Sacramento - Bureau of Reclamation - Technical Information Specialist

SALARY RANGE:$63,525.00 to $82,583.00 / Per Year

OPEN PERIOD:Wednesday, February 10, 2016 to Wednesday, February 24, 2016

SERIES & GRADE:GS-1412-11

POSITION INFORMATION:Full time - Permanent

PROMOTION POTENTIAL:11

DUTY LOCATIONS:1 vacancy - Sacramento, CA   View Map

WHO MAY APPLY:All United States Citizens and Nationals

SECURITY CLEARANCE:Q - Nonsensitive

SUPERVISORY STATUS:No

JOB SUMMARY:

About the Agency

Want to work for a contemporary water management agency whose mission is to assist in meeting the increasing water demands of the West while protecting the environment and the public's investment? Join the staff of the Bureau of Reclamation as a Technical Information Specialist.

This position is located with the Bureau of Reclamation, Division of Administrative Services, Visual Information Services Branch, in Sacramento, CA. For more information on the Sacramento area, visit: http://www.saccounty.net/Pages/default.aspx

Additional vacancies may be filled from this vacancy announcement.

KEY REQUIREMENTS

Successful adjudication of personnel security investigation required.

One year probationary period required.

DUTIES:

Serves as a Technical Information Specialist, providing technical information and library services to the entire Region.

-Plans, directs, and executes all information services inclusive of reference, literature searching, and interlibrary loans.

-Performs original and copy cataloging of specialized material to include descriptive and subject classification of material in all media (i.e., monographs, CD-ROMs, discs, video cassettes, maps, drawings, etc.).

-Plans, directs, and executes all facets of the Region's library operations, including an online electronic library, providing a full range of library and information services to specialized engineering, scientific, technical, supervisory, and executive personnel.

-Defines scope of the Regional library collection.

-Oversees circulation system and patron services.

-Keeps abreast of current literature and technologies to develop a comprehensive collection in various formats.

QUALIFICATIONS REQUIRED:

Minimum Education Requirement:

Applicants must meet the Basic Education Qualification Requirements listed below:

A. Degree: A full 4-year course of study that meets all the requirements for a bachelor's degree with major study in the subject-matter field of the position to be filled; or, B. Experience: Four years of experience that provided a knowledge of the basic principles, theories, practices, techniques, and terminology of a discipline or subject-matter field; an understanding of the standard methods, procedures, and techniques of research and analysis in the subject-matter field; and where appropriate, ability to read and comprehend nontechnical material in one or more foreign languages. Such experience must have been equivalent to that which would have been gained through a 4-year college curriculum; or C. Combination of education and experience.

Foreign Education: To receive credit for education completed outside the United States, applicants 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.

In addition to meeting Basic Education, applicants must have specialized experience or additional education as defined below:

GS-11: One year of specialized experience equivalent in difficulty and complexity to at least the GS-09 level in the Federal service) OR three years of progressively higher level graduate education leading to a Ph.D. degree OR Ph.D. in a field related to the position.

Definition of Specialized Experience: To meet specialized experience, your resume must describe experience that demonstrates the particular knowledge, skills, and abilities as follows:

GS-11:Experience developing, coordinating, processing, and transmitting specialized information (i.e. scientific, engineering); analyzing and organizing specialized information or materials; determining or assigning indexing terms, indexing; preparing bibliographies, digests and reports; searching subject-oriented literature and databases, or cataloging specialized materials.

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.

Applicants must meet all qualification, and as applicable, selective factor requirements, by the closing date of this announcement.

HOW YOU WILL BE EVALUATED:

Human Resources (HR) will review resumes and transcript(s) to ensure applicants meet the basic qualification requirements. We will evaluate each applicant who meets the basic qualifications on the information provided in the assessment questionnaire. The assessment questionnaire will take approximately 60 minutes. Applicants determined best-qualified will be referred to the selecting official.

Category rating and selection procedures will be used for evaluating this position. If you meet the basic qualification requirements, your on-line responses to the vacancy assessment questionnaire will be used to determine the quality and extent of your experience, education, training, etc., for placement in one of the following categories: 1) Best Qualified, 2) Well Qualified and 3) Qualified. Veterans with preference will be placed at the top of their respective category.

Best Qualified candidates are those who meet minimum qualifications, are highly proficient in the major requirement(s) of the position, and proficient in most of the remaining aspects of the position. 

Well Qualified candidates are those who meet minimum qualifications and are proficient in most aspects of the position.

Qualified candidates are those who meet minimum qualifications and possess only a few aspects of the position.

Applicants will be further evaluated on the following Knowledge, Skills and Abilities (KSAs) through their resume and responses to the online questions.

- Knowledge of library science principles, concepts and methodologies, covering the full spectrum of traditional technical services functions and standard library practices to perform selecting, locating, classifying, cataloging, acquisition, referencing services.

-Familiarity with scientific and technical disciplines (i.e. engineering, hydrology) to understand the significance and relationships of the concepts and ideas within the technical information. 

-Knowledge of automated processing equipment, communication networks, CD-ROM, online databases, bibliographic utilities (e.g. OCLC), and the application of automation technologies to libraries to serve as consultant to patrons, and other technical information specialists and to provide information resources for access, dissemination and preservation.

