Natural Resource Specialist

Summary

This position will be filled under the Office of Personnel Management's Direct Hire Authority for COLLEGE GRADUATES and is open to all United States citizens and U.S. nationals. Veteran's preference and traditional rating and ranking of applications do not apply. All qualified applicants will be referred to the hiring manager for consideration for this position.

College Graduate appointments are permanent competitive service appointments.

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Duties

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Some of the major duties you will perform include but are not limited to the following:

• Leads or participates in interdisciplinary teams conducting environmental analyses and ensuring compliance with environmental laws (e.g. the National Environmental Policy Act, Endangered Species Act, and Clean Water Act), regulations, and policies.
• Determines the environmental effects of Reclamation's actions and project operations.
• Prepares, or oversees preparation of, and reviews categorical exclusion checklists, environmental assessments, Findings of No Significant Impacts, environmental impact statements, records of decision, and biological assessments.
• Provides technical analyses, guidance, and policy recommendations for assuring that environmental requirements are appropriately integrated with Regional programs and activities that affect biological, land, and water resources.
• Collaborates with specialists in a wide range of disciplines, including engineers, hydrologists, soil scientists, economists, and other professionals.
• Prepares memoranda, special technical reports, statements of work, service agreements, task orders, and other documentation on environmental issues and tasks, and provides guidance and assistance to government or contract personnel involved in preparing such documents.
• Develops sampling plans and leads field crews collecting data for aquatic and habitat resource surveys for resident and anadromous fish.

Duties will be developmental in nature when filled below the full performance level.

Requirements

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Conditions of employment

• U.S. Citizenship required.
• Appointment subject to background investigation and favorable adjudication.
• Meet Selective Service Registration Act requirement for males.
• Selectee will be required to participate in the Direct Deposit Electronics Funds Transfer Program.
• You will be required to operate a government (or private) motor vehicle as part of your official duties; a valid driver's license is required. You will be required to submit a Motor Vehicle Operator's License and Driving Record. You must also submit (within a State sealed envelope or submitted directly by the State authorities), and at your own expense, all certified driving records from all States that disclose all valid driver's licenses, whether current or past, possessed by you.
• You may be required to travel overnight away from home up to 5 nights per month. You must obtain a government charge card for travel purposes.
• You may be required to complete training and obtain/maintain a government charge card with travel and/or purchase authority.

As a condition of employment for accepting this position, you will be required to serve a 1-year probationary period during which your fitness and whether your continued employment advances the public interest will be evaluated.

This probationary period is an extension of the appointment process and therefore requires the agency to determine if continued employment would advance the public interest, meet the organization goals and mission of the agency, and/or otherwise promote the efficiency of the service. In determining if your employment advances the public interest, the agency will consider:

• your performance and conduct;
• the needs and interests of the agency;
• whether your continued employment would advance organizational goals of the agency or the Government; and
• whether your continued employment would advance the efficiency of the Federal service.

Under applicable law, the employment of an individual serving a probationary or trial period automatically terminates when that period ends unless the agency affirmatively certifies, in writing, that the individual's employment should continue and that their appointment should be finalized. In the absence of agency action to affirmatively certify continued employment beyond the probationary or trial period, such appointments are terminated.

*Additional Requirements located under qualifications*

Qualifications

Requirements Continued...

Upon completion of your probationary period your employment will be terminated unless you receive certification, in writing, that your continued employment advances the public interest.

To be eligible for a College Graduate Appointment, you must meet the following requirements:

• Recent graduates who have completed a bachelor's or graduate degree within the previous two years; OR Uniformed service members who have completed a bachelor's or graduate degree and were unable to apply within two years of obtaining their degree due to a uniformed service obligation of at least four years, may apply within two years of their discharge from uniformed service; AND
• Meets the minimum qualification standards prescribed or approved by OPM for the position to which the individual is being appointed.

All qualifications must be met by the closing date of this announcement-10/13/2026-unless otherwise stated in this vacancy announcement.

To receive credit for experience, your resume MUST state either "full-time" (or "40 hours a week") or "part-time" with the number of hours worked per week to ensure proper crediting of specialized experience. Failure to adequately provide information needed to determine number of hours worked in each position may result in that time not being credited when evaluating qualifying experience. For periods of time that reflect military service, the DD-214 or Statement of Service is sufficient to meet the full and/or part-time hours requirement as the service dates will be reflected.

