Job: Biological Science laboratory Technician(Plants)

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Job Title:Biological Science Laboratory Technician (Plants)

Department:Department Of Agriculture

Agency:Agricultural Research Service

Job Announcement Number:ARS-D11E-0153A

SALARY RANGE:
$34,075.00 to $54,875.00 / Per Year

OPEN PERIOD:
Friday, October 07, 2011 to Monday, October 24, 2011

SERIES & GRADE:
GS-0404-05/07

POSITION INFORMATION:
Full Time - Term NTE 2 years

PROMOTION POTENTIAL:
07

DUTY LOCATIONS:
1 vacancy(s) - Beltsville, MD United StatesView Map

WHO MAY BE CONSIDERED:
Applications will be excepted from U.S. citizens.

JOB SUMMARY:

Find Solutions to Agricultural Problems that Affect Americans Every Day, From Field to Table

**PLEASE NOTE: THIS VACANCY ANNOUNCEMENT HAS BEEN AMENDED TO EXTEND THE CLOSING DATE TO 10/24/2011.**

This position may be extended for up to a total of 4 years without further competition.

Seeking a Biological Science Laboratory Technician (Plants) to provide technical support for a research project related to the genomics of strawberries.

KEY REQUIREMENTS

* You must be a U.S. Citizen to apply for this position

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DUTIES:
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Major Duties:

This a term position located in the Genetic Improvement of Fruits and Vegetables Laboratory in Beltsville, Maryland. The incumbent will assist with growing and performing experiments with strawberry plants in the greenhouse and growth chambers, obtaining transformed plants, transfer and maintenance of tissue cultures, and extracting and analyzing nucleic acids. This work will involve analyzing gene expression in response to abiotic stress, as well as analyzing morphological, physiolgical and biochemical traits of transformants and mutants.

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QUALIFICATIONS REQUIRED:
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Your education and experience will be evaluated against all qualification requirements (basic and any additional requirements) listed below.

Basic Requirements:

If qualifying all or in part based on your education, you must submit a copy of your academic transcripts OR a list of college courses with credit hours, dates completed, and grade point average or class ranking to verify education when applying for this position. If this information is not provided, your education may not be appropriately evaluated and you may lose consideration for this position. If you are selected for this position, you will have to provide an official copy of your transcripts prior to entering on duty.

GS-05: Applicants must have one year of specialized experience equivalent to the GS-04 in the Federal service OR 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 courses such as: biology, chemistry, statistics, entomology, animal husbandry, botany, physics, agriculture or mathematics. At least six semester hours must have been directly related to the position to be filled. 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 biochemistry technician work (A COPYOF COLLEGE TRANSCRIPTS IS REQUIRED).

GS 06: Applicants must have one year of specialized experience equivalent to the GS-05 in grade level in the Federal service OR nine (9) semester hours of directly related graduate level education. (A COPY OF COLLEGE TRANSCRIPTS IS REQUIRED)

GS-07: Applicants must have one year of specialized experience equivalent to GS-06 grade level in the Federal service OR eighteen (18) semester hours of directly related graduate level education. (A COPY OF COLLEGE TRANSCRIPTS IS REQUIRED)

Additional Requirements:

Specialized Experience is experience directly related to the position to be filled. The specialized experience requirements for this position are:

1. Knowledge of the principles of biological science, botany, biochemistry, and genetics.

2. Knowledge and experience with the culture of bacteria and plant tissue.

3. Skill in isolating and analyzing nucleic acids (both RNA and DNA) using gel electrophoresis, PCR, and/or nucleic acid hybridization for analysis of gene expression.

4. Ability to use software programs, including Microsoft Word, Power Point, Excel, Adobe, Photoshop, and Endnote, as well as online molecular biology programs.

Applicants must address the specialized experience requirements in their resume (or application documents). Applications that do not reflect the specialized experience requirements will not be deemed qualified.

Graduate education must be directly related to the work of the position and must have equipped you with the knowledge, skills, and abilities necessary to do the work.

Education completed in foreign colleges or universities may be used to meet the above requirements if you can show that the foreign education is comparable to that received in an accredited educational institution in the United States. It is your responsibility to provide such evidence when applying. Please visit the Office of Personnel Management's website for additional information on this topic.

Qualification requirements must be met by the closing date of this vacancy announcement.

Applicants must be available to report for duty at the time a selection is made. Selections are typically made within 30 days of the closing date of the announcement.

HOW YOU WILL BE EVALUATED:

You will be evaluated to determine if you meet the basic and any additional requirements. The Agricultural Research Service uses a category rating process. Based on evaluation of all written materials submitted in your application for the position, you will be determined to be Ineligible if you do not meet eligibility and/or minimum qualifications criteria; Eligible if you meet all eligibility and minimum qualifications criteria; OR Quality if you meet quality criteria in addition to eligibility and minimum qualifications criteria.

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BENEFITS:
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The Federal government offers a number of exceptional benefits to its employees. The following link provides an overview of the benefits currently offered to Federal employees: http://www.usajobs.gov/EI/benefits.asp#icc.

OTHER INFORMATION:

Applications for this vacancy will be accepted from U.S. Citizens and candidates eligible under special hiring authorities. On the assessment questionnaire, you will be required to indicate how you are applying for this position and will only be considered under the options you select. You must meet certain requirements in order to apply under non-competitive procedures. For details, click here.

