Soil Scientist

We are seeking a highly skilled Soil Scientist to join our team at the Bureau of Land Management. As a key member of our interdisciplinary team, you will play a crucial role in assessing and mitigating the impacts of surface disturbing activities on soil resources.

• Participate in research and interpretation of ecosystem restoration activities to inform land health evaluations.
• Assist in the development of restoration plans and standards, ensuring that they are based on sound scientific principles and data.
• Collaborate with senior specialists to identify, classify, and describe soil chemical profiles, and to develop monitoring criteria for reclamation and restoration plans.
• Conduct investigations of direct effects of restoration activities on soil health, and provide technical expertise to support land use planning and analysis.

• U.S. Citizenship is required.
• Direct Deposit Required.
• Appointment will be subject to a favorably adjudicated background/suitability investigation/determination.
• Your resume must contain enough information to show that you meet the qualification requirements as defined in the announcement.

This position has an individual occupational requirement. In addition to meeting the IOR, we must be able to determine that you meet the qualification requirements. Please ensure that your resume includes this information.

In order to be rated as qualified for this position, we must be able to determine that you meet the qualification requirements. Please ensure that your resume includes this information.

FOR GS-7: In addition to meeting the basic education requirement, you must possess one (1) full year of specialized experience at or equivalent to the GS-011 level that is equivalent in difficulty and complexity as indicated by the following examples:

• This position requires knowledge and technical skills in research, interpretation, and advising on ecosystem restoration. Assists, coordinates, or conducts investigations of direct effects of restoration activities, to be used when developing restoration plans and/or standards.
• This includes identification, interpretation, and description of impacts, as a result of surface disturbing operations

-OR- Education: 1 year of graduate-level education

- OR-Superior Academic Achievement (See OPM's General Policies, Application of Qualification Standards Section 4.f.) S.A.A. must have been gained in a curriculum that is qualifying for the position to be filled.

-OR- Combination of Education and Experience: You may meet qualifications requirement for this position with an equivalent combination of specialized experience and appropriate graduate education. Graduate level education must demonstrate the knowledge, skills, and abilities necessary to do the work of this position

FOR GS-9: In addition to meeting the basic education requirement, you must possess one (1) full year of specialized experience at or equivalent to the GS-011 level that is equivalent in difficulty and complexity as indicated by the following examples:

• The position requires understanding and technical skill in research, interpretation, and making recommendations on ecosystem restoration.
• Assists and coordinates with higher graded specialists on conducting investigations of direct effects of restoration activities, to be used when developing restoration plans and/or standards.

-OR- Education: 2 years of progressively higher-level graduate education leading to a master's degree or master's or equivalent graduate degree.

-OR- Combination of Education and Experience: You may meet qualifications requirement for this position with an equivalent combination of specialized experience and appropriate graduate education. Graduate level education must demonstrate the knowledge, skills, and abilities necessary to do the work of this position.

FOR GS-11: In addition to meeting the basic education requirement, you must possess one (1) full year of specialized experience at or equivalent to the GS-011 level that is equivalent in difficulty and complexity as indicated by the following examples:

• This position researches, interprets, and advises on ecosystem restoration.
• Directs, coordinates or conducts investigations of direct effects of restoration activities, to be used when developing restoration plans and/or standards.

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

-OR- Combination of Education and Experience: You may meet qualifications requirement for this position with an equivalent combination of specialized experience and appropriate graduate education. Graduate level education must demonstrate the knowledge, skills, and abilities necessary to do the work of this position.

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 must meet all qualification requirements by the closing date of the announcement.

Physical Demands: This position involves both office and field work. Office work (performed roughly 60% of the time) is primarily sedentary in nature. Field work (performed roughly 40% of the time) involves gathering samples and other data, monitoring and inventory activities, and participation in project work. This work requires some physical exertion such as long periods of walking, standing, bending, crouching, stooping, reaching, lifting, or riding in or driving vehicles over rough, uneven, or rocky terrain.

Work Environment: This position involves both office and field work. Office work is primarily sedentary in nature and usually does not require any special safety equipment or considerations. Field work exposes the incumbent to a variety of terrains, climates, and temperature extremes, and requires physical exertion by the incumbent to examine subsurface soil characteristics.

This position has a positive education requirement which requires that you have a degree in biological sciences, agriculture, natural resource management, chemistry, or related disciplines appropriate to the position, or a combination of education and experiencecourses equivalent to a major, as shown above, plus appropriate experience or additional education.

If using education to qualify, you must submit copies of all transcripts or a list of college courses that include hours and grades from an accredited U.S. college/university.

