ARCHEOLOGIST

This position is located in the Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS), Iowa. The incumbent serves as a Cultural Resources Specialist and is responsible for guidance and assistance to field personnel and resource technical teams for conservation, protection, and enhancement of cultural resources, including Native American issues, encountered in all NRCS programs and activities. USDA employees: Please refer to the Next Steps section.

Qualifications

In order to qualify, you must meet the eligibility and qualifications requirements as defined below by the closing date of the announcement. For more information on the qualifications for this position, visit the Office of Personnel Management's General Schedule Qualification Standards. Your application and resume must clearly show that you possess the experience requirements. If education is required or being used to qualify, you must submit a copy of your transcripts. Basic Requirement: GS-0193: A. Education 1. Degree: Successful completion of a full 4-year course of study in an accredited college or university leading to a bachelor's or higher degree that included a major field of study that included 3 semester hours each in the following course areas: - History of archeology - Archeology of a major geographical area such as North America or Africa. - Regional archeology, archeological cultures, or sites in a specific part or portion of a major geographical area to acquire or develop a foundation for regional specialization for professional development. - Theory and methods of archeology. Methods include, but are not limited to, typology, classification, sampling, cultural evolution, diffusion, dating, and analytical techniques. - Archeological field school, to provide a basic understanding of theoretical and practical approaches to research design implementation, field preservation techniques, and report preparation by participation in actual field work. AND Six semester hours of related course work in: Geography, Geology, or Cultural Geography;- History, Historiography, or Historical Archeology; Environmental studies;- Scientific writing (nonfiction English composition); and/or- Surveying; AND Archeological field school. 2. Related Curriculum: Degree in anthropology (with emphasis on ethnology, physical anthropology, or scientific linguistics), history, American studies, or a related discipline may be accepted as satisfying in full the educational requirements, provided the curriculum supplied academic course work sufficiently similar to the requirements in A.1 (including archeological field school). OR B. Combination of Education and Experience College-level education or training that provided knowledge equivalent to that described above, plus appropriate technical experience or additional education. OR C. Experience Four years of archeological work experience that demonstrated a thorough knowledge of the fundamental principles and theories of professional archeology. The work experience must have included archeology field experience, which may include that gained in an archeological field school. Field experience should have included a combination of professional experience in archeological survey, excavation, laboratory analysis, and preparation of written materials. Applicants with such field experience should, after additional experience under the direction of a higher-grade archeologist, be able to demonstrate the ability to be a crew chief, directing the work of others at a single location as a part of a larger archeological project. In addition to meeting the basic requirement, you must also possess experience and/or directly related education listed below. Specialized Experience Requirement For the GS-11 grade level: You must have one year of specialized experience equivalent to the GS-9 grade level in federal service or comparable experience not gained through federal service. Specialized experience is defined as: Applying archeological methods of surveying, excavation, documentation, mapping, data collection, research design, analysis, field identification and/or preservation; carrying out field investigations and producing quality assessment reports; and providing technical and administrative support for activities for resources associated with soil, water, plant, and related conservation concerns. OR Education at the GS-11 grade level: Ph.D. or equivalent doctoral degree or 3 full years of progressively higher level graduate education leading to such a degree in a field which demonstrates the knowledge, skills, and abilities necessary to do the work of the position, such as: anthropology (with emphasis on ethnology, physical anthropology, or scientific linguistics), history, American studies, or a related discipline from an accredited college or university. OR Combination of Education and Experience: A combination of education and experience as listed above. For the GS-12 grade level: You must have one year of specialized experience equivalent to the GS-11 grade level in federal service or comparable experience not gained through federal service. Specialized experience is defined as: Applying archeological methods of surveying, excavation, documentation, mapping, data collection, research design, analysis, field identification and/or preservation; providing archeological technical assistance, guidance, and training to field area employees, making recommendations for treatment and preservation of resources; and/or assisting in designing and implementing methods and procedures to address environmental or cultural concerns. Note: There is no education substitution for the GS-12 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. Time-in-Grade Requirement: If you are a current federal employee in the General Schedule (GS) pay plan and applying for a promotion opportunity, you must meet time-in-grade (TIG) requirements of 52 weeks of service at the next lower grade level in the normal line of progression for the position being filled. You must meet this requirement by the closing date of this announcement.