This position is located within the Department of Commerce (DOC), National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), Pacific Islands Regional Office (PIRO), Sustainable Fisheries Division (SFD) with one vacancy located in Honolulu, HI. This position is also announced under vacancy number NMFS PIRO-24-12525858-ST which is open to Status Candidates. You must apply to both announcements if you want to be considered for both

Duties

As a Biologist, you will perform the following duties: Provide support to observers in proper data collection methods to include but not limited to protected species, fisheries research data, sea turtles, seabirds, marine mammal encounters, etc., and review and validate the accuracy of observer data. Arrange for biological specimens to be shipped and transferred to science centers, test equipment and data collection methods at sea aboard commercial fishing vessels, interview observers during the debriefing process to extract anecdotal information regarding observations at sea, and provide quality control feedback to observer and management on collected data and collected biological specimens. Assist with training, both aboard commercial fishing vessels and in a classroom, to prepare observers for at sea data collection and deployment, species identification, proper collection, and labeling of specimen samples, including topics such as safety, protected species identification, specimen collection, bycatch, biological data collection, sampling techniques, observer regulatory authorities, fishing gear, data collection, protected species data and handling, etc., ensuring compliance with protected species forms. Assist with the transition to e-reporting and the development and maintenance of debriefing and data editing procedures, and assist program managers by liaising with NMFS enforcement, Coast Guard, observers, and other parties involved with law enforcement matters.

Requirements

Qualifications

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. BASIC REQUIREMENTS: This position has a positive Education Requirement in addition to at least one year of Specialized Experience OR substitution of education for experience OR combination (if applicable) in order to be found minimally qualified. Transcripts must be submitted with your application package. You MUST meet the following requirements: To qualify for 0401 series: DEGREE: biological sciences, agriculture, natural resource management, chemistry, or related disciplines appropriate to the position. OR COMBINATION OF EDUCATION AND EXPERIENCE: Courses equivalent to a major, as shown shown above, plus appropriate experience or additional education. AND 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-07/09): 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 a regionally approved observer training programs on vessels at sea such as protected species interactions, data collection, marine species identification, or bycatch; and Assisting in the collection and handling of data and biological specimens. OR SUBSTITUTION OF EDUCATION A. One full year of graduate-level education OR B. 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: 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; COMBINATION OF EDUCATION AND EXPERIENCE: A combination of education and experience as described above, may be used to qualify for this position

Education

College Transcript: If you are qualifying based on education, submit a copy of your college transcript that lists college courses detailing each course by the number and department (i.e., Bio 101, Math 210, etc.), course title, number of credit hours and grade earned. You must submit evidence that any education completed in a foreign institution is equivalent to U.S. education standards with your resume. You may submit an unofficial copy of the transcript at the initial phase of the application process. If course content cannot be easily identified from the title of the course as listed on your transcript, you must submit an official course description from the college/university that reflects the content at the time the course was taken.

Note: Your college transcript is used to verify successful completion of degree, or college course work. An official college transcript will be required before you can report to duty.

Special Instructions for Foreign Education: Education completed in foreign colleges or universities must be evaluated in terms of equivalency to that acquired in U.S. colleges and universities. Applicants educated in whole or in part in foreign countries must submit sufficient evidence, including transcripts, to an accredited private organization for an equivalency evaluation of course work and degree. A listing of these accredited organizations can be found on the Department of Education's website. You MUST provide a copy of the letter containing the results of the equivalency evaluation with a course by course listing along with your application. Failure to provide such documentation by the closing date of the announcement will result in lost consideration. For more information on how foreign education is evaluated visit: OPM Foreign Education Evaluation.

Contacts

• Address NOAA Office of Human Capital Services (OHCS) 1315 East West Hwy SSMC4 Silver Spring, MD 20910 US
• Name: Applicant Inquiries
• Email: [email protected]