Jobs for People with MS: National MS Society

Summary The Montana Water Resources Planning Specialist has delegated authority to coordinate watershed project planning, rehabilitation project planning, and non-program planning within the state. This position is supervised by Montana's State Conservation Engineer. This position reports to the Bozeman State Office. Highly qualified applicants may report to a remote duty site, location Negotiable after selection within Montana. Responsibilities Coordinate the overall functions of a watershed planning team including integration of technical disciplines. Develop state business plan action items related to watershed operations and watershed rehabilitation. Coordinate and manage periodic reviews of total operation in watershed and rehabilitation planning to assure adherence to standards and policies. Provide training to field, area, state staff, other agencies, and units of government to ensure proper implementation of the respective programs. Works with NRCS staff specialists to coordinate watershed planning efforts and provide outreach to tribes, Non-Government Organizations (NGO) and other state agencies. Establish and maintain contracts and cooperative relations with Federal, state, municipal, county, and local organizations on water resource problems of mutual interest. Maintains working relationship with the NRCS National Watershed Division and NRCS National Water Management Center. Requirements Conditions of Employment Qualifications Applicants must meet all qualifications and eligibility requirements by the closing date of the announcement including time-in-grade restrictions, specialized experience and/or education, as defined below. Time in grade: Current Federal employees applying for a promotion opportunity must meet time-in-grade (TIG) requirement of 52 weeks of service at the next lower grade level in the normal line of progression for the position being filled (e.g. one year at the GS-11 grade level for consideration for the GS-12 grade level). Basic Education Requirement: Degree: biological sciences, agriculture, natural resource management, chemistry, or related disciplines appropriate to the position. OR Combination of Education and Experience: Courses equivalent to a major as shown above, plus appropriate experience or additional education. Specialized Experience: To qualify for the GS-11 level, you must possess at least one year of specialized experience equivalent to the GS-9 level or higher in Federal service, or comparable experience not gained through Federal service. Examples of specialized experience include: Utilizing technical tools, systems, and databases (Customer Service Toolkit, Conservation Desktop, Protracts, GIS/ArcGIS etc.) in support of conservation activities; Providing technical support and training to others on the use of electronic business tools related to conservation planning or implementation. OR Substitution of education in lieu of specialized experience for the GS-11 level: 3 years of progressively higher level graduate education leading to a to a Ph.D. degree or equivalent doctoral degree in biological sciences, agriculture, natural resource management, chemistry, or related disciplines appropriate to the position. 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. In addition to meeting one of the Basic Requirements listed above, applicants must meet the following Minimum Qualifications Requirement in order to be considered: Specialized Experience: To qualify for the GS-12 level, you must possess at least one year of specialized experience equivalent to the GS-11 level or higher in Federal service, or comparable experience not gained through Federal service. Examples of specialized experience include: Preparing watershed plans and water rehabilitation plans; Coordinating water resources planning efforts; Developing water resource plans; Conducting reviews, work management studies, and/or cost analysis related to resource planning of soil, water, air, plants, animals, humans and energy; and Writing and editing technical natural resources planning documents. Note: There is no education substitution for the GS-12 level. For more information on the qualifications for this position, click here: https://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/classification-qualifications/general-schedule-qualification-standards/#url=GS-PROF 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 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 is primarily sedentary in nature. The work may require some physical effort, such as standing, walking, bending and sitting. The incumbent will be required to do keyboarding for long time periods. Work Environment: The work is in a climate-controlled office setting involving everyday risks and discomforts. 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. 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. Recruitment and/or relocation incentives may be authorized.