Interdisciplinary Geographer/Agriculturist (Geographic Information Systems Specialist)

Duties The duties may include, but are not limited to: Follows high quality standard procedures for the collection, gathering, managing, and reporting of geospatial data relative to routine, non-routine, and emergency response.
Works with environmental and biological data creating thematic data layers to support program operations and management decisions.
Provide high level customer service in the delivery of geospatial data and products to support a state level service area and/or specific pest program.
Stay abreast of current software and technology changes within the GIS field and provide recommendations for making current tools more efficient through careful review and with Agency approvals.
Provide basic GIS training and technical support to field staff when needed.
Requirements Conditions of Employment You must be a US Citizen or US National.
Individuals who were born male after 12/31/1959 must be Selective Service registered or exempt.
Subject to satisfactory adjudication of background investigation and/or fingerprint check.
Successful completion of one-year probationary period, unless previously served.
Direct Deposit: Per Public Law 104-134 all Federal employees are required to have federal payments made by direct deposit to their financial institution.
Successfully pass the E-Verify employment verification check.
To learn more about E-Verify, including your rights and responsibilities, visit E-Verify at https://www.
e-verify.
gov/ Qualifications Applicants must meet all qualifications and eligibility requirements by the closing date of the announcement, including specialized experience and/or education, as defined below.
BASIC REQUIREMENT: 0401 Series: Degree in biological sciences, agriculture, natural resource management, chemistry, or related disciplines appropriate to the position.
OR Combination of education and experience: post high school education with courses equivalent to a major, which is defined as 24 semester/36 quarter hours, in the biological sciences, agriculture, natural resources management, chemistry or related disciplines appropriate to the position, PLUS appropriate experience or additional course work.
0150 Series: Degree in geography; or related physical or social science such as geology, meteorology, economics, statistics, sociology, anthropology, political science, history, cartography, computer science, urban studies, or planning that included at least 24 semester hours in geography or related fields.
OR Combination of education and experience: courses equivalent to a major in geography, or a related field which is defined as 24 semester/36 quarter hours in geography or related fields, as shown above, PLUS appropriate experience or additional education.
In addition to meeting the basic requirement, the following must also be met: FOR THE GS-11 LEVEL: Applicants must have one year of specialized experience (equivalent to the GS-09 level) that may have been obtained in the private or public (local, county, state, Federal) sectors which demonstrates: Uses Esri ArcGIS Pro and online platforms (ArcGIS Online and GIS Portal) to independently develop, manage, and share geospatial data that represents plant pest distributions and associated phenomena.
Develops maps and other visualization products, using proper design and cartographic principles, to communicate plant pest surveillance data, pest and disease incidence, and agricultural cropping systems.
Knowledge of GIS activities to include vector and raster GIS theory, map symbology, map projections, topology, thematic and statistical mapping, topographic and reference mapping, display hierarchies, typography, and data generation.
Provides direct support to pest program staff, spanning management to field level technicians, in the use of geospatial data and tools.
OR 3 years of progressively higher-level graduate education leading to a Ph.
D.
degree or Ph.
D.
or equivalent doctoral degree in a qualifying discipline: 0401 Series: 3 years of progressively higher-level graduate education leading to a Ph.
D.
or equivalent doctoral degree in biological sciences, agriculture, natural resource management, chemistry, or related disciplines.
0150 Series: 3 years of progressively higher-level graduate education leading to a Ph.
D.
degree or Ph.
D.
or equivalent doctoral degree in geography; or related physical or social science such as geology, meteorology, economics, statistics, sociology, anthropology, political science, history, cartography, computer science, urban studies, or planning or related fields.
Equivalent combinations of education and experience are qualifying for this grade level.
TRANSCRIPTS are required if: This position requires specific coursework or a degree in a specific field to be basically qualified.
This education must have been successfully completed and obtained from an accredited school, college, or university COMBINATION OF EDUCATION & EXPERIENCE AT THE GS-11 GRADE LEVEL: Applicants may have combinations of successfully completed education and specialized experience to meet total qualification requirements.
The total percentages must equal at least 100 percent to qualify for that grade level.
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.
Education Please see above for education qualification requirement information.
Additional information Career Transition Assistance Plan (CTAP), Reemployment Priority List (RPL), or Interagency Career Transition Assistance Plan (ICTAP): Visit the OPM website for information on how to apply as a CTAP, RPL, or ICTAP eligible.
