Economist

Summary

This position is located on the State Programs Team, in the State Office of the Natural Resources Conservation Service.

The incumbent provides advice and assistance on economic issues associated with conservation programs administered by the Staff.

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Duties

• Conducts management-defined analyses of economic issues associated with ecological and conservation policies, synthesizes data and information, and provides advice and recommendations on resource problems to management and conservation districts.
• Provides analytical support for regulatory and policy actions, changes in programs, and specific conservation projects, including contributing work on impact assessments and cost/benefit analyses
• Assists in efforts to develop methods and tools to estimate the economic benefits of conservation programs and specific projects.
• Supports projects led by senior staff requiring cross-team interaction within the organization.
  
  

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Requirements

Conditions of Employment

• You must be a US Citizen or US National.
• Males born after 12/31/1959 must be Selective Service registered or exempt.
• Subject to satisfactory adjudication of background investigation and/or fingerprint check. If selected you will be sent instructions on obtaining fingerprints. Please note we are not able to reimburse any fees incurred for fingerprints.
• Successful completion of one-year probationary period, unless previously served.
• Direct Deposit: Per Public Law 104-134 all Federal employees are required to have federal payments made by direct deposit to their financial institution.
• Successfully pass the E-Verify employment verification check. To learn more about E-Verify, including your rights and responsibilities, visit E-Verify at https://www.e-verify.gov/.
  
  

Qualifications

Applicants must meet all qualifications and eligibility requirements by the closing date of the announcement.

BASIC REQUIREMENTS: Must have a bachelor's degree (or higher degree) in economics that included at least 21 semester hours in economics and 3 semester hours in statistics, accounting, or calculus. (Note: You must attach a copy of your transcripts.)

OR

Must have a combination of education and experience which includes courses equivalent to a major in economics, as shown in A above, plus appropriate experience or additional education. (Note: You must attach a copy of your transcripts.)

In Addition To Meeting One Of The Basic Requirements Listed Above, Applicants Must Meet The Following Minimum Qualifications Requirement In Order To Be Considered:

MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS: To be considered minimally qualified for this position, you must demonstrate that you have the required specialized experience and/or education for the respective grade level(s) in which you are applying:

GS-7

Specialized Experience: Must have at least one year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the GS-05 grade level in the Federal service performing the following duties:

• Planning, scheduling, and collecting economic data from various companies and personnel;
• Writing up collected data into software for review and transmittal; AND
• Assisting higher graded economists in conducting economic feasibility studies.
  
  

(Your resume must fully support the required specialized experience.)

OR

Education: Must have successfully completed one full academic year of graduate level education in a field which demonstrates the knowledge, skills, and abilities necessary to do the work of the position, such as economics (Note: You must attach a copy of your transcripts.)

OR

Superior Academic Achievement (SAA): SAA at the baccalaureate level is fully qualifying for the GS-07 grade level. To qualify for SAA, you must have completed all requirements for a bachelor's degree in a field that provided the knowledge, skills, and abilities necessary to do the work, such as economics and meet ONE of the following:

• A grade point average of "B" (a GPA of 3.0 or higher out of a possible 4.0) for all completed undergraduate courses, or those completed in the last two years of undergraduate study.
• A grade point average of "B+" (a GPA of 3.5 or higher out of a possible 4.0) for all courses in your major field of study, or those courses in your major completed in the last two years of undergraduate study. *Grade point averages are to be rounded to one decimal place. For example, 2.95 will round to 3.0 and 2.94 will round to 2.9.
• Rank in the upper one-third of your class in the college, university, or major subdivision, such as the College of Liberal Arts or the School of Business Administration, based on completed courses.
• Membership in a national scholastic honor society (other than freshman honor societies) recognized by the Association of College Honor Societies. **If more than 10 percent of your courses were taken on a pass/fail basis, your claim must be based on class standing or membership in an honorary society.
  
  

(NOTE: You must attach a copy of your transcripts and/or verification of class standing for further verification.)

OR

Combination of Experience and Education: Must have computed the percentage of the requirements that meet, and the total is at least 100% (To compute the percentage, divide your total months of qualifying experience by 12. Then, divide your semester hours of graduate education by 18. Add the two percentages. The total percentage must equal at least 100 percent to qualify.). (Note: You must attach a copy of your transcripts.)

GS-9:

Specialized Experience: Must have at least one year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the GS-07 grade level in the Federal service performing the following duties:

• Preparing preliminary reports based on analysis of economic data;
• Making follow up contact for necessary clarifications to ensure accuracy of data provided; AND
• Assisting higher graded economists in conducting economic feasibility studies of management and conservation district projects.
  
  

(Your resume must fully support the required specialized experience.)

OR

Education: Must have successfully completed a master's or equivalent graduate degree or 2 full years of progressively higher-level graduate education leading to a degree in economics (Note: You must attach a copy of your transcripts.)

OR

Combination of Experience and Education: Must have computed the percentage of the requirements that I meet, and the total is at least 100% (To compute the percentage, divide your total months of qualifying experience by 12. Then, divide your semester hours of graduate education beyond the first year (total graduate semester hours minus 18) by 18. Add the two percentages. The total percentage must equal at least 100 percent to qualify.). (Note: You must attach a copy of your transcripts.)

