Summary
This position is open to Merit Promotion/Status Candidates and those with Special Hiring Authorities under announcement number AK-1537-LACL-24-12547012-ST. You must apply to each announcement separately if you wish to be considered under both recruitment methods.
This job is open to
Clarification from the agency
United States Citizens, nationals or those who owe allegiance to the U.S., Federal employees who meet the definition of a "surplus" or "displaced" employee (Interagency Career Transition Assistance Program (ICTAP), Career Transition Assistance Program (CTAP), Reemployment Priority List (RPL)).
Duties
Experience your America and build a fulfilling career by joining the National Park Service. Become a part of our mission to unite our past, our cultures, and our special places, to establish important connections to the present and build a rich and lasting legacy for future generations.
The Biologist serves as the project lead for wildlife management, research, and monitoring in Lake Clark National Park and Preserve (LACL) and the Southwest Alaska Network (SWAN).
SWAN is one of 32 Inventory and Monitoring (I&M) Networks nationwide that provides science for resource stewardship through long-term data collection and management in national parks. The Network encompasses approximately 9 million acres and includes five NPS units, the largest of which are Lake Clark National Park and Preserve, Katmai National Park and Preserve, and Kenai Fjords National Park. The position will be shared by LACL and SWAN.
Duties associated with SWAN include the following: The incumbent will implement brown bear and bald eagle monitoring protocols to track population dynamics of these species across the SWAN parks. As part of this work, the incumbent will lead all aspects of data collection within a Geographic Information Systems (GIS) framework, all logistics associated with fieldwork, data management, data analyses, report writing, and manuscript preparation for scientific journals. The incumbent will work with biologists, ecologists and biometricians from these park units, other I&M networks in Alaska, and other agencies, university, and non-governmental organization (NGO) partners.
Duties associated with LACL are as follows: The incumbent will lead and manage the wildlife program and wildlife-related projects throughout the park. This position represents the NPS on wildlife management issues and serves as a technical advisor in wildlife biology for the park. The incumbent will be responsible for program and research development, and implementation of projects for wildlife resources, their habitat requirements, and sensitive species.
The position is duty-stationed in Anchorage with periodic fieldwork for up to 2 weeks at a time, totaling approximately 2-3 months in the field per year.
As the wildlife program lead for SWAN and LACL, the incumbent:
- Performs population studies including large mammals (mountain sheep, brown bear, etc.), as well as conducts multi-aircraft wildlife surveys, wildlife capture, and wildlife handling. These activities take place in mountainous terrain and in remote field camps. The biologist will fly in small aircraft to conduct surveys in remote mountainous terrain. The field season requires the biologist to work long days in the field, occasionally under extreme conditions, including cold weather and snow travel in the winter, and in hordes of biting insects, intense sun, rain, wind, and bear country precautions in the summer.
- Independently uses computer software applications (e.g., Microsoft Access, Excel, Word, ArcGIS, R, Python, etc.) to store, retrieve, analyze, and manage data; generate maps; develop data collection and data management tools; and create reports. Uses advanced GIS and statistical skills, including the ability to write scripts or code applications in a GIS environment and uses the R programming language. The incumbent will use tablets, iPads, GPS units and other electronics to collect and record data in the field.
- Will produce peer-reviewed journal publications and technical reports, and deliver oral presentations for scientific audiences, local communities, and the public.
- The incumbent will be expected to work well with others, develop and maintain collaborative relationships, work with little to no supervision, work efficiently at repetitive computer tasks, communicate closely with supervisors and team members on extended field expeditions, safely conduct remote fieldwork and aerial surveys, and complete all required training for the job tasks.
- Will support, lead, or assist with other wildlife projects, collect, and analyze data on environmental factors affecting a diverse suite of wildlife species, and develop educational outreach materials for projects or other wildlife monitoring programs. Outreach will also include summarizing data for various meeting formats and audiences and will include participating in meetings such as subsistence regional advisory committees.
Career-Seasonal appointments are permanent positions and include the same benefits as Career appointments, but do not provide work on a year-round basis. You will work from approximately late January through mid-December each year (subject to change), and you will be in a non-pay status for the remainder of the year.
Additional information about the National Parks Service in Alaska can be found at https://www.nps.gov/locations/alaska/index.htm and information about the local area can be found at Visit Anchorage.
Government housing is not available.
Requirements
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.
- If you are a new employee in the Federal government, you will be required to complete a one-year probationary period.
- This position is subject to drug testing based on the collateral duty requiring firearms in the back-country or other locations for non-law enforcement reasons such as protection from animals. 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.
- 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.
- You may be required to complete training and operate a four-wheel drive vehicle.
- You may be required to work on-call, evenings, weekends, holidays, and overtime.
- You may be required to travel overnight away from home up to 5 nights per month.
- You may be required to complete training and obtain/maintain a government charge card with travel and/or purchase authority.
Qualifications
All qualifications must be met by the closing date of this announcement-09/30/2024-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 number of hours worked per week, full-time, or part-time. If you indicate part-time, you MUST indicate the number of hours worked per week so that your qualifying experience can be prorated for credit.
