This position is located in USDA Rural Development, Technology Office, Cybersecurity Branch. Coursework in Information Systems Technology, Management Information Systems, Cybersecurity and application development will provide a strong foundation for success in this role. The incumbent serves in a developmental trainee capacity and will receive extensive on-the-job training for development to an IT Specialist position.
Summary
This position is located in USDA Rural Development, Technology Office, Cybersecurity Branch. Coursework in Information Systems Technology, Management Information Systems, Cybersecurity and application development will provide a strong foundation for success in this role. The incumbent serves in a developmental trainee capacity and will receive extensive on-the-job training for development to an IT Specialist position.
Students who are enrolled or accepted for enrollment in an institution of higher education as defined by the Higher Education Act of 1965 in a section codified at 20 U.S.C. 1001(a) and is pursuing a baccalaureate or graduate degree on at least a part-time basis, as determined by the institution of higher education.
Incumbent will work in one or more of the following specialties: Quality Assurance, Applications Software Testing, IT Project Management
Identify and document application defects in a centralized issue tracking system and maintain detailed documentation of test results; estimate, prioritize, plan and coordinate testing activities
Perform tests to identify, record and track bugs; identify and document application defects in a centralized issue tracking system; maintain detailed documentation of tests results; perform thorough regression testing when bugs are resolved
Enforce defect management procedures within a Project Team; engage in daily stand-ups; engage in Sprint Planning; collaborate with Project Teams throughout a Project
Support the following types of Testing ? Functional, Regression, Integration, and Accessibility; track quality assurance metrics like open defect counts; report and track bugs for defects and errors; implement and provide inputs for test plans
Executes manual and automated test cases based on understanding and analysis of the requirements; write and maintain testing documentation on functionality and software issue creation/resolution
Review functional specifications, business requirements, use cases and technical design documents to translate these requirements into test cases; create detailed, comprehensive, and well-structured test plans and test cases
Direct Deposit - Per Public Law 104-134 all Federal employees are required to have federal payments made by direct deposit to their financial institution
Successfully pass the E-Verify employment verification check. To learn more about E-Verify, including your rights and responsibilities, visit https://www.e-verify.gov/
Meets the time-in-grade requirements in accordance with 5 CFR part 300, subpart F at the time of conversion.
Must maintain eligibility requirements of the program.
Qualifications
The Technology Office is a dynamic environment in which many agile development teams are building the applications and systems necessary to support the mission.
This announcement is issued under the Post-Secondary Student Hiring Authority, 5 CFR Part 316 Subpart I. Category rating, veteran's preference and traditional rating and ranking of applicants do not apply to this public notice.
Applicants must meet all qualifications and eligibility requirements by the closing date of the announcement including specialized experience and/or education, as defined below.
For the GS-07 grade level: .Completion of one full academic year of graduate level education OR Eligibility under the Superior Academic Achievement (SAA) provision (as defined below) and completion of a bachelor's degree.
For the GS-09 level: Completion of two academic years of graduate level education, OR Master's degree OR equivalent graduate degree.
Superior Academic Achievement is based on (1) class standing, (2) grade-point average, or (3) honor society membership.1. Class standing - Applicants must be in the upper third of the graduating class in the college, university, or major subdivision, based on completed courses.2. Grade-point average - Applicants must have a grade-point average of: 3.0 or higher out of a possible 4.0 as recorded on their official transcript, or as computed based on 4 years of education, or as computed based on courses completed during the final two years of the curriculum; OR 3.5 or higher out of a possible 4.0 based on the average of the required courses completed in the major field or the required courses in the major field completed during the final 2 years of the curriculum.3. Election to membership in a national scholastic honor society.
Conversion: In addition to meeting the program requirements for conversion, an applicant converting to an IT Specialist, GS-2210-7/9/11/12/13 is required to also meet the OPM Qualification Standards for the GS-2210 series.
Undergraduate or Graduate Education: Degree in computer science, engineering, information science, information systems management, mathematics, operations research, statistics, or technology management or degree that provided a minimum of 24 semester hours in one or more of the fields identified above and required the development or adaptation of applications, systems or networks.
Additional information
Post-secondary students hired under this announcement will initially be appointed to a term appointment in the competitive service for a period expected to last more than 1 year not to exceed 4 years; they may be non-competitively converted to a career or career-conditional appointment within 120 days of successfully completing the qualifying academic program.
The purpose of this position is to prepare the incumbent to perform a variety of duties designed to give actual work experience in Quality Assurance (QA). QA responsibilities include designing and implementing tests, debugging, and tracking corrective action. Incumbent will also learn the skills to review system requirements and track quality assurance metrics, as well as learn the Technical Skills to perform Information Technology activities.
Student Interns must continue to meet the requirements throughout the duration of the appointment. Incumbents will be required to provide proof of continued enrollment and good standing (as Defined by the educational institution),each semester or grading period throughout the internship program. Failure to do so will result in termination of the appointment.
Interns may be non-competitively converted to a career-conditional or career appointment within 120 days following successful completion of all their educational and work requirements (work experience hours, satisfactory performance, educational requirements, mandatory training completion, etc.)
You may be non-competitively converted to a career conditional or career appointment within 120 days to an: IT Specialist, GS-2210-7/9/11/12/13 career ladder position.
The full performance level (FPL) of the position to which converted may be up to the GS-13 level.
An agency is not required to convert any individual to a position in the competitive service, whether upon completion of degree requirements or otherwise. Conversion to a competitive service position is not an entitlement.
This position may be eligible for flexible work schedules as determined by agency policy and any applicable collective bargaining agreements.
Two vacancies will be filled from this vacancy announcement.
