Federal

Hydrologist

๐Ÿ“ Peachtree City, Georgia GS-14 $125,776 - $185,193/yr
Posted: Mar 5, 2026 Deadline: Mar 18, 2026 (Closed days left)

About This Position

This position is located in the River Forecast Center (RFC) with vacancies in each listed location. The RFCs keep watch over the nation's waterways to minimize loss of life and property damage from flooding and meet the water service needs of our nation. RFCs produce timely and accurate water forecasts and information to support the NWS customers and partners. RFCs produce flood forecasts, river and water information used for navigation, recreation, reservoir operations, and water supply plans.

Qualifications

Qualification requirements in the vacancy announcements are based on the U.S. Office of Personnel Management (OPM) Qualification Standards Handbook, which contains federal qualification standards. This handbook is available on the Office of Personnel Management's website located at: https://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/classification-qualifications/general-schedule-qualification-standards/ BASIC REQUIREMENTS: This position has a positive Education Requirement

in addition to at least one year of Specialized Experience in order to be found minimally qualified. Transcripts must be submitted with your application package.

You MUST meet the following requirements: To qualify for the 1315 series: EDUCATION: A. Degree: physical or natural science, or engineering that included at least 30 semester hours in any combination of courses in hydrology, the physical sciences, geophysics, chemistry, engineering science, soils, mathematics, aquatic biology, atmospheric science, meteorology, geology, oceanography, or the management or conservation of water resources. The course work must have included at least 6 semester hours in calculus (including both differential and integral calculus), and at least 6 semester hours in physics.

Calculus and physics, as described above, are requirements for all grade levels. -OR- B. Combination of education and experience: course work as shown in A above, plus appropriate experience or additional education. -AND- SPECIALIZED EXPERIENCE: Applicants must possess one year of specialized experience equivalent in difficulty and responsibility to the next lower grade level in the Federal Service. Specialized experience is experience that has equipped the applicant with the particular competencies/knowledge, skills and abilities to successfully perform the duties of the position.

This experience need not have been in the federal government. 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. To qualify at the GS-14 level: SPECIALIZED EXPERIENCE:

In addition to meeting the Basic Requirements above, applicants must also possess one full year (52 weeks) of specialized experience equivalent to the GS-13 in the Federal service. Specialized experience MUST include all of the following: Utilizing hydrologic systems to formulate and issue hydrological forecasts; Coordinating, testing, or planning processes and procedures for real-time hydrometeorological events; and Distributing hydrologic forecast products and services to customers or partners.

Major Duties

As a Hydrologist, you will perform the following duties: The working title for this position is Service Coordination Hydrologist. Lead collaboration and coordination of hydro-meteorological products and Impact-Based Decision Support Services for customers and partners. Review office products and services and recommend adjustments, additions and enhancement as necessary.

Develop educational and outreach programs to acquaint customers with office forecast, service, and information programs. Work closely with the offices to identify, plan, coordinate, and implement outreach activities. Serve as office supervisor when designated.

Serve as senior forecaster on shift duty when necessary.

Conditions of Employment

Key Requirements: Applicants must be U.S. Citizens. Suitable for Federal employment, as determined by background investigation. More requirements are listed under Qualifications and Additional Information.

Must be registered for Selective Service, if applicable (www.sss.gov) Qualification requirements must be met by closing date of the announcement. Additional Considerations: One year probationary period may be required. Payment of relocation expenses (PCS) may be authorized.

Background investigation will be required. Continued employment is subject to applicant's successful completion of security investigation and favorable adjudication. Failure to successfully meet these requirements will be grounds for termination." *Note: A one year probationary period will be required under the Direct Hire Authority unless you are a current Department of Commerce (including NOAA) employee and are in the same line of work and with no more than a 30 day break in service.

As a condition of employment for accepting this position, for those required to serve a 1-year probationary period, we will evaluate your fitness and whether your continued employment advances the public interest. In determining if your employment advances the public interest, we may consider: Your performance and conduct; 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 then Federal service. Upon completion of your probationary period, your employment will be terminated unless you receive certification, in writing, that your continued employment advances the public interest.

