Staffing Guidance, GS-401 Fire Management Specialist

Attachment 1

Policy Interpretation of the Supplemental Qualification Standard for the GS-0401 Fire 

Management Specialist

This is to be used in conjunction with the GS-0401 Fire Management Specialist Standard.

Basic Requirements:

A. Education: Successful completion of a full 4-year course of study in an accredited 

college or university leading to a bachelor’s or higher degree in biological sciences, 

agriculture, natural resource management, or related discipline appropriate to the position 

being filled. The following majors are creditable:

1. Disciplines identified in the 400 Professional and Scientific Series Standard for General 

Biological Science/Natural Sciences which may be used to meet the basic requirement: 

Agriculture Agricultural Extension 

Agronomy Animal Science

Biochemistry Biological Sciences (General)

Biometrics (includes Applied Forestry*) Botany

Ecology Entomology

Fishery Biology (includes marine/aquatic) Forestry

General Fish & Wildlife Administration Genetics

Horticulture Microbiology

Natural Resources Management Pharmacology

Physiology Plant Pathology

Plant Physiology Plant Protection & Quarantine

Rangeland Management Soil Conservation

Soil Science Toxicology 

Wildlife Biology Wildlife Refuge Management

Zoology

2. Natural Resource related disciplines as determined by Fire Management subject matter 

experts to meet the Natural Science Group GS-400 which may be used to meet the basic 

requirement:

Chemistry Earth Sciences

Environmental Sciences1 Geology

Hydrology Meteorology

Outdoor Recreation2 Physical Geography3

 

1 An Environmental Sciences degree does not equate to an environmental or natural resources policy 

degree

2 Natural Resources emphasis

3 GIS is creditable when identified as Biometrics, Applied Forestry, Natural Resources, e.g., FOR xxx, 

Survey of GIS in Natural Resources; GEOG xxx Hydrologic Application of GIS & Remote Sensing; NR 

xxx Advanced GIS Applications in Fire Ecology & Management. It is not creditable if the course is 

designated as part of a discipline not listed above, e.g., Computer Science course CS xxx, Inter Arcview.
Staffing Guidance, GS-401 Fire Management Specialist

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Physics Watershed Management

Fire Management/Fire Science

A graduate degree in any of the disciplines listed above will meet basic qualifications regardless 

of the undergraduate degree. All disciplines in A.1 above were obtained from series listed in the 

Biological Sciences, GS-0401 or within an individual occupational series. For example, natural 

resources management was taken from the GS-0480, Fish and Wildlife Administration Series, 

and GS-0454-Rangeland Management Series. 

Subject matter experts from the five wildland firefighting agencies developed A.2 related 

disciplines. Physical sciences are mentioned throughout the individual occupational series for 

the 0400 family. In the draft Job Family Standard for Professional Work in the Natural Sciences 

Group, GS-0400, the term “natural resources” is defined as “all the things in our physical 

environment that we use to meet our needs and wants.” It also quotes: “The most commonly 

thought of natural resources are metals and nonmetals, energy sources, water, land, food, wild 

plants and animals, and soils. Work in natural resources sciences spans a broad range of 

disciplines and specialty areas. Some natural resource scientists are engaged in broad research 

and development activities that, taken singly, would be classifiable to:

 A specific professional biological or agricultural science within the GS-0400 job family’ 

or

 A closely related science in another job family, e.g. physics.

A.2. Individual Occupational Series:

 0401 includes chemistry

 0470 includes physical and earth sciences

 0480 includes chemistry

B. Combination of Education and Experience 

1. Education Equivalent: The OPM Qualification Standards for General Schedule Positions, 

Group Coverage Qualification Standards for Professional and Scientific Positions, requires that 

an applicant possess a core of educational credit. This course work plus additional education 

and/or experience meets the qualifications for a GS-0401 under paragraph B of the individual 

occupational requirements. Universities regularly credit continuing education coursework even 

when the student is not enrolled in a degree program. These courses go through the same 

strenuous curriculum review as general coursework. The following criteria will be used to 

determine eligibility for all college/university credits: 

1. The course is from an accredited university. To verify a particular school’s accreditation 

status go to https://www.ed.gov/accreditation

AND

2. The course is offered in a discipline as identified in A. under Basic Requirements. It is the 

responsibility of the college/university to determine the discipline; the Human Resources Staff 

will credit all courses on a transcript or equivalent documentation in disciplines defined in A. 

toward the GS-0401 Fire Management Specialist series. 
Staffing Guidance, GS-401 Fire Management Specialist

Attachment 1

Examples, as creditable:

4

 

