BIOLOGIST (BI02); SR. BIOLOGIST (BI03) *Amendment to the position locations.*

Important messages

When submitting an application to this selection process, you will be prompted to answer screening questions concerning the essential education, and the essential and asset experience qualifications. You do not need to, nor should you, also describe your work experience in your cover letter. You will be instructed to provide detailed descriptions of your experience in your application, in the form of responses to the screening questions. It is your responsibility to provide clear and concrete examples in your responses, including when (from/ to), where (occupational title, organization) and how you obtained your education and experience. Describe the situation/task, the action you took, what you accomplished and/or what you learned.

The content of your response must be supported by your resume, as your responses to these questions will be used as a primary source of information and your resume will only be used to validate this information. Lack of examples and details, or indicating "please refer to resume", will result in your application being rejected as the Assessment Board will have insufficient information to determine if the requirement is met.

The Assessment Board cannot make assumptions about your experience. It is insufficient to say that you have the required qualifications or to list your current or past duties. Rather, using the application tool, candidates must demonstrate how they meet the listed education and experience criteria by providing clear and concrete examples.

Clear and concrete examples are defined as illustrations in which you fully explain the actions, considerations and steps you completed in order to gain the experience you are describing. This detailed contextual information will be used by the board members to assess whether you have sufficient experience in a relevant field to complete your assigned tasks should you be considered for a position. You may wish to start your submissions with a sentence similar to: “A clear and concrete example of a situation where I did X is a situation which occurred on Y date and my role in this activity was to...”.

Also, when reading the experience criteria, please pay close attention to action words contained within and ensure the examples you chose to include speak to all of them. Similar attention should be given to punctuation and connector words such as “commas”, “and” and “or” as these have a different function when used to describe an experience criteria. Action words or activities separated with a “,” and connected with an “and” must all be demonstrated with concrete examples, as they are all deemed essential by the hiring manager. Conversely, when action words or activities are separated with a “,” and connected with an “or”, candidates may provide concrete examples for only one of the activities listed in the criterion as in this case, the hiring manager is looking for someone who has experience in at least one of the activities but not necessarily all of them.

For example, when responding to a criterion which reads: “Experience reading, writing and publishing instructions for a competitive process”, you must provide concrete examples of situations where you read instructions, where you wrote instructions as well as where you published instructions for a competitive process. These may be part of the same example; however, you must provide sufficient detail to cover all three actions because all are essential.

When responding to an experience criterion which reads: “Experience reading, writing or publishing instructions for a competitive process” you must provide concrete examples for a minimum of one situation where you either read, wrote or published instructions for a competitive process. However, you may still provide concrete examples for all action words or activities, if applicable, as this will provide board members with additional information to assess the breadth of your experience.

Finally, if the examples you provide speak of experience that was acquired in a team setting, please be specific as to your exact role within this team as it is your experience the board will be looking to assess and not that of your team.

Duties

The Central and Arctic Region of Fisheries and Oceans Canada (DFO), Ecosystems Management Branch, is seeking to recruit enthusiastic aquatic biologists to join its team of staff dedicated to the delivery of its policy, program and regulatory responsibilities under the Fisheries Act, the Species at Risk Act, and the Oceans Act. The Ecosystem Management Branch is responsible for the following programs, which together support DFO’s mandate of maintaining the sustainability and ongoing productivity of Canada’s freshwater and marine resources:

• Aquatic Invasive Species Program
• Fisheries Protection Program
• Oceans Program
• Species At Risk Program

DFO-Ecosystems Management biologists are involved with the following types of work:

• Protecting Canada’s valuable fisheries from Aquatic Invasive Species (AIS) by monitoring and implementing controls to address existing and new AIS threats
• Reviewing development proposals or federal contaminated sites to recommend appropriate mitigation or offsetting measures to ensure that fisheries and aquatic Species at Risk (SAR) are protected
• Developing Best Management Practices and Guidelines for project proponents to apply to their activities
• Developing and administering contribution agreements to restore freshwater fisheries and coastal habitats through programs such as the Recreational Fisheries Conservation Partnerships Program or the Coastal Restoration Fund.
• Identifying ecologically sensitive areas and protecting fish and marine mammal habitats through the development of Marine Protected Areas. This work contributes to Canada’s Marine Conservation Target initiative to protect at least 10% of the marine coastline by 2020
• Participating in the SAR listing process and the development of SAR Recovery Plans

If you are interested in any or all of these exciting areas of our program, we look forward to receiving your application.

Work environment

Fisheries and Oceans Canada is responsible for policies and programs in support of Canada's economic, ecological and scientific interests in oceans and inland waters; for the conservation and sustainable utilization of Canada's fisheries resources in marine and inland waters; for leading and facilitating federal policies and programs on oceans; and for safe, effective and environmentally sound marine services responsive to the needs of Canadians in a global economy.

Intent of the process

A pool of qualified candidates will be established through this process to staff BI-02 and BI-03 Ecosystems Management positions on an indeterminate or temporary basis (term, acting assignment, or secondment) throughout Central and Arctic Region. The pool of qualified candidates may also be used to staff similar positions throughout Central and Arctic Region.

Positions to be filled: Number to be determined

Information you must provide

Your résumé.

A covering letter in 2,000 words (maximum)

You must meet all essential qualifications in order to be appointed to the position. Other qualifications may be a deciding factor in choosing the person to be appointed. Some essential and other qualifications will be assessed through your application. It is your responsibility to provide appropriate examples that illustrate how you meet each qualification. Failing to do so could result in your application being rejected.

