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Public Affairs Specialist

Trade and Development Agency
This job announcement has closed

Summary

This position is part of the U. S. Trade and Development Agency. The incumbent will be responsible for formulating, implementing and managing USTDA's digital and social media content and strategies in support of the Agency mission, policies, and programmatic goals. The Public Affairs Specialist procures, produces and manages appropriate website and social media content, and develops video content based on USTDA projects and activities.

Overview

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Hiring complete
Open & closing dates
07/02/2021 to 07/16/2021
Salary
$60,129 to - $134,798 per year
Pay scale & grade
GS 9 - 13
Location
Few vacancies in the following location:
Arlington, VA
Telework eligible
Yes—as determined by the agency policy.
Travel Required
Not required
Relocation expenses reimbursed
No
Appointment type
Permanent
Work schedule
Full-time
Service
Competitive
Promotion potential
13
Job family (Series)
Supervisory status
No
Security clearance
Top Secret
Drug test
No
Position sensitivity and risk
Critical-Sensitive (CS)/High Risk
Trust determination process
Announcement number
TDA-21-MP-11161789JS
Control number
606490900

Duties

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  • Formulates, implements, and manages USTDA's digital and social media content and strategies.
  • Procures, produces and manages appropriate website and social media content, and develops video content based on USTDA projects and activities.
  • Provides thorough and authoritative guidance to the Director of Public Affairs and other agency officials on the best practices and effective use of digital media to disseminate targeted information and content about the Agency.
  • Develops communications tools including success stories, blogs, marketing materials, presentations, briefs, press releases and fact sheets, press releases, briefing papers and official correspondence.
  • Creates high-impact visual presentations and graphics for publication on the agency's web and social media platforms.
  • Develops a comprehensive process to effectively collect, aggregate, evaluate, and disseminate relevant data on USTDA's social media audience and outreach, to inform decision making.
  • Represents USTDA in interagency discussions concerning communications on social media platforms.

Requirements

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Conditions of employment

  • US Citizenship is required.
  • Suitable for Federal employment, determined by background investigation.
  • Direct Deposit of pay is required.
  • Selective Service registration required for male applicants, unless exempt.
  • Status candidates must meet time-in-grade (see Qualifications).
  • Background and security investigation for Secret and Top Secret Clearance.

Qualifications

Applicants must meet the qualification requirements described below.

GS-09 Qualifications

Applicants must possess one year of specialized experience that is equivalent in difficulty and complexity to the GS-07 level in the Federal service. Specialized experience is defined as experience that is in or directly related to the line of work of this position and has equipped you with the knowledge and competencies to successfully perform the duties of this position. More specifically, this requirement involves experience:

  • creating and maintaining social media, digital media and multimedia content;
  • applying digital media knowledge to outreach and engagement;
  • working with a variety of social and digital media platforms;
  • assisting in the research and development of communication tools, such as press releases, report summaries, blog posts, speeches, fact sheets, policy documents, briefing papers, website and social media content, and official correspondence;
  • coordinating activities, programs, special events, public affairs campaigns with internal and external contacts; and
  • responding verbally and/or in writing to public inquiries.
OR
A master's or equivalent graduate degree OR 2 full years of progressively higher-level graduate education leading to such a degree OR LL.B. or J.D., if related. Such education must demonstrate the knowledge, skills, and abilities necessary to do the work.

OR
A combination of education and experience.

GS-11 Qualifications
Applicants must possess one year of specialized experience that is equivalent in difficulty and complexity to the GS-09 level in the Federal service. Specialized experience is defined as experience that is in or directly related to the line of work of this position and has equipped you with the knowledge and competencies to successfully perform the duties of this position. More specifically, this requirement involves experience:
  • creating, implementing and maintaining social media, digital media and multimedia content;
  • applying digital media knowledge to organizational outreach, program promotion and engagement;
  • working with a variety of social and digital media platforms;
  • designing and overseeing the production of public affairs documents, brochures, publications, webpage content, newsletters, press releases, public presentations, and blog postings; and
  • conducting research and compiling information related to the work of an organization.
OR
A Ph.D. or equivalent doctoral degree OR 3 full years of progressively higher-level graduate education leading to such a degree OR LL.M., if related. Such education must demonstrate the knowledge, skills, and abilities necessary to do the work.

OR
A combination of education and experience.

