Supervisory Hydrologic Technician

U.S. Geological Survey (USGS); Lawrence (KS); On-site; USD 91,000 - 118,000; Full time

Job summary

U.S. Geological Survey in Kansas is seeking a Supervisory Hydrologic Technician to lead field data collection and water-quality sampling programs. The role includes planning work for staff, budgeting submissions, and ensuring program accomplishments stay within allocations.

The position requires overseeing field operations, directing a team of professionals, and coordinating data collection activities across multiple stations to support flood and drought studies.

Qualifications

• Experience planning and coordinating field data collection programs.
• Experience conducting water-quality data collection field activities.
• Experience supervising professional, technical, and clerical staff.

Responsibilities

• Supervise professional, technical, clerical, and administrative staff to carry out USGS mission.
• Plan work for subordinates, assign tasks, and evaluate performance; identify training needs.
• Oversee programming and budgeting submissions to ensure alignment with funds.
• Coordinate water-quality data collection activities and field sampling.

Skills

Team leadership

Water-quality sampling

Budget planning

Field operations

Tools

Water sampling equipment

Job description

Summary

You will serve as a Supervisory Hydrologic Technician with Geological Survey.

Salary

GS-12 Salary: Salary: $90,968 (Step 01) to $118,261 (Step 10).

Eligibility

• Internal to an agency
• Current federal employees of the hiring agency that posted the job announcement.
• Career transition (CTAP, ICTAP, RPL)
• Federal employees whose job, agency or department was eliminated and are eligible for priority over other applicants.

Clarification from the agency: This is a Merit Promotion announcement for current and former career and career conditional Federal employees, Career Transition eligibles (CTAP & ICTAP) and those who are eligible under the hiring paths listed above. Refer to Required Documents section for more information.

Duties

USGS - This is a Merit Promotion Announcement for career and career conditional USGS Employees, Career Transition eligibles (CTAP), and those who are eligible under the hiring paths listed above. Refer to Required Documents section for more information.

Specific Duties

• Responsible for the technical and administrative supervision of professional, technical, clerical and administrative positions to carry out the mission of the organization.
• Plans work to be accomplished by subordinates; makes assignments based on capability and expertise; evaluates the work performance of subordinates; develops performance standards; gives advice or instruction to subordinates on work and administrative matters; and identifies developmental and training needs of employees, providing or arranging for needed development or training.
• Responsible for programming and annual budgeting submissions and ensure program accomplishments are within budget allocations.
• Conducting water-quality data collection field activities, including stream sampling, equipment maintenance.

Requirements (Conditions of Employment)

• Must provide proof of U.S. citizenship.
• Appointment subject to background investigation and favorable adjudication.
• Males born after 12-31-59 must be registered for Selective Service.
• Direct Deposit participation required.
• Successfully pass the E-Verify employment verification check. To learn more, visit https://www.e-verify.gov/.
• Selectee must provide a valid state driver's license & safe driving record. You will be required to operate a government-owned or -leased vehicle in the performance of your official duties. Applicants for this position must meet the following requirements: (1) possess a valid State license, and (2) possess a safe driving record. If selected, you will be required to provide proof of a valid State license & a copy of your driving record.
• Selectee subject to successful completion of a pre-employment medical exam. Taking and passing a pre-employment medical examination at Federal expense is required due to the physical demands of this job.
• You are required to complete training, obtain and maintain a government credit card with travel and purchase authority.

As a condition of employment for accepting this position, you may be required to serve a 1 year probationary period to evaluate your fitness and whether your continuation of employment advances the public interest.

This probationary period is an extension of the appointment process and therefore requires the agency to determine if continued employment would advance the public interest, meet the organization goals and mission of the agency, and/or otherwise promote the efficiency of the service. In determining if your employment advances the public interest, the agency will consider: your performance and conduct; the needs and interests of the agency; whether your continued employment would advance organizational goals of the agency or the Government; and whether your continued employment would advance the efficiency of the Federal service.