To qualify for this position, you must possess one of the following basic qualifications by close of the announcement:
DEGREE: A degree in biological science that included at least 9 semester hours in wildlife subjects such as mammalogy, ornithology, animal ecology, wildlife management, or research courses in the field of wildlife biology; and at least 12 semester hours in zoology in such subjects as general zoology, invertebrate zoology, vertebrate zoology, comparative anatomy, physiology, genetics, ecology, cellular biology, parasitology, entomology, or research courses in such subjects (excess courses in wildlife biology may be used to meet the zoology requirements where appropriate); and at least 9 semester hours in botany or the related plant sciences. You must include a copy of your transcripts with your application.
OR
EDUCATION AND EXPERIENCE: A combination of education and experience equivalent to a major in biological science (i.e., at least 30 semester hours), with at least 9 semester hours in wildlife subjects, 12 semester hours in zoology, and 9 semester hours in botany or related plant science, as shown above, plus appropriate experience or additional education. You must include a copy of your transcripts with your application and the hours worked per week in your resume.
In addition, to qualify for this position at the GS-11 grade level, you must possess one of the following minimum qualifications by close of the announcement:
SPECIALIZED EXPERIENCE: At least one year of specialized experience equivalent to the GS-09 level in the Federal service (obtained in either the public or private sectors) that is directly related to the position to be filled. Examples of specialized experience include performing wildlife population studies on large mammals; conducting multi-aircraft wildlife surveys in mountainous terrain and in remote field camps; independently using computer software applications (e.g., Microsoft Access, Excel, Word, ArcGIS, R, Python, etc.) to store, retrieve, analyze and manage data, generate maps, develop data collection and data management tools, and to create reports; writing scripts or coding applications in a GIS environment and programming in R. You must include hours worked per week in your resume.
OR
EDUCATION: At least three years of progressively higher-level graduate education leading to a Ph.D. degree or Ph.D. or equivalent doctoral degree in a directly related field. You must include a copy of your transcripts with your application and the hours worked per week in your resume.
OR
A COMBINATION OF SPECIALIZED EXPERIENCE AND EDUCATION: To calculate your percentage of qualifying graduate education, divide your number of credit hours in excess of 36 semester hours (or 54 quarter hours) by 18 semester hours (or 27 quarter hours), or the number your school uses to represent one year of full time graduate academic study. To calculate your percentage of experience, divide your months of qualifying specialized experience by 12. Add the two percentages. They must equal at least 100% to qualify using this option. You must include a copy of your transcripts with your application and the hours worked per week in your resume.
Volunteer 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.
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.
Benefits
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.
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) and the responses you provide on the application questionnaire. 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.
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 three categories:
- Best Qualified - applicants possessing experience that substantially exceeds the minimum qualifications of the position including all selective factors and are highly proficient in all requirements of the job and can perform effectively in the position
- 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:
- Interpersonal Skills
- Project Management
- Technical Competence
- Wildlife Biology
In order to be considered for this position, you must complete all required steps in the process.
Required Documents
The following documents are required and must be submitted by 11:59 PM (EST) on 09/30/2024:
- Resume - 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 number of hours worked per week, full-time, or part-time. If you indicate part-time, you MUST indicate the number of hours worked per week so that your qualifying experience can be prorated for credit. If military or civilian, please include your rank and/or grade.
- Complete all required Assessments.
- 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, and 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.
- College transcripts, if qualifying based on education.
- 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 85 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.
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 complete the occupational questionnaire and submit the documentation specified in the Required Documents section below. To receive consideration, the complete application package must be submitted by 11:59 PM (EST) on 09/30/2024. You must provide documentation to support your claim for each eligibility selected. Please review the required documentation listed in the eligibilities language to ensure you submit the appropriate information. Note: You will only be marked eligible for those eligibilities that you selected and provided the appropriate supporting documentation.
WE DO NOT ACCEPT HARD-COPY OR E-MAIL APPLICATION PACKAGES.
- Select Apply. If you are not logged in, you will be prompted to login or create an account.
- Prompted to Start the Application Process by selecting "Start Application."
- Select or add the resume you want to use for this application. Click here on how to build a resume in USAJOBS.
- Select documents you want included in this application.
- Review package to acknowledge your documents were reviewed.
- Select if you want to include your demographic information.
- After reading and certifying the application is true and submitted in good faith, select "Continue to Agency Site."
- Follow onscreen prompts and instructions to complete your application.
- Add the supporting documents by indexing your documents with the dropdown.
- Upload any missing required documents or optional documents.
- Review and Submit Application.
- While logged in, you can check the status of your application by selecting "+" next to the job title for this position.
- 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.
Next steps
Once the Occupational Questionnaire is received you will receive acknowledgement that your submission was successful. If you are among the most qualified candidates and your name is referred to the hiring official, you may be contacted directly for a possible interview. You will be notified of the status of your Application Package at the time candidates are referred for consideration, and when the selection process is complete.
|