Seasonal Biologist

Summary The Pacific West Region is recruiting for a summer seasonal Seasonal Biologist position intended to assist staff with Biological field work. Open to the first 250 applicants or until 12/26/2025 whichever comes first. All applications submitted by 11:59 (EST) on the closing day will receive consideration. Duties The Pacific West Region is recruiting for TEMPORARY seasonal positions not to exceed 1039 hours work in a service year. Dates of employment will vary depending on funding, weather conditions, and visitation. Within regulatory limitations, the length of initial appointment may be shortened or extended depending on work availability and funding. This position will be filled at: Yosemite National Park: Bat and Owl Wildlife specialty, defined season April-October Mount Rainier National Park: Wildlife, aquatics, plants, and general environmental compliance specialty, defined season April-October Golden Gate National Recreation Area Whiskeytown National Recreation Area Great Basin National Park: Plants Specialty, defined season May-November. Anticipated Entry on Duty: April or May 2026.The duties of this position include: Development and implementation of vegetation, wildlife, or aquatics inventory and monitoring and/or ecological restoration (for example, invasive plant management). Review of projects and impacts, with recommendations for minimizing impacts. Implementation of management plans. Development of outreach materials and media. Draft documents with baseline biological information for compliance. Developing budgets and work plans. Assists in managing agreements. Leads, especially of interns and volunteers. Purchasing. Program tracking. Lead and facilitate meetings. Data entry and management. Analysis of data and writing reports. Mapping natural resources. Develops interpretive materials. Work collaboratively with interdisciplinary staff. Understand cultural resource, maintenance program, interpretive and project management issues within the Park. Presentations to a range of audiences. Participates on interdisciplinary planning teams. Works in the field under often difficult conditions to accomplish management goals. Must be able to perform physically demanding work in outdoor settings in uneven and variable terrain. Recording observations of wildlife behavior and/or human-wildlife interactions on public lands. Requirements 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 may be required to operate a government (or private) motor vehicle as part of your official duties. Prior to your first official motor vehicle operation, and again every year thereafter (or more frequently if management determines such need exists), you will be required to sign an affidavit certifying to your possession of a valid State issued driver's license that is current and has not been revoked, suspended, canceled, or otherwise disqualified in any way to prohibit your operation of a motor vehicle. You will also submit a photocopy of your valid State issued driver's license prior to your first official motor vehicle operation, and again every year, or more frequently if management determines such need exists. Lastly, you may be required to 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 discloses all valid driver's licenses, whether current or past, possessed by you. Please indicate in your application whether you possess a valid State driver's license. You will be required to wear a uniform and comply with the National Park Service uniform standards. A uniform allowance will be provided. You may be required to work on-call, evenings, weekends, holidays, overtime and shift work. Travel, transportation & relocation expenses will not be paid. Relocation expenses will be the employee's responsibility. Government housing may be be provided based on park site. Applicants must be at least (1)18 years old or (2) at least 16 years old and: (a) Have graduated from high school or been awarded a certificate equivalent to graduating from high school; or (b) Have completed a formal vocational training program; or (c) Have received a statement from school authorities agreeing with their preference for employment rather than continuing their education; or (d) Be currently enrolled in a secondary school and either work only during school vacation periods or work part-time during the school year under a formal student employment program. Qualifications All qualifications must be met by 11:59 EST or when the 'applicant cut-off' is reached (which may be sooner than 12/26/2025). Credit will be given for all appropriate qualifying experience. To receive credit for experience, your resume MUST clearly indicate the nature of the duties and responsibilities for each position, starting and ending dates of employment (month/year), and the resume must reflect full and/or part-time or total number of hours worked (i.e., work 40+ hours a week, rather than indicating full-time). If part-time, the hours must be annotated to be able to pro-rate the amount of qualified specialized experience. BASIC QUALIFICATIONS: To qualify for this position in the 0401 series, you must possess at least one of the following BASIC qualifications by close of the announcement: EDUCATION: Successful completion of a bachelor's or higher degree in biological sciences, agriculture, natural resource management, chemistry, or related disciplines appropriate to the position. You must include a copy of your transcripts at the time of application as proof of any claimed education. -OR- EXPERIENCE: Combination of appropriate experience and education which includes coursework equivalent to a major in the disciplines listed above. You must include a copy of your transcripts at the time of application as proof of any claimed education. - AND -MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS: To qualify for this position at the GS-09 grade level, you must possess at least one of the following minimum qualifications by close of the announcement: 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). This experience includes activities such as: (1) Experience performing field work in a natural and sometimes isolated setting with limited or remote supervision; (2) Experience implementing vegetation and ecological restoration and invasive plant management projects, including ability to identify plants by sight or implementing wildlife projects; (3) Experience communicating and working effectively with others, including outreach, and directing colleagues and volunteers; and (4) Experience with and knowledge of techniques for gathering vegetation and/or wildlife data in the field, including specific methods for collecting quantitative and qualitive data. Knowledge of and experience with GPS technology. You must include hours per week worked. -OR- EDUCATION: Successful completion of at least a master's or equivalent graduate degree, or two (2) full years of progressively higher-level graduate education leading to such a degree, from an accredited college or university in a field that is directly related to the work of this position, such as biology, plant biology, natural resource management, ecology or other directly-related subject matter. You must include a copy of your transcripts at the time of application as proof of any claimed education. -OR- COMBINATION: Successful completion of a combination of education and experience as described above. To combine education and experience, first divide your semester hours of completed graduate education beyond the first year by 18 (or 27 for quarter hours). 