DOI uses E-Verify to confirm employment eligibility of all newly hired employees. To learn more about E-Verify, including your rights and responsibilities, please visit E-Verify

Career Transition Assistance Plan (CTAP)/lnteragency Career Transition Assistance Program (ICTAP): These programs apply to employees who have been involuntarily separated from a Federal service position within the competitive service or Federal service employees whose positions have been deemed surplus or no longer needed.

Males born after 12/31/59 must be registered for Selective Service

Travel and relocation expenses will not be paid by the Department of the Interior. Any travel, transportation and relocation expenses associated with reporting for duty in this position will be the responsibility of the selected employee.

Certain incentives (such as Recruitment, Relocation or Student Loan Repayment) may be authorized to eligible selectees. If eligible and qualified, you may be offered a recruitment or relocation incentive. The decision to offer an incentive will be made on a case-by-case basis and is neither promised nor guaranteed.

This position is considered a career ladder opportunity, with a full performance level of GS-XX. If selected at a lower grade level, you may be non-competitively promoted to the next grade level at the discretion of your supervisor and is contingent upon meeting regulatory and legal requirements for promotion, satisfactory performance, and the availability of higher-level work.

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.

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.

You will be evaluated for this job based on how well you meet the qualifications above.

Once the application process is complete, we will review your application to ensure you meet the job requirements.

Qualified applicants will be placed in one of three predefined categories: Best Qualified, Well Qualified and Qualified.

Candidates placed in the Best Qualified category will be identified for referral to the hiring manager and may be contacted for an interview.

Your answers to the online questionnaire will be used to evaluate your competencies in the following areas:

• Conscientiousness
• Planning and Evaluating
• Rangeland Management

In order to be considered for this position, you must complete all required steps in the process.

In addition to the application and application questionnaire, this position requires successful completion of the following additional assessment: Subject Matter Expert Resume Panel Review.

These assessments measure the critical competencies listed above that are required to successfully perform the job.

A career with the U.S. government provides employees with a comprehensive benefits package.

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.

THIS IS AN ONLINE APPLICATION PROCESS THROUGH USAJOBS.

Your application package must be submitted by 11:59 PM Eastern Time by 10/02/2024.

If you need assistance in applying on-line, please contact the HR Office at If applying on-line poses a hardship for you (i.e. you do not have access to the Internet) you must contact us prior to the closing date of the announcement for an alternative method of applying.

PLEASE NOTE: If you have access to a public library, State Job Service Office, etc., you should use these resources to apply online.

You must follow the steps described below to complete the application process:

1. Review the Appointment Eligibility Criteria:
2. You must submit a resume and also complete the online application and assessment questionnaire and submit the documentation specified in the Required Documents section.

To begin, click to access the online application.

You will need to be logged into your USAJOBS account to apply.

If you do not have a USAJOBS account, you will need to create one before beginning the application.

Follow the prompts to select your resume and/or other supporting documents to be included with your application package.

You will have the opportunity to upload additional documents to include in your application before it is submitted.

Your uploaded documents may take several hours to clear the virus scan process.

After acknowledging you have reviewed your application package, complete the Include Personal Information section as you deem appropriate and click to continue with the application process.

You will be taken to the online application which you must complete in order to apply for the position.

Complete the online application, verify the required documentation is included with your application package, and submit the application.

The eligibility portion of the application process is designed to allow you to choose how you wish to be considered for this announcement.

You may choose more than one eligibility.

You must provide proof of your eligibility and will only be considered for the questions that you answer yes.

Please note, your eligibility will be based solely on the selections you have indicated in this section.

You must provide the supporting documentation to support your claim to be considered.

You may choose more than one eligibility in this section.

To view the assessment questionnaire, click here:

You can track the progress of your application package via your USAJobs account.

You will receive an acknowledgement email from USAJobs that your submission was successful once we have received your online questionnaire, resume, and any supporting documentation.

You will be notified of the status of your application and/or referral to the hiring official via your USAJobs account after the evaluation process is complete.

You will be contacted if further evaluation or interviews are required.

More than one position may be filled from this announcement, at the discretion of Federal hiring officials.

Department of the Interior may share the list of eligible candidates with other Federal agencies/departments, authorized to appoint new employees under the same hiring procedures if the position is in the same: job series, grade level, promotion potential, and in the same geographic locations (including the same metro/commuting area) provided herein.

You will have the opportunity to opt-in to appear on a shared list.

Opt-in does not guarantee your application will be shared, but you will be contacted in the event your application is shared.

The Federal hiring process is set up to be fair and transparent.

Please read the following guidance.

• Criminal history inquiries
• Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO) Policy
• Financial suitability
• New employee probationary period
• Privacy Act
• Reasonable accommodation policy
• Selective Service
• Signature and false statements
• Social security number request