Geologist

Summary

You will serve as a Geologist within the Department of the Interior, U.S. Geological Survey, Northeast Region, Woods Hole Coastal & Marine Science Center. This position includes field work which may include weekends hours. You may be required to travel overnight away from home up to 1-2 nights per month. You must obtain a government charge card for travel purposes.

Duties

• Some of the major duties you will perform include but are not limited to the following: Collect, analyze, and interpret marine geological and geophysical data (including seismic-reflection data) to support detailed investigations. Use a variety of seafloor and sub-seafloor mapping technologies and methods to collect and analyze geologic and geophysical data, including seismic-reflection data. Use geological and geophysical processing, interpretation and data integration software, such as Kingdom Suite, Reveal, GIS, to evaluate marine and coastal geologic scientific projects. Analyzes and interprets geological and geophysical data and independently carries out detailed investigations. Prepares or leads technically or scientific authoritative reports and publications and deliver presentations to professional audiences. Duties will be developmental in nature when filled below the full performance level. Salary: GS-09: $69,905 (Step 1) - $90,882 (Step 10) GS-11: $84,579 (Step 1) - $109,959 (Step 10) First time hires to the Federal government normally start at the step 1 rate.

Qualifications

Qualifications: All qualifications must be met by the closing date of this announcement-11/06/2026-unless otherwise stated in this vacancy announcement. To receive credit for experience, your resume MUST state either "full-time" (or "40 hours a week") or "part-time" with the number of hours worked per week to ensure proper crediting of specialized experience. Failure to adequately provide information needed to determine number of hours worked in each position may result in that time not being credited when evaluating qualifying experience. For periods of time that reflect military service, the DD-214 or Statement of Service is sufficient to meet the full and/or part-time hours requirement as the service dates will be reflected. Minimum Qualification Requirements: To qualify for this position, you must meet the following minimum qualifications: Basic Educational Requirement AND/OR Specialized Experience for the series to which you are applying. Basic Educational Requirements: In addition to the specialized experience requirements for this position, you must meet at least one of the following: A. Degree: geology, plus 20 additional semester hours in any combination of mathematics, physics, chemistry, biological science, structural, chemical, civil, mining or petroleum engineering, computer science, planetary geology, comparative planetology, geophysics, meteorology, hydrology, oceanography, physical geography, marine geology, and cartography. You must submit transcripts. -OR- B. Combination of education and experience: course work as shown in A above, plus appropriate experience or additional education. -AND- To qualify for this position at the GS-09 grade level: Specialized Experience Requirement: In addition to the basic education requirement as stated above, you must possess at least one full year of specialized experience equivalent to the GS-07 level in the Federal service (obtained in either the public or private sectors). Specialized experience is defined as demonstrated experience: performing a range of observations, calculations, data compilations, and analyses to support higher-level Geologists; following established procedures or detailed instructions; applying basic geological principles with some judgment; and demonstrating a solid working knowledge of geological theories and concepts. Preferred Experience: Demonstrated familiarity conducting marine 2D seismic-reflection surveys aboard research vessels, processing and analyzing seismic data, integrating geophysical and geologic datasets, and preparing technical products and reports. You must include hours per week worked. -OR- Education: Successful completion of at least 2 years of progressively higher level graduate education leading to a master's degree or master's or equivalent graduate degree. You must include transcripts. -OR- Combination of education and experience. To combine education and experience, combination of successfully completed progressive graduate level education as described above that is beyond the first year of graduate study; first take total qualifying education as a percentage of the education required for the grade level. Then take the number of months of full-time experience and divide by 12 months. Add the percentages together. The total must equal at least 100 percent to qualify. You must include hours per week and transcripts. To qualify for this position at the GS-11 grade level: Specialized Experience Requirement: In addition to the basic education requirement as stated above, you must possess at least one full year of specialized experience equivalent to the GS-09 level in the Federal service (obtained in either the public or private sectors). Specialized experience is defined as independently completing a well-defined study or part of a larger project; planning and carrying out routine geologic work; making minor adjustments to established procedures; resolving unexpected issues during typical work; and applying solid geological pr…

Education

This position has a mandatory education requirement. You must submit a copy of your transcript(s) to support claimed education if substituting education for experience. Transcripts must include your name, school name, grades, credit hours earned, major(s), grade point average or class ranking, and date the degree was conferred, if applicable. A typed list of courses, grades, semester/quarter hours, GPA, etc. will not be accepted. Non-submission may result in being rated not qualified for the position. Unofficial transcripts are acceptable, but if you are selected for this position and you used your education to qualify, you must provide official transcripts before you begin work. Foreign Education: To receive credit for education completed outside the United States, you must show proof that the education has been submitted to a private organization that specializes in interpretation of foreign educational credentials and such education has been deemed at least equivalent to that gained in conventional U.S. education programs. Recognition of Foreign Qualifications | U.S. Department of Education. https://www.ed.gov/about/initiatives/international-affairs/recognition-of-foreign-qualification