VACANCY ANNOUNCEMENT

OPEN DATE: December 11, 2025
CLOSING DATE: December 17, 2025
United States Department of Agriculture Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service Wildlife Services National Wildlife Research Center 4101 LaPorte Ave Fort Collins, CO 80521 An Equal Opportunity Employer
POSITION TITLE: Biologist (Computational)
TYPE OF POSITION: 13 Month Term Appointment with possibility for Benefits, Excepted Service (may be extended up to 4 years)
WORK SCHEDULE: Full-Time
ANNOUNCEMENT #: NWRC-2WS035
SERIES/GRADE: GS-0401-11
FULL PERFORMANCE
LEVEL: GS-0401-11
LOCATION: Fort Collins, CO (Relocation expenses will not be paid)
SALARY: $ 82,440-107,167 per year

WHO MAY APPLY:
· Must be a U.S. Citizen
· Must be 18 years old
· If you are a male born after December 31, 1959 and are at least 18 years of age, civil service employment law (5 U.S.C. 3328) requires that you must be registered with the Selective Service System, unless you meet certain exemptions (proof of registration and/or exemption required). Website: http://www.sss.gov.

REQUIRED DOCUMENTS:
Resume that includes:

1. Personal information such as name, address, contact information
2. Education
3. Detailed work experience related to this position as described in the announcement including
   · Work schedule including hours per week
   · Dates of employment;
   · Title, series, grade (if applicable)
4. All supervisors' phone numbers and if they may be contacted
5. Other qualifications

Transcripts (if qualifying on education, must have been obtained from an accredited institution. Education completed in a foreign institution must include an evaluation by an organization that specializes in interpretation of foreign education programs that it was deemed equivalent to an accredited U.S. education program, see: Foreign Education Evaluation. All transcripts must be in English or include an English translation.)
DD-214 (Member 4 copy)

DD-214 (Member 4 copy)
VA letter required for applicable Veteran preference, if applies.
Current active-duty members must submit a certification that they are expected to be discharged or released from active duty under honorable conditions not later than 120 days after the date the certification is submitted.

HOW TO APPLY: Additional materials not listed above (i.e. position descriptions, training certificates, etc.) may not be considered. Applicants who do not submit the required items listed above may not be considered. Applications with all supporting documents must be submitted to the contact office and must be RECEIVED by the CLOSING DATE of this announcement.

Interested individuals should send a resume (cannot exceed 2 pages), transcripts, veteran documentation (if applicable) to the physical address or electronically to the email address listed below:

CONTACT OFFICE:

Kimberly Pepin, PhD
Supervisory Research Biologist
Wildlife Disease Ecology, Management and Preparedness
USDA APHIS WS
National Wildlife Research Center
4101 Laporte Avenue
Fort Collins, CO 80521
Ph: 970-266-6162
kim.m.pepin@usda.gov

SUMMARY:

The position is with the National Wildlife Research Center (NWRC), Wildlife Disease Ecology, Management and Preparedness Research project located in Fort Collins, CO. The work is primarily responsible for conducting research on pathogens that can be harbored by wildlife.

GENERAL DUTIES:
· conduct research related to one health and/or invasive species management, including developing models and analyzing data.
· writing peer-reviewed publications or technical reports and presenting results to stakeholders.
· conduct all phases of the research with minimal oversight, but with frequent communication with the supervisor.

SPECIFIC DUTIES:
• Develop spatial models of disease transmission and algorithms for control optimization.
• Develop interactive visualizations of model results.
• Develop software for guiding animal health preparedness activities.
• Estimate epidemiological parameters from field data.
• Develop statistical models of outbreak data.
• Publish articles in peer-reviewed journals.
• Give oral presentations at scientific conferences.
• Prepare high-level reports and oral presentation of results for policy makers and funders.
• Coordinate data collation, analysis, and reporting among research and stakeholder partners.

MINIMUM ELIGIBLITY REQUIREMENTS:

To qualify, applicants MUST meet all minimum qualification requirements, except Medical Requirements, by the closing date of the announcement.

BASIC REQUIREMENT:

Degree: biological sciences, agriculture, natural resource management, chemistry, or related disciplines appropriate to the position.

OR

Combination of education and experience: Courses equivalent to a major, as shown above, plus appropriate experience or additional education.

