Seasonal Biological Science Technician (Wildlife) - Owls

Seasonal Biological Science Technician (Wildlife) - Owls

Department: Department of the Interior

Location(s): Port Angeles, Washington

Salary Range: $21.72 - $34.98 Per Hour

Job Summary: The typical seasonal entry-on-duty period for these positions is April, but can be variable during these months due to weather conditions, project needs, or funding. Anticipated Entry on Duty: April 2026. Open to the first 250 applicants or until 12/17/2025 , whichever comes first. All applications submitted by 11:59 (EST) on the closing day will receive consideration.

Major 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 upon work availability and funding. Major Duties: All Grades: Carry out a scientific monitoring program for the Northern Spotted Owl occupancy by using programmable acoustic recorders. All Grades: Collect data on owl habitat and other wildlife species encountered and perform other wildlife related duties as assigned. Much of the work requires extensive overnight travel in the backcountry carrying personal and project equipment in packs weighing up to 50 lbs. All Grades: Identifies spotted and barred owls, keep organized field notes, collect, and enter scientific data, and assist in field planning, site mapping, and preparing written reports. All Grades: Candidates should be able to navigate using compass, topographic maps, and GPS off-trail to conduct natural resources field work. GS-06/07 only: Selected candidates will perform all the duties of GS-05 positions but operate with less supervision and assist in provide training and support for newer team members. GS-07 only: Perform the duties of lower graded positions plus will work closely with the project coordinator to manage the field component of the project to which they are assigned. For more information about Olympic National Park please visit Olympic National Park. 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).

Qualifications: All qualifications must be met by 11:59 EST on the closing date or when the applicant cut-off is reached (which may be sooner than 12/17/2025). 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. SELECTIVE FACTOR: This position performs natural resources field work in a rugged backcountry, wilderness setting. Experience and ability to backpack and camp for at least 6 consecutive days, carrying up to 50 pounds of gear in mountainous terrain and traveling up to 15 miles per day is required. Candidates who do not meet this requirement by close of this announcement will receive no further consideration for this position. NOTE: You must describe your backpacking and wilderness camping experiences in your resume. - AND - To qualify for this position at the GS-5 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-4 grade level in the Federal service (obtained in either the public or private sectors). This experience includes activities such as: performing research and monitoring activities for wildlife resources (specifically Northern Spotted Owls), safely traveling and orienteering in wilderness settings, and accurately collecting and recording biological data in a field setting. You must include hours per week worked. -OR- EDUCATION: Successful completion of a full 4-year course of study leading to a bachelor's degree with major study or at least 24 semester hours in any combination of courses such as biology, chemistry, statistics, entomology, animal husbandry, botany, physics, agriculture, or mathematics which included at least 6 semester hours directly related to the position to be filled. You must include transcripts. -OR- Successful completion of a combination of education and experience as described above. To combine education and experience, first take the number of semester hours (or equivalent) earned towards a bachelor's degree, in excess of 60 semester hours, and divide by 60 semester hours (or equivalent). Then take the number of months of full-time experience and divide by 12 months. The total must equal at least 100 percent to qualify. You must include hours per week worked and transcripts. To qualify at the GS-06 grade level, you must possess at least one of the following minimum qualifications by close of the announcement: EXPERIENCE: At least one year of specialized experience comparable in scope and responsibility to the GS-05 grade level in the Federal service (obtained in either the public or private sectors). This experience includes activities such as: performing research and monitoring activities for wildlife resources (specifically Northern Spotted Owls), safely traveling and orienteering in wilderness settings, accurately collecting and recording biological data in a field setting, retrieving, analyzing and reporting biological data for reports, and operate and maintain resource management equipment in the field. You must include hours per week worked. -OR- EDUCATION: Successful completion at least one year of progressively higher-level graduate education leading to a master's degree or equivalent graduate degree with a major study in a directly related field such as wildlife management, biology, ornithology, zoology, or ecology. You must include transcripts. -OR- Successful completion of a COMBINATION of education and experience as described above. To combine education and experience, first take the number of semester hours (or equivalent) earned towards a directly related graduate degree and divide by 18 semester hours (or equivalent). 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 hours per week worked and transcripts. To qualify at the GS-07 grade level, you must possess at least one of the following minimum qualifications by close of the announcement: EXPERIENCE: At least one year of specialized experience comparable in scope and responsibility to the GS-06 grade level in the Federal service (obtained in either the public or private sectors). This experience includes activities such as: performing research and monitoring activities for wildlife resources (specifically Northern Spotted Owls), safely traveling and orienteering in wilderness settings, accurately collecting and recording biological data in a field setting, retrieving, analyzing and reporting biological data for reports, operating and maintaining resource management equipment in the field, and providing training and support to newer team members in these activities. You must include hours per week worked. -OR- EDUCATION: Successful completion at least one year of progressively higher-level graduate education leading to a master's degree or equivalent graduate degree with a major study in a directly related field such as wildlife management, biology, ornithology, zoology, or ecology. You must include transcripts. -OR- Successful completion of a COMBINATION of education and experience as described above. To combine education and experience, first take the number of semester hours (or equivalent) earned towards a directly related graduate degree and divide by 18 semester hours (or equivalent). 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 hours per week worked and transcripts. 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.

How to Apply: To apply for this position: You must complete the occupational questionnaire and submit the documentation specified in the Required Documents section below. To receive consideration, the complete application package must be submitted by 11:59 PM (EST) on the closing date or when the applicant limit is reached (which may be sooner than 12/17/2025). You must provide documentation to support your claim for each eligibility selected. Please review the required documentation listed in the eligibilities language to ensure you submit the appropriate information. Note: You will only be marked eligible for those eligibilities that you selected and provided the appropriate supporting documentation. WE DO NOT ACCEPT HARD-COPY OR E-MAIL APPLICATION PACKAGES. Select Apply. If you are not logged in, you will be prompted to login or create an account. Prompted to Start the Application Process by selecting "Start Application." Click here for USAJobs Help with "How to create an application" To PREVIEW the application questionnaire, select the following link: https://apply.usastaffing.gov/ViewQuestionnaire/12846146 Select or add the resume you want to use for this application. Click here on how to build a resume in USAJOBS. Select documents you want included in this application. Review package to acknowledge your documents were reviewed. Select if you want to include your demographic information. After reading and certifying the application is true and submitted in good faith, select "Continue to Agency Site." Follow onscreen prompts and instructions to complete your application. Add the supporting documents by indexing your documents with the dropdown. Upload any missing required documents or optional documents. Review and Submit Application. While logged in, you can check the status of your application by selecting "+" next to the job title for this position. You can review or revise your application at any point during the open period of the announcement. To update an application, you should log into your USAJOBS account and select "+" next to the job title for this position. Select "Update Application" for this job. Note: When you click Update Application, you will be prompted to re-select your documents from USAJOBS. Documents submitted with the first application will no longer be associated with the applicant record. So it is important that you select all documents you want to use in the re-application.

Application Deadline: 2025-12-17