Supervisory Biologist

Summary

This position is a SUPERVISORY BIOLOGIST, GS- 0401-13 working for the R2-Texas Restoration Office. Duty station is negotiable at any Fish & Wildlife Service office or refuge location within the State of Texas. Pay will vary based duty location. First time hires to the Federal government normally start at the step 1 rate.

Duties

Some of the major duties you will perform include but are not limited to the following: Provides administrative, scientific, and technical leadership for a large, complex scientific program/project. Manages the formulation of program objectives, priorities, and techniques. Provides long range resource planning, program direction, coordination, and evaluation. Lead the development of overall program goals, objectives, policies and strategies necessary to direct the program. Analyzes complex biological data, reports or findings that have been submitted for review. Evaluates or writes biological and policy arguments, ensures conformance to establish scientific and policy standards, and reviews the quality of biological, ecological, and other information. Develops budget proposals and other documents including the FWS budget estimates and submittals, OMB budget estimates, and the President's budget justification. As appropriate, makes funding allocation recommendations for high priority projects within the assigned program area and associated Headquarters, Regional and/or field offices. Provides administrative and technical supervision necessary to accomplish the work. Plans the work to be accomplished, assigns work to employees, and establishes production or quality standards for the work. Sets priorities and prepares schedules for completion of work. Establishes and communicates guidelines and performance expectations for employees. Conducts formal performance reviews. Identifies and provides for the developmental and training needs of employees. Provides expertise and assistance to FWS staff in the drafting, implementation, administration, tracking, and evaluation of grants, cooperative agreements, and other intra and inter-agency agreements. Agreements are typically complex, involving cooperative projects and restoration efforts with significant expenditure of congressionally appropriated Federal funds. Requirements

Must be a U.S. Citizen or National. Appointment subject to background investigation and favorable adjudication. Males born after 12-31-59 must be registered for Selective Service. Direct Deposit participation required. Successfully pass the E-Verify employment verification check. To learn more, visit https://www.e-verify.gov/. Must possess and maintain a valid driver's license throughout employment.. As a condition of employment for accepting this position, you may be required to serve a 1-year probationary period to evaluate your fitness and whether your continuation of employment advances the public interest. This probationary period is an extension of the appointment process and therefore requires the agency to determine if continued employment would advance the public interest, meet the organization goals and mission of the agency, and/or otherwise promote the efficiency of the service. In determining if your employment advances the public interest, the agency will consider: your performance and conduct; the needs and interests of the agency; whether your continued employment would advance organizational goals of the agency or the Government; and whether your continued employment would advance the efficiency of the Federal service. Under applicable law, the employment of an individual serving a probationary or trial period automatically terminates when that period ends unless the agency affirmatively certifies, in writing, that the individual's employment should continue and that their appointment should be finalized. In the absence of agency action to affirmatively certify continued employment beyond the probationary or trial period, such appointments are terminated. Upon completion of your probationary period your employment will be terminated unless you receive certification, in writing, that your continued employment advances the public interest. This is a supervisory position that may require completion of a supervisory probationary period. Qualifications

All qualifications must be met by the closing date of this announcement - 09/11/2026-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: Basic Educational Requirement AND Specialized Experience for the series to which you are applying. Basic Educational Requirements: In addition to the specialized experience requirements for this position, you must meet at least one of the following: A. Degree: Successfully completed 4-years of college study leading to a bachelor's degree in the biological sciences, agriculture, natural resource management, chemistry, or related disciplines appropriate to the position.. You must submit transcripts. -OR- B. Combination of education and experience: Successfully completed 24 semester hours in an accredited college or university in the biological sciences, agriculture, natural resource management, chemistry, or related disciplines and have additional work experience and/or education comparable to the completion of a 4-year course of study in one the disciplines identified above. -AND- To qualify for this position at the GS-13 grade level: Experience: To qualify, you must possess at least one full year of specialized experience equivalent to the GS-12 level in the Federal service (obtained in either the public or private sectors). Specialized experience is defined as demonstrated experience: 1) managing/leading staff of biological/natural resource professionals; 2) developing and implementing collaborative conservation/restoration projects; 3) developing and maintaining strategic partnerships that lead to species and habitat conservation; 4) preforming regulatory compliance for habitat restoration projects such as compliance with the Endangered Species Act, National Historic Preservation Act, National Environmental Policy Act or Clean Water Act; 5) monitoring results of conservation projects; 6) utilizing databases to track conservation work; 7) writing scientific or technical reports or presenting restoration results at conferences or to peers; 8) developing and implementing strategic plans that guides conservation actions for species or habitat; 9) utilizing or administering grants or cooperative agreements for fish and wildlife conservation actions; and/or 10) mentoring others on species habitat conservation/restoration techniques or project administration. You must include hours per week worked. 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

