• Any editable section on the Exam Bulletin has been updated.

Upcoming Filing Cutoff Dates:

• 8/18/2026

Examination/Employment Application (STD 678) must be received or postmarked by the filing date indicated above. Applications postmarked, personally delivered or received via interoffice mail after the filing date will be processed in the next group.

Testing is considered continuous as dates can be set at any time. Applications will be reviewed to ensure the minimum requirements for participation in this exam are met. Possession of the entrance requirements does not assure a place on the eligible list. Once you have taken the examination, you may not retest for 12 months from the established list date. Applications must be submitted by the filing dates indicated below. Applications postmarked, personally delivered, or received via interoffice mail after the final filing date, will be held for the next administration of the exam. 

The information below will help you determine which classification(s) is(are) appropriate for you. Applicants must meet the Minimum Qualifications as stated on this bulletin to compete in this examination.

Open and Open, Non-Promotional Examination(s):

• SUPERVISING PUBLIC HEALTH BIOLOGIST - Open

For all Classifications, once you have participated in any of the following examinations, you may not recompete for 12 months:

Exam Code(s):

2439

For SUPERVISING PUBLIC HEALTH BIOLOGIST, once you have participated in any of the following examinations, you may not recompete for 12 months:

Exam Code(s):

• EX-02439

Submit an Examination/Employment Application (STD 678) to apply for this examination.

Electronic applications can be submitted through your account at www.CalCareers.ca.gov.

You may apply by mail to:

• Human Resources Division - Examination Services Unit
  Department of Public Health
  Examination Services Unit
  P.O. Box 997378 MS 1700 – 1702
  Sacramento, CA 95899-7378
  

Indicate the Examination Code and Classification(s) on your Examination/Employment Application (STD 678).

You may drop off your application and any applicable or required documents at:

• Department of Public Health
  Examination Services Unit
  1615 Capitol Avenue, Suite 73.430
  Sacramento, CA 95814
  8:00 AM - 5:00 PM
  Email: CDPHExamUnit@cdph.ca.gov

Indicate the Examination Code and Classification(s) on your Examination/Employment Application (STD 678). All applicants must provide proof of identification. Accepted forms of identification are: 1) a photo identification card or 2) two forms of signed identification.

The following items must be submitted with your Examination/Employment Application form. Failure to submit these items may result in rejection of your application.

• Transcript (Official or Unofficial)
• Other - STD 678 STANDARD STATE APPLICATION

If you require assistance or alternative testing arrangements due to a disability, indicate on your application that you need reasonable accommodation. You will be contacted by a representative of the testing department to make the necessary arrangements. If you have not been contacted by the time you receive notification of testing, please contact the testing department listed in the Contact section of this bulletin.

If you are unable to submit your application or complete the test due to a disability, please contact the testing department listed in the Contact section of this bulletin.

All applicants must meet the education and/or experience requirements as stated on this exam bulletin to be accepted to the examination.

Unless otherwise stated in the Minimum Qualifications, qualifying experience may be combined on a proportionate basis if the requirements stated below include more than one pattern and are distinguished as "Either" 1, "or" 2, "or" 3, etc. For example, applicants possessing qualifying experience amounting to 50% of the required time of Pattern 1 and additional experience amounting to 50% of the required time of Pattern 2 may be accepted to an examination as meeting 100% of the overall experience requirement.

Supervising Public Health Biologist

Either I:
Two years of experience in the California state service performing duties of a Senior Public Health Biologist.

Or II:
Four years of experience in the California state service performing the duties of an Associate Public Health Biologist.

Or III:
Six years of extensive and increasingly responsible professional experience in vector biology and control, two of which must have been in a position comparable to that of Senior Public Health Biologist in California state service. (Possession of a graduate degree in a biological science or closely related specialty may be substituted for the required experience on the basis of a master’s satisfying two years of the required experience or a doctorate degree satisfying three years of the required experience.) AND 

Education: Graduation from college with a baccalaureate degree in a biological or closely related science. The required degree must have been obtained from a recognized U.S. university or from a foreign university approved by the Bureau of Private Postsecondary and Vocational Education under the provision of California Education Code Chapter 3, Part 59, Division 10.

This examination consists of the following component(s):

A final score of 70% must be attained to be placed on the eligible list.

This examination utilizes an evaluation of education and experience (E&E) weighted 100%, and is based solely upon information provided with the application. Information provided with the application will be assessed compared to a standard developed in relation to the elements of the job and linked to the knowledge and abilities required on the job. Special care should be taken to submitting a complete description of your education and experience relevant to the typical tasks, scope, and minimum qualifications stated on this announcement. Supplemental information will be accepted but competitors should read the announcement carefully to determine what kind of information will be useful to those individuals completing the evaluation.

The Department of Public Health reserves the right to revise the examination plan to better meet the needs of the service if the circumstances under which this examination was planned change. Such revision will be in accordance with civil service law and rules and all competitors will be notified.

In addition to evaluating the applicant's relative knowledge, skill and ability as demonstrated by quality and breadth of education/experience, emphasis in each test component will be on measuring competitively, relative to job demands, each applicant's:

Knowledge of:

1.Epidemiological principles and concepts in the control of zoonotic diseases.