Displaced/Surplus Employees: Individuals eligible under the USDA Career Transition Assistance Program (CTAP) or the Interagency Career Transition Assistance Program (ICTAP) must be well qualified for the position to receive consideration for special priority selection. CTAP and ICTAP eligibles within the local commuting area will be considered well qualified if they meet the qualification standard and eligibility requirements for the position, meet minimum education and experience requirements, meet all selective factors where applicable and are able to satisfactorily perform the duties of the position upon entry. Employees seeking CTAP/ICTAP eligibility must submit a copy of the agency notice, a copy of their most recent performance rating and a copy of their most recent SF-50 noting current position, grade level and duty location. Please indicate annotate your application to reflect that you are applying as a CTAP or ICTAP eligible. Click here for additional information on CTAP and ICTAP.

If you are a veteran with preference eligibility and you are claiming 5-point veterans' preference, you must submit member 4 copy of your DD-214 or other proof of eligibility. If you are claiming 10-point veterans' preference, you must submit an SF-15, Application for 10-Point Veterans' Preference plus the proof required by that form.

If you are a male applicant born after 12/31/59 and are required to register under the Military Selective Service Act, the Defense Authorization Act of 1986 requires that you be registered or you are not eligible for appointment in this agency.

All qualification requirements must be met by the closing date of this announcement. Additional information on the qualification requirements is outlined in the OPM Qualifications Standards Handbook of General Schedule Positions.

Relocation Expenses: Payment of relocation expenses will be determined in accordance with P&P 412.5, Recruitment and Retention Incentives and Other Special Pay, Sections 6 and 7, as amended by Bulletins 03-402 and 05-412.5. Click here for additional information.

Financial Disclosure Requirement: Federal employees are subject to prohibitions against officially dealing with outside organizations in which they have a financial interest. If hired for this position, you may/will be required to submit a financial disclosure report within 30 days of the effective date of your appointment and annually thereafter.

ARS Reasonable Accommodation Contact Information: If you need a reasonable accommodation for any part of the application and hiring process, or have questions regarding reasonable accommodation and/or accessibility for any part of the application and hiring process, please contact the Disability Program Manager on 202-720-6161 or through the DC Relay Service on 202-855-1234 (TDD).

False Statements: If you make a false statement in any part of your application, you may not be hired; may be fired after beginning work; or may be fined or jailed.

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HOW TO APPLY:
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Your application package must be complete by 11:59 p.m. (EST) on Monday, October 24, 2011. You must apply online or by fax (see below for details). Applications sent by mail (including e-mail) or hand-delivered will notbe accepted.

Choose eitherOption A or Option B to apply for this position:

Option A: Online Application

Click the Apply Online button to create an account or log in to your existing USAJOBS account. From USAJOBS, you will be routed to Application Manager. Follow the prompts to complete the occupational questionnaire and upload (or reuse) supporting documents. You must click the Submit My Answers button at the end of the process.

If you need technical assistance with the online application process, please send an e-mail to ApplicationManagerHelpDesk@opm.gov.

Note: To return to a previously saved or incomplete application, use the following link: https://applicationmanager.gov/. Track your progress to a Complete Application Package using the My Application Packages checklist and status displays in Application Manager.

To fax supporting documents that you are unable to upload:
1. Click here to print a fax cover page.
2. Complete all blocks on the cover page using Vacancy ID 536691. Documents will not be processed if information is missing.
3. Fax the completed cover page and your documents to 1-478-757-3144.

Option B: Fax

If you cannot apply online, follow these steps to fax your complete application package.

1. Click the following link to print the occupational questionnaire View Occupational Questionnaire;
2. Print the 1203FX form, which you will use to provide your responses to the occupational questionnaire; and
3. Fax the completed 1203FX (all 6 pages), your resume, and supporting documents (including those specified in the Required Documents section below) to 1-478-757-3144. The 1203FX will serve as the cover page for your fax transmission and must be placed on top of all other documents.

REQUIRED DOCUMENTS:

The following documents are required:

* Assessment questionnaire (completed online or submitted by fax using the 1203FX)
* Resume
* Supporting Documents (if applicable)
? Transcripts or list of college courses with credit hours, major(s), and grade point average or class ranking (if qualifying based on education, or if the position has a positive education requirement)
? Veterans? documentation (DD-214, SF-15, etc.)
? Documentation providing proof of non-competitive eligibility (see the Other Information section of this announcement for details)
? CTAP/ICTAP documentation

If your application package does not contain all required documents, you may lose consideration for the position.

Please do not include your Social Security Number (SSN) on any of these documents.

AGENCY CONTACT INFO:

Karen Wims
Phone: (301)504-1333
TDD: (202)855-1234
Email: KAREN.WIMS@ARS.USDA.GOV

Agency Information:
Agricultural Research Service
5601 Sunnyside Avenue
Beltsville, MD
20705

WHAT TO EXPECT NEXT:

Once the online questionnaire is received you will receive an acknowledgement email. After a review of your complete application is made you will be notified of your rating and or referral to the hiring official. If further evaluation or interviews are required you will be contacted.

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Go to section of this Job: Overview Duties Qualifications and Evaluations Benefits and Other Info How to ApplyApply Online Print Preview Save JobShare Job

Agency Information:

Agricultural Research Service
5601 Sunnyside Avenue
Beltsville, MD
20705

Questions about this job:

Karen Wims
Phone: (301)504-1333
TDD: (202)855-1234
Email: KAREN.WIMS@ARS.USDA.GOV

Job Announcement Number:

ARS-D11E-0153A

Control Number:

2413003

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