Clarification from the agency

Under this announcement, we are accepting applications from: 1. All United States Citizens (U.S. Citizens) 2. CTAP/ICTAP Eligibles.

The Pacific West Region is recruiting for TEMPORARY seasonal positions not to exceed 1039 hours work in a service year. Dates of employment will vary between park sites depending on funding, weather conditions and visitation. Within regulatory limitations, the length of initial appointment may be shortened or extended depending on work availability and funding.

Major Duties include:

• Performs as an open water/ocean lifeguard. Meets United States Lifesaving Association (USLA) standards for a Seasonal Open Water Lifeguard.
• Ensures all aquatic rescue and emergency equipment is maintained and stored.
• Responds to a wide variety of emergency search and rescue situations.
• Assists with the instruction and supervision of Volunteer in the Park (VIP) program.
• Provides visitors information.
• Assists Law Enforcement staff with enforcement of rules and regulations to designated aquatic areas and resource protection.
• Educates visitors about life habits and behavior of Park fauna.
• Provides informal and formal interpretive and information services to the general public and special interest groups concerning area marine resources and aquatic safety services.
• Prepares Case Incident reports.
• Assists other agencies.
• Conducts traffic control for vehicle accidents.
• Complies with OSHA programs within the park.

Visit Golden Gate National Recreation Area for additional park information and Stinson Beach for position location specific information.

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 will be required to wear a uniform and comply with the National Park Service uniform standards. A uniform allowance will be provided.
• You may be required to work on-call, evenings, weekends, holidays, overtime and shift work.
• Applicants must be at least (1)18 years old or (2) at least 16 years old and: (a) Have graduated from high school or been awarded a certificate equivalent to graduating from high school; or (b) Have completed a formal vocational training program; or (c) Have received a statement from school authorities agreeing with their preference for employment rather than continuing their education; or (d) Be currently enrolled in a secondary school and either work only during school vacation periods or work part-time during the school year under a formal student employment program.
• You will be required to submit to a drug test and receive a negative drug test result prior to appointment. In addition, this position is subject to random testing for illegal drug use.
• Pre-employment medical required for new hires or those who have not had one in 3 years.
• Physical fitness requirement as per RM-57, United States Lifesaving Association, American Red Cross, and other applicable guidelines must be met prior to and on a continuing basis during employment. Successfully completes pre-employment test demonstrating adequate physical strength and stamina to perform rigorous duties of an open water lifeguard.
• Demonstrates the ability to swim 500 meters (550 yards) over a measures course in ten minutes. There is a high-stress component to much of the incumbent's work assignment.
• The employee is frequently exposed to high risk and potentially dangerous situations in emergency types of situations requiring use of a wide range of personal protective gear (some of which may be uncomfortable, wet, or inconvenient to wear), adherence to specific safety procedures and other precautions.

*Additional Requirements located under qualifications*

Qualifications

Requirements Continued...

• GS-5: 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. Please indicate in your application whether you possess a valid State driver's license.
• GS-6: You will be required to operate a government (or private) motor vehicle as part of your official duties; a valid driver's license is required. You will be required to submit a Motor Vehicle Operator's License and Driving Record. You must also 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 disclose all valid driver's licenses, whether current or past, possessed by you.

All qualifications must be met by 11:59 EST on the closing date of this announcement-01/26/2026-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.

SELECTIVE FACTOR: This position performs ocean lifeguarding duties, and a nationally recognized lifeguard certification issued by United States Lifesaving Association or American Red Cross, or a similar certification agency, is required. You must also possess, or be able to obtain, an Emergency Medical Technician (EMT) or higher level certification, through the National Registry of Emergency Medical Technicians, or state equivalent with the ability to obtain a National Registry Certification. YOU MUST PROVIDE A LEGIBLE COPY (Front and Back) OF YOUR LIFEGUARD AND EMT CERTIFICATES OR REGISTRATION FOR AN APPROPRIATE COURSE with your application package. Candidates who do not meet these requirements by close of this announcement will receive no further consideration for this position.

- AND -

To qualify for this position at the GS-5 grade level, you must possess at least one of the following minimum qualifications by close of the announcement:

EXPERIENCE: At least one year of specialized experience equivalent to the GS-04 grade level. Specialized experience includes working as a lifeguard, some portion of this lifeguarding experience must include ocean lifeguarding. Additional experience includes but is not limited to counselor or similar work in public and private recreation programs; teachers aid in elementary school recreation program or physical education program, assistant/aid assignments in recreation while on active military service, or other similar duties. You must include hours worked per week in your resume.
-OR-
EDUCATION: Successful completion of a 4-year course of study leading to a bachelor's degree with major study or at least 24 semester hours in courses related to recreation or physical education. You must include transcripts.
-OR-
Successful completion of a COMBINATION of education and experience as described above. For the GS-05, only education in excess of the first 60 semester hours of a course of study leading to a bachelor's degree is creditable toward meeting the specialized experience requirements. Successful completion of a combination of education and experience as described above. To combine education and experience, first take the number of hours beyond 60 hours of study and divide it by 60 semester hours (or equivalent). Then take the number of months of full time experience and divide by 12 months. Add the percentages together. The total must equal at least 100 percent to qualify. You must include transcripts.

To qualify for this position at the GS-06 grade level, you must possess the following minimum qualifications by close of the announcement:

EXPERIENCE: At least one year of specialized experience equivalent to the GS-05 grade level. Specialized experience includes working as a lead lifeguard, some portion of this lifeguarding experience must include ocean lifeguarding. Additional experience includes but is not limited to group leader/counselor in recreation or physical education programs, leading/instructing recreation in an after-school program, instructing or leading recreation programs while on active military service, or other similar duties. Performance of these duties must have included providing leadership and instruction on position duties to new or less experienced staff or participants. You must include hours worked per week in your resume.

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.

CTAP/ICTAP Statement: 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 on all competencies. Federal employees seeking CTAP/ICTAP eligibility must submit proof that they meet the requirements of 5 CFR 330.605(2) for CTAP and 5 CFR 330.704 for ICTAP. This includes a copy of the agency notice, a copy of their most recent Performance Rating, and a copy of their most recent SF-50 noting current position, grade level, and duty location. Please annotate your application to reflect that you are applying as a CTAP/ICTAP eligible. If you are selected for Federal employment, you will be required to fill out a Declaration of Federal Employment, OF-306, prior to being appointed to determine your suitability for Federal employment and to authorize a background investigation. Failing to answer all questions truthfully and completely or providing false statements on your application may be grounds for not hiring you, or for firing you after you begin work. Also, you may be punished by fine or imprisonment (U.S. Code, Title 18, section 1001).

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.

Resumes must not exceed two single-sided pages and resumes longer than two pages will not be accepted. You may only submit one resume. 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.

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 two categories:

• 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:

• First Response
• Public Safety and Security
• Technical Competence
• Leadership (GS-06 Only)

The following documents are required and must be submitted by 11:59 PM (EST) on 01/26/2026:

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. 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. 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. Documentation that you meet the Selective Factor.
5. College transcripts, if qualifying based on education.
6. 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 90 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.

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