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Rangeland Management Specialist (Direct Hire)

Employer
Department Of Agriculture
Location
Fort Morgan, Colorado, US
Salary
Competitive
Closing date
Jun 26, 2021

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Sector
Academic / Research
Field
Conservation science
Discipline
Land Management
Salary Type
Salary
Employment Type
Full time
Overview
  • Accepting applications
  • Open & closing dates
    Opening and closing dates05/13/2021 to 07/15/2021
  • Service
    Competitive
  • Pay scale & grade
    GS 5 - 9
  • Salary
    $35,265 to $69,462 per year
  • Appointment type
    Permanent
  • Work schedule
    Full-time
Duties Summary
The incumbent provides professional services in range management, and soil and water conservation activities while assisting in the planning of conservation practices on ranches and farms.
Direct Hire Authority: These positions are being filled through the Office of Personnel Management's (OPM) Direct-Hire Authority for this occupation.
Responsibilities
  • Develop resource management plans with ranch operators and other land and resource decision-makers.
  • These duties involve working with the operators and ranchers in making range site and condition inventories, analyzing ranch resources, recommending varieties of crops and grasses, locating stock water developments, and irrigation water management.
  • Follow-up with cooperators to implement the plans, determine successes or failure of established practices. This includes collecting cost/return data on range practices and range conservation plans.
  • Provide assistance in the establishment of supplemental practices; monitors and documents changes in plant communities, rangeland, vegetative cover, and production and soil surface condition resulting from applied grazing management systems;
  • and assist with the calculation of an adequate livestock feed and forage balance for the ranch.
  • As directed, attends meetings of various rural, urban, and tribal groups to explain NRCS programs, program measures, and to develop competence and confidence in working with people.
  • Participates in all appropriate administrative activities of the office, including preparation of news releases on range conservation topics of local interest.
Travel Required
Occasional travel - You may be expected to travel for this position.
Supervisory status
No
Promotion Potential
9
Requirements Conditions of Employment
  • 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/.
  • 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.
  • Incumbent is required to obtain Conservation Planning Level certification.
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 Education Requirement:
Degree: range management; or a related discipline that included at least 42 semester hours in a combination of the plant, animal, and soil sciences, and natural resources management, as follows:
  • Range Management -- At least 18 semester hours of course work in range management, including courses in such areas as basic principles of range management, range plants, range ecology, range inventories and studies, range improvements, and ranch or rangeland planning.
  • Directly Related Plant, Animal, and Soil Sciences -- At least 15 semester hours of directly related courses in the plant, animal, and soil sciences, including at least one course in each of these three scientific areas, i.e., plant, animal, and soil sciences. Courses in such areas as plant taxonomy, plant physiology, plant ecology, animal nutrition, livestock production, and soil morphology or soil classification are acceptable.
  • Related Resource Management Studies -- At least 9 semester hours of course work in related resource management subjects, including courses in such areas as wildlife management, watershed management, natural resource or agricultural economics, forestry, agronomy, forages, and outdoor recreation management; OR
Combination of Education and Experience: at least 42 semester hours of course work in the combination of plant, animal, and soil sciences and natural resources management shown above, plus appropriate experience or additional education comparable to a 4-year degree.
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 Qualifcation Requirements for GS-5 level:
Applicants who meet the Basic Education Requirement meet the minimum qualification requirement for the GS-5 level.
Minimum Qualification Requirements for GS-7 level:To qualify for the GS-7 grade level, you must possess at least one year of specialized experience equivalent to the GS-5 level or higher, or comparable experience not gained through federal service. For this position, examples of specialized experience include entry-level or trainee level experience such as:
  • Assisting in the development of grazing management systems on grazing lands (i.e. rangelands, pasturelands);
  • Assisting with forage inventories;
  • Assisting in the implementation of vegetative management practices;
  • Experience working with livestock operations; OR
Superior Academic Achievementin a bachelor's degree curriculum directly related to the work of the position. To qualify for superior academic achievement, you must have ONE of the following: (1) standing in the upper third of your college class or major subdivision at the time you apply; (2) grade point average of B (3.0 on a 4.0 scale) or its equivalent for all courses completed, either (a) at the time of application or (b) during the last 2 years of your undergraduate curriculum; (3) B+ (3.5 on a 4.0 scale) or its equivalent for all courses completed in a related discipline, either (a) at
the time of application or (b) during the last 2 years of your undergraduate curriculum; OR (4) election to membership in one of the national honorary scholastic societies that meets the requirements of the Association of College Honor Society; OR
Substitution of education in lieu of specialized experience for the GS-07 level: 1 or more years of graduate level education in range
management or a directly related discipline; OR
Combination of Education and Experience:
A combination of graduate-level education and experience , as described above, may be used to qualify for this position. This combination must have equipped you with the necessary knowledge and/or experience to successfully perform the duties of this position. Combinations of experience and education must total at least 100% as outlined in OPM Qualifications policy.