In order to be considered, your application must clearly explain how you meet the following (essential qualifications)

For all positions:
Graduation with a degree from a recognized post-secondary institution in a natural, physical or applied science with specialization in a field relevant to the duties of the position.

Degree equivalency

If you possess any of the following, your application must also clearly explain how you meet it (other qualifications)

For all positions:
Experience providing regulatory advice or mitigating the impacts of development activities on fish or fish habitat.

Experience with monitoring or compliance activities related to fish habitat.

Experience related to the conservation, protection and/or recovery of Species At Risk under federal, provincial or territorial SAR legislation.

Experience planning or developing marine conservation areas or integrated oceans management initiatives.

Experience with the assessment or management of invasive species.

Experience with collaborative initiatives with Indigenous groups, other levels of government, Non-Government organizations, industry or other stakeholders.

Experience conducting scientific risk assessments with ecological or environmental protection objectives.

Experience with Indigenous consultation.

Experience with formal public consultation.

Experience with toxicology, risk management or risk assessment associated with the remediation of contaminated sites.

Experience developing environmental standards or guidelines.

Experience administering grants or contribution agreements.

Experience applying scientific knowledge and utilizing Geographic Information Systems to analyze data and present recommendations.

Experience restoring fish habitat.

For BI03 positions only:

Extensive* experience providing science-based advice on complex** issues related to aquatic resource conservation or management.

Note: * Extensive means a minimum of five (5) year’s work experience
** Complex means multifaceted and multi-client issues (applicants to describe the types of issues ).

For BI03 positions only:

Significant* experience managing project teams, project budgets and timelines
Note: * Significant means a minimum of three (3) year’s work experience.

The following will be applied / assessed at a later date (essential for the job)

English essential

Information on language requirements

For BI02 positions only:
Experience providing science-based advice on issues related to the conservation or management of aquatic species or ecosystems.

For BI03 positions only:

Significant* experience providing science-based advice on complex** issues related to aquatic resource conservation or management.


NOTE:
* Significant means a minimum of three (3) year’s work experience.
** Complex means multifaceted and multi-client issues (applicants to describe the types of issues).

For BI03 positions only:

Significant* experience with collaborative initiatives or partnerships with Indigenous groups, other levels of government, Non-Government Organizations, industry or other stakeholders.

NOTE:
* Significant means a minimum of three (3) year’s work experience.

For BI03 positions only:

Experience supervising people and/or project teams.

For all positions:
Knowledge of life history and habitat requirements of freshwater, OR marine, fish and marine mammals, that are part of, or support, commercial, recreational or Indigenous fisheries found in the Central and Arctic Region of Fisheries and Oceans Canada.

For all positions:
Ability to communicate orally.
Ability to communicate in writing.
Ability to work effectively in a team.
Ability to analyse information and provide advice.
Ability to manage multiple priorities and meet deadlines.

For all positions:
Interpersonal skills
Initiative
Judgement
Values and Ethics

For BI-03 positions only:
Leadership

The following may be applied / assessed at a later date (may be needed for the job)

For all positions:
Knowledge of Fisheries and Oceans Canada’s legislation and policy that applies to aquatic resource management in its Central and Arctic Region.
Knowledge of the impacts of development activities on fish or fish habitat and ways to mitigate them.

Conditions of employment

Reliability Status security clearance

Willingness and ability to work overtime.
Willingness and ability to travel, including overnight stays, and occasionally to remote areas.

The following Conditions of Employment vary depending on position to be staffed and may include:
Isolated post medical clearance, if applicable.
Valid driver's licence or mobility to the degree normally associated with a valid Driver's Licence.

Other information

Reference checks will be sought.
An interview will be administered.
A written examination will be administered.

Candidates invited to the interview will be required to bring their original education credentials, a current driver's licence and proof of citizenship for verification.

Candidates with foreign credentials must provide proof of Canadian equivalency. Consult the Canadian Information Centre for International Credentials for further information at http://www.cicic.ca/indexe.stm.

Candidates from outside the federal public service may be required to pay for their own travel and relocation expenses.

Top down selection may be used at any point in the assessment process.

Acknowledgment of receipt of applications will not be sent; we will contact candidates when the screening process is completed.

Persons are entitled to participate in the appointment process in the official language of their choice. Applicants are asked to indicate their preferred official language in their application.

Fisheries and Oceans Canada has an Accommodation Policy and will accommodate up to the point of undue hardship for the duration of the selection process, and upon any offer of employment, for the performance of duties in the position.

An alternative format (such as Braille) of this notice is available upon request.
Persons with disabilities preventing them from applying on-line are asked to contact 1-800-645-5605.

Successful candidate(s) must meet and maintain the Conditions of Employment throughout their employment.

PLEASE NOTE: For this selection process, our intention is to communicate with applicants by e-mail. Applicants who apply to this selection process must ensure their email address is functional at all times and accepts messages from unknown users.

The Public Service of Canada is committed to building a skilled, diverse workforce reflective of Canadian society. As a result, it promotes employment equity and encourages candidates to indicate voluntarily on their application if they are a woman, an Aboriginal person, a person with a disability or a member of a visible minority group.

The Public Service of Canada is also committed to developing inclusive, barrier-free selection processes and work environments. If contacted in relation to a job opportunity or testing, you should advise the Public Service Commission or the departmental official in a timely fashion of the accommodation measures which must be taken to enable you to be assessed in a fair and equitable manner. Information received relating to accommodation measures will be addressed confidentially.

Preference

Preference will be given to veterans and to Canadian citizens, in that order.

Information on the preference to veterans

We thank all those who apply. Only those selected for further consideration will be contacted.