To exercise selection priority for this vacancy, CTAP/RPL/ICTAP candidates must meet the basic eligibility requirements and all selective factors.
CTAP/ICTAP candidates must be rated and determined to be well qualified (or above) based on an evaluation of the competencies listed in the How You Will Be Evaluated section.
When assessed through a score-based category rating method, CTAP/ICTAP applicants must receive a rating of at least 85 out of a possible 100.
First time hires to the federal government normally start at the lowest rate of the salary range for the grade selected.
Travel, transportation, and relocation expenses will not be paid.
Any travel, transportation, and relocation expense associated with reporting for duty will be the responsibility of the selected employee.
Locality pay will vary based upon the selectee's duty location.
A final salary determination will be made upon selection.
This position is represented by a collective bargaining unit (union), specifically the 1836.
This is an interdisciplinary position and may be filled in any of the job series/position titles listed.
In addition to the specialized experience requirements, applicants must submit proof that they meet the educational requirements for at least one of the series described in the announcement.
Applicants may only be appointed to job series/position titles for which they meet all experience and educational requirements.
Worksite Information: This is a 100% remote position that must be located within the following defined geographic options: Washington, Oregon, California, Idaho, Nevada, Montana, Wyoming, Utah, Arizona, Colorado, or New Mexico.
The duty station for a remote designation is the selectee's home and must be established within the defined geographic options prior to start date.
The selectee is not required to regularly work from a government facility however, the option may be available.
Field work may be required at times and may entail field locations with hiking in uneven terrain and heavy lifting possible.
Work may require prolonged standing and walking on various types of surfaces and conditions including both urban and rural environments for data collection.
Benefits A career with the U.
S.
government provides employees with a comprehensive benefits package.
As a federal employee, you and your family will have access to a range of benefits that are designed to make your federal career very rewarding.
Opens in a new windowLearn more about federal benefits.
Eligibility for benefits depends on the type of position you hold and whether your position is full-time, part-time or intermittent.
Contact the hiring agency for more information on the specific benefits offered.
How You Will Be Evaluated You will be evaluated for this job based on how well you meet the qualifications above.
Applications will be evaluated in accordance with Office of Personnel Management's (OPM) Delegated Examining Procedures and USDA policy using category rating.
Applicants who meet basic minimum qualifications will be placed in one of three categories: Best Qualified, Well Qualified, or Qualified.
Within these categories, applicants eligible for veteran's preference will receive selection priority over non-veterans.
Category placement will be determined based on applicants' quality of experience and the extent they possess the following knowledge, skills, and abilities (KSA) or competencies: Cartography Data Management Geographic Information Systems Geographical Sciences Mathematical Reasoning Planning and Evaluating Your application, including the online Assessment Questionnaire, will be reviewed to determine if you meet (a) minimum qualification requirements and (b) the resume supports the answers provided to the job-specific questions.
Your resume must clearly support your responses to all the questions addressing experience and education relevant to this position.
Those determined to be in the best qualified category will be referred to the selecting official for consideration.
Note: If, after reviewing your resume and/or supporting documentation, a determination is made that you have inflated your qualifications and or experience, your score may be adjusted to more accurately reflect your abilities, or you may be found ineligible.
Please follow all instructions carefully.
Errors or omissions may affect your rating.
Providing inaccurate information on Federal documents could be grounds for non-selection or disciplinary action up to including removal from the Federal service.
To preview the application questionnaire, please visit: https://apply.
usastaffing.
gov/ViewQuestionnaire/12283388 Benefits A career with the U.
S.
government provides employees with a comprehensive benefits package.
As a federal employee, you and your family will have access to a range of benefits that are designed to make your federal career very rewarding.
Opens in a new windowLearn more about federal benefits.
Eligibility for benefits depends on the type of position you hold and whether your position is full-time, part-time or intermittent.
Contact the hiring agency for more information on the specific benefits offered.
Required Documents As a new or existing federal employee, you and your family may have access to a range of benefits.
Your benefits depend on the type of position you have - whether you're a permanent, part-time, temporary or an intermittent employee.
You may be eligible for the following benefits, however, check with your agency to make sure you're eligible under their policies.
The following documents are required for your applicant package to be complete.
Our office cannot be responsible for incompatible software, your system failure or downtime, etc.
Encrypted documents will not be accepted.
Failure to submit required, legible documents may result in loss of consideration.
