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Biological Scientist

Department of Agriculture

Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service

Summary

The incumbent serves as a Biological Scientist in the Center for Veterinary Biologics (CVB), Policy, Evaluation, and Licensing (PEL). The incumbent has responsibility for testing and evaluating proposed and licensed biologics for agents assigned by the Section Chief that are intended for prevention, treatment, or diagnosis of animal disease.

Duties

  • The duties described are for the full-performance level. At developmental grade levels, assignments will be of more limited scope, performed with less independence and limited complexity. The duties may include, but are not limited to:
  • Testing and evaluating the potency, safety, purity, and efficacy of products.
  • Evaluating research, developmental, and field data produced by firms while seeking licensure of veterinary biologic products.
  • Proposing and developing standardized assay methods and initiating collaborative studies to implement those standardized assays for the biologics community.
  • Preparing and evaluating references and reagents to support the Section and to supply as references and reagents to the biologics and scientific communities.
  • Designs, develops, and evaluates new procedures and techniques to enhance the evaluation of current products or to test emerging conventional and biotechnology based veterinary biologics.
  • Presents the results of work in written, poster, and oral forms in a variety of scientific and regulatory contexts, including scientific journals, and scientific and public meetings.

Requirements

Conditions of employment

  • You must be a US Citizen or US National.
  • Individuals who were born male after 12/31/1959 must be Selective Service registered or exempt.
  • Subject to satisfactory adjudication of background investigation and/or fingerprint check.
  • Successful completion of one-year probationary period, unless previously served. Refer to the Next Steps section for more information.
  • 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/
  • Testing Designated Position: Selectee must submit to a urinalysis to screen for illegal drug use prior to appointment and random testing thereafter. Final appointment and continued employment is conditional on negative results for illegal drug use.
  • All USDA employees are required to be enrolled in Continuous Vetting, which authorizes government agencies to receive notifications of criminal activity on individuals who hold low risk, public trust, or national security positions.
  • There is exposure not only to highly distressed animals, but also to the diseases they carry, or those viral/bacterial agents in the laboratory while assaying biological products.
  • Vaccination, when appropriate, against the incumbent's assigned agents is required.
  • The incumbent is also required to practice appropriate safety procedures and to use special animal restraints and personal protective gear (rubber boots, medical long coats, coveralls, rubber gloves, biological masks, and related equipment).

Qualifications

Applicants must meet all qualifications and eligibility requirements by the closing date of the announcement, including specialized experience and/or education, as defined below.
BASIC REQUIREMENT:

A degree in biological sciences, agriculture, natural resource management, chemistry, or related disciplines appropriate to the position.

OR

Combination of education and experience: post high school education with courses equivalent to a major, which is defined as 24 semester/36 quarter hours, in the biological sciences, agriculture, natural resources management, chemistry or related disciplines appropriate to the position, PLUS appropriate experience or additional course work.

In addition to meeting the basic requirement, applicants must demonstrate the below:

FOR THE GS-11 LEVEL: Applicants must have one year of specialized experience (equivalent to the GS-09 level) that may have been obtained in the private or public (local, county, state, Federal) sectors which demonstrates:

  • Performing microbiology techniques such as fermentation, anaerobic and aerobic culture, aseptic technique, microbial cell count, gram stain, light and fluorescent microscopy, or viral techniques (neutralization, detection and propagation).
  • Performing DNA/RNA extraction, DNA isolation, electrophoresis, real time PCR, conventional PCR, plasmid isolation and characterization, Sanger sequencing or next Generation sequencing.
  • Conducting accurate record keeping, statistically summarizing data, evaluating the validity of samples; interpreting results and reporting findings.

OR 3 years of progressively higher-level graduate education leading to a Ph.D. or equivalent doctoral degree in biological sciences, agriculture, natural resource management, chemistry, or related disciplines.

Equivalent combinations of education and experience are qualifying for this grade level.

TRANSCRIPTS are required if:

  • This position requires specific coursework or a degree in a specific field to be basically qualified.
  • You are qualifying for the position based on education.
  • You are qualifying for this position based on a combination of experience and education.
  • This education must have been successfully completed and obtained from an accredited school, college, or university.

COMBINATION OF EDUCATION & EXPERIENCE AT THE GS-11 GRADE LEVEL: Applicants may have combinations of successfully completed education and specialized experience to meet total qualification requirements. The total percentages must equal at least 100 percent to qualify for that grade level.

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.