Clarification from the agency

Open to current and former Federal employees with permanent status or reinstatement eligibility or individuals who are eligible for a special appointing authority. Also advertised as 21R-TL-306283-DEU-NASM for U.S. Citizens, nationals, or those who owe allegiance to the U.S.. To be considered for each vacancy, apply to BOTH jobs.

• Work includes continuing responsibilities for the performance of a variety of duties that require many different and unrelated processes and methods such as those relate to established aspect of the archival field.
• Conducts research to improve the quality and efficiency of the born-digital collections’ preservation and access and to assist with the development and use of digital preservation and electronic records management, preservation and access tools to ensure intellectual and physical control of born-digital holdings and digitized content.
• Work includes providing day-to-day management of and access to the born digital and digital surrogate assets and activities.
• Collaborates with Archives staff to develop and update born-digital and digital surrogate records disposition and preservation guidance .and participate in pan-Institutional and external initiatives to advance the stewardship of digital cultural heritage and scientific and historical research data at the Institution and in the larger professional community.

Conditions of employment

• Pre- and post-appointment background investigation
• May be required to serve a one-year probationary period.
• U.S. citizenship
• Males born after 12/31/59 must be registered with Selective Service.

Qualification requirements must be met within 30 days of the job opportunity announcement closing date.

For information on qualification requirements, see Qualification Standards Handbook for General Schedule Positions viewable on the web at http://www.opm.gov/qualifications.

Qualifications

BASIC Qualification Requirements:

A. Bachelor's degree in archival science or bachelor's degree with a major that includes 18 semester hours in archival science, history and/or in political science or government, and 12 semester hours in one or any combination of the following: archival science, history, American civilization, economics, political science, public administration, or government.

OR

B. Combination of education and experience - at least 30 semester hours that included courses as shown in A above, plus appropriate experience or additional education.

In addition to meeting the basic qualifications applicant must also meet specialized experience.

Specialized Experience: Experience that equipped the applicant with the particular knowledge, skills, and abilities to perform successfully the duties of the position, and that is typically in or related to the work of the position to be filled. To be creditable, specialized experience must have been equivalent to at least the next lower grade level in the normal line of progression for the occupation. Applicants who have the 1 year of appropriate specialized experience, are not required to have general experience, education above the high school level, or any additional specialized experience to meet the minimum qualification requirements.

For this position, applicants must have 1 year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the next lower grade level, GS-09, in the Federal Service or equivalent.

For this position, specialized experience is defined as: experience includes processing and digitizing archival collections, cataloguing and formatting collections in computerized databases or digital asset management systems and conducting archival research to validate, update and correct existing collections data. Knowledge of archival processing tools such as Archives Space (ASpace), Encoded Archival Description (EAD) and Describing Archives: A Content Standard (DACS).

PART-TIME OR UNPAID EXPERIENCE: Credit will be given for appropriate unpaid work on the same basis as for paid experience.  Part-time experience will be credited on the basis of time actually spent in appropriate activities. To receive credit for such experience you must indicate clearly the nature of the duties and responsibilities in each position held and the average number of hours per week spent in such employment on your online resume.

Note:  Your specialized experience must have been in a position(s) equivalent to duties for the occupation at the next lower grade level for the position being filled as defined by applicable Federal standards.

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 first for the basic qualifications described above.  The applications that meet the basic qualifications will be evaluated further against the following criteria:

• Must have knowledge of basic archival principles, methodology, digital preservation and historical research methods to appraise, access, arrange and describe, store and preserve records and historic documents, bringing logical order to the material by creating a distinct and functional accessible archive with finding aids.

• Must have knowledge and skill in applying:

  -- digital preservation risk management principles to proactively identify current and future risks, recommend and implement strategies and solutions to reduce or eliminate risks

  --software designed to enhance the current collections management system’s preservation workflows to catalog, generate metadata for document and audit-born digital and digital surrogate holdings content and preservation treatments according to archival, digital preservation and international standards.

• Must have good oral communication skills in order to provide guidance, research and reference service promptly and effectively to staff, scholars and members of the public as they pertain to the use and access to the digital collections. 

• Ability to develop and communicate digital and digital surrogate records disposition and preservation needs and best practices through written presentations, educational programming and/or specially funded projects that advance the awareness and skills of the NASM Staff. regarding digital asset management and preservation.

Important Note:
Your resume and supporting documentation will be compared to your responses to the occupational questionnaire or other assessment tool for consistency. If a determination is made that you have rated yourself higher than is supported by your resume, you will be assigned a rating commensurate to your described experience.

Your resume should provide detailed information regarding how your education and experience relate to this position, including the major duties and qualifications criteria listed.