*Additional Requirements located under qualifications*

Qualifications

All qualifications must be met by the closing date of this announcement - 08/25/2026-unless otherwise stated in this vacancy announcement. Competitive candidates must also meet Time-in-Grade requirements as defined in 5 CFR 300, Subpart F.

For current Federal employees, if hours worked per week are not included on your resume, you must submit a non-award SF-50 as part of your application to be used to validate your work schedule and determine the amount of specialized experience that you will be granted. An award SF-50 will not be acceptable documentation for which to consider your amount of qualifying experience. For periods of time that reflect military service, the DD-214 or Statement of Service is sufficient to meet the work schedule requirement as the service dates will be reflected. For all other applicants who are not current federal employees, 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.

To qualify for this position at the GS-12 grade level: Experience: To qualify, you must possess at least one full year of specialized experience equivalent to the GS-11 level in the Federal service. Specialized experience is defined as demonstrated experience: Examples of such experience may include: planning and conducting the computation and collection of data from approximately thirty or more stations; determining stage-discharge relations, computing rating tables and mean daily, monthly and annual discharge rates from these stations. Acting as a team lead and making measurements, collecting water-quality samples, and coordinating and directing a team to do so under extremely difficult conditions. Obtaining hydrologic data from published and unpublished sources and conducting hydrologic studies relative to the frequency of flood and droughts. Planning and coordinating a surface- and groundwater survey program for an area that may be either a small area with complex features or a larger area with planning and coordinating problems related to the scope of the surface- and groundwater survey operations. You must include hours per week worked.

Volunteer Experience: 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, knowledge, and skills and can provide valuable training and experience that translates directly to paid employment. You will receive credit for all qualifying experience, including volunteer experience.

Education: This position does not allow substituting education for experience.

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. For more information on how foreign education is evaluated, visit: https://www.ed.gov/about/initiatives/international-affairs/recognition-of-foreign-qualifications

Additional Information

Additional vacancies may be filled using this job announcement.

All DOI employees, their spouses, and minor children may not acquire or retain any claim, permit, lease, small tract entry, or other rights granted by the Department in Federal lands, with limited exceptions. Additional ethics prohibitions can be found here, DOI Ethics Prohibitions | U.S. Department of the Interior.

Physical Demands

Field work is physically active and regularly requires considerable dexterity, agility, and strenuous physical exertion and may include, but is not limited to: climbing rocky and steep terrain, climbing and/or working from tall ladders and scaffolding; wading streams; work in areas where footing is treacherous (slippery or icy riverbanks, steep rocky terrain, fast-moving water); and crouching or crawling in restricted areas and lifting equipment weighing up to 100 pounds. Field work also involves moderate risks such as measuring from highway bridges, in swift streams, and from boats or cableways.

Work Environment: Field and laboratory work exposes the incumbent to extreme weather conditions including, but not limited to, rain, snow, and extreme temperatures; and hazards including, but not limited to, flooding, ice, insect bites, and exposure to toxic chemicals. Special safety precautions are required in many cases, and incumbent typically wears a life jacket, reflective rain gear, safety glasses, etc. Field areas are often isolated and occasionally difficult to reach.

Candidates should be committed to improving the efficiency of the Federal government, passionate about the ideals of our American republic, and committed to upholding the rule of law and the United States Constitution.

A career with the U.S. government provides employees with a comprehensive benefits package. As a federal employee, you and your family will have access to a range of benefits that are designed to make your federal career very rewarding.

Review our benefits

Eligibility for benefits depends on the type of position you hold and whether your position is full-time, part-time or intermittent. Contact the hiring agency for more information on the specific benefits offered.

You will be evaluated for this job based on how well you meet the qualifications above.

Your qualifications will be evaluated based on your application materials (e.g. resume, supporting documents), the responses you provide on the application questionnaire, and the result of the additional assessment(s) required for this position. To be considered for this position, you must complete all required steps in the process.

Your resume must not exceed 2 pages. Only the document submitted as the "Resume" under the Documents section will be used to determine your qualifications/eligibility and for rating purposes. In the event you submit more than one resume, only the latest submission will be reviewed.