CONDITIONS OF EMPLOYMENT: The work is generally sedentary. However, long arduous work periods may be required when flood conditions threaten or occur. During flood events, the duty may result in extended periods of stressful activity.

Throughout the recruitment and hiring process we will be communicating with you via email; therefore, it is imperative that the email address you provide when applying for this vacancy remains active. Should your email address change, please notify the point of contact identified in the vacancy announcement as soon as possible so that we can update our system.

Education

Substitution of education for specialized experience is not applicable to this vacancy.

This position has a positive Education Requirement. You are required to provide all unofficial transcripts (undergraduate, graduate, etc.) by the closing date of this announcement or you will be disqualified from further consideration. If course content cannot be easily identified from the title of the course as listed on your transcript, you must submit an official course description from the college/university that reflects the content at the time the course was taken.

We may only consider documentation provided prior to the closing date of the announcement. Please see degree and experience requirements in the Qualifications section.

Note: An official college transcript will be required before you can report to duty. Education completed in colleges or universities outside the United States may be used to meet the above requirements.

You must provide acceptable documentation that the foreign education is comparable to that received in an accredited educational institution in the United States. For more information on how foreign education is evaluated, visit: OPM Foreign Education Evaluation.

How You Will Be Evaluated

We will review your resume and supporting documentation to determine if you meet the minimum qualifications for the position.

Your qualifications will be evaluated based on your application materials (e.g., resume, supporting documents). Additionally, applicants will also be evaluated using Structured Interviews administered by one person or a panel of interviewers, who have extensive knowledge of the job and are trained in conducting interviews. These interviews will measure aspects of job performance and may be behavioral- or situational-based questions.

The interviews are assessed in a Pass/Fail format. Veteran's Preference does not apply to direct hire recruitment procedures. If referred, all relevant documents submitted with your application package will be forwarded to the hiring official for review.

To preview the announcement questionnaire, click here:https://apply.usastaffing.gov/ViewQuestionnaire/12901160

Additional Information

Any selections made under this notice will be processed as new appointments to the civil service. Therefore, Current Federal employees would be given new appointments to the civil service and may have to serve a new probationary period under CFR 315.802 (b). During the application process you will have an option to opt-in to make your resume available to hiring managers in the agency who have similar positions.

Opting in does not impact your application for this announcement, nor does it guarantee further consideration for additional positions. ICTAP and CTAP Candidates: Eligible for selection priority if it is determined that the applicant is well qualified. Information about ICTAP eligibility is on OPM's Career Transition Resources website at: Employee Guide to Career Transition.

ICTAP applicants MUST submit the following documents: Copy of your RIF separation notice; notice of proposed removal for failure to relocate; notice of disability annuity termination; certification from your former agency that it cannot place you after your recovery from a compensable injury; or certification from the National Guard Bureau or Military Department that you are eligible for disability retirement; Copy of your SF-50 "Notification of Personnel Action" documenting your RIF separation, noting your positions, grade level, and duty location, and/or Agency certification of inability to place you through RPL, etc; Copy of your latest performance appraisal including your rating; and Any documentation from your agency that shows your current promotion potential. CTAP applicants MUST submit the following documents: Copy of your specific RIF notice; notice of proposed removal for failure to relocate; a Certificate of Expected Separation (CES); or certification that you are in a surplus organization or occupation (this could be a position abolishment letter, a notice eligibility for discontinued service retirement, or similar notice). Copy of your SF-50 "Notification of Personnel Action", noting current position, grade level, and duty location; Copy of your latest performance appraisal including your rating; and Any documentation from your agency that shows your current promotion potential.

NOAA participates in e-Verify, an Internet-based system operated by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) in partnership with the Social Security Administration (SSA) that enables participating employers to electronically verify the employment eligibility of their newly hired employees. The Federal Government is an Equal Opportunity Employer. Candidates will not be hired based on their race, sex, color, religion, or national origin.

How to Apply

Please read the entire announcement and all the instructions before you begin an application. To apply and be considered for this position, you must complete all required questionnaires, assessments and submit all required documentation as specified in the How to Apply and Required Documents section.