Resume that includes: 1) personal information such as name, address, contact information; 2) education; 3) detailed work experience related to this position as described in the major duties including work schedule, hours worked per week, dates of employment; title, series, grade (if applicable); 4) other qualifications; and 5) supervisors name and phone number for each work period listed and whether or not they may be contacted for reference checks.
If education is required or you are using education to qualify, you must submit a copy of your college transcripts.
An unofficial copy is sufficient with the application if it includes your name and the necessary course information; however, if you are selected, you will be required to submit official transcripts prior to entering on duty.
Education must have been successfully obtained from an accredited school, college or university.
If you are using education completed in foreign colleges or universities to meet the qualification requirements, you must show that the education credentials have been evaluated by a private organization that specializes in interpretation of foreign education programs and such education has been deemed equivalent to that gained in an accredited U.
S.
education program.
For further information, visit the following: Foreign Education Evaluation.
All transcripts must be in English or include an English translation.
If claiming veterans' preference, you must submit a DD214, Certificate of Release from Active Duty, which shows dates of service and discharge under honorable conditions.
If currently on active duty you must submit a certification of expected discharge or release from active duty service under honorable conditions within 120 days after the date the certification is submitted.
The certification must be on the letterhead of the appropriate military branch and include the dates of military service.
Veterans' preference must be verified prior to appointment.
Without this documentation, you will not receive veteran's preference and your application will be evaluated based on the material(s) submitted.
If claiming 10-point veterans' preference you must provide the DD214 or certification requirements (see above bullet), plus the proof of entitlement of this preference as listed on the SF-15 Application for 10-point Veterans' Preference.
The SF-15 should be included but is not required.
Failure to submit these documents could result in the determination that there is insufficient documentation to support your claim for 10-point preference.
For more information on veterans' preference visit FEDSHIREVETS Surplus or displaced employees eligible for CTAP, RPL, or ICTAP priority must provide: proof of eligibility (RIF separation notice, notice of proposed removal for declining a transfer of function or directed reassignment to another commuting area, notice of disability annuity termination), SF-50 documenting separation (as applicable), last performance appraisal that is at least fully successful or its equivalent, and your most recent SF-50 noting position, grade level, and duty location with your application per 5 CFR 330.
Worker's Compensation Separation: Agency certification of inability to place employee AND Notification of Separation OR Separation SF-50.
Disability Annuity Termination: Notification from OPM of disability annuity termination AND Separation SF-50 of the last position held.
Military Reserve or National Guard Technician Special Disability Retirement Annuity under 5 U.
S.
C.
8337(h) or 8456: Certification of special disability retirement annuity from a military department or National Guard Bureau AND Separation SF-50 of the last position held.
How to Apply Please read the entire announcement and all instructions before you begin.
You must complete this application process and submit all required documents electronically by 11:59p.
m.
Eastern Time (ET) on the closing date of this announcement.
Applying online is highly encouraged.
We are available to assist you during business hours (normally 8:00a.
m.
- 4:00p.
m.
, Monday - Friday).
If applying online poses a hardship, contact the Agency Contact listed below well before the closing date for an alternate method.
All hardship application packages must be complete and submitted no later than noon ET on the closing date of the announcement in order to be entered into the system prior to its closing.
This agency provides reasonable accommodation to applicants with disabilities on a case-by-case basis; contact the Agency Contact to request this.
Step 1: Create a USAJOBS account (if you do not already have one) at www.
usajobs.
gov.
It is recommended that as part of your profile you set up automatic email notification to be informed when the status of your application changes.
If you choose not to set up this automatic notification, then you will have to log into your USAJOBS account to check on the status of your application.
Step 2: Create a Resume with USAJOBS or upload a Resume into your USAJOBS account.
You may want to customize your resume to ensure it documents duties and accomplishments you have gained that are directly related to this position in order to verify that qualifications are met.
In addition, your resume must support your responses to the online questionnaire (you may preview the online questionnaire by clicking on the link at the end of the How You Will Be Evaluated section of the job announcement).
Step 3: Click "Apply Online" and follow the prompts to complete the Occupational Questionnaire and attach any additional documents that may be required.
You can update your application or documents anytime while the announcement is open.
Simply log into your USAJOBS account and click on "Application Status.
" Click on the position title, and then select "Update Application" to continue.
NOTE: Please verify that documents you are uploading from USAJOBs transfer into the Agency's staffing system as there is a limitation to the number of documents that can be transferred.
However, once in the Agency's staffing system, you will have the opportunity to upload additional documents.
