These positions are located in Great Smoky Mountains National Park, in the Resource Management and Science Division. Career-Seasonal appointments are permanent positions and include the same benefits as Career appointments, but do not provide work on a year-round basis. You will work from approximately March - January, and you will be in a non-pay status for the remainder of the year.

Duties

SUMMARY: These positions serve as Biological Science Technicians in the Wildlife Branch of the Resource Management and Science Division at Great Smoky Mountains National Park and perform assignments associated with the managing/mitigating/monitoring of human/wildlife conflicts, controlling non-native wild hogs, and wildlife monitoring. Most duties are field oriented, performed independently and without immediate supervisory guidance. MAJOR DUTIES: The duties may include, but are not limited to: Spontaneously respond to human-wildlife encounters (e.g., roadside wildlife jams, etc.) and decide a course of action in the interest of public safety and animal welfare. Lethally remove non-native wild hogs utilizing a variety of firearms (e.g., revolvers, shotguns, rifles, etc.), traps (e.g., box traps, corral traps, etc.) and specialized equipment (e.g., electronic thermal imaging scopes, night vision units, firearm sound suppressors, cell phone activated camera and trap technology, etc.). Hike (up to 15 miles daily carrying 45 pounds of gear) into remote mountainous areas, establish primitive campsites, and camp alone for up to five continuous days in a variety of weather conditions. Perform wildlife population surveillance and monitoring; gathering and compiling data to facilitate statistical analyses. Perform a variety of technical procedures including capture, restraint, chemical immobilization, marking, transport, euthanasia, collecting biological samples, and/or necropsy of wildlife. Utilize computer programs to compile, store and retrieve data on wildlife management and monitoring activities. Repair and maintain backcountry food-storage cables systems. Install, inspect, clean, operate, and maintain resource management equipment (e.g., tools, traps, vehicles, etc.). Operate motor vehicles, including two and four-wheel drive, passenger cars, vans, UTV's, trucks up to one ton and tows trailers. Serve as an emergency team member for search and rescue, wildland fire activities, and in other emergency capacities as needed. AREA/DUTY STATION INFORMATION: Great Smoky Mountains National Park is in the states of North Carolina and Tennessee and encompasses 800 square miles of which 95 percent are forested. The duty stations for these positions are located near the city of Cherokee, North Carolina and Gatlinburg, Tennessee. There are 16 peaks over 6,000' in elevation and up to 90" of rainfall spread throughout the year. The Park has 10 campgrounds, 800 miles of horse and hiking trails, and 750 miles of fishable streams. The Smokies is within one day's drive for about 1/3 of the U.S. population and thus attracts over 12 million visitors annually making it the most visited national park in the system. Climate is moderate with average lows in the summer in the 60's and highs in the 80's and 90's and average lows in winter between 20 and 30 with highs in the 50's. Snowfall averages range from 5" in Gatlinburg, Tennessee, to 11" in Bryson City, North Carolina. Duties will be developmental in nature when filled below the full performance level.

Requirements

Qualifications

All qualifications must be met by the closing date of this announcement-08/05/2024-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. SELECTIVE FACTOR: This position lethally removes non-native wild hogs utilizing a variety of firearms, and either a National or State recognized Hunters Education Certificate is required. Candidates who do not meet this requirement by close of this announcement will receive no further consideration for this position. - AND - To qualify for this position at the GS-07 grade level, you must possess at least one of the following minimum qualifications by close of the announcement: EXPERIENCE: At least one full year of specialized experience comparable in scope and responsibility to the GS-06 grade level in the Federal service (obtained in either the public or private sectors). This experience includes activities such as: Research activity or control program work; nursery work that required the growing and maintenance of plants in a controlled environment; work comparable to that with a large dairy farm where production records, animal environment, and sanitary conditions were kept in accordance with modern dairy practice. Other experience includes non-native wildlife management; human/wildlife conflict management; and wildlife monitoring. You must include hours per week worked. -OR- EDUCATION: Successful completion of at least 1 full year of graduate education leading to a Master's degree or equivalent graduate degree with major study or at least 18 semester hours in any combination of scientific or technical courses such as biology, chemistry, statistics, entomology, animal husbandry, botany, physics, agriculture, or mathematics. You must include transcripts. -OR- Successful completion of a combination of education and experience as described above. To combine education and experience, first take the amount of completed semester hours of graduate work in a field of study that is directly related to the work of this position and divide it by 18 (18 semester hours in 1 year of graduate education). Then take the number of months of full-time experience and divide by 12 months. Add the percentages together. The total must equal at least 100 percent to qualify. You must include transcripts. 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. Current surplus and current or former displaced Federal individuals who have special priority selection rights under the Agency Career Transition Assistance Program (CTAP) or the Interagency Career Transition Assistance Program (ICTAP) must be well qualified for the position to receive consideration for special priority selection. Well qualified means that the applicant meets the following: OPM qualification standards for the position; all selective placement factors, where applicable; special qualifying conditions that OPM has approved for the position, where applicable; is physically qualified with reasonable accommodation, where appropriate to satisfactorily perform the duties of the position upon entry; and is rated by the organization at least at the well qualified level on all competencies. Federal employees seeking CTAP/ICTAP eligibility must submit proof that they meet the requirements of 5 CFR 330.605(2) for CTAP and 5 CFR 330.704 for ICTAP. This includes a copy of the agency notice, a copy of their most recent Performance Rating, and a copy of their most recent SF-50 noting current position, grade level, and duty location. Please annotate your application to reflect that you are applying as a CTAP/ICTAP eligible. If you are selected for Federal employment, you will be required to fill out a Declaration of Federal Employment, OF-306, prior to being appointed to determine your suitability for Federal employment and to authorize a background investigation. Failing to answer all questions truthfully and completely or providing false statements on your application may be grounds for not hiring you, or for firing you after you begin work. Also, you may be punished by fine or imprisonment (U.S. Code, Title 18, section 1001).

Education

To qualify based on education, you must submit a legible copy of transcripts from an accredited institution with your name, school name, credit hours, course level, major(s), and grade-point average or class ranking. Transcripts do not need to be official, but if you are selected for this position and you used your education to qualify, you must provide official transcripts before you begin work.

If you are using education completed in foreign colleges or universities to meet qualification requirements, you must show that your 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.

Contacts

• Address Great Smoky Mountains National Park DO NOT SEND MAIL TO THIS ADDRESS 107 Park Headquarters Road Gatlinburg, TN 37738 US
• Name: Andres Del Rio
• Phone: 0000000000
• Email: [email protected]