Opportunities at Work

New York State Department of Civil Service Announces Open-Competitive Examination Open to the Public

Sanitarian Trainee/Public Health Sanitarian/Senior Sanitarian

Written Test To Be Held
October 20, 2012
Applications Must Be Submitted or Postmarked By
September 04, 2012

 

Exams Included on This Announcement
Exam Number Exam Title Salary Salary Grade Fee
25-534 Sanitarian Trainee $38,934 Equated to G-13 $35
25-535 Public Health Sanitarian $41,170 G-14 $35
25-536 Senior Sanitarian $51,268 G-18 $35

Appointees who work in the five boroughs of New York City or in Nassau, Suffolk, Rockland, or Westchester Counties will receive an additional $3,026 annual downstate adjustment. Appointees who work in Dutchess, Orange, or Putnam Counties will receive an additional $1,513 annual mid-Hudson adjustment.

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Minimum Qualifications

On or before October 20, 2012, you must have:

For Number 25-534:
Either A. a bachelor's degree, including 30 credits in the natural and applied sciences; of which at least 18 credits are in the natural sciences (defined below);
Or B. an associate's degree in the natural sciences AND 4 years experience in environmental health protection (defined below).

Sanitarian Trainees participate in a one-year training program to receive instruction and gain experience in performing beginning-level professional work under close supervision. Upon successful completion of the one-year traineeship, trainees are advanced to Public Health Sanitarian without further examination.

For No. 25-535:
Either A. a bachelor's degree in the natural sciences (defined below);
Or B. a bachelor's degree, including 30 credits in the natural and applied sciences, of which at least 18 credits are in the natural sciences, AND one year of experience in environmental health protection (defined below);
Or C. an associate's degree in the natural sciences AND 5 years experience in environmental health protection (defined below).

For No. 25-536:
Either A. a bachelor's degree in the natural sciences AND 1 year experience in environmental health protection (defined below);
Or B. a bachelor's degree, with 30 credits in the natural and applied sciences, of which at least 18 credits are in the natural sciences, AND 2 years experience in environmental health protection (defined below).

Substitutions for the examinations above: A master's degree in the natural or applied sciences may be substituted for up to 1 year of required experience.

Definitions

Notes

  1. In addition to these examinations, there will also be a written test for Public Health Inspector, Exam No. 25 567 held the same day. You may also apply for that exam on the same application; the appropriate processing fee must be paid.
  2. New York State counties may also be holding tests for similar titles on the same day. If you plan to participate in multiple examinations scheduled for the same day, refer to the instructions under the "Additional Information" section of this announcement.
  3. Your degree or college credit must have been awarded by a regionally accredited college or university or one recognized by the NYS Education Department as following acceptable educational practices. If your degree or college credit was awarded by an educational institution outside the United States and its territories, you must provide independent verification of equivalency. You can write to the Examination Information Desk of the NYS Department of Civil Service for a list of acceptable companies who provide this service. You must pay the required evaluation fee. If you are applying on the Internet, you must mail the independent verification of equivalency to the NYS Department of Civil Service, Alfred E. Smith State Office Building, Albany, New York 12239. Attention: S5HXC.
  4. A promotion examination is also being held for Senior Sanitarian. If you are eligible for appointment from a promotion list, you may not be appointed in your own agency from the list resulting from this examination open to the public.
  5. You may file for these examinations by completing one examination application NYS-APP form or applying on the Internet. Unless you are eligible for a fee waiver, the indicated processing fee must be submitted for each examination listed on your application.
  6. If you do not receive a confirmation number after submitting your online application, your application was NOT processed.
  7. Travel Requirements: Appointment to certain positions requires extensive travel within a designated area of assignment. Appointees to these positions may be required to operate a motor vehicle or otherwise demonstrate their capacity to meet the transportation needs of the job. If the position requires that you operate a motor vehicle, you must possess a driver's license valid in New York State at the time of appointment and continuously thereafter. Field work and travel expenses are reimbursed on a fixed schedule.
  8. Appropriate part-time and volunteer experience, which can be verified, will be accepted on a prorated basis.
  9. New York State residence is not required.
  10. If language parenthetics are established for these titles, the eligible lists created from these examinations will also be used to fill those positions and appointees must demonstrate their language proficiency prior to appointment.

The Positions

These positions exist primarily in the New York State Department of Health. Positions in the Sanitarian Series are located in Albany, Buffalo, Canton, Central Islip, Geneva, Glens Falls, Herkimer, Hornell, Monticello, New Rochelle, New York City, Oneonta, Rochester, Saranac Lake, Syracuse, Troy, and Watertown.

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Duties

As a Senior Sanitarian, Public Health Sanitarian, or Sanitarian Trainee, you would conduct environmental health inspections to determine compliance with the Public Health Law, the State Sanitary Code, the Medical Facilities Code, and applicable sections of the Social Services Law and Regulations. You would have responsibility for documentation, citing deficiencies to facility operators, reviewing facility plans of correction for appropriateness and viability, and conducting follow-up visits to determine ongoing compliance. Areas of assignment may include, but are not limited to, food service establishments, camps, hotels, motels, campgrounds, mobile home parks, migrant farm worker housing, schools, swimming pools, bathing beaches, recreational aquatic spray grounds, indoor tanning establishments, on-site water supplies and sewage disposal systems, hospitals, long-term care facilities, adult homes, enriched housing, residences for adults, diagnostic and treatment centers, and lead in residential settings. You may also assist in health-related investigations and responses to chemical exposures and emergencies.

As a Senior Sanitarian, you would independently perform duties of a more complex nature and may have responsibility for the training of Sanitarian Trainees.

