National Program Leader - Veterinary Medical Officer

This position is located in the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), Agricultural Research Service (ARS), Office of National Programs (ONP), Animal Production and Protection Program in Beltsville, MD.

In this position, you will serve as a National Program Leader and will provide national leadership and coordination of agricultural research programs relating to animal disease, virology, microbiology, parasitology, and biotechnology as applied to animal health research.

Applicants must meet all qualifications and eligibility requirements by the closing date of the announcement including specialized experience and/or education, as defined below.

Basic Requirements:
1. Doctor of Veterinary Medicine (DVM) or equivalent degree, i.e., Veterinary Medical Doctor (VMD), obtained at a school or college of veterinary medicine accredited by the American Veterinary Medical Association Council on Education (AVMA). The AVMA web site, http://www.avma.org(external link), has a listing of all AVMA-accredited veterinary medical schools.
OR
2. Graduates of foreign veterinary medical schools that are not accredited by the AVMA Council on Education (Refer to AVMA web site, http://www.avma.org(external link)for information about schools in this category) must meet one of the following requirements.

• Proof of certification of their final transcript by the Educational Commission for Foreign Veterinary Graduates (ECFVG)
• Possession of a permanent, full, and unrestricted license to practice veterinary medicine in a State, District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, or a territory of the United States that includes successful completion of the North American Veterinary Licensing Examination (NAVLE) or its predecessors, the National Board Examination (NBE) and the Clinical Competency Test (CCT).
• Proof that the education obtained in a foreign veterinary medical program is equivalent to that gained in a veterinary medical program that is accredited by the American Veterinary Medical Association Council on Education. Under this provision, equivalency is established only if an AVMA-accredited veterinary medical school or college accepts the graduate's final transcript from the foreign veterinary medical school at full value for placement into an advanced degree, postgraduate educational program, or training program (e.g. residency or graduate program).

Graduates of foreign veterinary medical programs must also provide proof of proficiency in the English language by successfully completing one of the nationally and internationally recognized examinations that incorporate assessments of reading, writing, listening, and speaking skills. Examples of examinations that assess mastery of the English language are shown below:

• Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) - Minimum scores for the TOEFL are 560 for the paper-based version; 220 for the computer-based version; or overall score of 83 for the internet-based version (including 26 or higher in speaking, 26 or higher in listening, and 17 or higher in writing). For the computer-based and paper-based test versions, applicants must also complete the Test of Spoken English (TSE) and the Test of Written English (TWE). Minimum required scores are 55 for the TSE and 5.5 for the TWE;
• Academic tests (listening, writing, and speaking) offered by the International English Language Testing System (IELTS). Applicants must achieve a minimum overall band score of 7.0, with at least 7.0 in speaking, 6.5 in listening, and 6.0 in writing; OR
• Canadian Academic English Language Assessment (CAEL). Applicants must achieve a minimum overall band score of 70, with at least 60 in speaking, 60 in listening, and 50 in writing.

AND
In addition to meeting the basic education requirement above, you must also meet the following minimum qualification requirements:

GS-15:
Specialized experience is experience directly related to the position to be filled. Specialized experience must be described for each grade level advertised. The specialized experience requirements for this position are: Qualifying experience for GS-15 includes one year of specialized experience comparable to GS-14 which is directly related to the work of this position, and which has equipped the applicant with the knowledge, skills, and abilities to perform successfully the duties of the position. For this position, specialized experience is experience planning and implementing programs related to animal health; publishing independent research findings in peer-reviewed scientific journals; presenting research results to national and international scientific meetings; and developing collaborative relationships with government officials, scientific organizations, and internal and external industry stakeholders to coordinate research efforts and validate research results.

Physical Demands: Work is primarily sedentary, and no special physical demands are usually required. When visiting research locations/laboratories, environmental conditions may include exposure to irritants. Domestic and international travel is required, usually through commercial sources of transportation, to attend meetings, conferences, stakeholder engagements, and to conduct site visits, etc.

Work Environment: Work is usually performed in a typical office setting, in conference of meeting rooms, or in
the field at research locations, as needed.

Other Considerations: The Department and its agencies are committed to affirmative implementation of Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO) plans of action and applicable civil lights provisions. It is the responsibility of the incumbent to assure that equal opportunity is extended to all candidates for employment and all beneficiaries of pertinent programs under their management. Equal opportunity in employment and for employees supervised should include: full-consideration of eligible minority group members and women in filling vacant positions, holding individual and group meetings to communicate EEO and program missions, providing career counseling and orientation; enhancing career opportunities through training development, job redesign, and similar techniques; and ensuring full consideration of these employees in recommending promotions, awards, and other forms of special recognition.

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.