Physical Science Technician

at  US National Park Service

QUALIFICATIONS

All qualifications must be met by the closing date of this announcement-11/29/2024-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 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-05 grade level, you must possess at least one of the following minimum qualifications by close of the announcement:

• SPECIALIZED EXPERIENCE: At least one full year of specialized experience comparable in scope and responsibility to the GS-04 grade level in the Federal service. Specialized experience is experience that equipped the applicant with the particular knowledge, skills, and abilities needed to successfully perform the duties of this position. Examples of qualifying specialized experience include work in the fields of geophysics, chemistry, hydrology, engineering, geology, and metallurgy, assisting with natural resources research projects; compiling and analyzing scientific data into reports; operating complex sampling, monitoring, and laboratory equipment; or using computer programs such as databases to compile, store, retrieve, analyze and report resource management data. Experience as a laboratory mechanic or in a trade or craft may be credited as specialized experience when the work was performed in close association with physical scientists or other technical personnel and provided intensive knowledge of appropriate scientific principles, methods, techniques, and precedents. YOU MUST PROVIDE HOURS PER WEEK WORKED ON YOUR RESUME. -OR-
• EDUCATION: Successful completion of at least a full 4-year course of study leading to a bachelor’s degree (a) with major study in an appropriate field of physical science, such as geology, geoscience, geophysics, earth science, or (b) that included at least 24 semester hours in any combination of courses such as physical science, engineering, or any branch of mathematics except for financial and commercial mathematics. One year of education above high school is equivalent to 30 semester hours or 45 quarter hours. YOU MUST PROVIDE TRANSCRIPTS. -OR-
• Successful completion of a combination of education and experience as described above. Only education in excess of the first 60 semester hours (i.e. beyond the second year) is creditable toward meeting the specialized experience requirement. One full academic year of study beyond the second year is equivalent to 6 months of specialized experience. For example, I have 6 months of specialized experience such as described in A above, (50% of the required specialized experience) and I have three years of education above high school for 50% of the education as in B above. YOU MUST PROVIDE TRANSCRIPTS.

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.
ICTAP/CTAP 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.

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.

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 11/29/2024. WE DO NOT ACCEPT HARD-COPY OR E-MAIL APPLICATION PACKAGES.

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• Prompted to Start the Application Process by selecting “Start Application.”
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• To PREVIEW the application questionnaire, select the following link: https://apply.usastaffing.gov/ViewQuestionnaire/12605016
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• 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.
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• You can review or revise your application at any point during the open period of the announcement.
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• 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.

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.
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Duties common to a GS-05 Physical Science Technician:

• These positions work in a variety of program areas such as Water Resources, GIS, Caves, Geology, Air and/or Water Quality, etc. Duties will vary by location.
• Assists with and/or implements established natural resource management projects (e.g., field examinations, field surveys, inventories, etc.) related to one or more of the physical sciences.
• Collects and organizes field data following instructions and standardized procedures. Performs routine and recurring testing of collected samples.
• Monitors and evaluates conditions in assigned program area. Evaluates observed conditions and problems and makes preliminary determinations on the cause of problems noted.
• Utilizes a variety of computer programs to compile, reduce, store, retrieve, analyze, and report data and other resource management information, including natural science research and long-term monitoring projects.