Supervisory Research Zoologist

Job Details

Position Overview

The Smithsonian Institution is the world’s largest museum, education, and research complex, with 21 museums and the National Zoo.  This position is located in the Smithsonian’s National Zoo and Conservation Biology Institute (NZCBI), Washington, DC. with duty location in either Washington D.C. or Front Royal, VA.  

More than one selection may be made from this announcement.

Duties

The Supervisory Research Zoologist leads NZCBI’s Center for Conservation Genomics and is responsible for developing, expanding and implementing an ambitious science and conservation program to advance the field of conservation genomics and related research areas.

In this position, you will:

• Lead the development of a multifaceted research program in conservation genomics that addresses a broad range of complex scientific questions and applied conservation challenges.
• Conduct research using one or several advanced technologies and tools such as genomic, transcriptomic, environmental DNA (eDNA), and ancient DNA approaches to evaluate genetic diversity, population history, species distribution, abundance, diet, evolutionary processes, and conservation outcomes, while advancing bioinformatics tools and methods to inform conservation strategies.
• Develop and communicate scientifically rigorous conclusions through peer-reviewed publications and other scholarly contributions that advance the field of conservation genomics.
• Serve as a subject matter expert and consultant to scientists, researchers, and professionals within Federal agencies, universities, laboratories, zoological parks, and research institutions on matters related to conservation genomics.
• Provide leadership, oversight, and direction for key NZCBI programs and functions, ensuring alignment with organizational priorities and the successful achievement of NZCBI mission objectives.

Qualifications & Requirements

Basic Qualifications 

1. Degree: zoology; or a related discipline or field of science that included at least 20 semester hours in zoology and related animal sciences.

   OR

2. Combination of education and experience: courses equivalent to a major in zoology, or in a related discipline that included course work as shown in A above, plus appropriate experience or additional education.

Graduate Education: To be qualifying, graduate study must have been in one of the major fields of zoology or have followed a curriculum or pattern of training that placed major emphasis on one of these disciplines or subject-matter fields, such as nematology or parasitology. Graduate study in related fields of science such as microbiology, medicine, veterinary medicine, or plant pathology that involved cross-training in zoology or one of the fields of zoology may also be qualifying, provided there was a sufficient amount of emphasis on zoology.

In addition to the basic qualification requirement above:

Experience: You qualify for this position if you have one year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the GS-14 level in the Federal Service.  For this position, specialized experience is defined as developing, planning, and implementing a broad range of advanced and complex investigations in the field of conservation genomics; designing and executing new approaches and investigations to extend and to ensure the viability of wildlife species and populations; and leading and supervising others that lead to advance the field of conservation genomics and related research areas.

Your resume must be no more than two (2) pages and should clearly demonstrate how your experience aligns with the responsibilities and specialized experience required for this position. Do not copy language directly from the vacancy announcement, as you will be deemed ineligible for consideration. Instead, provide detailed, descriptive information about your actual experience.

In addition to a two-page resume, please provide a Curriculum Vitae (CV) with your publications, grants, professional accomplishments, and other relevant qualifications and activities.

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.

Part-time and/or unpaid experience related to this position will be considered to determine the total number of years and months of experience. Be sure to note the number of paid or unpaid hours worked each week.  

Or a Combination: Education and experience may be combined to meet the basic qualifications. For a full explanation of this option please see the Qualification Standards. Special Instructions for Foreign Education: If you are qualifying by education and/or you have education completed in a foreign college/university described above, it is your responsibility to provide transcripts and proof of U.S. accreditation for foreign study. For instructions on where to fax these documents, see the "Required Documents" section of this announcement.

Requirements

Conditions of Employment

Qualification requirements, including one year time-in-grade at the next lower grade level for promotion candidates, must be met within 30 days of the job announcement closing date. See the 'Required Documents' section for additional information.

For information on qualification requirements, see Qualification Standards Handbook for General Schedule Positions viewable on OPM Website.

Evaluations

Your application will be evaluated first for the basic qualifications described above.  The applications that meet the basic qualifications will be evaluated further against the following criteria:

1. Knowledge in developing, planning, initiating, leading and managing advanced scientific investigations in conservation genomics.
2. Skill in formulating specific and authoritative conclusions that are published in contributions to the field of wildlife ecology and conservation in journals and books national and international.  
3. Skill in serving as an expert advisor/consultant to scientific/professional community on conservation genomics and species conservation.
4. Ability to provide the full scope of strategic, technical, and administrative supervision to staff. 

BASIS OF RATING:  Once the announcement closes, your application will be automatically evaluated and rated by the system and a Human Resources Specialist. To determine if you are qualified for this job, a review of your application and supporting documentation will be made and compared against your responses to the occupational questionnaire. The numeric rating you receive is based on your responses to the questionnaire. The score is a measure of the degree to which your background matches the knowledge, skills, and abilities required of this position. If, after the Human Resources Specialist reviews your resume and/or supporting documentation, a determination is made that the score you have received is not a true reflection of your qualifications and/or experience, your score can and will be adjusted to more accurately reflect the information you provided that support your abilities. Please follow all instructions carefully. Errors or omissions may affect your rating. Your resume should provide detailed information regarding how your education and experience relate to this position, including the major duties and qualifications criteria listed.