Course # Course Title (Discipline)

 ENVS xxx Environmental Hydrology (Environmental Science)

 Soil xxx Soil & Env. Physics (Soil Science)

 FOR xxx Env. Conservation (Forestry)

 WFSC xxx Wildlife and Changing Environment (Wildlife Science)

 FW xxx Survey of GIS in Nat. Resources (Fish & Wildlife)

 GEOG xxx Decision-making NR Mgt. (Geography)

 F xxx Decision Methods for Fire Managers (Forestry)

 FOR xxx Professional Writing for Natural Resources Sciences 

(Forestry emphasis)

Examples, not creditable:

Course # Course Title (Discipline)

 POS xxx Environmental Policy (Political Science)

 SOC xxx Environment & Society (Sociology)

 HIST xxx American Env. History (History)

 STAT xxx Data Analysis & Regression (Statistics)

 ECON xxx Natural Resources Economics (Economics) 

 ENG xxx Professional Writing for Natural Resources Sciences

(English emphasis) 

AND

3. Documentation verifying the coursework was completed and met accreditation and 

discipline (items B.1.a.1, B.1.a.2 above). The OPM Operating Manual for Qualification 

Standards for General Schedule Positions, General Policies and Instructions, Part E.4 

describes proof as: an official transcript; statement from the institution’s registrar, dean, 

or other appropriate official; or equivalent documentation.

2. Specialized Experience

Specialized experience is well defined in the Supplemental Qualifications Standard for the GS0401 Fire Management Specialist. It is not required that this work be performed under the 

supervision of a professional employee, only that the work experience meets the definition 

required of this Standard.

If an employee or applicant has been performing the work described in the Supplemental 

Qualifications Standard, it is creditable even if that work was performed in a technical or 

administrative fire position. 

 

4 Generally, the course number includes the Department (discipline) for which the course was developed and 

whether the course is upper or lower division.
Staffing Guidance, GS-401 Fire Management Specialist

Attachment 1

For additional information on crediting experience, refer to OPM General Schedule Qualification 

Policies, General Policies, Purpose and Scope. 3. Experience Requirements (d) - (p).

Application of Education and Specialized Experience

Creditable Education

Education, to be creditable toward the 24-semester hour requirement, must meet the 

requirements of the Qualification Standards for General Schedule Positions Operating Manual, 

published by the U. S. Office of Personnel Management. The nature and quality of the education 

must have been such that it would serve as a prerequisite for more advanced study (graduate 

level or professional education). 

The education must meet one of the following:

1. Conventional - Obtained from a college or university, applicable school within the 

college or university, or applicable curriculum at the college or university that has been 

properly accredited.

2. Agency courses which are creditable through a college or university - These courses 

contain content developed or endorsed by an NWCG member agency. An agency or 

university provides instructors for these courses or may use contractors to teach them 

through agreements. Through an agreement with an accredited college or university, 

students can purchase credits. The acceptable format for validating the course 

completion is a college transcript or equivalent documentation showing completion of 

the course and the amount of credit awarded by the school. It should be noted that 

some courses are comprised of modules, for which each individual module can be 

awarded credits by the school as evidenced by the college transcript. It is up to the 

Human Capital Management staff to make the final determination as to whether a 

course constitutes creditable education from the standpoint of being equivalent to a 

“major field of study”.

Education Equivalent to a Major Field of Study (24 semester hours)

The 24 semester hours must be obtained in biological sciences, natural resources, wildland fire 

management, forestry, or agriculture course work as noted above. You can refer to college 

course catalogs or consult with college advisors or officials to help you to determine the 

appropriate content of courses. 

Additional Education 

In addition to courses in the major and related fields, a typical college degree program would 

have included courses that involved analysis, written and verbal communication, critical 

thinking, planning research, etc. Therefore, creditable experience should have demonstrated 

similar skills and abilities.
Staffing Guidance, GS-401 Fire Management Specialist

Attachment 1

The quality of the combination of education and experience, must be sufficient to demonstrate 

that the applicant possesses the knowledge, skills, and abilities required to perform work in the 

occupation and is comparable to that normally acquired through the successful completion of a 

full 4-year course of study in the fields listed in section A. Degree, - OR - B. Combination of 

education and experience, of the Basic Qualification Requirements.

An example of appropriately creditable experience comparable to the required college 

coursework may be that of a technician, at the GS-7 grade level or above, who is working under 

the supervision of a professional employee and is performing duties equivalent to an entrylevel professional employee, in the field of biological sciences, agriculture, chemistry, 

natural resources management, or fire management.

