Physical Scientist (Dark Sky Coordinator)

All qualifications must be met by the closing date of this announcement-11/21/2024-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 of qualified specialized experience. All applicants must meet the (1) basic requirement, (2) Selective Placement Factor, and (3) specialized experience in order to receive consideration for this position. 1. BASIC REQUIREMENT: In order to qualify for this position, you must meet the basic requirement described below. If you do not, you will not be considered for this position: A. A degree in physical science, engineering, or mathematics that included 24 semester hours in physical science and/or related engineering science such as mechanics, dynamics, properties of materials, and electronics. -OR- B. A combination of education and experience — education equivalent to one of the majors shown in A above that included at least 24 semester hours in physical science and/or related engineering science, plus appropriate experience or additional education. In addition to the Basic Requirement above, you must also meet the minimum qualification requirements described below. To qualify for this position at the GS-09 grade level, you must also possess all of the following minimum qualifications by close of the announcement: 2. SELECTIVE PLACEMENT FACTOR: This position requires applicants to meet the selective factor in order to be considered. Selective placement factors are knowledge, skills, or abilities that are critical to the success of the position and must be possession prior to entering on duty. Applicants must meet the following selective placement factor. Those who do not, will no longer be considered for this position: Formal coursework in lighting such as lighting technology or modern lighting design that demonstrates formal understanding of the concepts, principles, theories and methods in lighting as it relates to the physical sciences. Applicants must also meet the specialized experience below to be considered for this position: 3. SPECIALIZED EXPERIENCE: At least one full year of specialized experience comparable in scope and responsibility to the GS-07 grade level in the Federal service (obtained in either the public or private sectors). This experience includes: Strong technical knowledge of lighting principles and technologies including outdoor lighting, shielding, controls, and LEDs. Ability to interpret and explain technical lighting specifications such as photometric design plans, lighting specifications (lumen output, efficacy, CCT), wired controls and wireless control options such as timers, dimmers, or sensors to non-specialists. Familiarity with lighting standards for outdoor lighting including zoning and appropriate lighting levels for given tasks. Familiarity with night sky protection initiatives such as Dark Sky International Best Practices and Certification processes, Illuminating Engineering Society best practices, or Design Lights Consortium Project LUNA requirements. Demonstrated understanding of the environmental impacts of outdoor lighting such as skyglow on wildlife and ecosystem health and the implementation of best practices for mitigating outdoor lighting effects, and experience guiding lighting choices based on these potential impacts. You must include hours per week worked. -OR- EDUCATION: Successful completion of at least 2 years of progressively higher level graduate education leading to a master’s degree or master’s or equivalent graduate degree, if related. You must include transcripts. -OR- COMBINATION: Successful completion of a combination of education and experience as described above. To combine education and experience, first take your the amount of completed education (18 semester hours, or 27 quarter hours, equal 1 year of graduate education) and divide by 18 (if semester hours) or 27 (if quarter hours). Then multiply the answer by 100 to calculate the total percentage of education. Then take the number of months of full time experience and divide by 12 months, multiplying that answer by 100 for the percentage. Add the percentages together. The total must equal at least 100 percent to qualify. You must include transcripts. QUALITY RANKING FACTOR: Applicants who currently possess the described skill may be placed ahead of other applicants; however, you will not lose consideration solely based on not having this skill: Basic experience applying outdoor lighting principles and an understanding of the impact of lighting on nighttime resources. 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.
This position is located in Natural Resources Stewardship and Science, in the Natural Sounds and Night Skies Division. This is a term position (more than 1 year) with an initial appointment expecting to last at least 13 months and no more than 3 years, but may be extended up to a total of fours years. Term positions do not convey permanent status in the Federal service.