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:

• 
  
• Performs and interprets various molecular tests to determine the
  identification of acid-fast bacteria to the species and subspecies
  level.
• 
  
• Performs and interprets tests to isolate acid-fast bacteria from
  inoculated culture media.
• 
  
• Examines specimens and initiates processing for the recovery of
  Mycobacteria and Brucella from diagnostic specimens.
• 
  
• Keeps records and maintains equipment, supplies, and reagents in
  congruence for Quality Assurance (QA) and Quality Control (QC).
• 
  
• Organizes, performs, and evaluates a full range of procedures
  according to current versions of QA documents.
• 
  
• Writes, reviews, and/or updates Standard Operating Procedures,
  protocols, or other QA documents.
• 
  
• Maintains chemical and hazardous materials inventories in
  accordance with current USDA-APHIS, HHS-CDC or other government
  agency regulations.
• 
  
• Maintains and provides reference strains of Mycobacteria and
  other biological materials or reagents to outside laboratories.
• 
  
• Safely disposes of waste materials (both chemical and
  biological), and maintains safe laboratory practices within the
  biohazard laboratory.
• 
  
• Performs quality assurance testing on new lots of media,
  reagents, and chemicals, and maintains sufficient quantities of
  supplies, glassware, media, reagents and chemicals for use in
  testing.
• 
  
• Assists with developmental projects and special activities
  designed to improve diagnostic capabilities.
• 
  
• Assists microbiologist/supervisor with training sessions by
  preparing laboratory materials for demonstration purposes.

To qualify, you MUST meet all qualification requirements by the

closing date of the announcement.



SPECIALIZED EXPERIENCE AT THE GS-5/6/7 GRADE LEVELS:

Applicants must have one year of specialized experience equivalent

in level of difficulty and responsibility to the next lower level in

the Federal service.  This experience is typically in or related to

the work of the position being filled.



OR

SUBSTITUTION OF EDUCATION FOR EXPERIENCE AT THE GS-5 GRADE

 LEVEL:  Successful completion of a full 4-year course of study

leading to a bachelor's degree with major study, or at least 24

semester hours, in any combination of scientific or technical

courses such as biology, chemistry, statistics, entomology, animal

husbandry, botany, physics, agriculture, or mathematics, with at

least 6 semester hours in microbiology, biology or chemistry.  The

successful completion of a full course of study of at least 12

months in a school for clinical laboratory technicians may be

substituted for the 1 year of specialized experience required.

Education must be obtained from an accredited college or

university.  Transcripts required if qualifying based on this

provision.



OR

SUBSTITUTION OF EDUCATION FOR EXPERIENCE AT THE GS-6 GRADE

 LEVEL:  Successful completion of 9 semester hours of graduate

level education in microbiology, biology or chemistry.  Education

must be obtained from an accredited college or university.

Transcripts required if qualifying based on this provision.



OR

SUBSTITUTION OF EDUCATION FOR EXPERIENCE AT THE GS-7 GRADE

 LEVEL:  Successful completion of 18 semester hours of graduate

level education in microbiology, biology or chemistry.  Education

must be obtained from an accredited college or university.

Transcripts required if qualifying based on this provision.



OR

COMBINATION OF EDUCATION AND EXPERIENCE AT THE GS-5/6/7 GRADE

 LEVELS:

Equivalent combinations of successfully completed post high school

or graduate level education and specialized experience may be used

to meet the total qualification requirements.  The total percentage

must equal at least 100 percent to qualify.  Transcripts required if

qualifying based on this provision.



***If you are found qualified for this position, you will ONLY be

considered at the grade level(s) for which you apply***

Special Conditions:

• 
  
• As a condition of employment, a background investigation may be
  required for this position.
• 
  
• Subject to satisfactory completion of one year probationary
  period.
• 
  
• We understand that accepting a position with Veterinary Services
  may require the need for spousal career placement assistance.  To
  help you and your family make a successful career transition,
  Veterinary Services is dedicated to providing information on career
  placement assistance.  Please visit the following web links for more
  information:
  http://www.job-hunt.org/jobs/states.shtml
  http://www.job-hunt.org/state_unemployment_offices.shtml
• 
  
• This position is subject to unscheduled overnight details of
  undetermined lengths in the event of animal health emergencies or
  other conditions requiring immediate response, as required by the
  Agency.  (Extensive periods of time may be designated for overnight
  details.)
• 
  
• The health status of all personnel is monitored routinely with
  biologic and serologic tests and physical examinations.