This position does not allow substituting education for experience. This position has a mandatory education requirement. You must submit a copy of your transcript(s) to support claimed education if substituting education for experience. Transcripts must include your name, school name, grades, credit hours earned, major(s), grade point average or class ranking, and date the degree was conferred, if applicable. A typed list of courses, grades, semester/quarter hours, GPA, etc. will not be accepted. Non-submission may result in being rated not qualified for the position. Unofficial transcripts are acceptable, but if you are selected for this position and you used your education to qualify, you must provide official transcripts before you begin work. 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-qualifications How You Will Be Evaluated

Your qualifications will be evaluated based on your application materials (e.g. resume, supporting documents), the responses you provide on the application questionnaire, and the result of the additional assessment(s) required for this position. To be considered for this position, you must complete all required steps in the process. Your resume must not exceed 2 pages. Only the document submitted as the "Resume" under the Documents section will be used to determine your qualifications/eligibility and for rating purposes. In the event you submit more than one resume, only the latest submission will be reviewed. You will be assessed in the following competencies (knowledge, skills, abilities, and other characteristics): Ecology Leadership Project Management Restoration Ecology Wildlife and Fisheries Biology Management Techniques To be considered for this position, you must complete all required steps in the process. In addition to the application and application questionnaire, this position requires successful completion of additional assessment(s), including a structured resume review. These assessments measure the critical competencies listed above that are required to successfully perform the job. All qualified non-competitive applicants and the best-qualified Merit Promotion applicants will be referred to the hiring manager for consideration. DUE WEIGHT: Please submit 1) a copy of your most recent performance appraisal/evaluation and 2) a list of any awards (e.g. superior performance awards, special act or achievement awards, quality step increase, etc.) you received in the last 5 years. Any performance appraisal/evaluation and award documentation you provide will be forwarded to the selecting official. The selecting official will review this documentation and give it due weight consideration during the overall selection process. If you do not have your most recent performance appraisal/evaluation, you must submit a statement as to why it is not available. Please indicate if any prior performance appraisals/evaluations were at an acceptable level. Overstating your qualifications and/or experience in your application materials or application questionnaire may result in your removal from consideration or your score may be lowered. Cheating on an assessment may also result in your removal from consideration. Applicants who include vulgar, offensive, or inappropriate language or information in their application package will be ineligible for further consideration for this position. Current or former displaced Federal employees who are surplus, displaced, or involuntarily separated have special priority selection rights under the Agency Career Transition Assistance Program (CTAP) or the Interagency Career Transition Assistance Program (ICTAP). To be considered under CTAP/ICTAP, you must be well-qualified, score at least 85 (i.e., meet the minimum qualification requirements, including any selective placement factors; education, and experience requirements), and be able to perform the duties of the position upon entry. Other Information

Additional vacancies may be filled using this job announcement. Duty Station: Location Negotiable within the State of Texas The final duty station will be determined upon selection and must be located at an approved Fish and Wildlife Service office or refuge within the State of Texas. Duty station designation will be based on organizational needs, space availability, locality pay considerations, and alignment with mission requirements. If selected, the official duty station will be documented in the official job offer. Telework: This position is suitable for telework only during an emergency or natural disaster PCS - Not Authorized All DOI employees, their spouses, and minor children may not acquire or retain any claim, permit, lease, small tract entry, or other rights granted by the Department in Federal lands, with limited exceptions. Additional ethics prohibitions can be found here, DOI Ethics Prohibitions | U.S. Department of the Interior.