Fire Protection Specialist (Instructor)

Summary

This position is located within the Department of the Interior, National Park Service, Washington Office, Division of Fire. More information about the surrounding location can be found here.

Duties

As a Fire Protection Specialist (Fire Instructor), your duties will include but are not limited to the following: Serves as an instructor for all fire related suppression classes for course disciplines delivered in the NPS to include firefighter, driver operator, fire officer, live fire instructor and fire refresher. Provides technical expertise and serves as subject matter expert to assure language within aid agreement/contracts is comprehensive and meets the needs of any one NPS site requiring fire. Serves as the principal technical advisor for the Structure Fire Training Program in the areas of education and training systems design, course development, training implementation and evaluation, and qualification standards. Responsible for planning and developing experimental programs, evaluating results, and using pertinent findings to plan, develop, and implement new service-wide programs. Provides expert guidance and counsel for protection and suppression/training/prevention aspects of structural fire management policy development and implementation.

Requirements

Must be a U.S. Citizen or National. Suitability for Federal employment, as determined by background investigation. Direct Deposit Required. This is a bargaining unit position. Possess and maintain a valid driver's license. Must pass a pre-employment medical examination and may be subject to post-employment medical examinations to determine if they are maintaining the fitness standards for this position. You will be required to submit to a drug test and receive a negative drug test result prior to appointment. In addition, this position is subject to random testing for illegal drug use. This is a uniformed position; you will be authorized for occasional wear of the NPS Class A uniform to represent the NPS and the Structural Fire Program. Individuals assigned male at birth after 12-31-59 must be registered for the Selective Service. To verify registration, visit SSS.gov. A condition of employment for accepting this position, may be required to serve a 1-year probationary period OR 2-year trial period during which your fitness and whether your continued employment advances the public interest will be evaluated. The probationary or trial period is an extension of the appointment process and therefore requires the agency to determine if continued employment would advance the public interest, meet the organization goals and mission of the agency, and/or otherwise promote the efficiency of the service. In determining if your employment advances the public interest, the agency will consider:- your performance and conduct;- the needs and interests of the agency;- whether your continued employment would advance organizational goals of the agency or the Government; and- whether your continued employment would advance the efficiency of the Federal service. Under applicable law, the employment of an individual serving a probationary or trial period automatically terminates when that period ends unless the agency affirmatively certifies, in writing, that the individual's employment should continue and that their appointment should be finalized. In the absence of agency action to affirmatively certify continued employment beyond the probationary or trial period, such appointments are terminated. Upon completion of your [probationary period -OR- trial period] your employment will be terminated unless you receive certification, in writing, that your continued employment advances the public interest.

