EC-05 & 06 Inventory for Various Epidemiologists and Bio-Statisticians Positions

Important messages

What is an inventory?

When you apply to this selection process, you are not applying for a specific job, but to an inventory to fill upcoming employment opportunities at the EC-05 & EC-06 group and level within the Public Health Agency of Canada. Applicants who apply to an inventory process may be referred for one or more opportunities if they meet the needs of the position identified for staffing. Management can decide to access applications at any point so please ensure you submit your application as soon as possible.

**The first pull of candidate applications could happen as early as August 7, 2018.**

How can you apply?

We want to attract top talent. Therefore we are focusing on your competencies not your knowledge. We are also taking a simplified approach for you to apply to this process. To apply for this process:
• provide your resume (no cover letter needed)
• answer a questionnaire online

When you apply you will be asked a series of screening questions based on the education and experience criteria below. When answering the screening questions, please provide:
- Concrete and detailed examples to demonstrate how you meet the qualifications;
- Where, when and how the experience was acquired.

We can’t make any assumptions about your experience. Simply saying you have the required qualifications or listing your current duties is not enough. We’ll only use your résumé as a secondary source of information. The depth and breadth of experience of an applicant may be considered as part of screening or selection of a candidate, which is why it is recommended you quantify your experience. The screening questions are the primary source of information the screening board may use and your resume may only be used as a secondary source to verify information.

We will only accept on-line applications received via the Public Service Jobs site. Apart from general inquiries, further documentation and applications emailed to the poster contact will not be accepted. You will only be asked for further documentation if you are contacted for further assessment. If you have a disability or are residing in a location that is preventing you from applying on-line you are asked to contact 1-800-645-5605.

More information about maintaining your application, screening & assessment can be found at the bottom of this advertisement.

Duties

The incumbent will work in one of the Infectious Disease Prevention and Control Branch’s Centres within PHAC perfoming the following activities, including but not limited to:

EC05:
Plans, conducts and co-ordinates surveillance and/or epidemiologic research and analyses involving multi-disciplinary teams; analyses results of research and surveillance to assess impact on policy, programs initiatives and strategic plans; drafts and disseminates reports to stakeholders and prepares data/statistics and information for briefings, presentations, responses to Ministerial enquiries, the media and the public; provides advice and recommendations to senior researchers, senior epidemiologists and PHAC staff on epidemiological issues, trends and approaches to contribute to the decision-making process; contributes to the development of collaborative working relationships with partners and stakeholders, writes and publishes scientific papers.


EC06:
Plans, manages and co-ordinates surveillance and/or epidemiologic research and analyses involving multi-disciplinary teams; leads project teams in the conduct of surveillance and research; critically evaluates scientific evidence to develop recommendations to support evidenced-based decision making and strategic planning; drafts briefings, presentations and responses for PHAC executives, the media and the public; fosters collaborative working relationships with partners and stakeholders to develop mechanisms and procedures to manage research projects, surveillance and risk assessment activities; represents the branch/Agency in national and international settings; gathers and disseminates information and scientific evidence to stakeholders and researchers, writes and publishes scientific papers.

Work environment

The Public Health Agency of Canada is part of the Health Portfolio of the Government of Canada, committed to help protect the health and safety of all Canadians. Its activities focus on preventing chronic diseases, like cancer and heart disease, preventing injuries and responding to public health emergencies and infectious disease outbreaks.
The Infectious Disease Prevention and Control Branch is composed of program centres, laboratory, and corporate services:
1) Centre for Communicable Diseases and Infection Control
2) Centre for Food-Borne, Environmental and Zoonotic Infectious Diseases
3) Centre for Immunization and Respiratory Infectious Diseases
4) National Microbiology Laboratory
5) Office of the Chief Science Officer

You can learn more about the Public Health Agency of Canada by visiting: https://www.canada.ca/en/public-health.html
https://www.canada.ca/fr/sante-publique.html

Intent of the process

This inventory will be used to staff immediate and future EC-05 and EC-06 vacant positions of various linguistic profiles, conditions of employment, geographic locations, security requirements and various tenures (permanent, specified term, acting, deployment, assignment, term, secondment) within the Public Health Agency of Canada.

All federal organizations listed in Schedules I, IV and V of the Financial Administration Act (FAA) may use this selection process to appoint a candidate to its organization in a similar position.

Positions to be filled: Number to be determined

Information you must provide

Your résumé.

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

Graduation with a degree from a recognized university with acceptable specialization in economics, sociology or statistics and epidemiology (or another specialization relevant to the position being staffed e.g. epidemiology, public health or health sciences).

Note: Candidates must always have a university degree. The courses for the specialization do not necessarily have to be part of a degree program in the required specialization. The specialization may also be obtained through an acceptable combination of education, training and/or experience.

Degree equivalency

Essential Experience(s) (Common to all EC-05 & EC-06 positions):
• Experience in applied epidemiology (e.g., conducting or coordinating outbreak investigations, disease surveillance or other applied epidemiological studies).
• Experience maintaining collaborative working relationships with stakeholders.
• Experience working in a public health or health sciences environment involving infectious disease.