2.Biology and taxonomy of vertebrates and invertebrates of importance in the transmission of vector-borne diseases.

3.Research techniques in the study of disease transmission, and vector and reservoir animal population dynamics.

4.Procedures used in the prevention and control of animal-related diseases.

5.Current technology and sources of information.

6.Medical entomology, epidemiology, mammalogy, ecology, taxonomy, and biology.

7.Public health principles, practices, laws and regulations.

8.Use of chemical and biological control agents.

9.Current public health issues including biological and ecological research studies.

10. Principles and techniques of planning and organizing a vector-borne disease prevention andcontrol program.

11. Understanding of special laboratory procedures for infectious material or specimen handling.

12. Effective methods of disseminating pertinent material and/or public health emergency releases to field staff and other agencies.

13. Principles and techniques of personnel management and supervision.

14. Understanding the total scope of vector control program activities.

15. Manager’s role in the Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO) program and the process available to meet equal employment objectives.

Ability to:

1.Conduct field surveillance and handle diseased animals.

2.Identify arthropods and compile distribution records.

3.Analyze and evaluate surveillance data and other scientific observations.

4.Communicate effectively.

5.Independently conduct scientific studies required to evaluate vector-borne disease and control problems.

6.Analyze situations accurately and select effective courses of action.

7.Establish and maintain cooperative relationships with individuals, organizations, and governmental agencies.

8.Interpret current research literature and apply results to prevention and control programs.

9.Effectively evaluate vector-borne disease prevention and control programs at the local level and make recommendations for improvements and/or compliance with current laws and regulations.

10.Plan and organize a major program or regional activity.

11.Develop educational materials for distribution to the public and local agencies.

12.Present training programs to local agencies, special interest groups, and associations.

13.Effectively contribute to the Department’s Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO) objective

A Departmental Open eligible list for the SUPERVISING PUBLIC HEALTH BIOLOGIST Classification will be established for:

• Department of Public Health

The names of successful competitors will be merged onto the eligible list(s) in order of final score regardless of test date. Eligibility expires 24 months after it is established. Applicants must then retake the examination to reestablish eligibility.

Veterans' Preference will be granted for this examination. Veterans' Preference is an assistance program for veterans, veteran widows and widowers, and spouses of 100% disabled veterans who seek employment with the state. Veterans' Preference is also extended to currently serving military members nearing their retirement or separation date.

You are not eligible for Veteran's Preference if you are:

• A veteran who has been dishonorably discharged or released.
• A veteran, widow or widower of a veteran, or spouse of a 100 percent disabled veteran who currently has permanent civil service status. (Permanent civil service status is the status of an employee who is lawfully retained in his/her position after completion of the applicable probationary period. This does not include limited term).

Veterans' Preference is codified in Government Code Sections 18973 – 18979.

Veteran status is verified by the California Department of Human Resources (CalHR). Directions to apply for Veterans' Preference are on the Veterans' Preference Application (Std. Form 1093), which is available at www.CalCareers.ca.gov, and the Department of Veterans Affairs.

Career Credits are not granted for examination(s) administered on an Open basis or a Promotional basis.

• Department of Public Health

Questions regarding this examination should be directed to:

California Relay Service: 1-800-735-2929 (TTY), 1-800-735-2922 (Voice). TTY is a Telecommunications Device for the Deaf, and is reachable only from phones equipped with a TTY Device.

Examination and/or Employment Application (STD 678) forms are available at the California Department of Human Resources, local offices of the Employment Development Department, and through your CalCareer Account (www.CalCareers.ca.gov).

If you meet the requirements stated on this examination bulletin, you may take this examination, which is competitive. Possession of the entrance requirements does not assure a place on the eligible list. Your performance in the examination described in this bulletin will be rated against a predetermined job-related rating, and all applicants who pass will be ranked according to their scores.

Department of Public Health reserves the right to revise the examination plan to better meet the needs of the service, if the circumstances under which this examination was planned change. Such revision will be in accordance with civil service laws and rules and all applicants will be notified.

General Qualifications: Applicants must possess essential personal qualifications including integrity, initiative, dependability, good judgment, the ability to work cooperatively with others, and a state of health consistent with the ability to perform the assigned duties of the class. A medical examination may be required. In open examinations, investigation may be made of employment records and personal history and fingerprinting may be required.

Eligible Lists: Eligible lists established by competitive examination, regardless of date, must be used in the following order: 1) sub-divisional promotional, 2) departmental promotional, 3) multi-departmental promotional, 4) service-wide promotional, 5) departmental open, 6) open. When there are two lists of the same kind, the older must be used first. Eligible lists will expire in one to four years unless otherwise stated on the bulletin.

High School Equivalence: Equivalence to completion of the 12th grade may be demonstrated in any one of the following ways: 1) passing the General Education Development (GED) Test; 2) completion of 12 semester units of college-level work; 3) certification from the State Department of Education, a local school board, or high school authorities that the competitor is considered to have education equivalent to graduation from high school; or 4) for clerical and accounting classes, substitution of business college work in place of high school on a year-for-year basis.

Accepted applicants must provide proof of identification at each in-person test session. Acceptable identification consists of a photo identification card or two forms of signed identification.