Recent Graduate Environmental Science Jobs in Houston, TX

For more information, click Pathways Programs, State Apprenticeship Programs, Other Apprenticeship Programs or Career One Stop.
This is an appointment under the DOL Recent Graduates program. The program duration is one year. Upon successful completion of the program and at the agency's discretion, the appointee may be converted to a term or permanent position in the competitive service.
Selectees must report in person to the office. These are not remote positions.

Applicants must have graduated, within the past two years, (with an associate, bachelor, master, professional, doctorate, diploma, vocational, technical degree, or certificate, etc.) from a qualifying educational institution or career or technical educational program including registered Apprenticeship Programs, Peace Corps, AmeriCorps, Job Corps, Climate Corps).
THIS POSITION HAS A BASIC EDUCATION REQUIREMENT. ALL APPLICANTS MUST MEET THIS REQUIREMENT IN ORDER TO BE CONSIDERED.

Applicants must meet one of the following requirements:

• A bachelor's or graduate/higher level degree in industrial hygiene, occupational health sciences, occupational and environmental health, toxicology, safety sciences, or related science; or
• A bachelor's degree in a branch of engineering, physical science, or life science that included 12 semester hours in chemistry, including organic chemistry, and 18 additional semester hours of courses in any combination of chemistry, physics, engineering, health physics, environmental health, biostatistics, biology, physiology, toxicology, epidemiology, or industrial hygiene; or
• Certification from the Board for Global EHS Credentialing (formerly American Board of Industrial Hygiene(external link) (ABIH)).

Courses in the history or teaching of chemistry are not acceptable.

Evaluation of Education: All science or engineering courses offered in fulfillment of the above requirements must be acceptable for credit toward the completion of a standard 4-year professional curriculum leading to a bachelor's degree in science or engineering at an accredited college or university.
Evaluation of Experience: Qualifying experience involves the recognition, evaluation, corrective actions, and elimination of environmental conditions in the workplace that causes sickness, impaired health, or illness. This experience must demonstrate a professional knowledge of the theory and application of the principles of industrial hygiene and closely related sciences such as physics and engineering controls.

Such work must have involved experience in all of the following areas: the acquisition of quantitative and qualitative data, and the measurement of exposures for a variety of chemical, physical, and biological stresses; the analysis of the data acquired and the prediction of probable effects of exposures on the health and well-being of workers; and the selection and recommendation of appropriate controls, including management, medical, engineering, education or training, and personal protective equipment.

You must meet the "Individual Occupational Requirements" listed above and the "Specialized Experience" to qualify for Recent Graduate - Industrial Hygienist, as described below.
At the GS-07 level: In addition to meeting the individual occupational requirement, applicants must have at least 52 weeks specialized experience at the next lower level in the normal career progression of the position being filled. When compared to Federal experience, this experience must be equivalent to at least the next lower grade level of GS-05. This experience may have been gained either in the Federal or private sectors. Resumes should reflect the majority but is not limited to the following specialized experience listed below:

• Assisting in the planning of or conducting basic occupational safety or occupational health inspections of workplaces.
• Identifying occupational health and safety hazards; evaluating occupational safety or occupational health programs and making recommendations for improvement when deficiencies are noted.
• Applying occupational safety and/or occupational health standards and criteria to unsafe working conditions.

At the GS-09 level: In addition to meeting the individual occupational requirement, applicants must have at least 52 weeks specialized experience at the next lower level in the normal career progression of the position being filled. When compared to Federal experience, this experience must be equivalent to at least the next lower grade level of GS-07. This experience may have been gained either in the Federal or Private sectors. Resumes should reflect the majority but is not limited to the following specialized experience listed below:

• Assisting in the planning of or conducting of occupational safety or occupational health inspections.
• Conducting research and studies records or files regarding Occupational safety or occupational health mishaps/accidents.
• Identifying occupational health and safety hazard.
• Assisting in or knowledge of calculating penalties to be assessed based on the gravity of occupational safety and/or occupational health violations.

To qualify for this position solely on education, in addition to meeting the IOR, the following education may be used to substitute for specialized experience:
For GS-07: One full year of progressively higher-level graduate education.
or
Superior academic achievement in a bachelor's degree program. S.A.A. is based on (1) class standing, (2) grade-point average, or (3) honor society membership.

1. Class standing -- Applicants must be in the upper third of the graduating class in the college, university, or major subdivision, based on completed courses.
2. Grade-point average (G.P.A.)-- Applicants must have a grade-point average of:

b. 3.5 or higher out of a possible 4.0 ("B+" or better) based on the average of the required courses completed in the major field or the required courses in the major field completed during the final 2 years of the curriculum.

or
A qualifying combination of education and competencies as described below.
For GS-09: 2 years of progressively higher-level graduate education leading to a master's degree or master's or equivalent graduate degree.

Combining Education and Experience

In addition to meeting the basic education requirement, an equivalent combination of successfully completed related graduate (GS-09) level education and specialized experience as described in the "Qualifications" section of this announcement, can be used to meet the total experience requirements for this position. For more information please click here (Application of Qualification Standard/Option 5).

If you wish to use your education as a basis for meeting the eligibility and/or minimum qualification requirements for this position, you must submit academic transcripts demonstrating that you meet the qualifying educational requirements. If specific course work is required to fulfill the eligibility and/or minimum qualification requirements, you must supply transcripts from each academic institution in which the required courses were taken in order to receive credit for that course work. See the 'Qualifications and Evaluations' section of this announcement for more details.

To be eligible for an appointment, you must meet requirement A or B.

A. Completed all requirements for a diploma, associate, bachelor, master, professional, doctorate, vocational, or technical degree or certificate from a qualifying educational institution or career or technical education program (including registered Apprenticeship Programs, Peace Corps, AmeriCorps, Job Corps, Climate Corps) within the previous two years; OR

B. Was released or discharged from active duty within the previous two years, where the applicant is a veteran who, due to a military service obligation, was precluded from applying for a recent graduate position during any portion of the two-year eligibility period following completion of his/her degree or certificate requirements, provided that not more than six years have transpired since the applicant completed the requirements for a degree or certification. You must submit an academic transcript from your academic institution showing the date that you most recently completed the academic requirements described above.

*For Accredited Post-Secondary Institutions, click Database of Accredited Postsecondary Institutions and Programs
*For Registered State Apprenticeship Programs Information, click State Apprenticeship Programs
*For Other Apprenticeship Programs, click Apprenticeship Programs
*For Industry-Endorsed Certificate Programs, click Career One Stop Certificate Finder

Any applicant falsely claiming an academic degree from an accredited school will be subject to actions ranging from disqualification from federal employment to removal from federal service.

If your education was completed at a foreign college or university, you must show comparability to education received in accredited educational institutions in the United States and comparability to applicable minimum coursework requirements for this position. Click Evaluation of Foreign Education for more information.