This position is located in a USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service state, area, or field office within a designated state. The incumbent assists the area/zone or similar engineer and is responsible for providing basic technical guidance and in-the overall planning, design, installation, and maintenance of the engineering phases of soil and water conservation practices.

Duties

Supervises the planning, design and construction of engineering practices such as water management, animal waste management, erosion control, flood control, and other conservation practices needing engineering guidance. Oversees the type, scope, and intensity of field investigations and surveys needed for the practice implementation. Prepares designs, preliminary and final drawings and specifications on complex engineering practices. Interprets plans and specifications for contractors, solving problems at local level as to proper interpretation of specifications. Interprets plans and specifications for contractors, solving problems at local level as to proper interpretation of specifications. Plans and conducts pre bid site showing, approves construction schedules, monitors work for compliance with plans and specification and contract requirements.

Requirements

• You must be a US Citizen or US National.
• Males born after 12/31/1959 must be Selective Service registered or exempt.
• Subject to satisfactory adjudication of background investigation and/or fingerprint check. If selected you will be sent instructions on obtaining fingerprints. Please note we are not able to reimburse any fees incurred for fingerprints.
• Successful completion of one-year probationary period, unless previously served.
• Subject to one-year supervisory/managerial probationary period unless prior service is creditable. New USDA supervisors must successfully complete all components of the required training program before the end of their probationary period.
• 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/.
• Must possess and maintain a valid state motor vehicle operator's license for the type of vehicle(s) operated to perform the duties of this position.

Qualifications

Applicants must meet all qualifications and eligibility requirements by the closing date of the announcement. BASIC REQUIREMENTS: Applicants must meet the Basic Requirements for this position to be considered. (Must submit transcripts) - SEE REQUIREMENTS IN EDUCATION SECTION In addition to meeting one of the Basic Requirements listed above, applicants must meet the following Minimum Qualifications Requirement in order to be considered: MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS: To be considered minimally qualified for this position, you must demonstrate that you have the required specialized experience and/or education for the respective grade level(s) in which you are applying: Minimum Qualifications--GS-7: You must meet one of the following:A. One full year of specialized experience, equivalent to at least the GS-5 grade level in the Federal service, performing duties such as: assisting engineers or field personnel in the planning, design and construction of engineering practices such as water management, animal waste management, erosion control, flood control, wetland creation or restoration, and other conservation practices; assisting engineers or field personnel with field investigations and surveys needed for the implementation of conservation programs; and assisting with collecting and processing field data for engineering projects. B. A bachelor's degree in engineering AND meet one of the following Superior Academic Achievement Provisions: Maintained a grade-point average of "B" (a GPA of 3.0 or higher) for all completed undergraduate courses, or those completed in the last two years of undergraduate study. Maintained a grade-point average "B+" (a GPA of 3.5 or higher) for all courses in your major field of study, or those courses in your major completed in the last two years of undergraduate study. Rank in the upper one-third of your class in the college, university, or major subdivision. Be a member of a national honor (other than freshman honor societies) recognized by the Association of College Honor Societies. Please submit a college transcript(s) showing your grade point average for all four years of undergraduate study, including all transferred courses. NOTE: GPA's are rounded to one decimal place. For example, 2.95 will round to 3.0 and 2.94 will round to 2.9. If more than 10 percent of your undergraduate course work (credit hours) were taken on a pass/fail or similar basis, your claim must be based on class standing or membership in an honor society. C. One year (18 semester hours) of graduate level education in engineering or a closely related field that provided the knowledge, skills, and abilities necessary to successfully complete the work of the position. D. A combination of specialized experience as described in 'A' and graduate level education as described in 'C' that, when combined, equal 100% of the total requirement. E. Have successfully completed a five-year program of study of at least 160 semester hours leading to a bachelor's degree in engineering. F. Have an engineering bachelor's degree AND have appropriate specialized experience as an Engineering Technician equivalent to grade GS-5 or higher. Minimum Qualifications--GS-9: You must meet one of the following: A. One full year of specialized experience, equivalent to at least the GS-7 grade level in the Federal service, performing duties such as: assisting engineers or field personnel in the planning, design and construction of engineering practices such as water management, animal waste management, erosion control, flood control, wetland creation or restoration, and other conservation practices; assisting engineers or field personnel with field investigations and surveys needed for the implementation of conservation programs; reviewing and processing field data to ensure adequacy of collected data for conservation projects; and developing preliminary designs for conservation projects. B. At least 2 years of progressively higher-level graduate education leading to a master's degree or equivalent graduate degree OR master's degree or higher in engineering or a closely related field that provided the knowledge, skills, and abilities necessary to successfully complete the work of the position. C. A combination of specialized experience as described in A and graduate level education as described in B that, when combined, equal 100% of the total requirement. (Please note that only graduate education in excess of the first 18 semester hours may be used in this calculation.) D. A Bachelor's degree in engineering with Superior Academic Achievement and have one year of professional engineering experience. Professional engineering experience is defined as non-routine engineering work that required professional knowledge of engineering; professional ability to apply such knowledge to engineering problems; and positive and continuing development of professional knowledge and ability. E. Completed a 5-year program of study of at least 160 semester hours leading to a bachelor's degree in engineering and have one year of professional engineering experience. Professional engineering experience is defined as non-routine engineering work that required professional knowledge of engineering; professional ability to apply such knowledge to engineering problems; and positive and continuing development of professional knowledge and ability Minimum Qualifications--GS-11: A. One or more full-time years (12-months) of specialized work experience, equivalent to at least the GS-09 grade level in the Federal service, performing the following duties: Assisting with collecting and processing engineering field data and ensure adequacy of collected data; Inspecting engineering projects to ensure contractor specifications are adhered to; Assisting with field investigations and surveys for implementation of conservation programs; and Preparing designs, preliminary and final drawings on construction projects B. 3 years of progressively higher-level graduate education leading to a Ph.D. degree or Ph.D. or equivalent doctoral degree in engineering or other directly related discipline. (You must submit transcripts.) C. Combination of the above-described education and specialized experience such that they total 100% when combined. To determine your combination, first compute your experience as a percentage of the experience listed above; then determine your education as a percentage of the education listed above; then add the two percentages. The total percentages must equal at least 100 percent. Note: Only graduate level education beyond 2 years or 36 semester hours may be combined with specialized experience. You must submit transcripts.) IN DESCRIBING YOUR EXPERIENCE, PLEASE BE CLEAR AND SPECIFIC. WE MAY NOT MAKE ASSUMPTIONS REGARDING YOUR EXPERIENCE. If your resume does not support your questionnaire answers, we will not allow credit for your response(s). 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. The OPM Qualification Standards for this position can be found at: https://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/classification-qualifications/general-schedule-qualification-standards/#url=List-by-Occupational-Series