An automated scoring system will be used to initially rank

applicants based on their answers to the vacancy specific

questions.  Your self-determined rating, narrative responses, and

resume will then be reviewed.  The final rating will be determined

based on all the information provided in the application package.

Please ensure your resume and narrative responses provide enough

detail to support your answers to the vacancy specific questions.

BENEFITS:
Eligibility for employee benefits depends on your type of appointment and your tour of duty (work schedule). Generally, you must be hired on a permanent basis and have a regular full or part- time work schedule. Some of the benefits for which you may be entitled are: Federal Employees Retirement System Thrift Savings Plan Federal Employees Health Benefits Federal Employees Dental and Vision Insurance Program Federal Employees Group Life Insurance Flexible Spending Accounts Federal Long Term Care Insurance For more information on these and many other benefits, go to: Federal Employee Benefits Salary: Range for GS-5: $30,772 to $40,005 (incl. 13.86% locality pay) Range for GS-6: $34,300 to $44,589 (incl. 13.86% locality pay) Range for GS-7: $38,117 to $49,553 (incl. 13.86% locality pay)
OTHER INFORMATION:	Top
For information regarding CTAP eligibility for applicants who are displaced Federal employees click on the link below: Career Transition Assistance Programs More than one selection may be made if another vacancy occurs within 90 days of the issuance of the certification of eligibles. Persons with disabilities who require alternative means for communication of program information (Braille, large print, audiotape, etc) should contact: USDA's TARGET Center at 202-720- 2600 (voice and TDD).                                 HOW TO APPLY: A complete on-line application will require the submission of the following: Resume and Core Federal Questions (See How You Will Be Evaluated found under the Qualifications and Evaluations tab for more information) Responses to the vacancy specific questions and/or Knowledge, Skill, and Ability (KSA) questions Supporting Documentation which may be required (See links under Required Documents for more information) College Transcripts or List of Coursework - MUST be in English (Key Requirement and/or Education Substitution) DD-214 and other Veterans' documents (Veterans Preference) ICTAP/CTAP eligibility documentation (Displaced Employees) For instructions on using the on-line system click: APPLYING ON-LINE For information on how to submit your supporting documentation through our automated hiring system and/or print additional fax cover sheets click: SUPPORTING DOCUMENTATION REQUIRED DOCUMENTS: Top  Click on the following links to see if the supporting documentation is applicable to you: Do I need to submit college transcripts? I attended school at a foreign university. Do I need to submit any additional documents? I am applying for Veterans' Preference. What documents do I need to submit? I am a displaced or surplus Federal employee. What documents do I need to submit? Critical Submission Requirements and Reminders Help in applying online is available Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Central Time at the number listed in the Contact information section. All application materials and supplemental documentation will be accepted until midnight Eastern Time on the closing date. Application and supporting documentation will not be accepted via e-mail. Fax only documents which are clear and legible.  Illegible faxed documents cannot be used for qualification or verification purposes. Due to the high volume of applicants, we are unable to confirm receipt of faxed supporting documentation. You should retain confirmation of a successful fax transmission including the number of pages successfully transmitted as proof of submission. If a document is resubmitted, it replaces the previous submission, which means the previous document is no longer available to the human resources office.  If you are adding to, rather than replacing a previous submission, you must fax both the old document and the new document. If you are using the system generated fax cover sheet, please fax to the number listed on the fax cover sheet. Please be sure to click both [Finished] buttons when completing an on-line application. Our online application system is 100% compatible with Internet Explorer (IE) versions 5.0 and above. Applicants who cannot apply on-line must request a hard copy application packet from the Agency Contact listed in the vacancy announcement. Resumes and/or supporting documentation alone will not be considered without the inclusion of a hard copy application packet.