You will serve as a Biological Science Technicianwith US Fish and Wildlife Service .
This position is a Biological Science Technician, GS-0404-05,06,07, located in Decatur, Alabama, in Region 4 of the Department of the Interior, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.
Qualifications:All qualifications must be met by the closing date of this announcement - 08/02/2026-unless otherwise stated in this vacancy announcement. Competitive candidates must also meet Time-in-Grade requirements as defined in 5 CFR 300, Subpart F.
For current Federal employees, if hours worked per week are not included on your resume, you must submit a non-award SF-50 as part of your application to be used to validate your work schedule and determine the amount of specialized experience that you will be granted.
An award SF-50 will not be acceptable documentation for which to consider your amount of qualifying experience. For periods of time that reflect military service, the DD-214 or Statement of Service is sufficient to meet the work schedule requirement as the service dates will be reflected. For all other applicants who are not current federal employees, your resume must state either "full-time" (or "40 hours a week") or "part-time" with the number of hours worked per week to ensure proper crediting of specialized experience.
Minimum Qualification Requirements: To qualify for this position, you must meet the following minimum qualifications:
Minimum Qualification for GS-5: One (1) year of specialized experience equivalent to at least GS-4 level. Examples of specialized experience may include experience related to plant studies such as inventorying rare and endangered plants and species habitat based on guidelines; taking soil samples by layer; and taking root samples. -OR- 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 scientific or technical courses such as biology, chemistry, statistics, entomology, animal husbandry, botany, physics, agriculture, or mathematics. At least 6 semester hours of courses must have been directly related to the position to be filled. -OR- A combination of experience and education to meet total experience.
Minimum Qualification for GS-6: One (1) year of specialized experience equivalent to GS-5 level. Examples of specialized experience may include experience related to plant studies such as surveying, mapping and documenting a variety of plant species and habitat conditions; compiling occurrence and distribution data, cover maps, and herbarium study mounts; assisting in performing habitat studies and in constructing habitat improvement structures; and compiling data obtained through soil inventory and assembling data into a logical sequence for review. -OR- Successful completion of one full year of graduate education directly related to the work of the position. -OR- A combination of experience and education to meet total experience.
Minimum Qualification for GS-7: One (1) year of specialized work experience equivalent to GS-6 level. Examples of specialized experience may include experience related to plant studies such as surveying, mapping and documenting a variety of plant species and habitat conditions; compiling occurrence and distribution data, cover maps, and herbarium study mounts; assisting in performing botanical studies and in constructing habitat improvement structures; compiling data obtained through soil inventory; and assembling data into a logical sequence for review. -OR- Successful completion of one full year of graduate education directly related to the work of the position. -OR- A combination of experience and education to meet total experience.
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:
PROOF OF EDUCATION: All applicants who are using education or a combination of education and experience to qualify must submit copies of official or unofficial transcripts which include grades, credit hours earned, major(s), grade point average or class ranking, institution name, and student name. If any required coursework is not easily recognizable on transcripts, or if you believe a portion of a particular course can be credited toward meeting an educational requirement, you must also provide a memorandum on letterhead from the institution's registrar, dean, or other appropriate official stating the percentage of the course that should be considered to meet the requirement and the equivalent number of units. Unofficial transcripts are acceptable; however, if you are selected for the position, you will be required to produce the original official transcripts.
PASS/FAIL COURSES: If more than 10 percent of your undergraduate course work (credit hours) were taken on a pass/fail basis, your claim of superior academic achievement must be based upon class standing or membership in an honor society.
GRADUATE EDUCATION: One academic year of graduate education is considered to be the number of credits hours your graduate school has determined to represent one academic year of full-time study. Such study may have been performed on a full-time or part-time basis. If you cannot obtain your graduate school's definition of one year of graduate study, 18 semester hours (or 27 quarter hours) should be considered as satisfying the requirement for one year of full-time graduate study.
Foreign Education: To receive credit for education completed outside the United States, you must show proof that the education has been submitted to a private organization that specializes in interpretation of foreign educational credentials and such education has been deemed at least equivalent to that gained in conventional U.S. education programs. For more information on how foreign education is evaluated, visit: https://www.ed.gov/about/initiatives/international-affairs/recognition-of-foreign-qualificationsEmployment Type: OTHER