Agricultural Economist

Full Job Description

If selected for this position, you will serve as an Agricultural Economist with responsibility for impact analyses of changes to Federal milk marketing orders; analyses of other dairy-related programs and policies; short-term and long-term projections of dairy supply, demand, international trade, and prices; writing and review of dairy-related studies, working papers, briefing papers, and talking points; and decision support for USDA and the dairy industry.

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 REQUIREMENT: Degree in Economics that included at least 21 semester hours in economics and 3 semester hours in statistics, accounting, or calculus.

OR Combination of education and experience: courses equivalent to a major in economics, as shown above, plus appropriate experience or additional education.

In addition to the Basic Requirements, applicants must demonstrate the following: FOR THE GS-11 LEVEL: Applicants must have one year of specialized experience (equivalent to the GS-09 level) that may have been obtained in the private or public (local, county, state, Federal) sectors which demonstrates: Performing individual economic research assignments requiring planning, information assembly, analysis and evaluation, conclusions and report preparation; requires the use of econometric modelling and/or mathematical programming.

Conducting economic analyses utilizing advanced data collection and management, including the use of application programming interfaces (API's), database programming languages, and data visualization tools.

Conducting agricultural policy analyses, analyzing agricultural marketing agreements, and conducting and writing research on agricultural economics.

OR Successful completion of 3 years of progressively higher-level graduate education leading to a Ph.D. degree or Ph.D. or equivalent doctoral degree in Economics or a closely related field.

Equivalent combinations of education and experience are qualifying for this grade level. Equivalent combinations of education and experience are qualifying for this grade level.

FOR THE GS-12 LEVEL: Applicants must have one year of specialized experience (equivalent to the GS-11 level) that may have been obtained in the private or public (local, county, state, Federal) sectors which demonstrates: Formulating and evaluating policy and program recommendations based on quantitative and qualitative economic analysis.

Advising staff and/or management on the business and economics of the agriculture industry including support for the development and interpretation of policy or evaluation of markets.

Collaborating with customers and experts outside the organization to meet the organization's mission. Note: There is no education substitution for this grade level.

TRANSCRIPTS are required if: This position requires specific coursework or a degree in a specific field to be basically qualified. You are qualifying for the position based on education.

You are qualifying for this position based on a combination of experience and education.

This education must have been successfully completed and obtained from an accredited school, college, or university COMBINATION OF EDUCATION & EXPERIENCE AT THE GS-11 GRADE LEVEL: Applicants may have combinations of successfully completed education and specialized experience to meet total qualification requirements.

The total percentages must equal at least 100 percent to qualify for that grade level.

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. Major Duties:

• The duties described are for the full-performance level. At developmental grade levels, assignments will be of more limited scope, performed with less independence and limited complexity.
• The duties may include, but are not limited to:
• Plans and conducts, in whole or in part, economic studies of the dairy industry, including the Federal milk marketing order program.
• Develops, collects, and analyzes domestic and international marketing information related to the dairy industry and organizes such data for use by Dairy Programs in decision-making.
• Prepares tables charts, graphs, and maps for inclusion in analytical reports.
• Studies the situation and outlook for the dairy industry and uses such knowledge in carrying out economic analyses.
• Participates in the development, maintenance, and enhancement of economic models to support the mission of Dairy Programs.
• Writes economic analyses, working papers, briefing papers, and talking points to support the mission of Dairy Programs.
• Participates in informational and educational programs by making presentations at workshops and other sessions.