This position is located in the United States Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service, Soil and Water Conservation Research Unit in Pendleton, OR. In this position, you will actively participate in one or more phases of the research process related to plants and soil by performing a variety of technical duties in a laboratory, field, or greenhouse environment.

Duties

Assist with agricultural management practices in the field including planting, cultivating, harvesting, and applying pesticides to test plots. Tabulate, statistically analyze, and summarize data using personal computers and software packages. Operate, maintain, and repair complex equipment including tractors, soil water sensors, combines, and hydraulic soil samplers. Collect, prepare, evaluate, and verify plant and soil samples for laboratory analyses.

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.
• 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. GS-07: Specialized Experience: Specialized experience is experience directly related to the position to be filled. Specialized experience must be described for each grade level advertised. The specialized experience requirements for this position are: Qualifying experience for GS-07 includes one year of specialized experience comparable to GS-06 which is directly related to the work of this position, and which has equipped the applicant with the knowledge, skills, and abilities to successfully perform the duties of the position. For this position, specialized experience includes experience participating in a research project related to plants or soil; statistically analyzing or summarizing data; and maintaining equipment or automated systems used in a laboratory or field environment. OR Education: Successful completion of one full year of progressively higher-level graduate education leading to a master's or equivalent graduate degree, if directly related. Related degrees may include Crop Science, Soil Science, Biosystems Engineering, Agricultural Science, or Botany. OR A combination of graduate level education and experience as described above. GS-08: Specialized Experience: Specialized experience is experience directly related to the position to be filled. Specialized experience must be described for each grade level advertised. The specialized experience requirements for this position are: Qualifying experience for GS-08 includes one year of specialized experience comparable to GS-07 which is directly related to the work of this position, and which has equipped the applicant with the knowledge, skills, and abilities to successfully perform the duties of the position. For this position, specialized experience includes experience setting up and conducting an experiment or research project with plants or soil; analyzing samples from plants or soil; and operating, maintaining, calibrating, or modifying specialized equipment. OR Education: Successful completion of two full years of progressively higher-level graduate education leading to a master's or equivalent graduate degree, if directly related. Related degrees may include Crop Science, Soil Science, Biosystems Engineering, Agricultural Science, or Botany. OR A combination of graduate level education and experience as described above. GS-09: Specialized Experience: Specialized experience is experience directly related to the position to be filled. Specialized experience must be described for each grade level advertised. The specialized experience requirements for this position are: Qualifying experience for GS-09 includes one year of specialized experience comparable to GS-08 which is directly related to the work of this position, and which has equipped the applicant with the knowledge, skills, and abilities to successfully perform the duties of the position. For this position, specialized experience includes experience participating in the maintenance of plots including planting, weeding, or harvesting agricultural samples; collecting, preparing, and evaluating plant or soil samples and supporting records; and utilizing software tools to manage and analyze data. OR Education: Successful completion of two full years of progressively higher-level graduate education leading to a master's or equivalent graduate degree, if directly related. Related degrees may include Crop Science, Soil Science, Biosystems Engineering, Agricultural Science, or Botany. OR A combination of graduate level education and experience as described above. 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.

Contacts

• Address Agricultural Research Service 800 Buchanan Street Albany, CA 94710 US
• Name: Kayleigh Pfeiffer
• Phone: 703-995-9645
• Email: [email protected]