Skip to main content
U.S. flag
Back to results

Program Support Assistant (OA)

Department of Agriculture
Agricultural Research Service
This job announcement has closed

Summary

The positions are located in the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), Agricultural Research Service (ARS), Southeast Area, US National Poultry Research Laboratory, with three vacancies in Athens, GA.

Overview

Help
Reviewing applications
Open & closing dates
11/28/2018 to 12/12/2018
Salary
$39,091 to - $56,471 per year
Pay scale & grade
GS 06 - 07
Location
Athens, GA
3 vacancies
Telework eligible
Yes—as determined by the agency policy.
Travel Required
Occasional travel - Once or Twice per year
Relocation expenses reimbursed
No
Appointment type
Permanent
Work schedule
Full-Time
Service
Competitive
Promotion potential
07
Supervisory status
No
Security clearance
Not Required
Drug test
No
Announcement number
ARS-M18Y-0447
Control number
517957000

Duties

Help

 

Major Duties may include, but are not limited to:

  • Responsible for the administrative oversight of various business processes including processing financial, procurement, extramural agreements, property, personnel, and other administrative instruments for the Management Unit
  • Prepares travel requests and vouchers for foreign and domestic travel.
  • Maintains tracking logs, action items, manages administrative suspense items and transaction records.
  • Provides training and advisory services to the RL and professional staff in all program administrative procedures ensuring compliance with regulations.
  • Prepares electronic documents associated with research publications, research plans and annual progress reports including graphics and spreadsheets.
  • Serves as primary point-of-contact for the research unit including screening calls and visitors, independently answering questions within the given guidelines, managing the unit calendar, and exhibiting professionalism throughout all tasks.

Requirements

Help

Conditions of employment

  • Satisfactory background investigation and/or fingerprint check
  • You must be a US Citizen or National
  • Selective Service Registration is required for males born after 12/31/1959

Satisfactory completion of a one year probationary period.

Qualifications

Time-in-grade restrictions apply for all candidates considered under merit promotion procedures and must be met by 11:59 pm Eastern Time on the closing date of this vacancy announcement.


Applicants must meet all qualifications and eligibility requirements by the closing date of the announcement including the following specialized experience and/or education, as identified below.

Specialized Experience: Specialized experience is experience directly related to the position to be filled. Specialized experience must be described for each grade level advertised. The specialized experience requirements for this position are:

At the GS-06:

Qualifying experience for GS-06 includes one year of specialized experience comparable to GS-­­­­05 which is directly related to the work of this position and which has equipped the applicant with the knowledge, skills, and abilities to perform successfully the duties of the position. For this position, specialized experience includes preparing and tracking budgeting and accounting forms; maintaining detailed records of purchases necessary for an office environment; assisting in coordinating aspects of travel for staff and supervisors; and preparing or tracking time and attendance reports.

At the GS-07:

Qualifying experience for GS-07 includes one year of specialized experience comparable to GS-­­­­06 which is directly related to the work of this position and which has equipped the applicant with the knowledge, skills, and abilities to perform successfully the duties of the position. For this position, specialized experience includes experience independently planning and coordinating administrative tasks for an office including; preparing and tracking budgeting or accounting forms; maintaining detailed records of all purchases necessary for an office environment; coordinating travel and meeting schedules for staff and supervisors; preparing or tracking time and attendance reports; and managing office deadlines.

In addition to meeting the specialized experience requirements, applicants must possess a typing speed of at least 40 words per minute.

For more information on the qualifications for this position, click here: https://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/classification-qualifications/general-schedule-qualification-standards/#url=Group-Standards

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). Volunteer work helps build critical competencies and can provide valuable training and experience that translates directly to paid employment. You will receive credit for all qualifying experience, including volunteer experience.

Additional information

Career Transition Assistance Plan(CTAP) or Interagency Career Transition Assistance Plan (ICTAP): If you are claiming CTAP/ICTAP eligibility, provide proof of eligibility to include your most recent performance appraisal, SF-50, and proof of eligibility such as a RIF separation notice or letter from OPM/your agency. CTAP/ICTAP eligibles will be considered well-qualified if achieving a rating of 85 or above. Information about CTAP/ICTAP eligibility is on OPMs Career Transition Resources website at http://www.opm.gov/ctap/index.asp

This announcement may be used to fill multiple vacancies.