Minimum Qualification Requirements for GS-9 level:To qualify for the GS-9 grade level, you must possess at least one year of specialized experience equivalent to the GS-7 level or higher, or comparable experience not gained through federal service. For this position, examples of specialized experience include advanced-trainee level experience such as:
  • Developing and implementing grazing management systems on grazing lands (i.e. rangelands, pasturelands);
  • Independently conducting forage inventories;
  • Planning vegetative management practices;
  • Experience working with livestock operations; OR
Substitution of education in lieu of specialized experience for the GS-9 level: 2 years of progressively higher level graduate education leading to a master's degree or master's or equivalent graduate degree in range management or a directly related discipline; OR
Combination of Education and Experience: A combination of graduate-level education and experience, as described above, may be used to qualify for this position. This combination must have equipped you with the necessary knowledge and/or experience to successfully perform the duties of this position. Combinations of experience and education must total at least 100% as outlined in OPM Qualifications policy.
For more information on the qualifications for this position, click here:
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
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. Applicants must, therefore, only report attendance and/or degrees from schools accredited by accrediting institutions recognized by the U.S. Department of Education. Applicants can verify accreditation via this link. All education claimed by applicants will be verified accordingly. Important: If you are using foreign education to meet qualification requirements, you must send a Certificate of Foreign Equivalency with your transcript in order to receive credit for that education. Click on this link for more information.
Additional information
  • Locality Pay: The salary for each location may vary depending on locality. Locality tables my be found at .
  • Promotion Potential: If you are selected for a position with further promotion potential, you will be placed under a career development plan, and may be non-competitively promoted if you successfully complete the requirements and if recommended by management. However, promotion is neither implied nor guaranteed. Management may select at any grade level.
  • 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.
  • Physical Demands: The work requires regular and recurring physical exertion related to conservation work requiring walking on rough terrain, jumping ditches and furrows, or climbing steep banks.
  • Work Environment: The work involves regular and recurring exposure to operating agricultural equipment or earth moving operations, adverse weather such as snow and icy field conditions, and unimproved roads. Protective equipment is necessary on construction sites.
  • PLEASE NOTE: In the interest of filling these positions as efficiently as possible, we are requiring the following:
    • If called for an interview, applicants must be available to interview within 3 business days of being contacted.
    • If a tentative job offer is extended, selectee will have 2 business days in which to accept or decline.
  • Selections made under this authority will be processed as new appointments to the civil service. Current civil service employees would therefore be given a new appointment to the civil service.
  • Duty Location: Duty Locations will be discussed upon interview.
  • THIS IS AN OPEN CONTINUOUS ANNOUNCEMENT. This type of announcement provides NRCS the with a readily available source of applicants when vacancies occur. Eligibility and qualifications will be verified when there is a vacancy for the location and grade for which you applied.
  • This is a direct hire solicitation, open continuous announcement; This Posting will close on July 15th 2021, or when all positions are filled. The first cut-off date is within 14 days of the open date of this public notice.
  • Other certificates may be issued as needed.
  • This position is eligible for telework within the local commuting area of the position and other flexible work arrangements. Current USDA policy includes telework for an 8 hour work day, 4 days per week; other flexibilities are possible dependent upon availability and/or the position and its associated duties. Employee participation is at the discretion of the supervisor.
  • Relocation/recruitment incentives may be authorized. Information about incentives can be found at opm.gov. Recruitment, Relocation & Retention Incentives (opm.gov). (Tentative selectees will be asked to sign a mobility agreement prior to final selection.)
How You Will Be Evaluated
You will be evaluated for this job based on how well you meet the qualifications above.

???????You will be evaluated for this job based on how well you meet the qualifications above.
This is a Direct-Hire Authority position, all applicants who meet the minimum qualifications, to include any selective placement factor(s), if applicable, will be referred to the selecting official. Before a certificate is issued to the selecting official, the resume is reviewed to ensure that you meet all the qualification requirements. A rating will not be used; veteran's preference does not apply due to the existence of the Direct Hire authority for this position.
Note: All answers provided in the on-line process must be substantiated by a resume. If, upon review, it is determined that your resume and/or supporting documents do not support your answer choices, your application may be removed from consideration.
Clicking the link below will present a preview of the application form; i.e. the online questionnaire. The application form link below will only provide a preview and does not initiate the application process. To initiate the online application process, click the "Apply" button to the right.
To view the application form, visit:
Background checks and security clearance Security clearance
Not Required
Drug test required
No
Position sensitivity and risk
Non-sensitive (NS)/Low Risk
Trust determination process
Credentialing, Suitability/Fitness
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.

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