Education

Basic Requirement: You must meet one of the following:A. Degree: Engineering. To be acceptable, the program must: (1) lead to a bachelor's degree in a school of engineering with at least one program accredited by ABET; or (2) include differential and integral calculus and courses (more advanced than first-year physics and chemistry) in five of the following seven areas of engineering science or physics: (a) statics, dynamics; (b) strength of materials (stress-strain relationships); (c) fluid mechanics, hydraulics; (d) thermodynamics; (e) electrical fields and circuits; (f) nature and properties of materials (relating particle and aggregate structure to properties); and (g) any other comparable area of fundamental engineering science or physics, such as optics, heat transfer, soil mechanics, or electronics.ORB. Combination of education and experience -- college-level education, training, and/or technical experience that furnished (1) a thorough knowledge of the physical and mathematical sciences underlying engineering, and (2) a good understanding, both theoretical and practical, of the engineering sciences and techniques and their applications to one of the branches of engineering. The adequacy of such background must be demonstrated by one of the following:

1. Professional registration or licensure -- Current registration as an Engineer Intern (EI), Engineer in Training (EIT), or licensure as a Professional Engineer (PE) by any State, the District of Columbia, Guam, or Puerto Rico. (You must submit licensure or registration.)
2. Written Test -- Evidence of having successfully passed the Fundamentals of Engineering (FE) examination or any other written test required for professional registration by an engineering licensure board in the various States, the District of Columbia, Guam, and Puerto Rico. (You must submit documentation)
3. Specified academic courses -- Successful completion of at least 60 semester hours of courses in the physical, mathematical, and engineering sciences and that included the courses specified in the basic requirements under paragraph A. The courses must be fully acceptable toward meeting the requirements of an engineering program as described in paragraph A.
4. Related curriculum -- Successful completion of a curriculum leading to a bachelor's degree in an appropriate scientific field, e.g., engineering technology, physics, chemistry, architecture, computer science, mathematics, hydrology, or geology, may be accepted in lieu of a bachelor's degree in engineering, provided the applicant has had at least 1 year of professional engineering experience acquired under professional engineering supervision and guidance. Ordinarily there should be either an established plan of intensive training to develop professional engineering competence, or several years of prior professional engineering-type experience, e.g., in interdisciplinary positions. (The above examples of related curricula are not all-inclusive.)

You must submit a copy of your college transcripts or a list of college courses with credit hours, dates completed, and grades received to verify all education requirements (i.e. substitution of education and/or basic education requirement). If a relevant course is not clearly qualifying (e.g. special topic, seminar, research, thesis, obscure or misleading course title, etc.), please submit an official course syllabi and/or detailed course description from the university/college for that particular course to ensure you are properly evaluated. Please note that qualifications determinations are based solely on the information submitted for each particular vacancy announcement. You must document all requirements on every vacancy; we cannot use previous determinations as a basis for rating. All required information must be received by the closing date of this announcement, and non-submission of all required documents/documentation will result in non-consideration. Unofficial transcripts will be accepted. This information must be received by the closing date of this announcement. Non-submission of these documents will result in non-consideration. Education must be accredited by an accrediting institution recognized by the U.S. Department of Education in order for it to be credited towards qualifications.

Foreign Education: 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; or full credit has been given for the courses at a U.S. accredited college or university. For further information, visit: https://www2.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ous/international/usnei/us/edlite-visitus-forrecog.html

Contacts

• Address Natural Resources Conservation Service 1400 Independence Ave SW Washington, DC 20250 US
• Name: Midwest Services Branch
• Phone: 8164265706
• Email: [email protected]