Competencies

• Field Data Collection
• Project Management
• Hydrology
• Leadership
• Quality Assurance

Required Documents

• Resume which includes a list of all significant jobs held and duties performed, with dates in month-year format (include month/day/year format if needed for 52 weeks of experience), and indicate hours worked per week (or full-time). Your resume must clearly show how long you have held each grade/rank. Resumes must not exceed 2 single-sided pages and resumes longer than 2 pages will not be accepted. The minimum font size is 10-point for all body text. All resumes must maintain a minimum 0.5-inch margins on all sides to ensure readability and prevent excessive content compression. Including supplemental pages or attachments disguised as resume extensions are prohibited and will not be reviewed. Your 2-page resume must contain information sufficient to make a valid determination that you fully meet the specialized experience requirements. Resume Builder: https://help.usajobs.gov/faq/application/documents/resume/what-to-include
• Complete All Required Assessments.
• Performance Appraisals and Awards: All applicants must submit their most recent performance appraisal showing the official rating of record and signed by a supervisor. If the performance appraisal is not dated within the last 18 months OR no performance appraisal is available, you must submit a statement as to why it is not available (including if any prior performance appraisals/evaluations were at an acceptable level).
• All College Transcript(s), if qualifying based on education.
• Eligibility Documentation:
  • Current and former Federal employees must submit latest SF-50 (i.e. Promotion, Separation, Within Grade Increase (WGI)) showing tenure 1 or 2 in block 24, grade, and if applicable, an additional SF-50 showing the highest grade or promotion potential held. Time in grade will be determined by reviewing your resume and required SF-50s. If your SF-50 showing highest permanent grade held has an effective date within the past year, your resume must clearly show that you held that grade for one year. Do not submit award SF-50s.
  • Veterans Preference Documentation: Veterans eligible under VRA (GS-11 & below only), VEOA, 30% or more Disabled, or Disabled Veterans Enrolled in a VA Training Program must submit the most recent Documentation of Service and Separation under Honorable Conditions (e.g. DD-214) as listed on the SF15. If you are a Parent or Spouse of a Disabled or Deceased Veteran, you must submit all documentation as listed on the SF15. You may request a copy of the VA letter from https://www.va.gov/records. If you are a veteran within 120 days of discharge, you must submit signed documentation from the Armed Forces certifying: 1) your expected release/retirement from active duty, 2) under honorable conditions, 3) your pay grade/rank/rate at time of discharge, 4) dates of active-duty service, 5) any campaign or expeditionary medals received, & 6) dated within 120 days of your separation.
  • Public Land Corps: You must provide a copy of your signed Certificate of Non-Competitive Eligibility and clearly state in your resume time served and duties performed on an appropriate conservation project.
  • Special Appointing Authorities: If you are applying under a special appointing authority (i.e. Schedule A, Peace Corps, Military Spouses, etc.), you must submit appropriate documentation to verify your eligibility. If you fail to submit proof, you will not receive consideration. If you're eligible for an authority not listed, you are responsible for submitting documentation that's appropriate for that specific authority.
  • CTAP/ICTAP eligibles MUST submit proof of eligibility including a copy of the agency notice, most recent performance rating, and most recent SF-50 showing your position, grade level, and duty location. For more information visit: Career Transition Programs (CTAP, ICTAP, RPL).

Failure to submit any of the above-mentioned required documents will result in loss of consideration due to an incomplete application package. It is your responsibility to ensure all required documents have been submitted.

Do not submit photographs with your application package.

Do not upload Adobe portfolio documents.

If you are relying on your education to meet qualification requirements: Education must be accredited by an accrediting institution recognized by the U.S. Department of Education in order for it to be credited towards qualifications. Therefore, provide only the attendance and/or degrees from schools accredited by accrediting institutions recognized by the U.S. Department of Education.

Failure to provide all of the required information as stated in this vacancy announcement may result in an ineligible rating or may affect the overall rating.

Agency contact information

Selena Waterman

Phone [phone]

Email [e-mail]

Address KANSAS WATER SCI CTR

12201 Sunrise Valley Drive

Mail Stop 600

Reston, VA 20192

US