Wildland Firefighter (Direct Hire Authority)

All qualifications must be met by the closing date of this announcement10/21/2024 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 qualified specialized experience. Selective Factors for ALL GRADES: The applicant must possess all the following qualifications and training requirements to be considered eligible for this position: Under age 37 -OR- less than age 37 after subtracting the months of Permanent Federal Service worked in a primary or secondary firefighter/law enforcement position -OR- a veteran preference eligible, older than age 37 and is requesting a waiver to the maximum age requirement. This position is covered by the special retirement provisions of 5 U.S.C. 8336 (c) and 5 U.S.C. 8412 (d) as a Primary/Rigorous Firefighter. Applicants must be 18 years of age, but not have reached their 37th birthday by the closing date of this announcement. These positions are covered by the special enhanced annuity retirement provisions for Federal Firefighters and Law Enforcement officers and have a mandatory retirement age of 57. Two exceptions are allowed: 1) an applicant has prior Federal service in documented special retirement covered position(s) sufficient to count toward 20 years of covered service on or before the mandatory retirement age of 57; or 2) an applicant is a qualified veterans’ preference eligible, in which case the MEA is waived and their corresponding retirement age may be higher than 57 after completing 20 years of service. Applicants must submit proof of their previous and/or current status in the Fire Fighter or Law Enforcement special enhanced annuity retirement system. To qualify for this position at the GS-03 level, you must possess one of the following: A. Six months of general work experience. General Experience can be any work experience. -OR- B. Successful completion of 1 year of study above high school in an accredited college or university that included at least 6 semester hours in a combination of courses such as range management or conservation, agriculture, forestry, wildlife management, engineering, biology, mathematics, or other natural or physical sciences. -OR- C. A combination of education and general work experience as described above To qualify for this position at the GS-04 level, you must possess one of the following: A. 6 months of general experience AND 6 months specialized. General experience: is any type of work that demonstrates the applicant’s ability to perform the work of the position. Specialized Experience: Biological science aid or technician work; forestry aid or technician work; farming or ranching work that provided a basic understanding of land use; forest or range fire control, prevention, or suppression work; engineering, range, or soil conservation technician work that involves application of cultural, resource conservation, or land management practices; farming or ranching work that provides a basic understanding of land use and involved the application of cultural and soil and water conservation practices. -OR- B. Successful completion of 2 years of study that included at least 12 semester hours in any combination of courses such as forestry, agriculture, crop or plant science, range management or conservation, wildlife management, watershed management, soil science, natural resources (except marine fisheries and oceanography), outdoor recreation management, civil or forest engineering, or wildland fire science. No more than 3 semester hours in mathematics is creditable. You must provide transcripts at time of application. -OR- C. Equivalent combination of experience and education that, together, equal 100% of the qualification standards listed above when combined. To qualify for this position at the GS-05 level, you must possess one of the following: A. Applicants must have one year of specialized experience equivalent to the GS-05 level. Examples of specialized experience include: Performed forestry aid or technician work; engineering, range, or soil conservation technician work to include application of cultural, resource conservation, or land management practices; farm or ranch work that provided a basic understanding of land use and involved the application of cultural and soil and water conservation practices; forest or range fire control, prevention, or suppression work; on-the-line wildland fire experience in forest/range fire control, prevention or suppression work as a skilled wildland firefighter, utilizing a variety of specialized wildland fire tools and equipment. -OR- B. Successful completion of a full 4-year course of study (120 semester hour or 180 quarter hours) leading to a bachelor’s degree with major study in forestry, range management, agriculture or a subject-matter field directly related to the position that includes at least 24 semester hours of course work in related course work such as forestry, agriculture, crop or plant science, range management or conservation, wildlife management, watershed management, soil science, natural resources (except marine fisheries and oceanography), outdoor recreation management, civil or forest engineering, or wildland fire science. No more than 6 semester hours in mathematics is creditable. (Transcripts must be attached to application package). -OR- C. A combination of specialized experience and directly related education that included at least 24 semester hours in any combination of courses such as those shown above (No more than 6 semester hours in mathematics is creditable) that qualifies me for the position. (Transcripts must be attached to application package). IMPORTANT – PLEASE NOTE: If you are using education to qualify you must submit a legible copy of your transcripts (A copy of your official transcripts will be required before entrance on duty, if selected). 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.
Incumbents serves as an experienced members of a wildland fire module or crew executing fire management activities in fire preparation, fuels management and prevention, and fire suppression, monitoring and post-fire; Work may also include all hazard and emergency response activities. For more information contact: Mike Baschen, Engine Captain, Indiana Dunes NP Michael_Baschen@nps.gov Michael Valora, Chief Ranger, Cape Cod NS michael_valora@nps.gov