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. CTAP/ICTAP Statement: Current surplus and current or former displaced Federal individuals who have special priority selection rights under the Agency Career Transition Assistance Program (CTAP) or the Interagency Career Transition Assistance Program (ICTAP) must be well qualified for the position to receive consideration for special priority selection. Well qualified means that the applicant meets the following: OPM qualification standards for the position; all selective placement factors, where applicable; special qualifying conditions that OPM has approved for the position, where applicable; is physically qualified with reasonable accommodation, where appropriate to satisfactorily perform the duties of the position upon entry; and is rated by the organization at least at the well qualified level on all competencies. Federal employees seeking CTAP/ICTAP eligibility must submit proof that they meet the requirements of 5 CFR 330.605(2) for CTAP and 5 CFR 330.704 for ICTAP. This includes a copy of the agency notice, a copy of their most recent Performance Rating, and a copy of their most recent SF-50 noting current position, grade level, and duty location. Please annotate your application to reflect that you are applying as a CTAP/ICTAP eligible. If you are selected for Federal employment, you will be required to fill out a Declaration of Federal Employment, OF-306, prior to being appointed to determine your suitability for Federal employment and to authorize a background investigation. Failing to answer all questions truthfully and completely or providing false statements on your application may be grounds for not hiring you, or for firing you after you begin work. Also, you may be punished by fine or imprisonment (U.S. Code, Title 18, section 1001). 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 To qualify based on education, you must submit a legible copy of transcripts from an accredited institution with your name, school name, credit hours, course level, major(s), and grade-point average or class ranking. Transcripts do not need to be official, but if you are selected for this position and you used your education to qualify, you must provide official transcripts before you begin work. If you are using education completed in foreign colleges or universities to meet qualification requirements, you must show that your education credentials have been evaluated by a private organization that specializes in interpretation of foreign education programs and such education has been deemed equivalent to that gained in an accredited U.S. education program; or full credit has been given for the courses at a U.S. accredited college or university. Additional information For additional information regarding this position, please contact: Yosemite National Park Sarah Stock [email protected] Mount Rainier National Park Sallie Beavers [email protected] Golden Gate National Recreation Area Erik Grijalva [email protected] Whiskeytown National Recreation Area Laura Shaskey [email protected] Great Basin National Park Margaret Horner [email protected] 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. A Recruitment Incentive May Be Authorized for a newly selected employee when appointed to a permanent, temporary, or term position. A Federal employee who is transferring to the National Park Service from another component, bureau or Federal agency and who does not meet the conditions under 5 CFR §575.102 is not eligible for a recruitment incentive. This announcement may be used to fill additional positions if identical vacancies occur within 90 days of the issue date of the referral certificate. Non-Competitive Rehire Eligibility: Temporary seasonal employees can only maintain their non-competitive rehire eligibility if they work no more than a combined total of Temporary NTE less than 1040 hours anywhere in the National Park Service (NPS) within their established service year. Accordingly, non-competitive rehire eligibility allows for re-appointment to the same position or another position appropriate for temporary appointment with the same qualification requirements (5 CFR 316.402[b][7]), based on series and grade, anywhere in the major subdivision (NPS). If you have held a temporary seasonal appointment in the past 12 months and have already worked the maximum temporary appointment less than 1040 hours during that period, you are still welcome to apply. However, please be aware that exceeding the limit of 1040 hours in your established service year will result in the loss of your non-competitive rehire eligibility. The limit can be exceeded by working multiple temporary seasonal positions that result in a combined total greater than 1040 hours. The limit also can be exceeded by working a single temporary seasonal appointment that exceeds 1040 hours, unless granted an exception by OPM. Employment may be terminated at any time due to fluctuations in funding levels, project needs, employee performance, or other considerations. Physical Demands: The position may require strenuous physical activity including periods of standing, walking, climbing, and lifting and carrying heavy objects. Some activities will occur in physically dangerous areas or settings. Documentary research and report writing work is sedentary, entails the ability to concentrate and write for long periods of time. Working Conditions: Work is performed both indoors and outdoors in all types of weather. Assignments may be performed in potentially hazardous areas including steep slopes, rocky terrain, volcanoes, caves, firelines, arctic environments, swamps, deserts, and forests. Flying in fixed-wing aircraft and helicopters is possible. The National Park Service has determined that the duties of this position are suitable for telework only during an emergency or natural disaster. 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. Benefits 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. Review our benefits 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.