Typical entry-level duties include:

• Planning, prioritizing, and/or balancing own work assignments, identifying feasible work management approaches that address required activities and timelines.
• Developing, identifying, contributing to, and/or using techniques, tools, and processes that are methodologically sound and targeted to job requirements.
• Collecting relevant information that is aligned with objectives/planning decisions and meets needs.
• Conducting analyses that yield quality information aligned with needs; identifying relevant information, patterns/inconsistencies, relationships, interdependencies, and potential implication.
• Preparing quality written work that meets relevant writing and evidence standards, and that is appropriately targeted to the audience and purpose.
• Communicating relevant and accurate information during formal or informal presentations, meetings, or interviews.
• Partnering or collaborating with others to address issues or solve problems; following up with others to ensure needs are met.
• Contributing to team efforts through participation in activities/meetings, soliciting and listening to others’ opinions, and working collaboratively to accomplish team goals.
• Soliciting, listening to, and considering diverse perspectives, approaches, or viewpoints, and incorporating others’ perspectives into decision-making (when appropriate).

Conditions of employment

• You must be a U.S. Citizen.
• You will have to complete a financial disclosure statement.
• You must be suitable for federal employment.
• Employees new to GAO must complete a 2 yr. probationary period.
• Registered for Selective Service, if applicable. (www.sss.gov)

You must meet all qualifications requirements before the announcement closes.

Qualifications

Applicants may qualify solely on the basis of education if they have one of the following:  (1) a Bachelor's degree with Superior Academic Achievement, (2) a Bachelor's degree PLUS at least 1 year (18 semester hours) of graduate education, (3) a combination of education and work experience or (4) at least one year of specialized experience at the GS-5 level or equivalent. 

See below for more information

BACHELOR'S LEVEL EDUCATION W/SUPERIOR ACADEMIC ACHIEVEMENT (SAA):  Applicant has completed a full 4-year course of study from an accredited college or university with a Bachelor's degree and education meets requirements for SAA.
Superior academic achievement (SAA) recognizes individuals who have achieved superior academic standing.  S.A.A. is based on (1) class standing, (2) grade-point average, or (3) honor society membership.

Class standing -- Applicants must be in the upper third of the graduating class in the college, university, or major subdivision, such as the College of Liberal Arts or the School of Business Administration, based on completed courses.

Grade-point average (G.P.A.)-- Applicants must have a grade-point average of: a.3.0 or higher out of a possible 4.0 ("B" or better) as recorded on their official transcript, or as computed based on 4 years of education, or as computed based on courses completed during the final 2 years of the curriculum; or .3.5 or higher out of a possible 4.0 ("B+" or better) based on the average of the required courses completed in the major field or the required courses in the major field completed during the final 2 years of the curriculum.

NOTE: Grade-point averages are to be rounded to one decimal place. For example, 2.95 will round to 3.0 and 2.94 will round to 2.9.

Election to membership in a national scholastic honor society -- Applicants can be considered eligible based on membership in one of the national scholastic honor societies listed below. These honor societies are listed www.achsnatl.org/quick_link.asp. 

OR

GRADUATE LEVEL EDUCATION:  Applicant has completed a 4-year course of study from an accredited college or university with a Bachelor's degree and has completed at least 1 year of full-time graduate education which will lead to a master’s or graduate degree. One full year of graduate education is generally considered 18 semester hours or the number of hours determined by the school attended to represent 1 year of full-time study.

Foreign Education - If you are using education completed in foreign colleges or universities to meet the qualification requirements, you must show that the education credentials have been evaluated by a private organization that specializes in interpretation of foreign education programs and such education has been deemed equivalent to that gained in an accredited U.S. education program; or full credit has been given for the courses at a U.S. accredited college or university.  For further information, visit:http://www.ed.gov.

OR

Applicants may also qualify based on a combination of education AND work experience.  They can do so if they have graduated with a degree (Associate's or Bachelor's) without superior academic achievement, Vocational or Technical degree or certificate.  The degree must be from an accredited college or university or other qualifying educational institution.  They must also have at least one year of specialized experience.  In addition, applicants may qualify with less than one year of the required specialized experience if they have graduate credits to substitute for some of the specialized experience.

Applicant must have at least one year of specialized experience.  In addition, applicants may qualify with less than one year of the required specialized experience if they have graduate credits to substitute for some of the specialized experience.
Specialized experience is defined as experience which gives you the knowledge, skills and abilities needed to successfully perform the duties of the position.  For this position, specialized experience is one year of experience at the GS-5 level or equivalent in:

• analyzing and evaluating quantitative and qualitative data collected from various sources to make logical inferences and/or draw accurate conclusions;
• preparing written documents that effectively communicate information, some of which is complex, in a complete, organized, and grammatically correct manner;
• learning new and complex material quickly to understand issues and to obtain relevant and sufficient information;
• setting priorities on multiple tasks in order to meet deadlines; and
• collaborating effectively in a team setting, respecting diverse backgrounds and viewpoints, to achieve timely completion of a project.

ASSOCIATES LEVEL EDUCATION:  Applicant has completed 2-years of college education at an accredited institution leading to an Associate's degree.  Applicants attempting to qualify for this position based on possession of an Associate's degree must also have 1-year of specialized experience.

BACHELOR'S LEVEL EDUCATION (no Superior Academic Achievement):  Applicant has completed a full 4-year course of study from an accredited college or university leading to a bachelor's degree.  Applicants attempting to qualify for this position based on possession of a Bachelor’s degree must also have 1-year of specialized experience.

You must meet all the requirements before the announcement closes.

How you will be evaluated

You will be evaluated for this job based on how well you meet the qualifications above.

After you submit your application, it will be reviewed to determine whether you have submitted all of the required documents as set forth below by the closing date of the announcement and meet the eligibility requirements. If you have submitted all required documents in a timely fashion and meet the eligibility requirements, your application will be reviewed by a screening panel. This panel will assign scores based on the answers you provide to the questionnaire contained in this announcement and your resume. The screening panel will assess the extent and quality of your accomplishments, experience, and/or education as they relate to the knowledge, skills, and abilities reflected in the vacancy questions.

It is important to have well-written, thoughtful responses that are supported by your resume. In responding to the online questions, you may draw upon academic, volunteer, and/or work experience as a basis for your response. You must provide a short narrative totaling no more than 1000 characters that captures your possession of the knowledge, skill, or ability specified. You must provide an actual narrative response. Any application that says “Please see resume” or the equivalent or “N/A” will not be accepted. Please note that your narrative response must be supported by your resume and must reflect the experience on which you rely. It is important that you do not overstate or understate your level of experience and capability. If the panelists conclude that your narrative response is not supported by your resume, they will assign scores accordingly.
To preview questions please click here.