Biological Science Information Specialist

Find Your Future With Us at USDA – Animal Plant Health Inspection Service Job Summary This position is located within the Animal Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS), Veterinary Services (VS), Strategy & Policy (S&P), Center for Informatics unit. Strategy and Policy is dedicated to safeguarding the health of all animal species critical to animal agriculture, facilitating trade in animals and animal products and strengthening animal health infrastructures both nationally and internationally through surveillance, monitoring, risk analysis, spatial epidemiology, and modeling. Qualifications 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 REQUIREMENT: Degree: biological sciences, agriculture, natural resource management, chemistry, or related disciplines appropriate to the position. OR Combination of education and experience: Courses equivalent to a major, as shown above, plus appropriate experience or additional education. FOR THE GS-12 LEVEL: Applicants must have one year of specialized experience (equivalent to the GS-11 grade level) that demonstrates: - Creating automation tools using scripting tools such as Python, JavaScript, VBScript, or other object oriented scripting language. - Designing, developing and programming data visualizations in tools such as Tableau, Power BI, other dashboards, or web data tables, to report and present data trends or statistical data. - Participated in developing quantitative and qualitative design approaches to effectively perform evaluations or other data analytics and communicating results to both technical and nontechnical audiences. Note: There is no education substitution for this grade level. FOR THE GS-13 LEVEL: Applicants must have one year of specialized experience (equivalent to the GS-12 level) that may have been obtained in the private or public (local, county, state, Federal) sectors which demonstrates: - Creating automation tools using scripting tools such as Python, JavaScript, VBScript, or other object oriented scripting language and/or statistical software such as SAS, R, or other statistical software. - Designing, developing and programming data visualizations in tools such as Tableau, Power BI, other dashboards, or web data tables, to report and present program results, data trends, risk analyses, or statistical data. - Developing quantitative and qualitative design approaches to effectively perform evaluations or other data analytics and communicating results to both technical and nontechnical audiences. Note: There is no education substitution for this grade level. TRANSCRIPTS are required: This position requires specific coursework or a degree in a specific field to be basically qualified. This education must have been successfully completed and obtained from an accredited school, college, or university. 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. Major Duties The duties described are for the full-performance level. At developmental grade levels, assignments will be of more limited scope, performed with less independence and limited complexity. The duties may include, but are not limited to:Analyzes a variety of data sources to provide data-driven insights to the organization to streamline Federal program evaluation and oversight, including efforts to prevent waste, fraud, and abuse.Derives meaning from big data including structured, loosely structured, and unstructured data.Provides professional leadership in developing policies, standards, and operating procedures pertaining to data collection and analyses.Develops data products such as dashboards, reports, and visualizations using Tableau and other data visualization platforms such as Microsoft Power Business Intelligence.Plans, develops, implements, and manages data and information requirements for emerging issues, emergency response, and national and international animal health and genetics related information.Translates complex concepts, findings, and limitations into concise, plain language and presents results of data analyses to non-technical audiences.Provides advice and guidance to team members on project decisions and recommendations.Directs internal process or system reviews, studies, projects, and data validation efforts, which provide a means to evaluate system performance and vulnerabilities.Advises Federal and contractor staff on implementing, managing, tracking and evaluating large scale and extremely complex data projects and their associated requirements and risks. Position Start Date: 09/12/2025 Position Close Date: 09/18/2025 Salary Offered: 88621 - 155164 USD Per Year You can make a difference! The U.S. Department of Agriculture's (USDA) Marketing and Regulatory Programs (MRP) needs bright, energetic and committed professionals to facilitate the domestic and international marketing of U.S. agricultural products and to protect the health and care of animals and plants in the United States. We operate in domestic and global markets. Be part of an organization that protects the health and agriculture of the American people. Join our team! To learn more about what it's like to work at the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, what the agency does, and the types of careers, please visit the APHIS careers site. APHIS is an emergency response agency. This means that all Agency employees may be asked or assigned to participate in rotating temporary duty assignments to support emergency programs at some time during their careers with APHIS. For details click: APHIS Emergency Response Please see the full announcement on USAJobs by clicking on the APPLY button!