Job Summary
General InformationIn order to be eligible to receive consideration for this position, youmustbe able to: (1) report to the duty station location listed in this vacancy announcement, if selected; and (2) be available to work the schedule identified.Salary: GS-03: $12.95 (Step 1) to $16.84 Step 10); GS-04: $14.54 (Step 1) to $18.90 (Step 10); GS-05: $16.27 (Step 1) to $21.15 (Step 10) NOTE: First time hires to the Federal Government are typically hired atthe Step 01.
Major Duties
The USGS Wyoming/Montana Water Science Center is seeking associate, undergraduate, and graduate level students working towards a degree in a physical or environmental science, geology, or engineering to gain practical experience in hydrology.
As a Student Trainee (Hydrology) you will serve in a trainee capacity, performing routine and recurring development assignments to acquire knowledge and understanding of functions, principles, practices, and methods used in the area of hydrologic science.
Duties include:
- Perform routine measurements of stage and discharge at designated locations.
- Perform routine water quality field measurements for parameters such as temperature, specific conductance, pH, dissolved oxygen and alkalinity.
- Collect and process routine samples and performs limited field or lab analyses of samples constituents.
- Develop hydrologic and precipitation data for projects
- Operate a government motor vehicle on a regular and reoccurring basis.
PHYSICAL DEMANDS:
Work is physically demanding and includes walking, bending, climbing, and lifting of equipment up to 100 pounds when in the field, sometimes during adverse weather conditions. Work performed in the office is sedentary.
WORK ENVIRONMENT:
The work is primarily performed outdoors, and involves moderate or sometimes extreme exposure to the discomforts of rain, cold/hot weather, and rapidly running or icy streams and rivers. Special safety precautions are required in many cases, and the employee typically wears life jackets, special safety boots, waders, and reflective rain gear.
Qualifications
Eligibility Requirements
In order to be eligible for an appointment under the Pathways Internship Program: You must be a student accepted for enrollment or enrolled in a degree or certificate program on a full- or half-time basis as defined by the school (certificate program means post-secondary education, in a qualifying educational institution, equivalent to at least one academic year of full-time study that is part of an accredited college-level, technical, trade, vocational, or business school curriculum); AND
Enrollment is with a qualifying educational institution such as a high school or state-approved homeschool; or accredited technical or vocational school; a 2- or 4-year college or university; a graduate or professional school (e.g., law school, medical school); or a post-secondary home school curriculum; AND
Students currently enrolled must be in good academic standing maintaining a 2.0 grade point average on a cumulative basis; AND
The duties of this position should be related to your academic or career goals.
You must continue to meet these eligibility requirements throughout the duration of your appointment under the Pathways Internship Program. Students who successfully complete the internship program may be eligible for conversion to a permanent appointment or a term (1-4 years in duration) appointment without further competition. Eligibility requirements for conversion: must be a U.S. Citizen; complete at least 640 hours of work experience acquired through the Internship Program (*may waive up to a total of 320 hours under specific conditions); successfully complete your degree or certificate requirements from a qualifying institution; meet the qualification requirements for the position to which you will be converted; meet agency-specific requirements as outlined in the Participant's Agreement; and must have performed successfully in your position as documented through performance evaluations. *NOTE: To learn more about the conditions under which a portion of the work experience hours may be waived, visithttps://www.usgs.gov/about/organization/science-support/human-capital/st....
Qualification Requirements
This internship is geared toward students majoring inone of the following areas of study:geology, environmental science, engineering, industrial technology, construction drafting, surveying, physical science, biology, or mathematics.For more information on basic qualifications, please click on the following:https://www.usgs.gov/about/organization/science-support/human-capital/hy...
GS-03:
Applicants must meetone of the following to qualify for the GS-03 level: A. Six months of general experience of any kind that demonstrates the applicant's ability to perform the work of the position. General experience is any type of work that demonstrates the applicant's ability to perform the work of the position, or experience that provided a familiarity with the subject matter or processes of the broad subject area of the occupation; OR B. Successful completion of 1 year of study (30 semester hours/45 quarter hours) that included at least one course in subjects such as engineering, industrial technology, construction drafting, surveying, physical science, biology, or mathematics; OR C. Equivalent combination of successfully completed post-high school education and general experience, as described above.
For GS-04:
Applicants must meet one of the following to qualify for the GS-04 level:
A. Six months of general experience and 6 months of specialized experience equivalent to at least the GS-3 level in the Federal service that is in or related to the duties of this position. NOTE: Excess specialized experience beyond the required 6 months may be substituted for general experience; i.e., one year of creditable specialized experience will meet the requirements for 6 months of general experience and 6 months of specialized experience. **OR
B. Applicants may substitute successful completion of two full years of study that included at least 12 semester hours, or the equivalent, in any combination of courses such as engineering, industrial technology, construction drafting, surveying, physical science, biology, or mathematics.**OR
C. A combination of successfully completed post-high school education and specialized and/or general experience may be used to meet the qualification requirements for the GS-04 level. NOTE: When crediting education to meet any part of the experience requirement, such education must include the appropriate number of directly related credit hours required in any combination of courses such as engineering, industrial technology, construction drafting, surveying, physical science, biology, or mathematics. When crediting this education, you must prorate the number of hours of directly related courses required as a proportion of the total education to be used.
For GS-05:
Applicants must meet one of the following to qualify for the GS-5 level:
A,. One year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the GS-04 level in the Federal service that is in or related to the duties of this position. Specialized experience may include work as a technician or aid in engineering, earth, physical, or natural science, forestry, soil conservation, or surveying; trades or crafts work in maintenance or construction of facilities or equipment related to hydrology; drafting; or construction estimating if it equipped the applicant with the knowledge, skills and abilities to perform successfully the duties of this position.Examples of GS-4 level work assignments include: 1) Making adjustments and minor repairs to water level recorders, or other equipment used in water investigations; 2) Following well-defined methods and designated formulas; computing, extracting, compiling, and presenting geological or hydrologic data in prescribed tabular or graphic form; 3) Computing mean daily gage heights from water stage record charts, editing record tapes, and making corrections based on field notes. For examples 1-3, the work assignments involved familiar conditions, concepts, and methods that were made in terms of the objectives to be achieved without explicit instruction as to work methods. Assignments involving new, more difficult, or unfamiliar areas of work were given with more specific guidance. Explicit instructions were provided for solving technical problems involving unfamiliar conditions, methods, or concepts.**OR
B. Applicants may substitute successful completion of a full four year course of study leading to a bachelor's degree (a) with major study in an appropriate field of science (i.e., geology, chemistry, physics, geophysics, biology, ecology, mathematics, soils, forestry, meteorology, hydrology, oceanography, physical science, atmospheric science) engineering, construction, or industrial technology, or (b) that included at least 24 semester hours, or the equivalent, in any combination of courses such as engineering, industrial technology, construction drafting, surveying, physical science, biology, or mathematics.**OR
C. A combination of successfully completed post-high school education and specialized experience may be used to meet the qualification requirements for GS-5. Only progressive education in excess of the first 60 semester hours or 90 quarter hours (i.e., beyond the first two years) of a course of study leading to a bachelor's degree is creditable toward meeting the specialized experience requirement, assuming the education includes the appropriate number of directly related semester hours, or the equivalent, in any combination of courses such as engineering, industrial technology, construction drafting, surveying, physical science, biology, or mathematics.
All applicants must meet qualification and eligibility requirements by the closing date of the announcement.
Pay Range
$12.95 - $21.15