Since exposure to potentially hazardous substances may be involved in some of these positions, candidates who accept appointment may be required to wear personal protective equipment, undergo pre-employment and periodic health evaluations, and receive specific immunizations.

The Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1987 mandates that surveyors of health facilities complete a training and testing program. The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services has developed the Surveyors Minimum Qualification Test (SMQT) in response to this mandate. Candidates must be aware that in addition to passing these examinations for employment, to retain certain positions they must also be certified through an appropriate SMQT process.

IMPORTANT: These positions require extensive field work. At the time of appointment, you will be required to demonstrate your capacity to meet the transportation needs involved in carrying out the work responsibilities.

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Subject of Examination

There will be a written test which you must pass in order to be considered for appointment. The written test is designed to test for knowledge, skills, and/or abilities in such areas as:

  1. Application of scientific principles and knowledge to public and environmental health protection - These questions test for knowledge of public and environmental health principles, the ability to investigate and identify the causes of various public and environmental health problems, and to recommend the appropriate remedial actions for such problems.
  2. Microbiology as related to disease prevention and control, sanitary chemistry, and toxic substances - These questions test for knowledge of the principles and practices of microbiology involved in disease prevention and control, including such areas as food, water and environmental sanitation, toxic substances, and communicable diseases.
  3. Inspection and interviewing techniques - These questions test your ability to select the proper course of action in situations which might occur during routine inspections. Question topics may cover, but will not be limited to, such areas as interviewing, gathering information and evidence, maintaining proper attitude, and handling irregularities and violations with integrity and sound judgment. Some questions may be in a situational format while others may deal with the proper principles and practices of inspection.
  4. Preparing written material - These questions test for the ability to present information clearly and accurately, and to organize paragraphs logically and comprehensibly. For some questions, you will be given information in two or three sentences followed by four restatements of the information. You must then choose the best version. For other questions, you will be given paragraphs with their sentences out of order. You must then choose, from four suggestions, the best order for the sentences.

Your final score must be 70 or higher in order to pass. Rank on the eligible list will be determined after adding any wartime veterans' and Civil Service Law Section 85-a credits to your final passing score.

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How To Apply

This announcement is for viewing purposes only.

If you do not receive a confirmation number after submitting your online application, your application was NOT processed.

Additional Information

New York State is an Equal Opportunity Employer

It is the policy of the State of New York to provide for and promote equal opportunity employment, compensation, and other terms and conditions of employment without discrimination on the basis of age, race, color, religion, disability, national origin, gender, sexual orientation, veteran or military service member status, marital status, domestic violence victim status, genetic predisposition or carrier status, or arrest and/or criminal conviction record unless based upon a bona fide occupational qualification or other exception.

Appointment to many positions in State government require candidates to undergo an investigative screening. This may include a thorough character investigation, a Federal Bureau of Investigation Criminal Record History Check, a Child Abuse Registry clearance, or other similar procedures. Candidates may be fingerprinted and may be required to pay any necessary fees for that procedure. Depending on the nature of the job, the criminal convictions discovered, or any falsified or omitted information revealed, the investigative findings may bar appointment or result in removal after appointment.

Eligibility for Employment

You must be legally eligible to work in the United States at the time of appointment and throughout your employment with New York State. If appointed, you must produce documents that establish your identity and eligibility to work in the United States, as required by the federal Immigration Reform and Control Act of 1986, and the Immigration and Nationality Act.

Religious Accommodation

Most written tests are held on Saturdays. If you cannot take the test on the announced test date, due to a conflict with a religious observance or practice, check the box under “Religious Accommodation.” We will make arrangements for you to take the test on a different date (usually the following day).

Reasonable Accommodations in Testing

It is the policy of the Department of Civil Service, in accordance with the New York State Human Rights Law and the Americans with Disabilities Act, to provide qualified persons with disabilities equal employment opportunity and equal opportunity to participate in and receive the benefits, services, programs, and activities of the Department. It is the policy of the Department to provide such persons reasonable accommodations and reasonable modifications as are necessary to provide equal opportunity. Persons with disabilities who require an accommodation to participate in an examination must note this on their application. Further information is available from the Test Administration Unit of the Department of Civil Service. In the Albany area, call 518-457-2487 [press 2, then press 2]. Outside of the Albany area, call toll free at 1-877-697-5627 [press 2, then press 2]. For TDD services, call NY Relay at 711 (requires a fee) or 1-800-662-1220.

Admission to Examination

Notice to appear for the test may be conditional as review of applications may not be made until after the test. If you have not received your notice to appear for the written test three days before the date of the test, call 518-474-6470 in the Albany area or toll free at 1-877-697-5627 [press 2, then press 1].

Multiple Examinations Scheduled for the Same Day

If you have applied to take a written test announced by either one or several local jurisdictions (county, town, city) scheduled to be held on the same test date as this written test, you must notify each of the local jurisdictions no later than two weeks before the test date to make arrangements for taking all tests at one test site. All tests will be held at the state examination center. For your convenience, contact information for all local civil service agencies is available on our website at: http://www.cs.ny.gov/jobseeker/local.cfm

Cell Phones or Electronic/Communication Devices at the Test Site

Do not bring cell phones, beepers, headphones, or any electronic or other communication devices to the test site. The use of such devices at the test site in the test room, hallways, restrooms, building, grounds, or other areas could result in your disqualification.

S5/TC3 HXC-sac
Issued: 8/3/2012

This announcement is subject to amendment or cancellation without notice. Do not copy it, or post it to any other site, but link to it instead.

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