Interdisciplinary Cultural Resources Specialist

This position may be filled in any one of the following professional occupational series: History GS-0170, Archeology GS-0193 or Landscape Architecture GS-0807. You must meet the Basic Requirements for each series you wish to be considered for, AND also meet OPM’s Qualification Standards for Professional and Scientific positions. Basic Requirements for History GS-0170: Degree: A degree in history; or related field that included at least 18 semester hours in history. -OR- Combination of Education and Experience: A combination with courses equivalent to a major in history, or a major in a related field that included at least 18 semester hours in history, as shown above, plus appropriate experience or additional education. Basic Requirements for Archeology GS-0193: Degree: Must have obtained the education described in A through C in this paragraph: A) Bachelor or higher degree that includes 3 semester hours each in the following 5 course areas: 1) History of archaeology; 2) Archaeology of a major geographical area such as North America or Africa; 3) Regional archaeology, archaeological cultures, or sites in a specific part or portion of a major geographical area to acquire or develop a foundation for regional specialization for professional development; 4) Theory and methods of archaeology. Methods include, but are not limited to, typology, classification, sampling, cultural evolution, diffusion, dating and analytical techniques; 5) Archaeological field school, to provide a basic understanding of theoretical and practical approaches to research design implementation, field preservation techniques, and report preparation by participation in actual field work. B) IN ADDITION, must have taken six semester hours of related course work in: geography, geology, or cultural geography; history, historiography, or historical archaeology; environmental studies; scientific writing (nonfiction English composition); and/or surveying. C) AND must have completed archaeological field school. Field school must be documented in your transcripts or resume. -OR- Related Curriculum: Degree in anthropology (with emphasis on ethnology, physical anthropology, or scientific linguistics), history, American studies, or a related discipline may be accepted as satisfying in full the educational requirements, provided the curriculum supplied academic course work sufficiently similar to the requirements stated in A above, including archaeological field school. Field school must be documented in your transcripts or resume. -OR- Combination of Education and Experience: A combination (college-level education or training) that provided knowledge equivalent to that described above, plus appropriate technical experience or additional education. -OR- Experience: Four years of archaeological work experience that demonstrated a thorough knowledge of the fundamental principles and theories of professional archaeology. The work experience must have included archaeology field experience, which may include that gained in an archaeological field school. Field experience should have included a combination of professional experience in archaeological survey, excavation, laboratory analysis, and preparation of written materials. Applicants with such field experience should, after additional experience under the direction of a higher-grade archaeologist, be able to demonstrate the ability to be a crew chief, directing the work of others at a single location as a part of a larger archaeological project. Basic Requirements for Landscape Architecture GS-0807: Degree: A degree in landscape architecture or landscape design. -OR- Combination of Education and Experience: A combination with each year short of graduation, the applicant must have had 1 year of experience under professional leadership and guidance of such character and diversity as to be a satisfactory substitute for the required education. This experience must have included original landscape design. In addition to the basic requirements above, to qualify for this position at the GS-09 grade level, you must possess at least one of the following: Experience: One year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the GS-07 level in the Federal service. Examples of qualifying specialized experience includes but is not limited to: identifying potential solutions relating to management of cultural resources; assisting with development of a variety of integrated management/operating plans; providing guidance on complex historic preservation issues in accordance with relevant laws, policies and standards; assisting with preparation of historic preservation and compliance documentation as required by Section 106 and section 110 of the National Historic Preservation Act (NHPA). -OR- Education: Two years of progressively higher-level graduate education leading to a master’s degree or master’s or equivalent graduate degree that is directly related to the position being filled. -OR- Combination of Education and Experience: A combination of education and experience as described above. NOTE: Only graduate level education in excess of one year may be combined with experience. To calculate your percentage of qualifying graduate education, divide your number of semester hours in excess of 18 semester hours by 18. To calculate your percentage of experience, divide your months of qualifying specialized experience by 12. Add the two percentages. The total must equal at least 100 percent to qualify. In addition to the basic requirements above, to qualify for this position at the GS-11 grade level, you must possess at least one of the following: Experience: One year of specialized experience comparable in scope and responsibility to the GS-09 grade level in the Federal service (obtained in either the public or private sectors). Examples of qualifying specialized experience includes but is not limited to: identifying potential solutions relating to management of cultural resources; assisting with development of a variety of integrated management/operating plans; providing guidance on complex historic preservation issues in accordance with relevant laws, policies and standards; assisting with preparation of historic preservation and compliance documentation as required by Section 106 and section 110 of the National Historic Preservation Act (NHPA); conducting project reviews, and providing technical assistance and information regarding cultural resource compliance. -OR- Education: Three years of progressively higher-level graduate education leading to a Ph.D. degree or Ph.D. or equivalent doctoral degree. -OR- Combination of Education and Experience: A combination of education and experience as described above. NOTE: Only graduate level education in excess of two years may be combined with experience. To calculate your percentage of qualifying graduate education, divide your number of semester hours in excess of 36 semester hours by 18. To calculate your percentage of experience, divide your months of qualifying specialized experience by 12. Add the two percentages. The total must equal at least 100 percent to qualify. *Specialized experience is experience that equips the applicant with the particular knowledge, skills, and abilities to successfully perform the duties of the position, and that is typically in or related to the work of the position to be filled. To be creditable, specialized experience must have been equivalent to at least the next lower grade level in the normal line of progression for the occupation in the organization. *One year of full-time graduate education is considered to be the number of credit hours that the school attended has determined to represent one year of full-time study. If that number cannot be obtained from school, 18 semester hours should be considered an academic year of graduate study.
This Interdisciplinary Cultural Resources Specialist position is located at Padre Island National Seashore in the Resource Management division.