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Public Affairs Specialist

Department of Health and Human Services
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
This job announcement has closed

Summary

The incumbent serves in a development position as a Public Affairs Specialist. The purpose of this position is to disseminate and communicate public health information to the media and public in a clear, timely, and factual manner.

Overview

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Hiring complete
Open & closing dates
07/22/2019 to 07/29/2019
Salary
$65,448 to - $101,983 per year
Pay scale & grade
GS 11 - 12
Location
1 vacancy in the following location:
Atlanta, GA
Telework eligible
No
Travel Required
Not required
Relocation expenses reimbursed
No
Appointment type
Permanent
Work schedule
Full-Time
Service
Competitive
Promotion potential
12
Job family (Series)
Supervisory status
No
Security clearance
Not Required
Drug test
No
Announcement number
HHS-CDC-M5-19-10545092
Control number
538889000

This job is open to

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Clarification from the agency

Open to CDC/ATSDR employees with career/career conditional status only

Duties

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As an Public Affairs Specialist you will:

  • Perform work related to public affairs activities such as drafting media plans, drafting and editing news media materials, coordinating news media and public affairs projects.
  • Develops media plans based on input of staff, resource considerations, media best practices and judgment of workload of the office.
  • Identify and summarize national and localized news items having a direct impact on CDC programs and/or activities.
  • Effectively manage and respond to a large-volume of media inquiries, including complex requests.
  • Suggest story ideas and angles that will further public understanding of disease prevention and health promotion activities.
  • Develop, implement and evaluate news media-related efforts that involve new initiatives/activities/developments that involve CDC programs

Requirements

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Conditions of employment

  • US Citizenship is required.
  • Background Investigation is required.
  • E-Verify: If you are selected for this position, the documentation that you present for purposes of completing the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Form I-9 will be verified through the DHS "E-Verify" System. Federal law requires DHS to use the E-Verify System to verify employment eligibility of all new hires, and as a condition of continued employment obligates the new hire to take affirmative steps to resolve any discrepancies identified by the system. The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services is an E-Verify Participant.
  • Direct Deposit: All Federal employees are required to have Federal salary payments made by direct deposit to a financial institution of their choosing.
  • One-year probationary period may be required.
  • Travel, transportation, and moving expenses will be paid: No
  • Bargaining Unit Position: Yes
  • Drug Screening Required: No
  • Recruitment Incentive may be authorized: No
  • Annual Leave for non-federal service may be authorized: No
  • Research position: No
  • Promotion potential: Yes: This position has promotion potential to GS-12. Promotion to the next grade level is at management's discretion and is based on your meeting qualifications and time-in-grade requirements, demonstrated ability to perform the higher level duties, the continuing need for the higher level duties, and administrative approval. Promotion to the next grade level is not guaranteed and no promise of promotion is implied.
  • Supervisory position: No.
  • Time in grade (TIG) must be met within 30 days of the closing date of the announcement.
  • Current or Former Political Appointees: Agencies must seek prior approval from the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) before they can appoint a current or recent political appointee to a competitive or non-political excepted service position at any level under the provisions of title 5, United States Code. If you are currently, or have been within the last 5 years, a political Schedule A, Schedule C, or Non-career SES employee in the executive branch, you MUST disclose that to the Human Resources Office. Failure to disclose this information could result in disciplinary action including removal from Federal Service. Current or Former Political Appointees: Submit SF-50.
  • All qualification requirements must be met by the closing date of the announcement.

Qualifications

Minimum Qualifications:
GS-11:
Applicants must have one year of specialized experience equivalent to the GS-09 grade level in the Federal service, to successfully perform the duties of a this position, to include experience assisting disseminating public health information to national news media and assisting with risk communication activities for a public health agency/organization.
OR;

Have a Ph.D, or equivalent doctoral degree or 3 full years of progressively higher level graduate education leading to a doctoral degree or LL.M. from an accredited college or university. Such education must demonstrate the knowledge, skills, and abilities necessary to do the work (e.g. human resources management, business, or law).
OR;

Have a combination of graduate level education and experience that meets 100% of the qualification requirements for this position.

