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Personnel Psychologist

General Services Administration
Office of Human Resources Management
This job announcement has closed

Summary

As a Personnel Psychologist, you will perform personnel psychology and related research activities to address staffing gaps in GSA mission critical and related occupations using personnel and related research mechanisms to ensure GSA enterprise wide effectiveness and efficiency.

Location of position: This is a VIRTUAL position within GSA's Office of Human Resources Management

Overview

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Reviewing applications
Open & closing dates
01/14/2022 to 01/27/2022
Salary
$95,973 to - $176,300 per year
Pay scale & grade
GS 14
Location
Location Negotiable After Selection, United States
Few vacancies
Telework eligible
Yes—as determined by the agency policy.
Travel Required
Occasional travel - Occasional travel may be required.
Relocation expenses reimbursed
No
Appointment type
Permanent
Work schedule
Full-time
Service
Competitive
Promotion potential
14
Job family (Series)
Supervisory status
No
Security clearance
Other
Drug test
No
Position sensitivity and risk
Moderate Risk (MR)
Trust determination process
Announcement number
22STFA094LHMP
Control number
631428200

Duties

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As a Personnel Psychologist, you will perform the following duties:

  • Research labor market trends, best industry practices, and legal and technological advances, and brings analytical insight from diverse research, forecasts related to business metrics, the GSA mission, other relevant factors and applies to the current/future state to ensure effective planning and forecasting in the hiring arena.
  • Develop short term and long term approaches for implementing evidence-based practices and approaches geared toward streamlining human resources, staffing recruitment and related services across all GSA and various Federal agencies.
  • Formulate and conduct applied short and long range psychological personnel research programs and services to increase knowledge of how GSA and the Federal sector can be effective in attracting, selecting, motivating, training and educating the GSA and the Federal sector workforce.
  • Develop scientific principles relating to major characteristics of the GSA workforce, the structure, direction and operation of the GSA workforce environment and applies scientific methods to determine GSA current and future hiring needs. Implement research techniques to determine if the GSA workforce feels fulfilled in the accomplishment of its mission. Perform programmatic research, often encompassing a series of projects over a period of several years. Formulate research related data elements which contribute to the explanation of human behavior in general as well as the solution of operational hiring needs for GSA mission critical occupations.
  • Evaluate the analysis of data received, prepares appropriate technical reports on hypotheses investigated, test batteries developed, and evaluates the desirability of continued or new research in various human resources areas.
  • Maintain contact, pertinent to assigned research projects, within GSA, the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) and other Federal agencies, who facilitate projects of mutual interest. Consult with OPM and other Federal stakeholders and partners concerning progress of research and exchanges experiences with other professional Federal sector personnel.
  • Design and development appropriate survey and other data collection instruments. Plan the collection, scoring and analysis of data for personnel and related survey projects. Apply a high degree of originality in identifying and defining research problems and in developing hypotheses to be tested through the results of personnel surveys, feedback, and analysis of GSA’s growing and complex workforce.

Requirements

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Conditions of employment

  • US Citizenship or National (Residents of American Samoa and Swains Island)
  • Meet all eligibility criteria within 30 days of the closing date
  • Meet time-in-grade within 30 days of the closing date, if applicable
  • Register with Selective Service if you are a male born after 12/31/1959
  • Must submit a copy of college transcript(s)

If selected, you must meet the following conditions:

  • As required by Executive Order 14043, Federal executive branch employees are required to be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 regardless of the employee's duty location or work arrangement (e.g., telework, remote work, etc.), subject to such exceptions as required by law. If selected, you will be required to be vaccinated against COVID-19 and submit documentation of proof of vaccination by November 22, 2021 or before appointment or onboarding with the agency (if later than November 22, 2021). The agency will provide additional information regarding which forms of documentation can be accepted and how you can request a legally required exception from this requirement. If selected and you are a current GSA employee (except in the OIG), you are not required to show proof of full COVID-19 vaccination if this requirement has already been met.
  • Due to COVID-19, the agency is currently in an expanded telework posture. If selected, you may be expected to temporarily telework, even if your home is located outside the local commuting area. Once employees are permitted to return to the office, you will be expected to report to the duty station listed on this announcement within 45 days. At that time, you may be eligible to request to continue to telework one or more days a pay period depending upon the terms of the agency’s telework policy.
  • Receive authorization from OPM on any job offer you receive, if you are or were (within the last 5 years) a political Schedule A, Schedule C or Non-Career SES employee in the Executive Branch.
  • Serve a one year probationary period, if required.
  • Undergo and pass a background investigation (Tier 2 investigation level).
  • Have your identity and work status eligibility verified if you are not a GSA employee. We will use the Department of Homeland Security’s e-Verify system for this. Any discrepancies must be resolved as a condition of continued employment.

