Microbiologist

Summary

This position is located at the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), Agricultural Research Service (ARS), National Bio & Agro-Defense Facility in Manhattan, KS. In this position you will be providing technical and scientific support in the development of veterinary medical countermeasures, analyzing microbiological substances from microorganisms for biological development activities, and maintaining laboratory notebooks and documentation of procedures and findings.

Provide technical and scientific support in the development of veterinary medical countermeasures; analyze microbiological substances from microorganisms for biological development activities; maintain laboratory notebooks and documentation of procedures and findings.

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

Degree: microbiology; or biology, chemistry, or basic medical science that included at least 20 semester hours in microbiology and other subjects related to the study of microorganisms, and 20 semester hours in the physical and mathematical sciences combining coursework in organic chemistry or biochemistry, physics, and college algebra, or their equivalent.

Courses equivalent to a major in microbiology, virology, biology, genetics, biochemistry, chemistry, or basic medical science that included courses as shown above, plus appropriate experience or additional education.

Microbiology or specific area of study such as bacteriology, virology, mycology, algology, protozoology, parasitology, immunology, serology, microbial genetics, soil microbiology; or specific applied fields of microbiology such as clinical and public health microbiology, food technology, production processes, industrial fermentation, pollution, etc. Graduate study in related fields such as experimental pathology, infectious diseases, epidemiology, biochemistry, animal or plant physiology, genetics, plant pathology, and insect disease control may also be pertinent, provided it has direct application to microbiological work.

Microbiology is a broad field of science encompassing a number of scientific disciplines or areas of science, the fields in which this science is applied, and related fields where the work is concerned with or involves microbiology. The scientific disciplines or areas of this science include bacteriology, immunology, serology, algology, mycology, parasitology, protozoology, rickettsiology, tissue culture, virology, and similar disciplines or areas of science.

The applied fields include environmental, food, dairy, soil, industrial, public health, clinical, and agricultural microbiology, and similar areas in which microbiology is applied. Related fields include taxonomy and systematics, plant, animal, or human physiology or pathology, infectious diseases, epidemiology, ecology, and similar areas of science where the work is directly related or applies to microbiology. In interpreting the substantive value of the coursework, credit may be given for courses in related fields, depending on the degree to which the courses are related to microbiological work.

For positions at GS-9 that involve a substantial amount of work in a specific specialized area or applied field of microbiology, at least 6 months of experience must either have been in the appropriate area of specialization or applied field of microbiology, or have direct application in the area for which the applicant is being considered. For the GS-11 and higher grade levels of such specialized positions, the experience must have been sufficiently specialized to insure adequate familiarity with the area of specialization or applied field of microbiology.

GS-12:
One year of specialized experience comparable to GS-11 directly related to providing technical and scientific support in the development of veterinary medical countermeasures, analyzing microbiological substances from microorganisms for biological development activities, and maintaining laboratory notebooks. GS-13:
One year of specialized experience comparable to GS-12 directly related to participation in the preparation of data for scientific technical reports and manuscripts; providing technical or administrative supervision to a professional or technical staff; and interpreting research results and their microbiological implications to generate written reports for scientific journals, oral presentation, or meetings. GS-14:
One year of specialized experience comparable to GS-13 directly related to leading and managing an animal disease program for scientific research activities; ensuring diagnostic laboratory activities meet mandated requirements and regulations; and leading bio-pharmaceutical or veterinary biopharmaceutical manufacturing…