-Knowledge of a wide variety of information resources both published and unpublished in all types of media (print and non-print) including content structure and access protocols of databases; and the ability to use many types of acquisition and reference tools, including automated systems, various software, and the Internet, to provide comprehensive and efficient research services.

-Knowledge of cataloging rules (AACR2 and LC) and substantial familiarity with scientific publications in water resources management, hydrology, engineering, and environmental and natural resources to establish and apply sufficient entries; modify, extend or deviate from standard procedures where rules are vague, such as for items in transition (e.g. optical disk). 

Applicants must make a fair and accurate assessment of their qualifications. Applicants rating themselves higher than is apparent in their description of experience, competencies, skills, and/or education/training OR whose resume/application is incomplete may be removed from employment consideration. 

To preview questions please click here.

HOW TO APPLY:

Applications (resume and assessment questionnaire) for this vacancy MUST be received online BEFORE midnight Eastern Time (Washington D.C. time) on the closing date of this announcement. When you're ready to apply, click the blue APPLY ONLINE button at the side of any page.

This vacancy is being announced through the Bureau of Reclamation's Hiring System--HireMe. For more information about the HireMe system and the registration process, visit: http://www.usbr.gov/pmts/hr/hireme.html

As part of the on-line application process, applicants may be required to submit supporting documents. Failure to submit the requested supporting documents may result in your not being considered for this position.

Options for submitting supporting documentation include Auto Requested Fax or uploading from a USAJOBS profile (instructions are provided during the online application process.) In addition, applicants may e-mail their supporting documentation to mpjobs@usbr.gov, fax directly to the HR Office at 916-978-5563, or mail or hand-deliver to USBR/ATTN: HR, 2800 Cottage Way, Sacramento, CA 95825. Include your name and the vacancy number on the supporting document(s).

Applicants needing assistance in applying online should contact the HR Office at 916-978-5476 or Federal Relay at http://www.federalrelay.us/. The Federal Relay website contains information for TDD/TTY users to receive free needed service. If applying online poses a hardship, contact the HR Office prior to the closing date of the announcement for an alternative method of applying.

This agency provides reasonable accommodation to applicants with disabilities. If you need a reasonable accommodation for any part of the application and hiring process, please notify us at the phone number shown at the bottom of this page. The decision on granting reasonable accommodation will be on a case-by-case basis.

REQUIRED DOCUMENTS:

To be considered for this position, applicants are required to submit a resume (with dates of employment, i.e. years and months), an on-line assessment questionnaire, and the following supporting documents, as appropriate:

Transcript(s): All applicants must furnish a copy of their college transcript(s), if applicable. If selected, you will be required to provide official college transcripts to verify your educational qualifications prior to reporting for work.

DD-214, Certificate of Release from Active Duty: If you are entitled to veterans' preference, you must provide a copy of your DD-214, and you should indicate the type of veterans' preference you are claiming on your resume. Your veterans' preference entitlement will be verified by the employing agency.

-For 5-point veterans' preference, submit a copy of your DD-214 (Member 4 Copy), or an official statement of service from your command if you are currently on active duty, or other official documentation (e.g., documentation of receipt of a campaign badge or expeditionary medal) that proves your military service was performed under honorable conditions.

-For 10-point veterans' preference, please submit a Standard Form (SF) 15, Application for 10-Point Veteran Preference, DD-214, and the required documentation requested by this form.

For information on veteran's eligibility visit: http://www.fedshirevets.gov/hire/hrp/vetguide/index.aspx

CTAP/ICTAP provides placement assistance to permanent Federal employees who are surplus, displaced or involuntarily separated. Applicants claiming CTAP/ICTAP eligibility must submit a copy of their most recent performance appraisal, proof of eligibility and most current SF-50 noting position, grade level, and duty location with their application. To be considered under CTAP/ICTAP, applicants must be well-qualified, i.e. meet the minimum qualification requirements, including selective factors, education and experience requirements and score at least 90 on the assessment questionnaire as established, and be able to perform the duties of the position upon entry. For information on CTAP/ICTAP, visit: http://www.opm.gov/ctap/index.asp

AGENCY CONTACT INFO:

Human Resources Office

Phone: 916-978-5476

Fax: 916-978-5563

TDD: www.federalrelay.us/

Email: mpjobs@usbr.gov

Agency Information:

BUREAU OF RECLAMATION

2800 Cottage Way

Attn: MP-500

Sacramento, CA

95825-1898

US

Fax: 916-978-5563

WHAT TO EXPECT NEXT:

After all application packages have been received, resumes and transcripts will be reviewed to ensure applicants meet the basic qualification requirements. Each applicant who meets the basic qualifications will be further evaluated on the information provided in the Assessment Questionnaire. Best-qualified applicants will be referred to the selecting official. After making a tentative job offer, a suitability and/or security background investigation will be conducted. A final job offer is typically made within 40 days after the deadline for applications. Applicants should monitor their status for positions with the Bureau of Reclamation by regularly checking their public status notifications in their USAJOBS profile.