Uploaded documents must be less than 5MB and in one of the following document formats: GIF, JPG, JPEG, PNG, RTF, PDF, TXT or Word (DOC or DOCX).
Do not upload Adobe Portfolio documents because they are not viewable.
Agency contact information MRP Human Resources Phone 612-336-3227 Email MRP.
Application.
Help@usda.
gov Address Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service USDA APHIS MRPBS 250 Marquette Avenue, Suite 410 Minneapolis, MN 55401 US Next steps If you set up your USAJOBS account to send automatic email notifications, your will receive an email acknowledging: 1) the submission of your online Occupational Questionnaire and resume was successful, 2) if you were referred to the selecting official for consideration, and 3) if you were selected or not selected.
Your application will be reviewed to verify that you meet the eligibility and qualification requirements for the position prior to issuing referral lists to the selecting official.
If further evaluation or interviews are required, you will be contacted.
Log in to your USAJOBS account to check your application status.
We expect to make a final job offer approximately 40 days after the deadline for applications.
Multiple positions may be filled from this announcement.
Fair and Transparent The Federal hiring process is set up to be fair and transparent.
Please read the following guidance.
Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO) Policy Reasonable accommodation policy Financial suitability Selective Service New employee probationary period Signature and false statements Privacy Act Social security number request Required Documents The following documents are required for your applicant package to be complete.
Our office cannot be responsible for incompatible software, your system failure or downtime, etc.
Encrypted documents will not be accepted.
Failure to submit required, legible documents may result in loss of consideration.
Resume that includes: 1) personal information such as name, address, contact information; 2) education; 3) detailed work experience related to this position as described in the major duties including work schedule, hours worked per week, dates of employment; title, series, grade (if applicable); 4) other qualifications; and 5) supervisors name and phone number for each work period listed and whether or not they may be contacted for reference checks.
If education is required or you are using education to qualify, you must submit a copy of your college transcripts.
An unofficial copy is sufficient with the application if it includes your name and the necessary course information; however, if you are selected, you will be required to submit official transcripts prior to entering on duty.
Education must have been successfully obtained from an accredited school, college or university.
If you are using education completed in foreign colleges or universities to meet the qualification requirements, you must show that the education credentials have been evaluated by a private organization that specializes in interpretation of foreign education programs and such education has been deemed equivalent to that gained in an accredited U.
S.
education program.
For further information, visit the following: Foreign Education Evaluation.
All transcripts must be in English or include an English translation.
If claiming veterans' preference, you must submit a DD214, Certificate of Release from Active Duty, which shows dates of service and discharge under honorable conditions.
If currently on active duty you must submit a certification of expected discharge or release from active duty service under honorable conditions within 120 days after the date the certification is submitted.
The certification must be on the letterhead of the appropriate military branch and include the dates of military service.
Veterans' preference must be verified prior to appointment.
Without this documentation, you will not receive veteran's preference and your application will be evaluated based on the material(s) submitted.
If claiming 10-point veterans' preference you must provide the DD214 or certification requirements (see above bullet), plus the proof of entitlement of this preference as listed on the SF-15 Application for 10-point Veterans' Preference.
The SF-15 should be included but is not required.
Failure to submit these documents could result in the determination that there is insufficient documentation to support your claim for 10-point preference.
For more information on veterans' preference visit FEDSHIREVETS Surplus or displaced employees eligible for CTAP, RPL, or ICTAP priority must provide: proof of eligibility (RIF separation notice, notice of proposed removal for declining a transfer of function or directed reassignment to another commuting area, notice of disability annuity termination), SF-50 documenting separation (as applicable), last performance appraisal that is at least fully successful or its equivalent, and your most recent SF-50 noting position, grade level, and duty location with your application per 5 CFR 330.
Worker's Compensation Separation: Agency certification of inability to place employee AND Notification of Separation OR Separation SF-50.
Disability Annuity Termination: Notification from OPM of disability annuity termination AND Separation SF-50 of the last position held.
Military Reserve or National Guard Technician Special Disability Retirement Annuity under 5 U.
S.
C.
8337(h) or 8456: Certification of special disability retirement annuity from a military department or National Guard Bureau AND Separation SF-50 of the last position held.
Help This job is open to Career transition (CTAP, ICTAP, RPL) Federal employees who meet the definition of a "surplus" or "displaced" employee.
The public U.
S.
Citizens, Nationals or those who owe allegiance to the U.
S.