Natural Resource Specialist

Applicants must meet all qualifications and eligibility requirements by the closing date of the announcement. BASIC REQUIREMENTS: Degree: Must possess a bachelor’s degree or higher in biological sciences, agriculture, natural resource management, chemistry, or related disciplines appropriate to the position. OR Combination of Education and Experience: Must possess a combination of education and experience that includes courses equivalent to a major, as shown in A above, plus appropriate experience or additional education. The quality of the combination of education and experience must be sufficient to demonstrate that the applicant possesses the knowledge, skills, and abilities required to perform work in the occupation, and 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. In addition to courses in the major and related fields, a typical college degree would have included courses that involved analysis, writing, critical thinking, research, etc. These courses would have provided an applicant with skills and abilities sufficient to perform progressively more responsible work in the occupation. Therefore, creditable experience should have demonstrated similarly appropriate skills or abilities needed to perform the work of the occupation. In addition to meeting one of the Basic Requirements listed above, applicants must meet the following Minimum Qualifications Requirement in order to be considered: MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS: To be considered minimally qualified for this position, you must demonstrate that you have the required specialized experience and/or education for the respective grade level(s) in which you are applying: Specialized Experience GS-11: One or more full-time years (12-months) of specialized work experience, equivalent to at least theGS-09 grade level in the Federal service, performing the following duties: Assisting landowners with enrollment into conservation assistance programs; Developing short-term conservation plans in compliance with regulations; Assisting with financial assistance programs in accordance with agency policies; and Communicating technical information about conservation issues with various groups such as landowners or residences. OR Substitution of Education in Lieu of Specialized Experience: Must possess a Ph.D. or equivalent doctoral degree or, 3 full years of progressively higher-level graduate education leading to such a degree in biological sciences, agriculture, natural resource management, chemistry, or related disciplines appropriate to the position. (Note: You must submit supporting academic transcripts.) OR Combination of Education and Experience: Must possess a combination of the above-described education and specialized experience such that they total 100% when combined. To determine your combination, first compute your experience as a percentage of the experience listed above; then determine your education as a percentage of the education listed above; then add the two percentages. The total percentages must equal at least 100 percent. (Only graduate level education in excess of two years (36 semester hours) may be combined with specialized experience. You must submit supporting academic transcripts.) Specialized Experience GS-12: One or more full-time years (12-months) of specialized work experience, equivalent to at least theGS-11 grade level in the Federal service, performing the following duties: Utilizing standards, methods and practices of natural resources management, conservation planning, biological sciences and/or related agricultural disciplines to execute natural resources management studies and/or projects; Making recommendations to existing processes to resolve and prevent natural resources management problems; Gathering, analyzing, and interpreting natural resources data to evaluate the effectiveness of natural resources management programs; and Developing reports and briefings on natural resource issues and concerns. (Your resume must CLEARLY demonstrate this experience.) Note: There is no education substitution at the GS-12 grade level. IN DESCRIBING YOUR EXPERIENCE, PLEASE BE CLEAR AND SPECIFIC. WE MAY NOT MAKE ASSUMPTIONS REGARDING YOUR EXPERIENCE. If your resume does not support your questionnaire answers, we will not allow credit for your response(s). 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 and can provide valuable training and experience that translates directly to paid employment. You will receive credit for all qualifying experience, including volunteer experience. The OPM Qualification Standards for this position can be found at: https://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/classification-qualifications/general-schedule-qualification-standards/#url=List-by-Occupational-Series
This position is located in the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), Farm Production and Conservation (FPAC), Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS). Serve as supervisor of record for Field Operations employees located in field offices throughout team service area. Recruitment incentive $20,000 ($10,000 onboard and $10,000 after one year) with three year service agreement.