GS-12:
Applicants must have at least one year of specialized experience, equivalent to the GS-11 grade level in the federal service, to successfully perform the duties of this position, to include experience coordinating news media inquiries, establishing relationships with news outlets, and conducting public affairs/news media emergency response, issues, management, and/or risk communication activities for a large agency/organization.

Specialized experience is experience which is directly related to the position which has equipped the applicant with the particular knowledge, skills and abilities (KSAs) to successfully perform the duties of the position to include coordinating national news media inquiries, establishing relationships with national news media outlets and conducting risk communication activities for a public health agency/organization.


Documenting experience: In accordance with Office of Personnel Management policy, federal employees are assumed to have gained experience by performing duties and responsibilities appropriate for their official series and grade level as described in their position description. Experience that would not normally be part of the employee's position is creditable, however, when documented by satisfactory evidence, such as a signed memorandum from the employee's supervisor or an SF-50 or SF-52 documenting an official detail or other official assignment. The documentation must indicate whether the duties were performed full time or, if part time, the percentage of times the other duties were performed. It is expected that this documentation is included in the employee's official personnel record. In order to receive credit for experience in your resume that is not within the official series and grade level of your official position, you must provide a copy of the appropriate documentation of such experience as indicated above.

Education

Education completed in colleges or universities outside the United States may be used to meet the education requirements. You must provide acceptable documentation that the foreign education is comparable to that received in an accredited educational institution in the United States. For more information on how foreign education is evaluated, visit:
https://www.cdc.gov/jobs/future-applicant-information.html.

Additional information

PHS Commissioned Corps Officers interested in performing the duties of this position within the Commissioned Corps may apply through this announcement. Candidates will be referred as Commissioned Corps personnel and not as candidates for conversion to a permanent career or career-conditional appointment.

Additional selections may be made within the same geographical location CDC-wide.

If you are a veteran with preference eligibility and you are claiming 5-points veterans' preference, you must submit a copy of your DD-214 or other proof of eligibility. If you are claiming 10-point veterans' preference, you must also submit an SF-15, "Application for 10-Point Veterans' Preference" plus the proof required by that form. For more information on veterans' preference see http://www.usajobs.gov/Veterans

Males born after December 31, 1959 must be registered or exempt from Selective Service (see http://www.sss.gov).

For information on "People with Disabilities" please visit http://opm.gov/disability/PeopleWithDisabilities.asp

Interagency Career Transition Assistance Program (ICTAP): For information on how to apply as an ICTAP eligible see http://opm.gov/rif/employee_guides/career_transition.asp#ictap. To be well-qualified and exercise selection priority for this vacancy, displaced Federal employees must be rated at 85.0 or above on the rating criteria for this position.

To view the questionnaire, click on the following link:
https://apply.usastaffing.gov/ViewQuestionnaire/10545092

If you are unable to apply online or need to fax a document(s), view the following link for information regarding an Alternate Application.

How you will be evaluated

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

Once the application process is complete, a review of the resume and supporting documentation will be made and compared against your responses to the assessment questionnaire to determine if you are qualified for this job. If, after reviewing your resume and/or supporting documentation, a determination is made that you have inflated your qualifications and/or experience, you may lose consideration for this position. Please follow all instructions carefully. Errors or omissions may affect your eligibility.

Your qualifications will be evaluated and rated on the following competencies (knowledge, skills, abilities, and other characteristics):

  • Continuous Development
  • Customer Service
  • Diversity
  • Integrity
  • Issues Analysis, Planning, Advising, and Consulting
  • News Media Information Dissemination
  • Oral Communication
  • Problem Solving
  • Public Affairs Science and Decision Making
  • Written Communication

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