Summary
This is a Direct-Hire advertisement. Veterans' preference is not applicable to this advertisement. Learn more about this authority at: Direct Hire Authority
This Wildland Firefighter (Smokejumper), GW-0456-05/06/07 position is with the U.S. Wildland Service, working in the following location(s):
For information on Boise Smokejumpers, visit their website.
For information on Fairbanks Smokejumpers, visit their website.
Learn more about this agency
Duties
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As a Wildland Firefighter (Smokejumper) your duties will include but are not limited to the following:
- Incumbent parachutes into rugged terrain and performs fire suppression and related duties.
- Incumbent maintains smokejumper and firefighting equipment, tools, and supplies.
- Repairs, packs and maintains parachutes and related equipment.
- As a fire crew member or Initial Attack Commander incumbent utilizes fire behavior knowledge and firefighting experience to perform wildland fire suppression and prescribed fire operations safely and effectively in accordance with identified appropriate management response.
- May direct fire line activities and tactics for firefighters, equipment, aircraft and other resources.
Requirements
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Conditions of employment
Must be a U.S. Citizen or National.
Suitability for Federal employment, as determined by background investigation.
Direct Deposit Required.
You will be required to submit to a drug test and receive a negative drug test result prior to appointment. In addition, this position is subject to random testing for illegal drug use.
Selectees must pass a pre-employment medical examination and may be subject to post-employment medical examinations to determine if they are maintaining the fitness standards for this position.
You must also pass the work capacity test for arduous positions.
This position requires the incumbent to operate a government (or private) motor vehicle as part of their official duties. Selectee must hold and maintain a valid state driver's license throughout their employment in this position.
A condition of employment for accepting this position, you will be required to serve a 1-year probationary period during which your fitness and whether your continued employment advances the public interest will be evaluated.
Individuals assigned male at birth after 12-31-59 must be registered for the Selective Service. To verify registration visit SSS.gov.
You must be 18 years of age or older to be assigned to a hazardous position.
Must meet the maximum age requirement. See qualifications section for more information.
This position requires regular and recurring overtime and shift work during peak fire season.
You may be required to complete training and obtain/maintain a government charge card with travel and/or purchase authority.
Medical Requirements Please see the Department of Interior Medical Standards Program website for the Federal Interagency Wildland Firefighter Medical Standards for your position: http://www.nifc.gov/medical_standards/index.html
Physical Requirements Employment in this position is conditional upon your successful completion of the following smokejumper physical fitness performance tests: When you report for duty, you will be given a physical condition test. The test is given in one time period with a 5-minute break between exercises. The test consists of performing the following exercises:
- 30 push-ups
- 6 pull-ups
- Run 1.5 miles in 10.47 minutes or less OR backpacking a 110-pound load three miles in less than 65 minutes.
Work Capacity Test at the Arduous Level: All arduous wildland firefighters must backpack a 45-pound load for three miles in 45 minutes or less.
Qualifications
In order to qualify for this position you must possess the Minimum Qualification requirements listed below.
Selective Placement Factor(s): This position requires a special qualification that has been determined to be essential to perform the duties and will be used as a screen out element. Those who do not provide evidence they possess the following selective factor(s) will be rated not qualified.
1.)
This position is a Primary Firefighter position and is subject to a maximum entry age (MEA). The MEA is the date immediately preceding your 37th birthday. Applicants must not have reached age 37 at the time of appointment, unless proof is provided of prior Federal service in another primary covered position, or you are a preference eligible veteran. If you are a preference eligible veteran, you may be eligible for this position after your 37th birthday. You must supply a copy of your Defense Department Form 214 (DD-214) along with Standard Form 15 (if applicable) and any associated documentation in accordance with the instructions in this vacancy announcement.
Failure to provide this documentation with your application may result in loss of consideration. Please refer to the Required Documents section for further guidance on what documentation is required to meet this requirement. If over the MEA and you are not a veteran, proof of prior covered service must be submitted prior to employment. Acceptable proof consists of SF-50s showing beginning and ending dates of covered/creditable appointments and copies of approved letters based on individual claims.
GW-0456-05 Selective Factors:
1.)
Firefighter Type 1 (FFT1) required - You must provide the required document as instructed in the 'Required Documents' section of this announcement.
GW-0456-06/07 Selective Factors:
1.)