Essential Experience(s) (Common to all EC-06 positions only):
• Significant* experience in the management and analyses of data from health surveillance programs, large-scale** epidemiological studies/research projects or epidemiological outbreak investigations
• Significant* experience in leading stakeholders on complex epidemiological issues.

(*) Significant is defined as having this experience for a minimum of 2 years.
(**) Large-scale epidemiological studies are defined as “national and/or multi-provincial/jurisdictional studies involving at least three collaborator organizations.

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

Various language requirements
English Essential; or Bilingual Imperative (Various Bilingual Profiles – BBB/BBB, CBC/CBC).

Information on language requirements

Essential Knowledge (Common to all EC-05 & EC-06 positions)
• Knowledge of theories and practices of epidemiology utilized in design and implementation/operation of public health surveillance systems, public health observational research, and public health action(s) (e.g., outbreak response)
• Knowledge of the Canadian public health system, including key domestic and international stakeholders.

Essential Competencies (Common to all EC-05 & EC-06 positions):
• Communication (Oral and Written)
• Working effectively with others
• Thinking Things Through

Essential Competencies (Common to all EC-06 positions only):
• Leadership

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

Candidates MAY also be required to meet ONE OR MORE of the following education factors, depending on the requirements of the specific position being staffed (essential or asset criteria):

• Graduation with a Master’s degree from a recognized post-secondary institution with an acceptable*** specialization in epidemiology, public health or specialization relevant to the position being staffed.

*** for the acceptable specialization in epidemiology, candidates must have successfully completed two semesters of graduate-level epidemiological methods and one semester of graduate level biostatistics.

• Graduation with a Doctoral or Clinical degree (PhD, MD, DVM, RN) from a recognized post-secondary institution.

Applicants who apply to an inventory process may be referred for one or more opportunities if they meet the needs of the position identified for staffing. Since the position needs may vary from one position to another it is important that you carefully read each screening question and respond whether you meet it or not. If you meet any of the following experience criteria, please clearly indicate it in your application and describe the dates, duration, and breadth to which you meet it as this may result in you being referred to more opportunities.

Degree equivalency

Candidates MAY also be required to meet ONE OR MORE of the following experience factors, depending on the requirements of the specific position being staffed (essential or asset criteria):

Essential or Asset Experience (Common to all EC-05 & EC-06 positions):
1. Experience writing scientific or technical documents, such as surveillance reports, manuscripts for peer reviewed journals, project proposals, or reports to funding agencies.
2. Experience in epidemiological, or statistical modeling.
3. Experience working with external stakeholders such as other government organizations, non-governmental organizations and/or patient advocacy groups.
4. Experience in conducting risk assessments or risk analysis.
5. Experience in responding to infectious disease outbreaks.
6. Experience planning, developing or delivering content used in public health training such as a workshop, in-person or online training course.
7. Experience providing recommendations to management.
8. Experience in analysing survey data
9. Experience in the development and management of infectious disease surveillance systems.

Candidates MAY be required to meet ONE OR MORE of the following qualifications, depending on the requirements of the specific position being staffed as they may be deemed as either an Essential or Asset qualification and would be assessed once screening is complete.

Essential or Asset Knowledge (Common to all EC-05 & EC-06 positions):
1. Knowledge of public health issues related to enteric infections, food and water safety.
2. Knowledge of zoonotic diseases and/or vector-borne diseases.
3. Knowledge of vaccines and vaccine-preventable diseases
4. Knowledge of vaccine safety principles.

Essential or Asset Competencies (Common to all EC-05 & EC-06 positions):
1. Showing initiative and being action-oriented
2. Demonstrating integrity and respect
3. Dependability
4. Project Management
5. Collaboration and Partnerships
6. Data/Information Collection and Analysis

ORGANIZATIONAL NEEDS
Selection for appointment may take into consideration employees who have been or will be impacted by organizational restructuring. Appointments may be made based on the department's commitment to employment continuity of indeterminate employees and no involuntary job loss.

The Public Health Agency of Canada is committed to Employment Equity. In order to ensure a diversified workforce, preference may be given to candidates self-identifying as belonging to one or more of the following Employment Equity groups: aboriginal peoples, persons with disabilities and members of visible minority groups provided the candidate meets all essential qualifications listed on the job opportunity notice and any applicable asset qualification(s).

Operational Requirements:
Willingness and availability to travel domestically and/or internationally (Depending on the position).
Available to work overtime, often on short notice based on operational requirements.
(Depending on the position).

NOTE:
▪ Based on the hiring division’s needs, additional essential qualifications, asset qualifications, organizational needs, operational requirements and/or conditions of employment may be identified and applied during the assessment and/or selection of candidates.

Conditions of employment

Various security profiles (Reliability; Secret)

Other information

The Public Service of Canada is committed to building a skilled and diverse workforce that reflects the Canadians we serve. We promote employment equity and encourage you to indicate if you belong to one of the targeted groups when you apply.