GS-12 Qualifications
Applicants must possess one year of specialized experience that is equivalent in difficulty and complexity to the GS-11 level in the Federal service. Specialized experience is defined as experience that is in or directly related to the line of work of this position and has equipped you with the knowledge and competencies to successfully perform the duties of this position. More specifically, this requirement involves experience:
  • developing, implementing, and maintaining digital communication strategies, as well as social media, digital media and multimedia content;
  • applying digital media practices to organizational outreach, program promotion, and engagement; and
  • working with specialized social and digital media platforms; and
  • supporting public affairs tactics, techniques, and procedures to support and amplify senior leaders' priorities, mission, and organizational objectives.
GS-13 Qualifications
Applicants must possess one year of specialized experience that is equivalent in difficulty and complexity to the GS-12 level in the Federal service. Specialized experience is defined as experience that is in or directly related to the line of work of this position and has equipped you with the knowledge and competencies to successfully perform the duties of this position. More specifically, this requirement involves experience:
  • developing, implementing, evaluating and maintaining digital communication strategies, as well as social media, digital media and multimedia content;
  • applying specialized digital media strategies to organizational outreach, program promotion and engagement;
  • working with social media platforms, principles, practices and methods to plan, execute and monitor social and digital media platforms and campaigns;
  • communicating to a variety of internal and external audiences, and in putting together comprehensive public affairs campaigns; and
  • writing speeches, drafting briefing materials, reports, and other official documents.
Only experience and education obtained by the closing date of this announcement will be considered.

TIME-IN-GRADE: Current career or career-conditional employees of the Federal government, or former career or career-conditional employees, who have a break in service of less than one year, are required to meet the time-in-grade restriction of one year of Federal experience at the next lower grade, with few exceptions outlined in 5 CFR 300.603(b).

A written test is not required.

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). You will receive credit for all qualifying experience, including volunteer experience.

Education

If qualifying based on EDUCATION you MUST provide transcripts or other documentation to support your educational claims. Unless otherwise stated: (1) official or unofficial transcripts are acceptable, or (2) you may submit a list with all of your courses, grades, semester, year, and credit for the course. All materials must be submitted by the closing date of the announcement.

Only education from institutions which are accredited or pre-accredited/candidate for accreditation may be used to meet education requirements.

FOREIGN EDUCATION: If you are using education completed in foreign colleges or universities to meet the qualification requirements, you must show that the education credentials have been evaluated by a private organization that specializes in interpretation of foreign education programs and such education has been deemed equivalent to that gained in an accredited U.S. education program; or full credit has been given for the courses at a U.S. accredited college or university. For further information, visit: http://www2.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ous/international/usnei/us/edlite-visitus-forrecog.html

Additional information

Career Transition Assistance Programs: CTAP/ICTAP provides placement assistance to permanent Federal employees who are surplus, displaced, or involuntarily separated. Applicants claiming CTAP/ICTAP eligibility must submit a copy of their most recent performance appraisal, proof of eligibility, and most current SF-50 noting position, grade level, and duty location with their application. To be considered under CTAP/ICTAP, applicants must be well-qualified (i.e., meet the minimum qualification requirements, including any selective placement factors; education, and experience requirements), score at least 85 on the assessment questionnaire, and be able to perform the duties of the position upon entry. For information on CTAP and ICTAP visit: https://www.usajobs.gov/Help/working-in-government/unique-hiring-paths/federal-employees/career-transition/

Appointment Authorities: For more information on appointment authority eligibility requirements:


Telework Suitability:
The duties of this position are suitable for occasional telework and the selectee may be allowed to telework with supervisor approval and if they meet the eligibility criterion in the 2010 Telework Act.

Stipulations of Employment:
Selection may require completion of a 1-year probationary period.

Applicants must be eligible to obtain and keep a security clearance. Appointment is subject to the successful completion of a background investigation and favorable adjudication. Failure to successfully meet these requirements will be grounds for termination.

Work Schedule:
This position allows for a flexible work schedule.

Miscellaneous:
USTDA uses E-Verify to confirm the employment eligibility of all newly hired employees. To learn more about E-Verify, including your rights and responsibilities, please visit http://www.uscis.gov/e-verify.

If you are unable to apply online or need to fax a document you do not have in electronic form, view the following link for information regarding an Alternate Application: https://help.usastaffing.gov/Apply/index.php?title=Alternate_Application_Information

This position is being advertised concurrently with vacancy announcement #TDA-21-DE-11161788JS using Delegated Examining (DE) procedures. If interested, refer to that announcement to determine if you meet DE requirements and can apply to that announcement. NOTE: You must apply separately to each announcement in order to be considered under both.

This vacancy announcement may be used to fill similar positions within 90 days.

If selection is made below the full performance level, promotion up to the full performance level may be made without further competition. However, promotion(s) will depend on the performance of the incumbent and are not guaranteed.

How you will be evaluated

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

Once the application process is complete, your resume and supporting documentation will be used to determine whether you meet the job qualifications listed on this announcement. If you rate yourself higher than is supported by your application materials, your responses may be adjusted and/or you may be excluded from consideration for this job. If you are found to be among the top candidates, you will be referred to the selecting official for employment consideration.

Your qualifications will be evaluated on the following competencies (knowledge, skills, abilities and other characteristics):

  • Communications and Media
  • External Awareness
  • Interpersonal Skills
  • Oral Communication
  • Organizational Awareness
  • Written Communication

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