The following requirements are prescribed by the Office of Personnel Management and used to determine minimum qualifications.
Individual Occupational Requirements
Basic Requirements
Degree: biology, or a related field of science underlying ecological research that included at least 30 semester hours in basic and applied biological sciences. These hours must have included at least 9 semester hours in ecology, and 12 semester hours in physical and mathematical sciences.
Experience and education requirements for GS-7 and above
In addition to meeting the basic entry qualification requirements, applicants must have specialized experience and/or directly related education in the amounts shown in the table below.
| GRADE | EDUCATION | SPECIALIZED EXPERIENCE |
|---|---|---|
|
GS-7 |
1 full year of graduate level education |
1 year equivalent to at least GS-5 |
|
GS-9 |
master's or equivalent graduate degree |
1 year equivalent to at least GS-7 |
|
GS-11 |
Ph.D. or equivalent doctoral degree |
1 year equivalent to at least GS-9 |
|
GS-12 |
|
1 year equivalent to at least next lower grade level |
| GS-13 and above research positions |
1 year equivalent to at least next lower grade level |
NOTE: Equivalent combinations of education and experience are qualifying for all grade levels for which both education and experience are acceptable.