Student Trainee (Archeological Technician)

Duties
The Student Trainee (Archeological Technician) will perform technical duties supporting the Heritage Preservation Division at El Malpais and El Morro National Monuments. The duty station for this position is located in Grants, New Mexico, at the El Malpais National Monument headquarters. The incumbent may occasionally work at both NPS units and may also assist Vanishing Treasures (VT) projects at Petrified Forest National Park. The incumbent will assist the park's Archeologist in ongoing facets of the VT program. Duties include work in compiling and interpreting collected data; researching reference materials; participating in archeological field surveys, and recording and entering field data; and producing technical reports independently; may assist other archeological technicians with entering archeological artifact information and project data into automated systems and archival records. Work is equally divided among other archeological technicians between fieldwork and office. The fieldwork may require periods of moderate to arduous physical exertion, walking over rough and varied terrain, and hiking distances of up to 5 miles with packs weighing up to 50 pounds. Office duties will involve long periods of sitting, and entering data in computer systems.

AREA INFORMATION:
El Malpais National Monument comprises 114,748 acres of lava fields, sculptured sandstone formations, and ponderosa, pinon and juniper forests with 85% of the park managed as wilderness. Elevation ranges from 6,600 to 8,372 feet, and temperatures range from 90+ degrees in summer to below zero in winter. Headquarters is located in Grants, New Mexico (pop.10-12,000) and all major services are available. The area offers plentiful and outstanding outdoor recreation opportunities. Rental rates range from $500 and up, real estate market for housing is $90,000 and up. Albuquerque, New Mexico is 75 miles east, and Gallup, New Mexico is 65 miles west on I-40.

Qualifications
To qualify for this position at the GS-6 grade level, you must possess the following minimum qualifications by close of the announcement:
EXPERIENCE: At least one full year of specialized experience comparable in scope and responsibility to the GS-7 grade level in the Federal service (obtained in either the public or private sectors). This experience includes activities such as: having conducted archeological investigations as an experienced crew member or crew chief; prepared reports on archeological site investigations; conducted surveys using GPS mapping techniques and preparing GIS maps and overlays; and having experience conducting historical archeological field investigations and report preparation. You must include hours per week worked.
-OR-
EDUCATION: Successful completion of at least one full year (18 semester hours) of progressively higher level graduate education. To be qualifying, graduate study must have been in archeology, anthropology, or other closely related field. You must include transcripts.
-OR-
Successful completion of a combination of education and experience as described above. For example, six months of specialized experience (50% of the experience requirement), and 14 semester hours of graduate education in archeology, anthropology, or other closely related field (50% of the education requirement). You must include transcripts.
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.
You must include months, years and hours per week worked to receive credit for your work and/or volunteer experience. One year of specialized experience is equivalent to 12 months at 40 hours per week. Part-time hours are prorated. You will not receive any credit for experience that does not indicate exact hours per week or is listed as "varies".

Education
To qualify based on education, you must submit a legible copy of transcripts from an accredited institution with your name, school name, credit hours, course level, major(s), and grade-point average or class ranking. Transcripts do not need to be official, but if you are selected for this position and you used your education to qualify, you must provide official transcripts before you begin work. You will NOT be considered under Pathways unless you provide supporting information from your school. Documentation may be provided in letter format from your academic advisor, school counselor, admission office, etc. to prove enrollment OR it may be provided in the form of several official documents from your school such as a copy of your official transcripts and a copy of your class schedule for next semester. Copies of documents from your school website are acceptable if they contain all relevant information as listed above. Letters from advisors or other school officials must be on school letterhead.

If you are using education completed in foreign colleges or universities to meet qualification requirements, you must show that your education credentials have been evaluated by a private organization that specializes in interpretation of foreign education programs and such education has been deemed equivalent to that gained in an accredited U.S. education program; or full credit has been given for the courses at a U.S. accredited college or university.