Interdisciplinary Biological Scientist/General Engineer

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Engineering Staff - National Technology & Development Program, Department of Agriculture

Job Summary

These positions are for the National Technology and Development Program (NTDP). These positions serve as project managers responsible for managing projects, applying innovative science and technology to solve agency problems, managing projects synthesizing knowledge for technology transfer, and/or managing our specification and standards projects. For additional information about the duties of this position, please contact Andy Trent at 406-329-3912 or andy.trent@usda.gov.

Major Duties

  • Develop, use and/or apply project management principles, technical methods, equations and analysis to solve national scale technical problems and issues.
  • Develop and maintain necessary project management documents for the initiation, scoping, planning, and execution of complex projects.
  • Manage multiple, concurrent assigned Technology and Development projects of considerable difficulty, that contain combinations of unusual features, requiring significant departures from previous approaches to similar projects.
  • Ensure project objectives, budget, and schedules are clearly defined, met, and completed.
  • Prepare plans, correspondence, technical reports, estimates, fact sheets, status reports, schedules, presentations, Web pages, and verbal communications as required to complete project assignments.
  • Lead a team of national subject matter experts in the development of equipment or technology or other type of technology transfer.
  • Provide leadership with other professionals in the organization for common goals or project completion.
  • Duties are listed at the full performance level GS-12.

Qualifications

Duties are listed for this position are at the full performance level GS-12. In order to qualify, you must meet the eligibility and qualifications requirements as defined below by the closing date of the announcement. For more information on the qualifications for this position, visit the Office of Personnel Management's General Schedule Qualification Standards. Your application and resume must clearly show that you possess the experience requirements. Transcripts must be provided for qualifications based on education. Provide course descriptions as necessary. This is an interdisciplinary position and may be filled in any of the job series listed below:

Biological Scientist GS-0401 or General Engineer GS-0801. Basic Requirement: Biological Scientist GS-0401: Degree: Successful completion of a full 4-year course of study in an accredited college or university leading to a bachelor's or higher degree that included a major field of study in biological sciences, agriculture, natural resource management, chemistry, or related disciplines appropriate to the position. OR Successful completion of a full 4-year course of study in an accredited college or university leading to a bachelor's or higher degree in a major field of study that included 24 semester hours in course work in biological sciences, agriculture, natural resource management, chemistry, or related disciplines appropriate to the position. Related course work generally refers to courses that may be accepted as part of the program major. OR Combination of education and experience that included 24 semester hours in course work in biological sciences, agriculture, natural resource management, chemistry, or related disciplines appropriate to the position, AND experience sufficient to demonstrate that I possess the knowledge, skills, and abilities required to perform work in the occupation that is comparable to that normally acquired through the successful completion of a full 4-year course of study with a major in the appropriate field needed to perform the work of the occupation. Please refer to the Education portion of this announcement for the Education Requirements for the General Engineer GS-0801 series. Specialized Experience Requirement: For the GS-11: You must have one year specialized experience equivalent to the GS-09 in the Federal service. Specialized experience is defined as the following: Monitored day-to-day performance of a contract by reviewing drawings for accuracy and adequacy, evaluated requests for routine design deviations, or conducted site surveys to determine the need for new equipment or materials. Provided recommendations and guidance to a wide range of natural resource-related technology and development projects and incorporated multi-disciplinary considerations into project planning and management. Utilized computer hardware and software related to word processing, database management, spreadsheet, presentation software, Web, and GIS. Assisted in the coordination of general project objectives into specific plans and activities national in scope. For the GS-12: You must have one year specialized experience equivalent to the GS-11 in the Federal service. Specialized experience is defined as the following: Prepared original designs, or preliminary and final layouts, for facilities, systems, or equipment with difficult/unusual components, or characterized by a variety of conditions. Monitored work of contractors by reviewing progress charts, conducting field surveys, verifying fulfillment of obligations on moderate complexity projects, and provided technical assistance. Provided oversight and management to a wide range of natural resource-related technology and development projects and incorporated multi-disciplinary considerations into project planning and management. Planned and managed projects using interdisciplinary principles to develop improved techniques and methods that obtain effective results. Utilized technical judgment to bring a project to solution and meet major objectives. Investigated, evaluated, and provided expert advice on engineering and/or natural resource technical aspects involved in the practices and techniques used throughout the agency. 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. TIME IN GRADE REQUIREMENT: If you are a current federal employee in the General Schedule (GS) pay plan and applying for a promotion opportunity, you must meet time-in-grade (TIG) requirements of 52 weeks of service at the next lower grade level in the normal line of progression for the position being filled. This requirement must be met by the closing date of this announcement.

Pay Range

$64,009.00 - $99,741.00

More information...

End Date: 

Friday, January 24, 2020