Veterans Employment Opportunities Act (VEOA):  If you are applying for a VEOA appointment, you must be a veteran and must be honorably separated and either a preference eligible or have substantially completed 3 or more years of active service. ("Active Service" under this law means active duty in a uniformed service and includes full-time training duty, annual training duty, full-time National Guard duty, and attendance, while in the active service, at a school designated as a service school by law or by the Secretary concerned.) A veteran who is released under honorable conditions shortly before completing a 3-year tour is also eligible.

Noncompetitive Appointment Authorities:  The following links contain information on the eligibility requirements to be considered under a noncompetitive appointing authority:

• Primary Appointing Authorities for Career and Career-Conditional Appointments
• Hiring Authorities for Veterans
• People with Disabilities

Important Note:

Your resume and supporting documentation will be compared to your responses to the occupational questionnaire or other assessment tool for consistency. If a determination is made that you have rated yourself higher than is supported by your resume, you will be assigned a rating commensurate to your described experience. Your resume should provide sufficient information regarding how your education and experience relate to this position, including the major duties and qualifications criteria listed.

Required Documents

Your application package should include the following documents:

• Resume - Your resume can be uploaded and attached to your application or created using the USA Jobs on-line resume builder. Ensure your resume contains the job title (including the occupational series and grade if it is Federal), job-related qualifications, starting and ending dates (month and year), and hours worked per week, for each employment period. It is your responsibility to ensure all information is submitted. Failure to include this information may result in disqualification for the position. In addition to a two-page resume, please provide a Curriculum Vitae (CV) outlining your publications, grants, professional accomplishments, and other relevant qualifications and activities.
  For assistance with creating a resume, please click USAJOBS Help Center - How do I write a resume for a federal job?
  

• Current and former employees MUST submit a copy of their Standard Form (SF)-50, “Notice of Personnel Action,” that indicates proof of status and time-in-grade eligibility. SI Trust employees are ineligible for Merit Promotion consideration unless you submit a Standard Form (SF) - 50, "Notice of Personnel Action", that indicates proof you previously held a 'status' position and proof of time-in-grade.  The SF-50 must include your position title, series, grade, step, salary, type of service (competitive or excepted in block 34), and tenure (1 or 2 in block 24). Please provide a SF-50 that shows the length of time you have been in your current/highest grade level.  Examples of appropriate SF50s include: Appointments, Reassignments, Within-grade/range increases or Promotion actions.  NOTE: Pay adjustments and award SF-50s do not include the length of time in your current position, therefore, they are NOT acceptable SF-50’s on their own. You may need to provide more than one SF-50. Failure to provide the appropriate SF-50(s) may prevent you from receiving consideration for this position.  

• Unofficial school transcripts, if the position has an education requirement or if you are using education to qualify. If selected for the position, you must provide an official transcript before appointment.
• Proof of U.S. accreditation for foreign study, if applicable.
• Proof of Veteran's Preference - DD214 (Member 4 Copy) if you are requesting a special appointment authority, such as VRA or VEOA
• Proof of severe disability if you are requesting special placement consideration.
• Proof of eligibility for a military spouse appointment, such as a permanent change station military order.
• Proof of eligibility for any other special appointing authority not specifically mentioned here.

How to Apply

Click on the "Apply Online" button on the upper right side of the page.
Please Note:

• You must apply for this position online through the 'Apply Online' button and submit required supplemental documents (if they are relevant to you).
• Your resume must be no more than two (2) pages.
• You may submit required documents by uploading them online during the application process.
  The complete application package, including any required documents, is due in the Smithsonian Office of Human Resources on the closing date of the announcement by 11:59 PM Eastern Time.
• If you are unable to apply online, paper applications may be accepted with prior approval of the Contact Person listed below.

At the end of the application process you will be able to create and save a PDF file that contains your responses to the assessment questions. You may save this file as initial receipt of your application. After the job announcement closes, you will receive an email from the Smithsonian with confirmation of receipt.
The Smithsonian receives many applications for each job. Each application is reviewed carefully which may take a few weeks. We will send you an e-mail to update you as we go through phases of the application review process. You may also check your application status by logging into www.usajobs.gov and selecting the tab "My USAJOBS;" e-mailing [email protected]; or by contacting the Office of Human Resources Representative listed.

Additional Information:

• Tips on applying for Smithsonian jobs are available at www.sihr.si.edu/jobs.cfm.
• The Smithsonian does not pay relocation expenses.
• The Smithsonian Institution is an equal opportunity employer. Additional information can be found on our website at (www.si.edu/oeesd).