Qualifications

In order to qualify for this position, you must possess the Minimum Qualification requirements listed below: Selective Placement Factors (SPF): This position requires a special qualification that has been determined to be essential to perform the duties and will be used as a screen out element. Those who do not provide evidence they possess the following selective factor(s) will be rated not qualified: SPF #1: Candidates must possess prior structural firefighting experience. Structural Fire: The Department of the Interior defines structural firefighting experience as any firefighting experience except wildland firefighting. Structural experience may be gained though work in suppressing fires such as those in buildings, ships, vehicles, airstrips and aircraft, and other non-wildland firefighting. This experience may be gained by serving in a structural firefighting position within the federal government or in an equivalent position outside the Federal government. Periods of structural firefighting gained as a volunteer or paid call firefighter can also be credited. In some instances, candidates may be hired in a dual wildland and structural firefighting role. You must clearly demonstrate this experience in your resume, including the months, days and hours per week at which the work was performed in order to be considered. Firefighter Special Retirement (Secondary Coverage): This is a secondary/administrative fire position under the special retirement provisions of 5 U.S.C. 8336(c) (CSRS) and 5 U.S.C. 8412(d) (FERS). While secondary positions are not subject to the maximum entry age policy, the selectee must have prior service in a primary position and meet the transfer requirement for movement from a primary to secondary position to be eligible for special retirement coverage. It is the responsibility of the applicant to ensure this office has enough information to determine your retirement status to ensure you do not lose benefits (normally through submission of your SF-50). YOU MUST LET US KNOW IF YOU ARE CURRENTLY IN A PRIMARY POSITION.SPF #2: Successful completion and have currency in the following from the International Fire Service Accreditation Congress (IFSAC) or Professional Qualifications (Pro Board): International Fire Service Accreditation Congress (IFSAC) -OR- Pro-Board Hazmat-Awareness; AND Hazmat-Operations; AND Firefighter I; Firefighter II; AND Fire Officer I; Fire Officer II; Fire Officer III; AND Fire Instructor I, Fire Instructor II; AND Fire Inspector I; Fire Inspector II OR Fire Inspector 2024 standard Specialized Experience: In addition to meeting the basic entry requirement, applicants must have specialized experience to be found qualified. In order to be rated as qualified for this position, we must be able to determine that you meet the specialized experience requirement - please be sure to include this information in your resume. To be creditable, this experience must have been equivalent in difficulty and complexity to the next lower grade. To qualify for the GS-12 grade level, 1 year of creditable specialized experience equivalent to the GS-11 is required. Examples of work include, but are not limited to the following: Experience working in a progressive fire department as a chief fire officer (Asst. Fire chief, Deputy Fire Chief, Fire Chief.) Directing or assisting in directing the activities of a fire department; acting as the sole authority and command of a fire scene. Recommending and enforcing all department policies, procedures, rules, and regulations. Providing guidance to department officers in the planning and implementation of operations, programs, training, and personnel management. Responsible for the general direction, or supervision and evaluation of all paid and reserve personnel, including employee safety, training and job performance. Merit Promotion candidates must also meet Time-in-Grade requirements by 09/11/2026. Eligibility and Qualification Requirements: Applicants must meet both eligibility and qualification requirements for the position of interest by the closing date of the Job Announcement. Specifically, i. Area of Consideration. ii. Time-in-grade (TIG) requirements as specified in 5 CFR 300, Subpart F. iii. Time after competitive appointment as specified in 5 CFR 330.502.iv. Qualification requirements outlined in OPM's Qualifications Standards for General Schedule Positions.

Evaluations

You will be evaluated based on how your application materials reflect the qualification requirements of this position. Once the application process is complete, HR will review your application to ensure you meet eligibility and minimum qualifications. To determine if you are minimally qualified for this position, HR will complete a review of your resume, supporting documentation and responses to the online questionnaire. If an applicant's resume is incomplete or does not support the requirements for minimum qualifications or specialized experience a rating of "ineligible" or "not qualified" will be applied and no consideration for employment will be granted. In addition to meeting the minimum qualifications requirement(s), this position requires successful completion of the following additional assessment: Subject Matter Expert (SME) resume review. This assessment will measure the critical competencies listed below that are required to successfully perform in the position. Fire Management- Knowledge of the concepts, principles, and theories of fire management, including the characteristics, behavior, and ecology of fire; methodologies, strategies, and equipment used in prescribed fires; fire detection, prevention, and suppression strategies; and integration of fire with natural resource management. Education and Training - Knowledge of teaching, training, research, making presentations, lecturing, testing, and other instructional methods. Compliance - Knowledge of procedures for assessing, evaluating, and monitoring programs or projects for compliance with Federal laws, regulations, and guidance. Leadership - Inspires, motivates and guides others toward goal accomplishment; coaches, mentors, and challenges subordinates; adapts leadership styles to a variety of situations; models high standards of honesty, integrity, trust, openness, and respect for the individual by applying these values to daily behaviors. Decision Making - Makes sound, well informed, and objective decisions; perceives the impact and implications of decisions; commits to action, even in uncertain situations, to accomplish organizational goals; causes change. In the evaluation process, due weight will be given to job related experience, education, training, incentive awards and performance appraisals. Applicants must have a performance rating of at least the equivalent of fully successful to be eligible for promotion or placement. Applicants may provide a copy of a performance appraisal of record dated within the last 18 months. If the applicant is unable to provide a performance appraisal of record dated within the last 18 months, the applicant may provide a written explanation as to why. Candidates who apply under Noncompetitive Merit Promotion procedures will undergo a quality review to determine if they are minimally qualified based on the content of their resume and their responses to the questionnaire. Qualified candidates will be referred if all required supporting documentation has been provided. To preview the assessment questionnaire, click: https://apply.usastaffing.gov/ViewQuestionnaire/12996946