Specialized Experience: According to the Qualification Standards for General Schedule 

Positions Operating Manual, one-grade interval experience may be qualifying for two-grade 

interval positions, provided that the experience demonstrated the Knowledge, Skills, and 

Abilities required to perform the work successfully. This is true for either lateral or promotion 

actions. The basic requirements for the type and level of experience and/or education apply to 

all applicants, whether their experience has been in the same occupation as the position being 

filled or in related occupational field. Since two-grade interval positions may differ significantly 

in the nature of the work, it is important that applicants be evaluated on the “knowledge required 

to perform the work.

Other education creditable towards 24 semester hours requirement: Prior to the OPM changes to 

the Operating Manual for Qualifications Standards for General Schedule Positions, Part E.4 –

E.4 (a) of the General Policies and Instructions Creditable education from other than an 

accredited institution of higher learning that meets the requirements of the qualifications 

standards. To meet the 24 semester hour or equivalent requirement, the other education must be 

equivalent to course work in a Bachelor’s of Arts or Bachelor’s of Science degree with a major 

course of study in biological sciences, natural resources, chemistry, wildland fire management, 

forestry, or agriculture. Most “technology” type coursework will not meet this requirement.

Technical Fire Management Courses: All TFM courses are creditable toward meeting the 24 

semester hours required of the 0401 Qualification Standard if documented on either a transcript 

or a certificate with the name of the accredited college or university. The TFM certificate may 

note all 18 semester hours or the partial credit which the student may purchase for academic 

credit. These TFM credits are considered upper level creditable course work for the purposes of 

this supplemental standard.

A. TFM courses creditable toward meeting the required 24 semester hours under the 0401 

Qualifications Standard (these meet the current documentation requirements noted in the OPM 

Operating Manual for Qualifications Standards for General Schedule Positions, Part E.4 – E.4(a) 

of the General Policies and Instructions, revised effective February 15, 2005):

Module I/IA Statistics/Computer and Math
Staffing Guidance, GS-401 Fire Management Specialist

Attachment 1

Module II Economics

Module III Fuels Management

Module IV Fire Ecology

Module V Fire and Land Management

Module VI Final Projects Reviews

B. The NWCG Courses listed below were initially determined to be creditable toward meeting 

the required 24 semester hours under the 0401 Qualifications Standard. These met the 

documentation requirements prior to the revision of the OPM Operating Manual for 

Qualifications Standards for General Schedule Positions, Part E.4 – E.4(a) of the General 

Policies and Instructions, effective February 15, 2005. In order to be creditable after the 

February 15, 2005 revisions, these NWCG courses must be listed on an official transcript or

equivalent documentation from an accredited college or university. The transcript or equivalent 

documentation must note the credited academic hours for each course. Other NWCG courses, 

not listed in the table below, may be used to meet the basic requirements of the 0401 

Qualification Standard. However, they too must be listed on a transcript or equivalent 

documentation from an accredited college or university in order to be creditable: 

FIEM Fire in Ecosystem Management 1 Semester Hour

FML Fire Management Leadership 1 Semester Hour

FPM Fire Program Management 1 Semester Hour

LFML Local Fire Management 

Leadership

1 Semester Hour

NFMAS National Fire Management 

Analysis System

1 Semester Hour

RX-450 Smoke Management 

Techniques

1 Semester Hour

RX-540 Applied Fire Effects 1 Semester Hour

RX-590 Prescribed Fire Behavior 

Interpretation (to be combined 

with S-590)

2 Semester Hours

S-490 Advanced Wildland Fire 

Behavior Calculations

1 Semester Hour
Staffing Guidance, GS-401 Fire Management Specialist

Attachment 1

S-491 National Fire Danger Rating 

System

1 Semester Hour

S-492 Long Term Fire Risk 

Assessment

1 Semester Hour

S-493 Fire Area Growth Simulation 1 Semester Hour

S-520 Advanced Incident 

Management

2 Semester Hours

S-580 Advanced Fire Use 

Applications (National Parks & 

Wilderness Fire Management)

1 Semester Hour

S-590 Fire Behavior Interpretation 2 Semester Hours

S-620 Area Command 1 Semester Hour

P-151 Wildfire Origin and Cause 

Determination

1 Semester Hour

RX-300 Prescribed Fire for Burn Bosses 1 Semester Hour

RX-340 Introduction to Fire Effects 1 semester Hour

S-190/290 Introduction to fire Behavior 

combined with Intermediate 

Wildland Fire Behavior

1 Semester Hour

S-390 Introduction to Wildland Fire 

Behavior Calculations

1 Semester Hour