Qualifications

For each job on your resume, provide:

  • the exact dates you held each job (from month/year to month/year)
  • number of hours per week you worked (if part time).    

If you have volunteered your service through a National Service program (e.g., Peace Corps, Americorps), we encourage you to apply and include this experience on your resume.

For a brief video on creating a Federal resume, click here

The GS-14 salary range starts at $95,973 per year. Locality determined based on duty location.

If you are a new federal employee, your starting salary will likely be set at the Step 1 of the grade for which you are selected.  

This position has a positive education requirement: Applicants must submit a copy of their college or university transcript(s) and certificates by the closing date of announcements to verify qualifications. If selected, an official transcript will be required prior to appointment.

BASIC REQUIRMENTS: Successful completion of a full 4-year course of study in an accredited college or university leading to a bachelor's or higher degree that included a major field of study in Psychology.

SPECIALIZED EXPERIENCE:  

In addition to the Basic Requirements, all candidates must possess one year of specialized experience equivalent to the GS-13 grade level. Specialized experience is experience translating personnel research findings into advice and training for a diverse professional staff and implement state-of-the-art programs for use by stakeholders and partners in an organization. Experience must also include utilizing analysis tools to derive meaning through exploratory data analysis and data visualization to inform decisions.

Education

Note: If you are using foreign education to meet qualification requirements, you must send a Certificate of Foreign Equivalency with your transcript in order to receive credit for that education. For further information, visit: https://www2.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ous/international/usnei/us/edlite-visitus-forrecog.html

Additional information

Bargaining Unit status: Not Applicable

Selected applicants may qualify for credit toward annual leave accrual based on prior non-Federal work experience or uniformed service experience.

We are currently filling one vacancy, but additional vacancies may be filled through this announcement in this or other GSA organizations within the same commuting area.

We are also accepting applications from all U.S. Citizens and Nationals under Vacancy Announcement #22NRCA024DCDE. You must apply separately to each announcement to be considered for both.

How you will be evaluated

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

You will be evaluated on the questions you answer during the application process, which will measure your overall possession of the following competencies or knowledge, skills, and abilities. Your responses to these questions must be supported by your resume or your score may be lowered.

  1. Knowledge of personnel psychology research, human capital and organizational development services to provide authoritative advice and guidance to various internal and external GSA and Federal sector stakeholders and partners regarding the best way to implement a streamlined recruitment process to span across Federal sector agencies.
  2. Ability to apply professional human resources knowledge of psychological principles, theories, methods or data to practical situations and problems related to effective recruitment, staffing and retention within the Federal sector.
  3. Ability to perform and apply complex data analyses using standard social science statistical analysis packages (e.g., SPSS) sufficient to develop, validate, and evaluate state-of-the-art recruitment packages for streamlining and implementing staffing and recruitment tools that will be shared amongst Federal agencies.
  4. Skill in utilizing expert written communications for a wide range of applications, including professional presentations, webinars, use of social media, training programs, and skill development.
  5. Skill in oral communication to facilitate high level conversations and to negotiate issues with various GSA, Office of Human Resources Management (OHRM), Federal professionals and with persons with diverse backgrounds and experience.
  6. Knowledge of the professional and legal standards, concepts, principles, and practices in competency modeling, selection, organizational research and career development, sufficient to develop and validate unified, streamlined staffing and recruitment models and artifacts for use across the Federal sector.
  7. Skill in designing and conducting comprehensive job analytic procedures (e.g., job analysis, needs analysis, competency modeling) and performing the appropriate data analyses to develop, implement, and validate competency models.

Additional assessments may be used, and, if so, you will be provided with further instructions.

If you are eligible under Interagency Career Transition Assistance Plan or GSA’s Career Transition Assistance Plan (ICTAP/CTAP), you must receive a score of 85 or higher to receive priority.


To preview questions please click here.

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