In addition to meeting the basic requirement you will also need to meet the following:

FOR THE GS-11 LEVEL: Applicants must have one year of specialized experience (equivalent to the GS-9 level) that may have been obtained in the private or public (local, county, state, Federal) sectors which demonstrates:

Advanced knowledge, skill, and proficiency with a programming language (e.g., Python, R, C++, etc.).

Demonstrated research competency in the fields of applied statistics, genomic analyses, computational biology, disease ecology, and/or spatial ecology.

The ability to understand and address a variety of research needs and program priorities related to control of agricultural pests, wildlife or livestock disease management, or wildlife management.

OR

Education Substitution: 3 years of progressively higher-level graduate education leading to a Ph.D. degree or Ph.D. or equivalent doctoral degree

Equivalent combinations of education and experience are qualifying for this grade level.

TRANSCRIPTS are required:
This position requires specific coursework or a degree in a specific field to be basically qualified.
This education must have been successfully completed and obtained from an accredited school, college, or university
· 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.

COMBINATION OF EDUCATION & EXPERIENCE AT THE GS-11 GRADE LEVEL:
Applicants may have combinations of successfully completed education and specialized experience to meet total qualification requirements. The total percentages must equal at least 100 percent to qualify for that grade level. To learn more about combining education and experience for this series, click the following: Combining Education and Experience for Professional and Scientific Positions

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.

HOW YOU WILL BE EVALUATED
Applicants who meet basic minimum qualifications may be referred to the hiring manager for selection. Qualified candidates eligible for veterans’ preference will receive referral and selection priority over non-veterans.

OTHER REQUIREMENTS: (if applicable to your position)

• Must obtain or have a valid state driver’s license. Operation of Government-owned or leased vehicles is required.
• As a condition of employment, appropriate security clearance is required for this position.
• Position is subject to random and applicant drug testing.
• Must demonstrate a respect for safety in all operations, including the operation of motor vehicles, firearms, control devices, and equipment.
• Direct Deposit: Per Public law 104-134 all Federal employees are required to have federal payments made by direct deposit to their financial institution.
• Successfully pass the E-Verify employment verification check. To learn more about E-Verify, including your rights and responsibilities, visit https: //www.e-verify.gov/
• In order to perform the essential duties of this position, you must have the legal and physical ability to possess and discharge firearms. You must be able to pass a government background check and meet any additional requirements to carry and use firearms. A background check will include answering questions about where you’ve lived, worked, went to school, and any military history or police records. Selection and retention in this position is contingent on a successfully adjudicated FBI National Criminal History Check (fingerprint check).
• Occasional travel may be required
• Initial trial period may be required

Emergency Response – APHIS is an emergency response agency. This means that all Agency employees may be asked or assigned to participate in rotating temporary duty assignments to support emergency programs at some time during their careers with APHIS. It is difficult to predict the frequency with which such emergency situations may occur – and could range from several emergencies in a year to none over the course of many years. In the event that you are called upon to support an emergency program, this may require irregular working hours, including overtime, and may include duties other than those specified in your official position description. While some emergency program support assignments may be able to be performed at the employee’s current duty station, in other cases employees may be asked to go on-site to a temporary duty state location. In addition, it may be necessary for employees to participate in multiple rotations to an emergency program assignment. Attempts will be made to keep disruption to the employee to a minimum.

See this link: https://www.usajobs.gov//Help/working-in-government/fair-and-transparent/signature-false-statements/

The United States government does not discriminate in employment on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, pregnancy, national origin, political affiliation, sexual orientation, marital status, disability, genetic information, age, membership in an employee organization, retaliation, parental status, military service or other non-merit factor.

Reasonable Accommodation Policy-

Federal agencies must provide reasonable accommodation to applicants with disabilities where appropriate. Applicants requiring reasonable accommodation for any part of the application and hiring process should contact the hiring agency directly. Determinations on requests for reasonable accommodation will be made on a Case-by-Case basis.

A reasonable accommodation is any change in the workplace or the way things are customarily done that provides an equal employment opportunity to an individual with a disability. Under the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) must provide reasonable accommodations:

An applicant with a disability needs an accommodation to have an equal opportunity to apply for a job.
An employee with a disability needs an accommodation to perform the essential job duties or to gain access to the workplace.
An employee with a disability needs an accommodation to receive equal access to benefits, such as details, training, and office-sponsored events.
Relocation costs will not be paid for this position.

More than one position may be selected from this announcement.