Clarification from the agency

Open to all qualified students who are U.S. Citizens and meet the eligibility requirements for the Pathways Internship Program as described below.

The major duties of the Student Trainee (Physical Science) include, but are not limited to:

• Operate a mobile water-quality lab by collecting, filtering, and preserving water samples. Perform field tests such as measuring electrical conductivity, pH, temperature, bacteria levels, stream flow, and dissolved oxygen using either titration or electronic instruments.
• Assists with operating watercraft and helps collect and measure reservoir water samples. Duties also include using a multi-parameter sonde and a deep-water sampler.
• Logs water samples into the laboratory, prepares them for analysis, and filters samples to support the measurement of suspended solids and dissolved constituents.
• Maintains primary responsibility for conducting laboratory determinations including pH, electrical conductivity, chemical oxygen demand, chlorophyll, nitrates + nitrites, silica, total Kjeldahl nitrogen, total organic carbon, and turbidity.
• Performs laboratory support duties by calculating final concentrations for assigned analyses and accurately recording and transferring field and laboratory data into computer systems. Cleans and sterilizes glassware used in chemical and biological testing, prepares required reagents and standards, and conducts quality-assurance checks to ensure reliability and accuracy of analytical results.

Conditions of employment

To be eligible, you must meet one of the following:

• Be accepted for enrollment or enrolled and seeking a degree or certificate in a qualifying educational institution on a half- to full-time basis (as determined by the educational institution) and in good standing (minimum overall Grade Point Average of 2.0). Enrollment must be with an accredited educational institution.
• Meet the definition of a student throughout the duration of their appointments.
• Meet agency-specific requirements as specified in the agency's Participant Agreement with the Intern; and
• Meet the qualification standards (e.g., series and grade) for their internship positions.
• 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 be at least 16 years old at the time of appointment.
• Upon appointment, selected candidate(s) will be required to sign a Pathways Participant Agreement.
• You must submit eligibility documents for veterans consideration (see Required Documents).

Who May Apply:

• Pathways - Internship NTE

All Interns must meet all eligibility and qualification requirements by the closing date of the announcement, 05/26/2026. In addition, they must continue to meet these eligibility requirements throughout the duration of the appointment. Students that have graduated are not eligible for this position.

Qualifications

All qualifications must be met by the closing date of this announcement 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.

To qualify for this position at the GS-04 grade level, you must possess the following minimum qualifications by close of the announcement:

EDUCATION: Completion of 2 full academic years of post-high school study or an associate's degree in a directly related field of study that provided the knowledge, skills and abilities necessary to do the work of this position. You must provide transcripts with your application.

Academic Year: At the undergraduate level, 30 semester hours or 45 quarter hours is comparable to 1 year of undergraduate education. Four years of progressive study or 120 semester hours meets the degree requirements.

How you will be evaluated

You will be evaluated for this job based on how well you meet the qualifications above.

After the vacancy announcement closes, a Human Resources Office representative will review your application/resume to ensure you meet the basic eligibility and minimum qualification requirements of the job. Your eligibility and qualification status will be based on an assessment questionnaire conducted using qualification standards, your responses to job-related questions, information provided in your resume, and required supporting documents (see the Required Documents section). Your answers to questions will be verified against information provided in your resume. Be sure that the resume clearly supports the responses to all the questions by addressing experience, education and/or training relevant to this position.

Veterans' preference applies to the selection for positions in the Pathways Program. The examination and selection of applicants will be made in accordance with the requirements of 5 CFR 302.

Applicants must make a fair and accurate assessment of their qualifications. Applicants rating themselves higher than is apparent in their description of experience, competencies, skills, and/or education/training OR whose resume/application is incomplete may be removed from employment consideration.

Eligible, qualified candidates will be referred to the hiring official in an unranked order by preference status: (1) Preference eligible having a compensable service-connected disability of 10% or more (CPS and CP); (2) Other preference eligible; (XP); (3) Applicants eligible for 5-point veterans' preference (TP); and (4) Applicants not eligible for veteran's preference (NV).

The application questionnaire can be previewed here: https://apply.usastaffing.gov/ViewQuestionnaire/12922875

Applicants who apply under this job opportunity announcement agree to have their application, associated documents and applicable personal information shared with other Bureaus/Offices within the Department of the Interior (DOI) who have vacancies with the same occupational series, grade, full performance level and in the same geographic location(s). Applying to this announcement does not replace the need to apply to other job opportunity announcements for which you wish to receive consideration. You may choose to have your information shared with other agencies when applying for this position. If an agency requests a copy of a certificate you are on, you will be notified.

To be considered for this position, applicants are required to submit a resume, an on-line assessment questionnaire, and the following supporting documents, as appropriate:

Resume: Applicants must submit a resume that demonstrates how skills and experiences meet the qualifications and requirements listed in the job announcement to be considered for the job. Each job experience should at least include start and end dates (month and year) and number of hours worked per week. 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.For more information: https://www.usajobs.gov/Help/faq/application/documents/resume/what-to-include/

Transcript(s): You MUST furnish a copy of your college transcript(s) (unofficial copy is acceptable), if applicable. Transcripts must include the name of the college or university, specific courses, and the number of semester/quarter hours currently enrolled. A typed list of courses, grades, semester/quarter hours, GPA, etc. will not be accepted. Applicants not currently enrolled must provide a student schedule for the upcoming semester/quarter verifying at least half-time enrollment status. If selected, applicants will be required to provide official college transcripts to verify educational qualifications prior to reporting for work.

Proof of Pathways Eligibility:
As a student, you must show proof, such as a letter from your accredited U.S. educational institution, that verifies you:

• have been accepted for enrollment;
• the degree/diploma/certification program in which you are enrolled;
• are enrolled at least half-time (as defined by the school);
• number of semester/quarter hours or class schedule for next semester/quarter; and
• anticipated graduation date.

As a career or technical participant, you must show proof such as a letter from your qualifying career or technical education program that verifies:

• Participants of AmeriCorps and similar programs are required to fulfill at least 1700 workhours within a twelve (12) month period and those who meet this requirement within ten (10) or eleven (11) months are considered to have successfully completed the program.

DD-214, Certificate of Release from Active Duty, if applicable; If entitled to veterans' preference, you must provide a copy of your DD-214 (Member 4 Copy preferred, including character of service), and should indicate on your application materials the type of veterans' preference you are claiming. Veterans' preference entitlement will be verified by the employing agency.

-- For 5-point veterans' preference, submit a copy of your DD-214 (Member 4 Copy preferred, including character of service), or an official statement of service from your command if he/she is currently on active duty, or other official documentation (e.g., documentation of receipt of a campaign badge or expeditionary medal) that proves your military service was performed under honorable conditions.

-- For 10-point veterans' preference, please submit a Standard Form (SF) 15, Application for 10-Point Veteran Preference, DD-214 (Member 4 Copy preferred, including character of service), and the required documentation requested by this form.

--For information on veteran's eligibility visit: https://www.fedshirevets.gov/hire/hrp/vetguide/index.aspx

As part of the on-line application process, applicants may be required to submit supporting documents. Failure to submit the requested supporting documents may result in the applicant not being considered for this position.

Next steps