Minimum Qualification Requirements : To qualify for this position, you must meet the following minimum qualifications:

Basic Educational Requirements : In addition to the specialized experience requirements for this position, you must meet at least one of the following:

A. Degree in biological sciences, agriculture, natural resource management, chemistry, or related disciplines appropriate to the position. OR

B. Combination of education and experience that is equivalent to a major in a biological science plus appropriate experience or additional education.-AND

To qualify for this position at the GS-09 grade level:

EXPERIENCE: At least one full year of specialized experience comparable in scope and responsibility to the GS-07 grade level in the Federal service (obtained in either the public or private sectors). Experience at this level must include all of the following: experience or knowledge of the application of the principles, concepts and methodology associated with natural resources and environmental laws (e.g. National Environmental Policy Act, Endangered Species Act, and Clean Water Act). Examples of specialized experience include: Conducting studies using fact-finding techniques (e.g. data collection and literature review); Analyzing data associated with environmental or scientific studies; and Presenting findings and associated environmental data in written form that results in or contributes to preparation of documents (e.g. summary, technical, and/or environmental documents, etc.). You must include hours per week worked.

-OR-

EDUCATION: Successful completion of at least two (2) years of progressively higher-level graduate education leading to a master's degree or master's or equivalent graduate degree, with a major that is related to the duties of this position.. You must include transcripts.

-OR-

Combination of education and experience .Successful completion of a combination of education and experience as described above. To combine education and experience, first take . 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.

Education

This position has a mandatory education requirement.

PROOF OF EDUCATION: All applicants must submit copies of official or unofficial transcripts which include grades, credit hours earned, major(s), grade point average or class ranking, institution name, and student name. If any required coursework is not easily recognizable on transcripts, or if you believe a portion of a particular course can be credited toward meeting an educational requirement, you must also provide a memorandum on letterhead from the institution's registrar, dean, or other appropriate official stating the percentage of the course that should be considered to meet the requirement and the equivalent number of units. Unofficial transcripts are acceptable; however, if you are selected for the position, you will be required to produce the original official transcripts.

GRADUATE EDUCATION: One academic year of graduate education is considered to be the number of credits hours your graduate school has determined to represent one academic year of full-time study. Such study may have been performed on a full-time or part-time basis. If you cannot obtain your graduate school's definition of one year of graduate study, 18 semester hours (or 27 quarter hours) should be considered as satisfying the requirement for one year of full-time graduate study.

Foreign Education: To receive credit for education completed outside the United States, you must show proof that the education has been submitted to a private organization that specializes in interpretation of foreign educational credentials and such education has been deemed at least equivalent to that gained in conventional U.S. education programs. Recognition of Foreign Qualifications | U.S. Department of Education.

Additional information

A selectee receiving a first appointment to the Federal Government (Civil Service) is entitled only to the lowest step of the grade for which selected. The display of a salary range on this vacancy shall not be construed as granting an entitlement to a higher rate of pay.

This announcement may be used to fill additional positions if identical vacancies occur within 90 days of the issue date of the referral certificate.

Promotion to the full performance level is neither guaranteed nor implied and will be based solely on your ability to satisfactorily perform the work of the position, existing work at the higher grade level, and recommendation by the position's supervisor.

Physical Demands: The work is generally sedentary. The job does require intermittent physical exertions such as walking over rough or rocky terrain while data gathering during field examinations. A portion of the duties may be performed in a water environment in both river and reservoir situations.

Working Conditions: The work is generally performed in an office setting. There is some exposure to moderate discomfort such as extremes of heat or cold and inclement weather encountered during field trips and field work. Safety equipment, such as hard hats and safety boots, may be required.

All Department of Interior (DOI) employees, their spouses, and minor children may not acquire or retain any claim, permit, lease, small tract entry, or other rights granted by the Department in Federal lands, with limited exceptions. Additional ethics prohibitions can be found here,

The duties of this position are suitable for telework and the selectee may be allowed to telework with supervisor approval.

Candidates should be committed to improving the efficiency of the Federal government, passionate about the ideals of our American republic, and committed to upholding the rule of law and the United States Constitution.

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A career with the U.S. government provides employees with a comprehensive benefits package. As a federal employee, you and your family will have access to a range of benefits that are designed to make your federal career very rewarding. Opens in a new windowLearn more about federal benefits.

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Eligibility for benefits depends on the type of position you hold and whether your position is full-time, part-time or intermittent. Contact the hiring agency for more information on the specific benefits offered.