GS-11

Specialized Experience: Must possess at least one year of specialized experience (equivalent to or above the GS-09 level) that may have been obtained in the private or public (local, county, state, Federal) sectors which demonstrates all of the following:

• Conducting analyses of economic issues associated with ecological and conservation policies;
• Conducting quantitative analysis and application of statistical principles; and
• Assisting in the development of methods and tools to estimate the economic benefits of conservation programs.
  
  

(Your resume must fully support the required specialized experience.)

OR

Education: Must have successfully completed a PhD in economics, or three full years (54 semester hours) of progressively higher graduate education leading to a PhD in economics. (Note: You must attach a copy of your transcripts.)

OR

Combination of Experience and Education: Must possess an appropriate combination of specialized experience and education. Note: your combination may be computed by first determining your total qualifying experience as a percentage of the experience required for this grade level; then determining your education as a percentage of the education required for this grade level (only graduate education in excess of 36 semester hours may be used to qualify applicants for this grade level). The total percentages must equal at least 100 percent. (Note: You must attach a copy of your transcripts.)

IN DESCRIBING YOUR EXPERIENCE, PLEASE BE CLEAR AND SPECIFIC. WE MAY NOT MAKE ASSUMPTIONS REGARDING YOUR EXPERIENCE. If your resume does not support your questionnaire answers, we will not allow credit for your response(s).

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 and can provide valuable training and experience that translates directly to paid employment. You will receive credit for all qualifying experience, including volunteer experience.

The OPM Qualification Standards for this position can be found at: https://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/classification-qualifications/general-schedule-qualification-standards/#url=List-by-Occupational-Series

Education

You must submit a copy of your college transcripts or a list of college courses with credit hours, dates completed, and grades received to verify all education requirements (i.e. substitution of education and/or basic education requirement). If a relevant course is not clearly qualifying (e.g. special topic, seminar, research, thesis, obscure or misleading course title, etc.), please submit an official course syllabi and/or detailed course description from the university/college for that particular course to ensure you are properly evaluated. Please note that qualifications determinations are based solely on the information submitted for each particular vacancy announcement. You must document all requirements on every vacancy; we cannot use previous determinations as a basis for rating. All required information must be received by the closing date of this announcement, and non-submission of all required documents/documentation will result in non-consideration. Unofficial transcripts will be accepted. This information must be received by the closing date of this announcement. Non-submission of these documents will result in non-consideration. Education must be accredited by an accrediting institution recognized by the U.S. Department of Education in order for it to be credited towards qualifications.

Foreign Education: If you are using education completed in foreign colleges or universities to meet the qualification requirements, you must show that the education credentials have been evaluated by a private organization that specializes in interpretation of foreign education programs and such education has been deemed equivalent to that gained in an accredited U.S. education program; or full credit has been given for the courses at a U.S. accredited college or university. For further information, visit: Recognition of Foreign Qualifications | International Affairs Office (ed.gov)

Additional information

This position may be eligible for telework within the local commuting area of the position and other flexible work arrangements. Other flexibilities are possible dependent upon availability and/or the position and its associated duties. Employee participation is at the discretion of the supervisor.

PLEASE NOTE: In the interest of filling these positions as efficiently as possible, we are requiring the following:

• If called for an interview, applicants must be available to interview within 3 business days of being contacted.
• If a tentative job offer is extended, selectee will have 2 business days in which to accept or decline.
• Recruitment and/or relocation incentives may be authorized; Management may authorize superior qualifications & enhanced annual leave for applicants who are deemed to be highly qualified.
• Relocation expenses may be authorized as allowable by Federal Travel Regulations (FTR) and USDA policy.
  
  

The Interagency Career Transition Assistance Plan (ICTAP) provides eligible displaced Federal competitive service employees with selection priority over other candidates for competitive service vacancies. If your agency has notified you in writing that you are a displaced employee eligible for ICTAP consideration, you may receive selection priority if: 1) this vacancy is within your ICTAP eligibility; 2) you apply under the instructions in this announcement; and 3) you are found well-qualified for this vacancy. To be well qualified, you must satisfy all qualification requirements for the vacant position and rate equivalent to the Highly Qualified or better category using established category rating criteria. You must provide proof of eligibility with your application. Such proof may include a copy of your written notification of ICTAP eligibility or a copy of your separation personnel action form. Additional information about ICTAP eligibility is at: http://www.opm.gov/rif/employee_guides/career_transition.asp#ictap

The Career Transition Assistance Plan (CTAP) provides eligible surplus and displaced competitive service employees in the USDA with selection priority over other candidates for competitive service vacancies. If your Agency has notified you in writing that you are a surplus or displaced employee eligible for CTAP consideration, you may receive selection priority if: 1) this vacancy is within your CTAP eligibility, 2) you apply under the instructions in this announcement, and 3) you are found well-qualified for this vacancy. To be well qualified, you must satisfy all qualification requirements for the vacant position and rate equivalent to the Highly Qualified or better category using established category rating criteria. You must provide a copy of your written notification of CTAP eligibility with your application. Additional information about CTAP eligibility is at: http://www.opm.gov/rif/employee_guides/career_transition.asp#ctap

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• Help A career with the U.S. government provides employees with a comprehensive benefits package. As a federal employee, you and your family will have access to a range of benefits that are designed to make your federal career very rewarding. Opens in a new windowLearn more about federal benefits.
  
  

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Eligibility for benefits depends on the type of position you hold and whether your position is full-time, part-time or intermittent. Contact the hiring agency for more information on the specific benefits offered.

Natural Resources Conservation Service

1400 Independence Ave SW

Washington, DC 20250

US