Fish Biologist - Survey

Full Job Description

This position is located in the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), with 2 vacancies in Anchorage, AK; Juneau, AK; Kodiak, AK; or Seattle WA.

This position is also announced at the ZP-2 level under vacancy number NMFS-26-12929291-DE, which is open to all US Citizens or Nationals.

You must apply to both announcements if you want to be considered for both. 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 the 0482 series: EDUCATION: A.

Degree: major in biological science that included: At least 6 semester hours in aquatic subjects such as limnology, ichthyology, fishery biology, aquatic botany, aquatic fauna, oceanography, fish culture, or related courses in the field of fishery biology; and At least 12 semester hours in the animal sciences in such subjects as general zoology, vertebrate zoology, comparative anatomy, physiology, entomology, parasitology, ecology, cellular biology, genetics, or research in these fields.

(Excess course work in aquatic subjects may be used to meet this requirement when appropriate.) OR B.

Combination of education and experience: courses equivalent to a major in biological science (i.e., at least 30 semester hours), of which a minimum of 6 semester hours were in aquatic subjects and 12 semester hours were in the animal sciences, as shown in A 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-3 or GS-11 level: 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-2 or GS-09 in the Federal service.

Specialized experience MUST include all of the following: Assisting in the collection, processing, or analysis of fish, fisheries, or oceanographic data; Applying statistical modeling, analytical tools and methods, and software programs (e.g.

R, Python) to analyze fish and ecosystem survey or research data collected; and Conducting field surveys or research in marine systems using trawl, dredge, hook and line, acoustic, optical (i.e.

camera), or similar fishery-independent survey methodologies from crewed or uncrewed platforms. OR SUBSTITUTION OF EDUCATION: Ph.D.

or equivalent doctoral degree or 3 years of progressively higher-level graduate education leading to such a degree.

OR COMBINATION OF EDUCATION AND EXPERIENCE: A combination of successfully completed graduate-level education and specialized experience may be used to meet the total experience requirements.

Note: Only graduate-level education in excess of the amount required for the next lower band level may be combined with experience. Major Duties:

As a Fish Biologist-Survey you will perform the following duties: Participate in biological and oceanographic sample collection and processing, including the visual or acoustic monitoring of protected species, biological sampling, removal of fish otoliths, tissue samples, and stomachs.

Utilize software to work with and analyze fishery-independent survey data.

Proficient in using modern analytical software (e.g., R, Rstudio, ORACLE, SQL, ArcGIS) to analyze and report on scientific data, execute quality control, auditing procedures and data extraction, and aggregation to facilitate fishery-independent data reporting.

Assist Program Lead in the preparation of fishery-independent resource surveys.

Contribute to aspects of survey preparation and post-cruise efforts, including supply procurement, administrative tasks, preparation of cruise instructions and cruise reports, and loading and unloading equipment for each survey.

NOTE: These duties are described at the full performance level of the ZP-3.

For more information about these positions, please visit the NOAA Fisheries is Hiring Webpage: https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/careers-more/noaa-fisheries-hiring This position will be filled under the DOC Alternative Personnel System (CAPS).

Under CAPS, positions are classified by career, pay plan, and pay band. The full performance level for this position is the ZP-3 level. The ZP-3 is equivalent to the GS-11/12.

* Positions in Anchorage, AK; Juneau, AK; Kodiak, AK; and Seattle WA may be covered under bargaining unit 2274. POSITION REQUIREMENTS: This position requires the operation of a Federal motor vehicle.

The incumbent must be able to obtain and maintain a valid state driver's license to operate a government vehicle in completion of assigned tasks.

Perform tasks such as driving a truck loaded with equipment or loading trucks with gear for transport to vessel(s).

This position requires regular at-sea participation in fishery-independent research surveys working on deck of vessels for shifts exceeding 8 hours per day that may be irregular for survey durations.

Total annual survey days at sea may range from 20 to possibly exceeding 100 total, depending on the position.

CONDITIONS OF EMPLOYMENT: Sea duties are conducted in a demanding physical marine environment that involves sampling operations exposed to weather over long, odd hours, and moving and lifting equipment, up to 50lbs unassisted, or biological samples many times throughout the day, on an unsteady platform depending on sea state.

Must be able to frequently stand for long periods of time, ascend and descend ladders, bend, and stoop to perform field operations.

Requires ability to lift gear and deliver or pick up equipment from vessels.

Incumbent will need to travel to a variety of regional locations to conduct field work, meet with collaborators, collect and evaluate data, and participate in scientific presentations.

Throughout the recruitment and hiring process we will be communicating with you via email; therefore, it is imperative that the email address you provide when applying for this vacancy remains active.

Should your email address change, please notify the point of contact identified in the vacancy announcement as soon as possible so that we can update our system.