The complete application package must be submitted by 11:59 PM (ET) on the closing date of the announcement to receive consideration. The application process is as follows: Click the blue "Apply Online" button. If you are not a registered USAJOBS user, please create a new account and follow the instructions to complete your application process.

If you are a registered user, login to access your existing USAJOBS profile. As a registered user, select a stored resume and select one or more of your stored documents to attach to your application. Check the "Certification" box and click the "Apply for this position now!" button located at the bottom of the screen.

Address the eligibility questions as well as the application questionnaire containing questions and/or task statements that address the knowledge, skills, abilities and/or competencies for this vacancy. If you experience technical difficulties during the online application process, please contact the USAJOBS helpdesk To update your application, including supporting documentation: During the announcement open period, return to your USAJOBS account, find your application record, and click Edit my application. This option will no longer be available once the announcement has closed.

Required Documents

REQUIRED DOCUMENTS (may be: (1) uploaded directly from your desktop; or (2) uploaded directly from your USAJOBS stored attachments): 1. Resume: Only resumes up to a total of two pages will be accepted. Applicants with resumes exceeding two pages will be removed from consideration.

Reference the USAJobs Help Center for additional recommendations and instructions. You are encouraged to make your resume and profile searchable https://help.usajobs.gov/how-to/account/profile/searchable. You are highly encouraged to use USAJOBS Resume Builder to ensure all required information is included in your Resume.

If you use your own resume or curriculum vitae, for each work experience at a minimum, your resume should include; job title(s) (including job series and grade, if Federal); description of duties or work performed; starting and ending dates (month and year). Part-Time work must be clearly identified and include the number of hours per week; if not identified, then work will be assumed to be Full-Time. (NOTE: A full-time work schedule requires most employees to work 33-40 hours during the work week. A part-time schedule requires an employee to work less than full-time, typically 16-32 hours per week.) 2.

Unofficial Transcripts: This position has a positive education requirement and therefore, requires proof of higher education.

You must submit an unofficial transcript that includes the following information: name of accredited institution; courses by title; number and department (BIO 101 Intro to Bio, MATH 210 Calculus I, etc.); grades earned; completion dates; quarter or semester hours earned; and degree award date (if applicable).

Note: Your college transcript is used to verify successful completion of degree, or college course work. An official college transcript will be required before you can report to duty. Special Instructions for Foreign Education: Education completed in foreign colleges or universities must be evaluated in terms of equivalency to that acquired in U.S. colleges and universities. Applicants educated in whole or in part in foreign countries must submit sufficient evidence, including transcripts, to an accredited private organization for an equivalency evaluation of course work and degree.

You MUST provide a copy of the letter containing the results of the equivalency evaluation with a course by course listing along with your application. Failure to provide such documentation by the closing date of the announcement will result in lost consideration.

  1. Career Transition Assistance Plan (CTAP) and Interagency Career Transition Assistance Plan (ICTAP) documentation if applicable (see Additional Information).

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the salary for the Hydrologist position at National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration?
The salary range for this position is $125,776 - $185,193/yr. This is a GS-14 position on the General Schedule pay scale. Actual pay may vary based on locality adjustments.
Where is the Hydrologist job located?
This position is located in Peachtree City, Georgia. This is an on-site position.
What qualifications do I need?
Qualification requirements in the vacancy announcements are based on the U.S. Office of Personnel Management (OPM) Qualification Standards Handbook, which contains federal qualification standards. This handbook is available on the Office of Personnel Management's website located at: https://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/classification-qualif...
How do I apply for this position?
Apply through USAJobs.gov by clicking the 'Apply on USAJobs' button. You'll need a USAJobs account, a federal-style resume, and supporting documents. The deadline is Mar 18, 2026.
Is a security clearance required?
No security clearance is required for this position.
What does GS-14 mean?
GS-14 refers to the General Schedule grade level. Higher grades require more experience and offer higher pay. Visit our GS Pay Scale page for full salary tables by grade and locality.
What benefits do federal employees receive?
Federal employees receive comprehensive benefits including health insurance (FEHB), retirement through FERS, Thrift Savings Plan (TSP) with government matching, paid annual and sick leave, paid parental leave, life insurance, and student loan repayment programs.