Fish Biologist-Survey (Recent Grad), ZP-0482-2

This position is located in the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), with 6 vacancies in Anchorage, Alaska; Juneau, Alaska; Kodiak, Alaska; San Diego, California; Miami, Florida; Woods Hole, Massachusetts; Pascagoula, Mississippi; Beaufort, North Carolina; Newport, Oregon; Narragansett, Rhode Island; or Seattle, Washington.

Qualifications:

This position is being recruited with an opportunity for non-competitive conversion eligibility to a permanent OR term position upon completion of all Recent Graduate program requirements. Conversion is not mandatory nor guaranteed (see Additional Information).

Eligibility Requirements
In order to be eligible for an appointment under the Pathways Recent Graduate Program you must meet the following requirements:

• You must be a recent graduate who has completed, within the previous two years, an associates, bachelors, masters, professional, doctorate, vocational or technical degree or certificate from a qualifying educational institution such as an accredited technical or vocational school; a 2- or 4-year college or university; a graduate or professional school (e.g., law school, medical school); or a post-secondary home school curriculum; or completed a qualifying career or technical education program, including Peace Corps, AmeriCorps, Job Corps, and Registered Apprenticeships. Note: Certificate program is defined as post-secondary education in a qualifying educational institution equal to at least one academic year of full-time study that's part of an accredited college-level, technical, trade, vocational, or business school curriculum.
• Veterans who were precluded from applying due to their military service obligation begin their 2-year eligibility period upon release or discharge from active duty; however, eligibility for these veterans cannot exceed 6 years from the date on which the degree or certificate was obtained. The date of release or discharge from active duty should be later than the date the degree or certificate was obtained.

Qualification requirements in the vacancy announcements are based on the U.S. Office of Personnel Management (OPM) Qualification Standards Handbook, which contains federal qualification standards. This handbook is available on the Office of Personnel Management's website located at: https://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/classification-qualifications/general-schedule-qualification-standards/

BASIC REQUIREMENTS: This position requires applicants to meet a Basic Education Requirement in addition to at least one full year (52 weeks) of specialized experience OR combination (if applicable) in order to be found minimally qualified. You MUST meet one of the following basic education requirements:

To qualify for the 0482 series:

A. Degree: major in biological science that included:

• At least 6 semester hours in aquatic subjects such as limnology, ichthyology, fishery biology, aquatic botany, aquatic fauna, oceanography, fish culture, or related courses in the field of fishery biology; and
• At least 12 semester hours in the animal sciences in such subjects as general zoology, vertebrate zoology, comparative anatomy, physiology, entomology, parasitology, ecology, cellular biology, genetics, or research in these fields. (Excess course work in aquatic subjects may be used to meet this requirement when appropriate.)

OR

B. Combination of education and experience: courses equivalent to a major in biological science (i.e., at least 30 semester hours), of which a minimum of 6 semester hours were in aquatic subjects and 12 semester hours were in the animal sciences, as shown in A above, plus appropriate experience or additional education.

SPECIALIZED EXPERIENCE: Applicants must possess one year of specialized experience equivalent in difficulty and responsibility to the next lower grade level in the Federal Service. Specialized experience is experience that has equipped the applicant with the particular competencies/knowledge, skills and abilities to successfully perform the duties of the position. This experience need not have been in the federal government.

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.

To qualify at the ZP-2 or GS-07 level:
SPECIALIZED EXPERIENCE: In addition to meeting the Basic Requirements above, applicants must also possess one full year (52 weeks) of specialized experience equivalent to the ZP-1 or GS-05 in the Federal service. Specialized experience MUST include all of the following:

• Participating in and conducting basic aspects of field or at-sea research surveys (e.g., trawl, acoustic, visual, or optical surveys) to collect essential data on marine species, resources, or ecosystems.

OR

SUBSTITUTION OF EDUCATION: One full year of graduate-level education.