How to apply Resumes must not exceed two single-sided pages and resumes longer than two pages will not be accepted. The minimum font size is 10-point for all body text. Headers may be slightly larger but must remain legible. All resumes must maintain a minimum 0.5-inch margins on all sides to ensure readability and prevent excessive content compression. Including supplemental pages or attachments disguised as resume extensions are prohibited and will not be reviewed to determine your eligibility/qualifications.Review the appointment eligibility criteria in the application preview linked below. The eligibility section of the application allows you to choose how you wish to be considered for this vacancy announcement. You will ONLY be considered for the eligibilities that you select "yes" to and submit the required supporting documentation, as listed in the Required Documents section or the application text. You may qualify for more than one eligibility, so please choose carefully. If you respond that you do not meet any of the eligibility criteria, you will not be considered for this position under this announcement. To apply for this position, you must provide a complete Application Package. See required documents section. Click 'Apply' to create an account or log in to your existing USAJOBS account. Follow the prompts to complete the assessment questionnaire and upload required documents. To preview the assessment questionnaire, click https://apply.usastaffing.gov/ViewQuestionnaire/12996946. Please ensure you check the acknowledgement checkbox then click the Submit Application button to submit your application. Applications must be received by 09/11/2026, 11:59pm Eastern Time to receive consideration. Check application status by logging into your USAJOBS account, in Applications tab, click the position title you applied to for the status. For information on what each Application Status means, visit: https://www.usajobs.gov/Help/how-to/application/status/. NOTE: INSUFFICIENT OR INCOMPLETE INFORMATION FROM AN APPLICANT COULD RESULT IN AN INELIGIBLE RATING. If you are unable to apply online, you must request an alternative application which is available from the Human Resources Office. Please refer to the contact information listed at the bottom of the announcement.Note: Federal employees who have reinstatement eligibility please review the How to Apply for Reinstatement page for all required documents.

Other information Career Transition Assistance Plan (CTAP) or Interagency Career Transition Assistance Plan (ICTAP): Department of Interior (DOI) Career Transition Assistance Plan (CTAP) procedures apply in filling this vacancy. These programs apply to employees who have been involuntarily separated from a federal service position within the competitive service or Federal service employees whose positions have been deemed surplus or no longer needed. To receive selection priority for this position, you must: (1) meet CTAP or ICTAP eligibility criteria; (2) be rated well-qualified (i.e., meet the minimum qualification requirements, including any selective placement factors; education, and experience requirements) for the position with a score of 85 or above on the assessment questionnaire, and be able to perform the duties of the position upon entry. Applicants claiming CTAP/ICTAP eligibility must submit a copy of their most recent performance appraisal, proof of eligibility, and most current SF-50 noting position, grade level, and duty location Reemployment Priority List (RPL): The RPL is the mechanism agencies use to give reemployment consideration to their former competitive service employees separated by a RIF or who have fully recovered from a compensable injury after more than one year. If you are currently on an RPL, you may be given priority consideration. PCS INFORMATION: Yes, entitlements for payment of basic moving expenses, as required and to the extent allowed by the Federal Travel Regulation (FTR) 302-3.101, are authorized for eligible applicants changing duty station when the change meets the distance tests as provided in FTR 302-1.1 and 302-2.6. All moving expenses are taxable. If eligible and qualified, you may be offered a recruitment or relocation incentive. The decision to offer an incentive will be made on a case-by-case basis and is neither promised nor guaranteed. Reasonable Accommodation: The USWFS provides reasonable accommodations to applicants with disabilities. Please visit USAJOBS Help Center | Reasonable accommodation policy if you need a reasonable accommodation for any part of the application and hiring process. Telework: This position is suitable for telework and may be allowed to telework with supervisory approval.