a number of important papers, models, theories, and/or techniques that impact the advancement of or are accepted as authoritative in the field of rural economics; conducting policy-related research on the drivers of economic and population growth and decline in rural areas; participating in symposia that define the state of the discipline or introduce new areas in the field of rural economics.

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 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

Please see above for education qualification requirement information.

Additional information

This Position is being filled through OPM's government-wide Direct-Hire Authority for this occupation and is open to all U.S. Citizens. Your application will be evaluated for basic eligibility and to determine if your experience and/or education meet the minimum qualification requirements described in this announcement. All applicants who meet the minimum qualifications and other basic requirements will be referred and are eligible for selection.

Selections made under this authority will be processed as new appointments to the civil service.

Current civil service employees would therefore be given a new appointment to the civil service.

Career Transition Assistance Plan (CTAP), Reemployment Priority List (RPL), or Interagency Career Transition Assistance Plan (ICTAP): Visit the OPM website for information on how to apply as a CTAP, RPL, or ICTAP eligible. To exercise selection priority for this vacancy, CTAP/RPL/ICTAP candidates must meet the basic eligibility requirements and all selective factors. CTAP/ICTAP candidates must be rated and determined to be well qualified based on an evaluation of the following competencies:

Competencies:

Economics - Knowledge of economic policy, scientific principles, methods, and processes used to conduct a systematic and objective inquiry; including study design, collection, analysis, and interpretation of data; and the reporting of results.
Communication - Communicates economic information to public and private decision-makers.
Administration and Management - Knowledge of planning, coordination, and execution of business functions, resource allocation, and production.

CONFIDENTIAL FINANCIAL DISCLOSURE REPORT: Federal employees at GS-14/15 are subject to prohibitions against officially dealing with outside organizations in which they have a financial interest. If hired for this position, you may be required to submit a financial disclosure report within 30 days of the effective date of your appointment and annually thereafter.

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.

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 for this job based on how well you meet the qualifications above.
This is a Direct Hire Authority position. All applicants who meet the minimum qualifications, to include any selective placement factor(s), if applicable, will be referred to the selecting official. Before a certificate is issued to the selecting official, the resume is reviewed to ensure that you meet all the qualification requirements. A rating will not be used; veterans' preference does not apply due to the existence of the Direct Hire authority for this position.

Note: All answers provided in the on-line process must be substantiated by a resume. If, upon review, it is determined that your resume and/or supporting documents do not support your answer choices, your application may be removed from consideration.

Clicking the link below will present a preview of the application form; i.e. the online questionnaire. The application form link below will only provide a preview and does not initiate the application process. To initiate the online application process, click the "Apply" button to the right.

To view the application form, visit:https://apply.usastaffing.gov/ViewQuestionnaire/12944090

Required Documents

The following documents are required for your applicant package to be complete. Our office cannot be responsible for incompatible software, your system failure, etc. Encrypted documents will not be accepted. Failure to submit required, legible documents may result in loss of consideration.

Resume that includes: Personal Information: name, address, contact information; Education; Work Experience related to this position as described in the major duties including work schedule, hours worked per week, dates of employment; title, series, grade (if applicable); other qualifications. Resume cannot exceed 2 pages.
If education is required or you are using education to qualify, you must submit a copy of your college transcripts. An unofficial copy is sufficient with the application if it includes your name and the necessary course information; however, if you are selected, you will be required to submit official transcripts prior to entering on duty. Education must have been successfully obtained from an accredited school, college or university. If any education was completed at a foreign institute, you must submit with your application evidence that the institute was appropriately accredited by an accrediting body recognized by the U.S. Department of Education as equivalent to U.S. education standards. There are private organizations that specialize in this evaluation and a fee is normally associated with this service. For a list of private organizations that evaluate education, visit the NACES website. All transcripts must be in English or include an English translation.
Surplus or displaced employees eligible for CTAP, RPL, or ICTAP priority must provide: proof of eligibility (RIF separation notice, notice of proposed removal for declining a transfer of function or directed reassignment to another commuting area, notice of disability annuity termination), SF-50 documenting separation (as applicable), and your most recent SF-50 noting position, grade level, and duty location with your application per 5 CFR 330.

How to Apply

Please read the entire announcement and all instructions before you begin. You must complete this application process and submit all required documents electronically by 11:59p.m. Eastern Time (ET) on the closing date of this announcement.

Applying online is highly encouraged. We are available to assist you during business hours (normally 8:00a.m. - 4:00p.m., Monday - Friday). If applying online poses a hardship, contact the Agency Contact listed below well before the closing date for an alternate method. All hardship application packages must be complete and submitted no later than noon ET on the closing date of the announcement to be entered into the system prior to its closing. Resumes must not exceed two pages.

This agency provides reasonable accommodation to applicants with disabilities on a case-by-case basis; contact the Agency Contact to request this.

To begin, click "Apply" and follow the instructions to complete the Assessment Questionnaire and attach your resume and all required documents.

Please verify that documents you are uploading from USAJOBs transfer into the Agency's staffing system as there is a limitation to the number of documents that can be transferred. However, once in the Agency's staffing system, you will have the opportunity to upload additional documents. Uploaded documents must be less than 5MB and in one of the following document formats: GIF, JPG, JPEG, PNG, RTF, PDF, TXT or Word (DOC or DOCX). Do not upload Adobe Portfolio documents because they are not viewable. Please ensure your resume does not exceed two pages. Applicants who submit a resume that exceeds two pages will be removed from consideration.

Agency contact information

Charlene Fields

Phone: 5716098072
Email: charlene.fields@usda.gov

Address: Economic Research Service
1400 Independence Avenue, SW
Washington, DC 20250
US

Next steps

As a condition of employment for accepting this position, you will be required to serve a 1-year probationary period during which we will evaluate your fitness and whether your continued employment advances the public interest. In determining if your employment advances the public interest, we may 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. 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.

Your application will be reviewed to verify that you meet the eligibility and qualification requirements for the position prior to issuing referral lists to the selecting official. If further evaluation or interviews are required, you will be contacted. Log in to your USAJOBS account to check your application status.
You must choose to turn on email notifications in your USAJOBS profile if you want to receive important email notifications that may impact your applicant experience (e.g. If you start an application and do not submit it prior to the closing date, USAJOBS will send an email reminder that the closing date is approaching and your application is in an incomplete status).

Multiple positions may be filled from this announcement.

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