OR

SUPERIOR ACADEMIC ACHIEVEMENT: As demonstrated by a bachelor's degree from an accredited college or university with one of the following. NOTE: It is your responsibility to ensure your application clearly states how you meet one of the provisions below (you must attach a copy of your transcripts showing completed degree and, if applicable, proof of national Scholastic Honor Society membership)

• A grade point average (GPA) of 2.9 or higher based on a 4.0 scale for all completed undergraduate courses, or those completed in the last 2 full years of undergraduate study;
• A GPA of 3.5 or higher based on a 4.0 scale for required courses completed in a major field of study, or those courses completed in a major field of study during the last two years of undergraduate study;
• Class standing of upper third of the graduating class in the college, university, or major subdivision of the college;
• Membership in a national Scholastic Honor Society certified by the Association of College honor Societies, excluding freshman honor societies.

OR

COMBINATION OF EDUCATION AND EXPERIENCE: A combination of successfully completed graduate-level education and specialized experience may be used to meet the total experience requirements.

Responsibilities:

As a Fish Biologist-Survey you will perform the following duties:

• Participate in studies on distribution, abundance, protected species, ecosystem processes or similar research, and subsequent post-survey laboratory processing of biological specimens collected during fishery-independent surveys. Collect and oversee sample collections, protected species and fishery observations, and data.
• Support fishery-independent resource operations through survey preparation and mobilization, data collection, demobilization, analysis, and research. Perform quantitative analyses, utilizing statistical procedures and software (e.g., Rstudio, ORACLE, SQL, ArgGIS, Python), related to fishery-independent survey design, assessing sampling gear efficiency, and biological and ecosystems processes.
• Assist in the preparation and coordination of fishery-independent resource surveys. Contribute to aspects of survey preparation and post-cruise efforts, including supply procurement, administrative tasks, and preparation of cruise instructions and cruise reports.

NOTE: These duties are described at the ZP-2; the ZP-2 is developmental leading to the full performance level of the ZP-3.

For more information about these positions, please visit the NOAA Fisheries is Hiring Webpage: https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/careers-more/noaa-fisheries-hiring

This position will be filled under the DOC Alternative Personnel System (CAPS). This system replaced the Federal GS pay plan and structure. Under CAPS, positions are classified by career, pay plan, and pay band.

The ZA-2 is equivalent to the GS-07/09. This position has promotion potential to the ZA-3, which is equivalent to the GS-11/12.

* Positions in Anchorage, AK; Juneau, AK; Kodiak, AK; Newport, OR; and Seattle WA may be covered under bargaining unit 2274.
* Positions in Pascagoula, MS may be covered under bargaining unit 5627.
* Positions in Miami, Fl; Pascagoula, MS; and Beaufort, NC may be covered under bargaining unit 2194.

POSITION REQUIREMENTS:

• This position requires the operation of a Federal motor vehicle. The incumbent must be able to obtain and maintain a valid state driver's license to operate a government vehicle in completion of assigned tasks. Perform tasks such as driving a truck loaded with equipment or loading trucks with gear for transport to vessel(s).
• This position requires regular at-sea participation in fishery-independent research surveys working on deck of vessels for shifts exceeding 8 hours per day that may be irregular for survey durations. Total annual survey days at sea may range from 20 to possibly exceeding 100 total, depending on the position.

CONDITIONS OF EMPLOYMENT:

• Sea duties are conducted in a demanding physical marine environment that involves sampling operations exposed to weather over long, odd hours, and moving and lifting equipment, up to 50lbs unassisted, or biological samples many times throughout the day, on an unsteady platform depending on sea state.
• Must be able to frequently stand for long periods of time, ascend and descend ladders, bend, and stoop to perform field operations.
• Requires ability to lift gear and deliver or pick up equipment from vessels.
• Incumbent will need to travel to a variety of regional locations to conduct field work, meet with collaborators, collect and evaluate data, and participate in scientific presentations.

Salary : $50,460