Forester (Silviculture)

In order to qualify, you must meet the eligibility and qualifications requirements as defined below by the closing date of the announcement. For more information on the qualifications for this position, visit the Office of Personnel Management's General Schedule Qualification Standards. Your application and resume must clearly show that you possess the experience requirements. Transcripts must be provided for qualifications based on education. Provide course descriptions as necessary.

Basic Requirement: GS-0460 series: Degree: Successful completion of a full 4-year course of study in an accredited college or university leading to a bachelor's or higher degree that included a major field of study in forestry; or a related subject-matter field that included a total of at least 30 semester hours in any combination of biological, physical, or mathematical sciences or engineering, of which at least 24 semester hours of course work were in forestry.

The curriculum must have been sufficiently diversified to include courses in each of the following areas: Management of Renewable Resources -- study of the science and art of managing renewable resources to attain desired results.

Examples of creditable courses in this area include silviculture, forest management operations, timber management, wildland fire science or fire management, utilization of forest resources, forest regulation, recreational land management, watershed management, and wildlife or range habitat management. Forest Biology -- study of the classification, distribution, characteristics, and identification of forest vegetation, and the interrelationships of living organisms to the forest environment.

Examples of creditable courses in this area include dendrology, forest ecology, silvics, forest genetics, wood structure and properties, forest soils, forest entomology, and forest pathology. Forest Resource Measurements and Inventory -- sampling, inventory, measurement, and analysis techniques as applied to a variety of forest resources.

Examples of creditable courses include forest biometrics, forest mensuration, forest valuation, statistical analysis of forest resource data, renewable natural resources inventories and analysis, and photogrammetry or remote sensing. OR Combination of education and experience -- courses equivalent to a major in forestry, or at least 30 semester hours in any combination of biological, physical, or mathematical sciences or engineering, of which at least 24 semester hours were in forestry.

The requirements for diversification of the 24 semester hours in forestry are the same as shown above, plus appropriate experience or additional education. In addition to meeting the basic requirement, you must also possess experience and/or directly related education in the amounts listed below. Specialized Experience Requirement: For the GS-05 level: Applicants who meet the basic education requirements described above are fully qualified for the GS-05 entry grade.

For the GS-07 level: Applicants must have one year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the GS-05 grade level.

Qualifying specialized experience is defined as one or more of the following: Laid out unit boundaries, selected and marked individual trees for cutting, gathered data about wildlife, planted, or stand improvement implementation; Gathered and analyzed soil and water data used for resource planning; Gathered and summarized data collected from vegetation surveys for input to resource planning; Collected vegetation data needed for stand improvement problems, reported observations and recommended solutions to problems; drafted suggestions for managers to consider about specific treatment or action needed.

OR One full year of graduate level education in a related field of study. OR Appropriate combination of specialized experience and graduate level education. OR Superior Academic Achievement (to determine if you are eligible, go to: https://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/classification-qualifications/general-schedule-qualification-policies. The education was obtained in an accredited college or university and demonstrate the knowledge, skills, and abilities necessary to do the work.

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.

TIME IN GRADE REQUIREMENT: If you are a current federal employee in the General Schedule (GS) pay plan and applying for a promotion opportunity, you must meet time-in-grade (TIG) requirements of 52 weeks of service at the next lower grade level in the normal line of progression for the position being filled. This requirement must be met by the closing date of this announcement.

Responsibilities listed below are at the full performance level (GS-09).,Collects compartment, stand prescription or presale information data for specified areas selected for cutting.,Conducts cruises of timber stands, delineating forest cover by use of aerial photographs and summarizes data.,Performs related preparation, timber stand improvement and reforestation duties.,Administers assigned timber sales to ensure that all contractual stipulations are carried out by the operator and the Forest Service.,Corrects improper practices and resolves misunderstandings, complaints, or violations of regulations, policies, or contractual requirements; prepares timber reports; and checks for timber trespass.,Collects and summarizes watershed data and administers assigned watershed projects.