Enclosure
2
Application
of Education and Specialized Experience
Creditable Education
Education, to be creditable
toward the 24-semester hour requirement, must meet the requirements of the Qualification
Standards for General Schedule Positions Operating Manual, published by the
Office of Personnel Management. The nature and quality of the education
must have been such that it would serve as a prerequisite for more advanced
study (graduate level or professional education).
The education must meet one of the following:
1.
Conventional - Obtained from a college or
university, applicable school within the college or university, or applicable
curriculum at the college or university that has been properly accredited.
2.
Other education - Education obtained from other
than an accredited institute of higher learning, such as National Wildfire
Coordinating Group (NWGC) courses listed in Enclosure 3.
3.
Credits from the USDA Graduate School, or
equivalent. Only courses in biological sciences, natural resources,
wildland fire management, forestry, or agricultural coursework are creditable
towards the 24 semester hours equivalent to a major field of study.
Education Equivalent to a
Major Field of Study (24 semester hours)
The 24 semester hours must be obtained in biological sciences, natural resources, wildland fire management, forestry, or agriculture course work. Educational course work must include at least 18 semester hours of upper division (junior/senior) course work. Course titles and numbers may help determine whether a given course is upper or lower division. For example, courses numbered 100 or 200, beginning with A or B, or entitled “An Introduction To”, are almost always lower division courses. Conversely, courses numbered 300 or 400, or beginning with C or D are usually upper division courses. You can also refer to college course catalogs or consult with college advisors or officials to help you to determine the appropriate level of courses.
Enclosure 3 is a list wildland fire courses, which may also be
applied to this requirement.
Additional Education
In addition to courses in
the major and related fields, a typical college degree would have included
courses that involved analysis, written and verbal communication, critical
thinking, planning research, etc. Therefore, creditable experience should
have demonstrated similar skills and abilities.
The quality of the combination of education and experience must be sufficient to demonstrate that the applicant possesses the knowledge, skills, and abilities required to perform work in the occupation and is comparable to that normally acquired through the successful completion of a full 4-year course of study in the fields listed in section A or B of the Basic Requirements. Experience credited under section “B” of the new GS-401 qualifications standard cannot be credited as specialized experience. Time credited for specialized experience is in addition to the time credited to meet basic qualifications.
Appropriate Experience to Meet
Basic Requirements
An example of appropriate
experience which would be comparable to the required college coursework may
be that of a technician, at the GS-7 grade
level or above, who is working under the supervision of a professional employee
and is performing duties equivalent to an entry-level professional employee, in
the field of biological sciences, agriculture, natural resources management, or
fire management.
Examples (Section
“B” of Basic Requirements)
In accordance with direction in
the Qualification Standards for General Schedule Positions Operating Manual, 30
semester hours (or 45 quarter hours) is comparable to one year of college and
can be substituted for one year of experience.
Example 1:
An applicant has 60 semester
hours of creditable education, which includes the required 24 semester hours
equivalent to a major field of study, (of which at least 18 are upper division).
The applicant still must have 2 years of appropriate experience to meet the
basic requirements. This combination equals 100%.
Example 2:
An applicant has only the 24
semester hours of creditable education, which includes the required 24 semester
hours equivalent to a major field of study, (of which at least 18 are upper division).
The applicant still must have 3 years, 2 1\2 months of appropriate
experience to meet the basic requirements.
This combination equals 100%.
Example 3:
An applicant has 24 semester
hours of creditable general education from a local university and 24 semester
hours of NWCG coursework, (of which at least 18 of are upper division).
This applicant will be credited with a total of 48 semester hours of education.
The applicant still must have 2 years, 5 months of appropriate experience
to meet the basic requirements. This combination equals 100%.
Example 4:
An applicant has earned an
Associate Degree in Fire Science Management, and has taken other coursework
which together totals 75 semester hours of education. However, he/she has only earned 10 semesters hours of upper
division credit. In addition, the
applicant has 3 years of appropriate experience. The applicant is still short 8
semester hours of upper level coursework; thus would not meet the basic
requirements.
Note: In
any case where NWCG coursework duplicates college or university coursework,
duplicate credits cannot be granted.
Specialized Experience
According to the Qualification Standards for General Schedule Positions Operating Manual, one-grade interval experience may be qualifying for two-grade interval positions, provided that the experience demonstrated the Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities required to perform the work successfully. This is true for either lateral or promotion actions. The basic requirements for the type and level of experience and/or education apply to all applicants, whether their experience has been in the same occupation as the position being filled or in related occupational field. Since two-grade interval positions may differ significantly in the nature of the work, it is important that applicants be evaluated on the “knowledge required to do the work.”