Direct Deposit - Per Public Law 104-134 all Federal employees are required to have federal payments made by direct deposit to a financial institution of your choosing.

E-Verify: Federal law requires agencies to use the E-Verify system to confirm the employment eligibility of all new hires. If you are selected as a newly hired employee, the documentation you present for purposes of completing the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Form I-9 on your entry-on-duty date will be verified through the DHS E-VERIFY system. Under the system, the new hire is required to resolve any identified discrepancies as a condition of continued employment.

BACKGROUND INVESTIGATION AND FINGERPRINT CHECK:  Selection and retention in this position is contingent on a successfully adjudicated FBI National Criminal History Check (fingerprint check) and a background investigation.


Veterans who are preference eligible or who have been separated from the armed forces under honorable conditions after three years or more of continuous active service are eligible for consideration under the Veteran's Employment Opportunity Act (VEOA).

Farm Service Agency (FSA) County Employees: Permanent County employees without prior Federal tenure who are selected for a Civil Service position under Public Law 105-277 will be given a career- conditional appointment and must serve a 1-year probationary period.

More information on applying under special hiring authorities such as the Veteran’s Recruitment Act (VRA), 30 percent disabled veterans, and Schedule A Disabled may be found on the USAJOBS website.

Land Management Workforce Flexibility Act (LMWFA) provides current or former temporary or term employees of federal land management agencies opportunity to compete for permanent competitive service positions. Individuals must have more than 24 months of service without a break between appointments of two or more years. Service must be in the competitive service and have been at a successful level of performance or better.
See https://www.congress.gov/114/plaws/publ47/PLAW-114publ47.pdf.

This position is eligible for telework and other flexible work arrangements.

Relocation expenses are not authorized.

If you are selected for a position with further promotion potential, you will be placed under a career development plan, and may be non-competitively promoted if you successfully complete the requirements and if recommended by management. However, promotion is neither implied nor guaranteed.

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 based on your qualifications for this position as evidenced by the education, experience, and training you described in your application package, as well as the responses to the Occupational Questionnaire to determine the degree to which you possess the knowledge, skills, abilities and competencies listed below:
    • Administrative Management
    • Communication
    • Technology Application
  • We will review your application, including the online Occupational Questionnaire, to ensure you meet the job requirements and assess your ability to perform this job. Before any certificate can be issued to the selecting official, the resume and supporting documents are reviewed by an HR Specialist to ensure that (a) minimum qualification requirements are met and (b) the resume supports the answers provided to the job-specific questions. Your answers will be verified against information provided in your online resume and application. Be sure that your resume clearly supports your responses to all the questions addressing experience and education relevant to this position.
  • Applicants who meet the basic minimum qualification requirements and are determined to be among the best qualified candidates will be referred to the hiring manager for consideration. Non-Competitive candidates need to meet minimum qualification requirements to be referred.

Note: If, after reviewing your resume and / or supporting documentation, a determination is made that you have inflated your qualifications and or experience, your score can / will be lowered to more accurately reflect the submitted documentation. Please follow all instructions carefully. Errors or omissions may affect your rating. Deliberate attempts to falsify information may be grounds for not selecting you.

The questionnaire will assess your qualifications for the job, and will be used to identify the best qualified applicants to be referred to the hiring manager for further consideration and possible interviews. Your ratings in this Assessment Questionnaire are subject to evaluation and verification based on the documents and references you submit. Later steps in the selection process are specifically designed to verify your ratings. Attempts to falsify information; inflate your qualifications or providing inaccurate information on federal documents may be grounds to adjust your rating or to not select you. Errors, omissions or providing inaccurate information on federal documents may affect your eligibility. If selected providing inaccurate information on federal documents could also be grounds for dismissing you from the position/agency. Please follow all instructions carefully.


To view the application form, visit: https://ars.usda.ntis.gov/cp/?event=jobs.previewApplication&jobid=3F156483-F644-4D9D-A5C2-A99E00BE3AB2

Your session is about to expire!

Your USAJOBS session will expire due to inactivity in 8 minutes. Any unsaved data will be lost if you allow the session to expire. Click the button below to continue your session.