Information on employment equity

Information about Applying to Inventories
The inventory will be updated every 120 days. You will receive periodic system-generated e-mails advising that your application will expire in a certain number of days, and asking you to log in to your GC Jobs account to resubmit your application. It is important that you monitor your e-mail and resubmit your application when prompted, or your application will be removed from the inventory. This ensures that the information that is provided to hiring managers is current and up-to-date, as well as ensuring that the candidates in the inventory are still interested in employment. You can click on the link in the e-mail to access your account, and you will have a message informing you that your application is set to expire. Click on “Update My Inventory Status” to resubmit your application.

You can choose to update your application when you resubmit it to the inventory, or anytime that something changes that will impact your application. For example, if you gain more experience in an area that is related to the qualifications outlined in the inventory, it would be beneficial to update your application to reflect this. Since hiring managers screen applications based on the information you provided in the screening questions, it is recommended that you include experience gained after you initially submitted your application to ensure they have all of the relevant information. This also applies to changes in your education level, locations or positions you are interested in, or any of the answers you provided to the screening questions.

To update your information you need to log into your GC Jobs account and retrieve your application. Your application will revert to In Progress, and allow you to make the necessary changes. You must resubmit your application to have it included in the inventory. If you do not wish to remain in the inventory you can delete your application at this stage.

ASSESSMENT

In assessing candidates, assessment boards may use a variety of tools and methods including, but not limited to, reviews of past performance and accomplishments, written tests, interviews, simulations, PSC tests, reference checks, board member knowledge etc. In addition, all information obtained throughout the selection process, from the time of application to close of process, may be used to evaluate the candidates.

Each board will have specific criteria to assess and each pull from the inventory may be treated separately, therefore if you are referred for more than one opportunity you may be re-assessed on the same criteria.

Candidates must meet the essential qualifications to be appointed to a position.

Depending on the number of applicants, needs and/or plans, volume management strategies such as, but not limited to, top-down approach, cut-off scores, asset selection, random selection and/or assessment may be used for the purpose of managing applications/candidates and/or determining which candidates will continue in the staffing process. Should a volume management strategy be used, communication regarding the application of the strategy will be provided to those candidates who are impacted.

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.

Appointment decisions may be based on one or more of the following criteria:
- Matching of the individual's experience or qualifications to the strengths and weaknesses of the work team.
- Matching of the individual's experience or qualifications to the specific duties of the position being staffed.
- Depth, breadth, type of work-specific experience.
- Level/degree of one or more competencies/qualifications.
- The organizational need of restructuring/budgetary constraints

Candidates from outside the public service may be required to pay for travel and relocation costs associated with this selection process.

Proof of education will be required. 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.

COMMUNICATION

Acknowledgment of receipt of applications will not be sent.

Candidates must include a valid email address in their application. It is the candidate's responsibility to ensure that this address is functional and that it accepts messages from unknown users (some email systems block these types of email). It is also the candidate's responsibility to ensure accurate information is provided and updated as required.

Are you ready to apply?

To apply for any position, you need to first create a profile in the Public Service Resourcing System (PSRS), which should only take about 10 minutes. Then, after ensuring you meet the position requirements, scroll to the bottom of the poster and click on "Apply online."

Work your way through the list of requirements, completing each section and saving as you go. Before submitting your application, please ensure that there are green check marks on every single category before submitting your application.
If there are any red Xs on the categories, please click into that category and ensure that everything has been filled out. Screening questions have been built into the application process and occasionally an applicant may miss a field on the Screening Questions page. Please thoroughly review to ensure that you have responded to each question, including all the "Yes / No " questions.

PSRS will automatically disconnect candidates without warning after 60 minutes if there is no activity. You need to save or move to a new screen to maintain your connection. Typing information without saving does not prevent you from being disconnected. Applicants may find it helpful to first use a word processing software to complete their responses using concrete and detailed examples, then copy and paste the responses into PSRS afterwards.

If you have further questions on how to apply or experience technical difficulties with your application, please visit the following website: http://www.cfp-psc.gc.ca/contact-jobs/index-eng.php

We will only accept on-line applications received via the Public Service Jobs site. Persons with disabilities or residing in locations that prevent them from applying on-line are asked to contact 1-800-645-5605.

OTHER INFORMATION

Proof of citizenship will be requested if you are considered for a position.

If you are a current federal government employee, please identify clearly your substantive group and level and your employment status on your resume and/or application form. Also, please ensure your Personal Record Identifier (PRI) is included in your application.

An assignment/secondment or an acting appointment is a temporary resourcing option. The approval of your substantive supervisor may be required before an offer can be made.

We are committed to providing an inclusive and barrier-free work environment, starting with the hiring process. If you need to be accommodated during any phase of the evaluation process, please use the contact information below to request special accommodation. All information received in relation to accommodation will be kept confidential.

Information on accommodation for persons with disabilities

The Public Service of Canada is committed to building a skilled and diverse workforce that reflects the Canadians we serve. We promote employment equity and encourage you to indicate if you belong to one of the targeted groups when you apply.
Information on employment equity

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.