Prior Smokejumping experience required. This experience must be documented in the online application or resume with specific to AND from dates (MM/YY), description of work performed, AND hours worked per week.
GW-0456-07 Selective Factors:
1.)
Incident Commander Type 4 (ICT4)-You must provide the required document as instructed in the 'Required Documents' section of this announcement.
If selected at the GW-06, you must meet the NWCG training requirements above for the GW-07 as a condition of employment before being eligible for promotion to the GW-07 grade level.
In addition to the requirements described above, the following additional experience is required.
Only experience and education obtained by 09/25/2026 will be considered.
Credit will be given for all appropriate qualifying experience. Please be sure to include this information in your resume. No assumptions will be made about your experience.
Minimum Qualification
For the GW-05 level: One year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the GW/GS-04 level in the federal service. Examples of specialized experience include: Experience that equipped the applicant with the particular knowledge, skills, and abilities to perform successfully the duties of the position, and that is directly related to the work of the position to be filled. Qualifying experience includes but is not limited to experience in forest and range land fire suppression and fuels mitigation as a member of a hand crew, helitack crew, engine crew or fire use module. Experience also includes instructing or leading firefighters with both fire and non-fire assignments.
-OR- Successful completion of a full 4-year course of study (120 semester hour or 180 quarter hours) leading to a bachelor's degree with a major study in Fire Science, Fire Technology or other related fields of study (e.g.: Forestry, Range Management, Agriculture, Fire suppression and Prevention). Transcripts must be attached to application package if qualifying based on education.
-OR- An equivalent combination of experience and education. Transcripts must be attached to application package.
For the GW-06 level: One year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the GW/GS-05 level in the federal service. Examples of specialized experience include: Experience that equipped the applicant with the particular knowledge, skills, and abilities to perform successfully the duties of the position, and that is directly related to the work of the position to be filled. Qualifying experience includes but is not limited to experience in forest and range land fire suppression and fuels mitigation as a member of a hand crew, helitack crew, engine crew or fire use module. Experience also includes instructing or leading firefighters with both fire and non-fire assignments and includes experience as a qualified smokejumper using Ram-Air parachutes
For the GW-07 level: One year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the GW/GS-06 level in the federal service. Examples of specialized experience include: Experience that equipped the applicant with the particular knowledge, skills, and abilities to successfully perform the duties of the position, and that is directly related to the work of the position to be filled. Qualifying experience includes but is not limited to: experience in forest and range land fire suppression as an initial attack incident commander. Experience in Smokejumper operations including parachuting into rugged terrain, parachute rigging and repair, and the use of smokejumper specific firefighting tools and equipment. Experience also includes instructing or leading firefighters in both fire and non-fire assignments. Incumbent may supervise one or more employees (with little or no direct supervision) on wildland fires while anticipating fire behavior, determining suppression tactics, and taking the necessary action to control fires.
IMPORTANT - PLEASE NOTE: There is not an option to qualify for the GW-0456-06/07 series utilizing education at this grade level.
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.
You must meet all qualification and selective placement factor requirements by the closing date of the announcement.
This position is covered by the special retirement provisions of 5 U.S.C. 8336 (c) and 5 U.S.C. 8412 (d) as a Primary/Rigorous Firefighter. Applicants must be 18 years of age but not have reached their 37th birthday by the closing date of this announcement. These positions are covered by the special enhanced annuity retirement provisions for Federal Firefighters and Law Enforcement officers and have a mandatory retirement age of 57. Two exceptions are allowed: 1) an applicant has prior Federal service in documented special retirement covered position(s) sufficient to count toward 20 years of covered service on or before the mandatory retirement age of 57; or 2) an applicant is a qualified veterans' preference eligible, in which case the MEA is waived and their corresponding retirement age may be higher than 57 after completing 20 years of service. Applicants must submit proof of their previous and/or current status in the Fire Fighter or Law Enforcement special enhanced annuity retirement system.
Physical Demands: The incumbent must be able to work under extreme physical exertion regularly working 16-hour shifts or longer on the fireline. Work on the fireline requires considerable strenuous physical exertion.
Working Conditions: The majority of work is performed outdoors in a wide variety of weather and terrain conditions or in a crowded airplane.
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: If you are using education completed in foreign colleges or universities to meet the qualification requirements, you must show the 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. For further information, visit: Recognition of Foreign Qualifications | International Affairs Office (ed.gov).
