Clarification from the agency

For details regarding who can apply for this Job Opportunity Announcement please see the Summary section.

*IMPORTANT - PLEASE READ*

The Agriculture Specialist assessments are required for promotion into all GS-0401-13 and GS-0401-14 supervisory and managerial positions. All candidates for these positions are strongly encouraged to complete the assessments during this testing opportunity.

The In-Basket Job Simulation is required for all GS-13 and GS-14 positions other than GS-13 first-line supervisor. Per them memorandum of May 22, 2019, from the Executive Assistant Commissioner, Office of Field Operations, qualified GS-12s are now eligible to compete for all GS-13 positions. Therefore, all candidates--including GS-12s--who have never taken the In-Basket Job Simulation are encouraged to do so.

* Two Important Changes for the CBP Agriculture Specialist Career Experience Inventory (CEI) *

1. Update Your Career Experience Inventory (CEI): The CBP Agriculture Specialist CEI portion of the promotional assessments was updated in 2014 to reflect the current experiential requirements of GS-0401-13-14 supervisors and managers. If your most recent CBP Agriculture Specialist CEI was submitted before 2014, then it was rescored on May 31, 2015 and you received no points on the new and changed items. Therefore, candidates who have yet to submit a new CEI are strongly urged to do so at this time.

2. The CEI Dashboard: The CEI is a required component of the competency-based assessments for promotion. Candidates' responses on their Agriculture Specialist CEI are summarized in graphical format via CEI Dashboards. Both the employee and hiring manager Dashboards are being revamped in FY2020. Hiring managers use information from the Hiring Manager CEI Dashboard as one component of the factors considered when making selection decisions. Currently, the Hiring Manager CEI Dashboard is used only for evaluating competitive candidates. HOWEVER, in the future, the Hiring Manager CEI Dashboard may be used for non-competitive placement as well. Therefore, candidates who plan to apply only as non-competitive candidates for vacancies covered by the Agriculture Specialist promotional assessments are also strongly encouraged to complete the Agriculture Specialist CEI. This includes candidates who are already permanent GS-14s. GS-14s still will not complete the multiple-choice assessments and their CEI will not receive a numerical score, but they are strongly encouraged to complete the Agriculture Specialist promotional assessments opportunity application and submit the CEI that is part of the application so that they have CEI information in the Hiring Manager CEI Dashboard when they apply for non-competitive reassignments.

Conditions of employment

In order to take the assessments you must meet the criteria as defined under "Qualifications and Evaluations" section.

The following components are required as indicated below:

Applicants for First-Line (GS-13) Supervisory Positions
a. CBP Agriculture Specialist Career Experience Inventory (CEI)
b. Critical Thinking Skills Assessment
c. Managerial Writing Skills Assessment

Applicants for Second-Line and Other (GS-13 thru 14) Supervisory/Managerial Positions
a. CBP Agriculture Specialist Career Experience Inventory (CEI)
b. Critical Thinking Skills Assessment
c. Managerial Writing Skills Assessment
d. In-Basket Job Simulation

The In-Basket Job Simulation (IB) is optional for GS-11s and GS-12s because it is not used in the calculation of the first-line supervisory score. HOWEVER, if you are a GS-11/12 and intend to apply to any position other than GS-13 first-line supervisor, you must take the IB. The IB is a required component of the assessments for competitive selection into all GS-13 and GS-14 supervisory and managerial positions other than GS-13 first-line supervisor. Per them memorandum of May 22, 2019, from the Executive Assistant Commissioner, Office of Field Operations, qualified GS-12s are now eligible to compete for all GS-13 positions. Therefore, all candidates--including GS-12s--who have never taken the In-Basket Job Simulation are encouraged to do so.

Qualifications

Applications to take the assessments will be accepted from permanent U.S. Customs and Border Protection employees with competitive status who meet the following:

1. Currently serving or previously served in a position at the GS-11 grade level or above. NOTE: You are eligible to participate in this testing open period if you will obtain your GS-11 by the start of testing which is March 18, 2020.
2. Possess the basic educational requirements noted under the Education section and possess at least one year of specialized experience interpreting and applying a comprehensive range of Federal laws, rules, regulations and procedures concerning the import/export of agricultural commodities and the introduction of harmful pests, diseases, and potential agro-terrorism into the United States.

NOTE: Eligibility to take the assessments and eligibility to apply for specific vacancies (announcements that will be posted in the future) are not the same. Therefore, eligibility to take the CBP Agriculture Specialist Assessments does not guarantee eligibility to compete for specific vacancies. For example, you may have recently been promoted to the GS-12 level and may register and take the assessment. However, you must meet time-in-grade eligibility requirements (one year at the GS-12 level) at the time you apply for a specific vacancy. Eligibility requirements for specific vacancies will appear on the vacancy announcements as they are posted.

Applicants must possess at least one year of specialized experience interpreting and applying a comprehensive range of Federal laws, rules, regulations and procedures concerning the import/export of agricultural commodities and the introduction of harmful pests, diseases and potential agro-terrorism into the United States.

How you will be evaluated

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

EXPLANATION OF ASSESSMENTS AND EVALUATION METHODS:

There are four assessment components. Each is described below.

1. CBP Agriculture Specialist Career Experience Inventory (CEI). This task-based inventory assesses the quantity and quality of specific experiences important for effective performance as a CBP Agriculture Specialist supervisor or manager. The CEI will be available for candidates to complete during every test opportunity open period (open periods are expected to be every 12 months). The CEI is a comprehensive experience measure that covers many positions. It is completed on-line and is available by clicking "Apply Online" on the right side of this announcement.

***NOTE***
When completing your CEI:

• You may find it helpful to preview the questions and prepare a Word document with your responses. You can copy and paste your responses into USAJOBS to minimize the amount of time you spend in USAJOBS and avoid the system "timing out." You can find a preview of the questions here: https://apply.usastaffing.gov/ViewQuestionnaire/10639615
• It is highly recommended that you use a wired (rather than wifi or cellular) connection to complete your CEI.
• Make a note to check your application status to make sure your application is submitted and accepted by the system prior to the application closing date/time, which is always Eastern Standard Time.