Summary These positions are located in the Department of Research and Development at the VAMC, Portland, OR. The Animal Facility provided essential operational and technical support in a wide variety of animal studies for biomedical programs involving animal subjects. Responsibilities THIS IS NOT A VIRTUAL POSITION, YOU MUST LIVE WITHIN OR BE WILLING TO RELOCATE WITHIN A COMMUTABLE DISTANCE OF THE DUTY LOCATION Major duties and responsibilities include: Responsible for the day to day operation and management of assigned rooms and areas within the animal facilities. Receiving animal subjects, equipment, supplies and services delivered to the Animal Facility. Preparing and maintaining various species of animals, in programs of research, testing, development and training, as substitute models for the study and understanding of human health and disease. Regularly monitors general health of animals. Inspecting animals upon arrival and records receipt and findings in animal log book. Monitoring environmental conditions in animal rooms. Recognizing deviations from established norms and follows appropriate procedures for reporting and/or correcting any problems. Performing recordkeeping, feeding, watering, bedding, environmental enrichment, animal identification, daily cage and room monitoring, urgent or emergency situations. Performing other duties as assigned. NOTE: This is a TERM appointment (not-to-exceed 1 year). Term appointments are non-status, nonpermanent appointments of limited duration. Term employees are eligible to earn leave and generally have the same benefits as permanent employees including health and life insurance, within-grade increases and Federal Employees Retirement System and Thrift Savings Plan coverage. Term appointments may be extended without further competition. Work Schedule: Monday-Friday, 8:00am to 4:30pm Recruitment & Relocation Incentives: Not authorized Critical Skills Incentive (CSI): Not approved Requirements Conditions of Employment You must be a U.S. Citizen to apply for this job All applicants tentatively selected for VA employment in a testing designated position are subject to urinalysis to screen for illegal drug use prior to appointment. Applicants who refuse to be tested will be denied employment with VA. Selective Service Registration is required for males born after 12/31/1959 You may be required to serve a probationary period Subject to background/security investigation Selected applicants will be required to complete an online onboarding process. Acceptable form(s) of identification will be required to complete pre-employment requirements (https://www.uscis.gov/i-9-central/form-i-9-acceptable-documents). Effective May 7, 2025, driver's licenses or state-issued dentification cards that are not REAL ID compliant cannot be utilized as an acceptable form of identification for employment. Participation in the seasonal influenza vaccination program is a requirement for all Department of Veterans Affairs Health Care Personnel (HCP) Qualifications IN ORDER TO QUALIFY FOR THIS POSITION AT THE GS-6 LEVEL YOU MUST MEET THE FOLLOWING: SPECIALIZED EXPERIENCE: You must possess one year of specialized experience, equivalent to the GS-5 grade level in the Federal service, that equipped you with the particular knowledge, skills, and abilities to perform successfully the duties of this position, and that is typically in or related to the work of this position. The specialized experience required for some positions in this series is normally work performed in a controlled environment. Examples of qualifying specialized experience include: research activity or control program work; nursery work that required the growing and maintenance of plants in a controlled environment; work comparable to that with a large dairy farm where production records, animal environment, and sanitary conditions were kept in accordance with modern dairy practice. Farming experience that was not performed in a controlled environment, or experience as a laborer who was not responsible for planning and scheduling his/her own work, but only performed assigned tasks, would not qualify as specialized experience. ADDITIONAL SPECIALIZED EXPERIENCE INCLUDES: setting up initial records for new research animals; weaning and sexing animals in breeding colony; maintaining records for animal care, feeding, treatment, disposal and environmental monitoring; maintaining the laboratory facilities, equipment, and supplies; administering proper medical treatment to protocol specifications; using standard aseptic procedures and safeguards for processing specimens; animal husbandry. (THIS EXPERIENCE MUST BE SUPPORTED BY YOUR RESUME TO BE CREDITABLE.) ~OR~ SUBSTITUTION OF EDUCATION FOR EXPERIENCE: You must have successfully completed one-half (1/2) year of progressively higher-level graduate education leading to a master's degree in a field directly related to the work of this position. One year of full-time graduate education is considered to be the number of credit hours that the school attended has determined to represent 1 year of full-time study. If that information cannot be obtained from the school, 18 semester hours should be considered as satisfying the 1 year of full-time study requirement. Part-time graduate education is creditable in accordance with its relationship to a year of full-time study at the school attended. This education must have been obtained in an accredited college or university. (COPY OF TRANSCRIPTS ARE REQUIRED AT TIME OF APPLICATION) ~OR~~ COMBINATION OF EXPERIENCE AND EDUCATION: You must possess combination of successfully completed graduate education and specialized experience directly related to the work of this position to meet total qualification requirements. (THIS EXPERIENCE MUST BE SUPPORTED BY YOUR RESUME TO BE CREDITABLE AND COPY OF TRANSCRIPTS ARE REQUIRED AT TIME OF APPLICATION) You will be rated on the following Competencies as part of the assessment questionnaire for this position: Animal Husbandry Biomedical Equipment Technology Clerical IMPORTANT: A full year of work is considered to be 35-40 hours of work per week. All experience listed on your resume must include the month and year start/end dates. Part-time experience will be credited on the basis of time actually spent in appropriate activities. Applicants wishing to receive credit for such experience must indicate clearly the nature of their duties and responsibilities in each position and the number of hours a week spent in such employment. 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. Physical Requirements: Work is a mixture of sitting, standing, walking, bending, stooping, and lifting. Incumbent may be required to stand long periods of time and may be required to lift weights of up to 60 pounds for short periods of time. Work is performed in an animal room and/or animal laboratory, operating room, and cage wash area. Work area is adequately lighted, heated, and ventilated. Protective clothing is worn while on duty and a shower is recommended before changing back to street clothes. An occupational health examination is available upon request every year. For more information on these qualification standards, please visit the United States Office of Personnel Management's website at https://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/classification-qualifications/general-schedule-qualification-standards/. Education IMPORTANT: A transcript must be submitted with your application if you are basing all or part of your qualifications on education. NOTE: Only education or degrees recognized by the U.S. Department of Education from accredited colleges, universities, schools, or institutions may be used to qualify for Federal employment. You can verify your education here: http://ope.ed.gov/accreditation/. If you are using foreign education to meet qualification requirements, you must send a Certificate of Foreign Equivalency with your transcript in order to receive credit for that education. For further information, visit: Recognition of Foreign Qualifications | International Affairs Office (ed.gov). Additional Information This job opportunity announcement may be used to fill additional vacancies. If you are unable to apply online or need an alternate method to submit documents, please reach out to the Agency Contact listed in this Job Opportunity Announcement. Under the Fair Chance to Compete Act, the Department of Veterans Affairs prohibits requesting an applicant's criminal history prior to accepting a tentative job offer. For more information about the Act and the complaint process, visit Human Resources and Administration/Operations, Security, and Preparedness (HRA/OSP) at The Fair Chance Act.
