Clarification from the agency

U. S. Citizens

Manages the two-way flow of students and scholars between the United States and overseas as well as other academic exchange activities.  Manages communications and relationships with a wide range of program stakeholders.  Designs or modifies international exchange programs to meet changing political situations and shifting educational needs in the United States and a specific country. 

Develops and maintains links with U.S. educational and professional associations and institutions, as well as individual academics, to obtain support for ECA’s exchange programs and to assist these organizations with strengthening their international programs. 

Drafts memoranda, talking points, speeches, and other documents advancing ECA objectives and analyzing the impact of DOS exchanges.  Establishes base program budgets and supports the transfer of funds to overseas posts for academic programming and operational needs.  Manages cooperative agreements or grants.  Monitors overseas program budgets, ensuring that they meet DOS financial management standards.  Establishes and maintains liaison with other DOS elements, the J. William Fulbright Foreign Scholarship Board (FFSB), Public Affairs Section (PAS), U.S. academic and international exchange communities and officials.

Conditions of employment

• U.S. Citizenship is required.
• Must be able to obtain and maintain a Secret security clearance.
• Incumbent will be subject to random drug testing.
• One year probationary period, unless excepted by regulation.
• Verification of employment eligibility in the United States is required.
• Statement of Employment & Financial Interest required prior to appointment.

Qualifications

Applicants must meet all the required qualification requirements, including education and any selective placement factors described below by the closing date of this announcement.

If you are qualifying based on education OR if there are mandatory education requirements listed below, you MUST submit a copy of your college transcript with your application.

Applicants must have the required experience or education as described below and meet any selective factors, when specified.

BASIC REQUIREMENTS:

Have a bachelor's or graduate degree from an accredited college or university in international law, international relations, political science, economics, history, sociology, geography, social or cultural anthropology, law, statistics, or in the humanities;

OR

Have a bachelor's or graduate degree from an accredited college or university that included a combination of courses, with at least 24 semester hours in international law and international relations, political science, economics, history, sociology, geography, social or cultural anthropology, law, statistics, or in the humanities;

OR

Have 12 semester hours in one of the above disciplines and 12 semester hours in statistics / quantitative methods.

OR

Have a combination of education and experience where your coursework was equivalent to a major, or a combination of related courses totaling at least 24 semester hours, (as shown above), PLUS appropriate relevant experience OR additional education.

OR

Have completed at least 4 years of appropriate experience in one OR more of the fields listed above in work associated with international organizations, problems, or other aspects of foreign affairs. (NOTE: qualifying work experience may have been gained through residence, study, teaching, business or commercial activities, military service, newspaper work, military or civil government activities, missionary or international relief work, or other experience in foreign countries.)

Note:  If you are qualifying based on education, you MUST submit transcripts as verification of educational requirement by the closing date of this announcement.  If you fail to provide requested information, or the information you submit is insufficient to verify your eligibility, you WILL lose consideration for this position.

IN ADDITION to the basic requirements, this position requires one year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the GS-12 level in the Federal service which provided the applicant with the particular knowledge, skills and abilities to perform the duties of the position.  

Qualifying specialized experience must demonstrate the following:

• Experience initiating, developing, administering, and evaluating international academic exchange programs. 

• Experience monitoring academic exchange program budgets and financial management processes. 

• Experience managing cooperative agreements and/or grants management processes.

Note:  If you are qualifying based on education, you MUST submit transcripts as verification of educational requirement by the closing date of this announcement.  If you fail to provide requested information, or the information you submit is insufficient to verify your eligibility, you WILL lose consideration for this position.

How you will be evaluated

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

Your application will be evaluated and rated under the Category Rating and Selection procedures.  Based on your responses to the job-specific self-assessment questions, eligible candidates are placed for selection consideration into one of three pre-defined quality categories as described below:

Highly-qualified Category - In addition to meeting minimum qualifications for the position, candidates must fully demonstrate proficiency in all major aspects of the position.  

Well Qualified Category - In addition to meeting minimum qualifications, candidates must demonstrate proficiency in some, but not all of the major aspects of the position.

Qualified Category - In addition to meeting minimum qualifications, applicants must demonstrate a basic level of knowledge, skill and ability of the position.

Your qualifications will be evaluated on the following knowledge, skills, abilities (KSAs) and other characteristics that are relevant to the duties of this position and must be fully supported by information in your resume:

-Knowledge of academic exchange programs. 

-Knowledge of program and project management techniques and tools. 

-Knowledge of budget and financial management processes and policies. 

-Ability to communicate effectively, both orally and in writing.

Your resume serves as the basis for qualification determinations and must highlight your most relevant and significant work experience and education (if applicable) as it relates to this job opportunity. Experience refers to paid and unpaid experience, including volunteer work done through National Service programs (e.g., Peace Corps, AmeriCorps) and other organizations (e.g., professional; philanthropic; religious; spiritual; community, student, social). Your resume must include the dates of all qualifying experience (from month/year to month/year) and the number of hours worked/volunteered per week. For assistance with creating a resume, please click here.

Application of Veterans Preference: The Category Rating Method does not add veterans' preference points or apply the "rule of three," but protects the rights of veterans by placing them ahead of non-preference eligibles within each pre-defined quality category. Preference eligibles who meet minimum qualification requirements and who have a compensable service-connected disability of at least 10 percent (i.e., CPS and CP) must be listed in the highest quality category, except when the position being filled is scientific or professional at the GS-09 grade level or higher.

Agency Career Transition Assistance Program (CTAP) or Interagency Career Transition Assistance Program (ICTAP) candidates must be rated "Well Qualified" for the position to receive consideration for special priority.

Applicants must meet all the qualification requirements and submit any required supporting documentation by the closing date of this announcement.  Applicants found to be among the top qualified candidates will be referred to the hiring official for further consideration and possible interview.