This vacancy announcement has an applicant limit of 300.
A career with the U.S. government provides employees with a comprehensive benefits package. As a federal employee, you and your family will have access to a range of benefits that are designed to make your federal career very rewarding. Opens in a new windowLearn more about federal benefits.
Eligibility for benefits depends on the type of position you hold and whether your position is full-time, part-time or intermittent. Contact the hiring agency for more information on the specific benefits offered.
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 for this job based on how well you meet the qualifications above.
Under the provisions of this hiring authority, rating, ranking, and veterans' preference does not apply. While veterans' preference does not apply, veterans are still encouraged to apply and submit their documentation. Your application will be reviewed to determine if you meet the minimum qualification requirements. Your resume must clearly support your responses to all the questions addressing experience and education relevant to this position.
Note: If, after reviewing your resume and/or supporting documentation, a determination is made that you have inflated your qualifications and or experience, you may be found ineligible. Please follow all instructions carefully. Errors or omissions may affect your rating. Providing inaccurate information on Federal documents could be grounds for non-selection or disciplinary action up to including removal from the Federal service.
Clicking the link below will present a preview of the application form; i.e. the online questionnaire. The application form link below will only provide a preview and does not initiate the application process. To initiate the online application process, click the "Apply" button to the right.
A career with the U.S. government provides employees with a comprehensive benefits package. As a federal employee, you and your family will have access to a range of benefits that are designed to make your federal career very rewarding. Opens in a new windowLearn more about federal benefits.
Eligibility for benefits depends on the type of position you hold and whether your position is full-time, part-time or intermittent. Contact the hiring agency for more information on the specific benefits offered.
The following documents are required for your applicant package to be complete. Our office cannot be responsible for incompatible software, your system failure, etc. Encrypted documents will not be accepted. Failure to submit required, legible documents may result in loss of consideration.
Resume that includes:1) personal information such as name, address, contact information; 2) education; 3) detailed work experience related to this position as described in the major duties including work schedule, hours worked per week, dates of employment (month/year); title, series, grade (if applicable); 4) other qualifications.
You must submit a copy of your college transcripts which reflect field of study, school name, students name, GPA or academic standing, past and current coursework, degree program and major/consideration, degree conferment date (if applicable).An unofficial copy is sufficient with the application if it includes your name and the necessary course information; however, if you are selected, you will be required to submit official transcripts prior to entering on duty. Education must have been successfully obtained from an accredited school, college or university. If any education was completed at a foreign institute, you must submit with your application evidence that the institute was appropriately accredited by an accrediting body recognized by the U.S. Department of Education as equivalent to U.S. education standards. There are private organizations that specialize in this evaluation and a fee is normally associated with this service. For a list of private organizations that evaluate education visit NACES website. All transcripts must be in English or include an English translation.
If claiming veteran's preference, you must submit a DD214, Certificate of Release from Active Duty, which shows dates of service and discharge under honorable conditions. If currently on active duty you must submit a certification of expected discharge or release from active duty service under honorable conditions not later than 120 days after the date the certification is submitted. Veteran's preference must be verified prior to appointment. Without this documentation, you will not receive veteran's preference and your application will be evaluated based on the material(s) submitted.
If claiming 10-point veteran's preference you must provide the DD214 or certification requirements (see above bullet), plus the proof of entitlement of this preference as listed on the SF-15 Application for 10-point Veterans' Preference. The SF-15 should be included but is not required. Failure to submit these documents could result in the determination that there is insufficient documentation to support your claim for 10-point preference. For more information on veterans' preference visit FEDSVISITVETS.
Surplus or displaced employees eligible for RPL priority must provide proof of eligibility (RIF separation notice, notice of proposed removal for declining a transfer of function or directed reassignment to another commuting area, notice of disability annuity termination), SF-50 documenting separation (as applicable), and your most recent SF-50 noting position, grade level, and duty location with your application per 5 CFR 330.
Although Veteran's Preference does not apply to the Post-Secondary Student Hiring Authority, upon selection Veteran's documentation may be required.
If you are relying on your education to meet qualification requirements:
Failure to provide all of the required information as stated in this vacancy announcement may result in an ineligible rating or may affect the overall rating.
Please read the entire announcement and all instructions before you begin. You must complete this application process and submit all required documents electronically by 11:59p.m. Eastern Time (ET) on the closing date of this announcement.
Applying online is highly encouraged. We are available to assist you during business hours (normally 8:00a.m. - 4:00p.m., Monday - Friday). If applying online poses a hardship, contact the Agency Contact listed below well before the closing date for an alternate method. All hardship application packages must be complete and submitted no later than noon ET on the closing date of the announcement in order to be entered into the system prior to its closing.
This agency provides reasonable accommodation to applicants with disabilities on a case-by-case basis; contact the Agency Contact to request this.
To begin, click "Apply Online" and follow the instructions to complete the Assessment Questionnaire and attach your resume and all required documents.
NOTE: Please verify that documents you are uploading from USAJOBs transfer into the Agency's staffing system as there is a limitation to the number of documents that can be transferred. However, once in the Agency's staffing system, you will have the opportunity to upload additional documents. Uploaded resumes must be less than 5MB and in one of the following document formats: GIF, JPG, JPEG, PNG, RTF, PDF, TXT or Word (DOC or DOCX). Do not upload Adobe Portfolio documents because they are not viewable.
Rural Development
1400 Independence Ave SW
Washington, DC 20250
US
Next steps
Your application will be reviewed to verify that you meet the eligibility and qualification requirements for the position prior to issuing referral lists to the selecting official. If further evaluation or interviews are required, you will be contacted. Log in to your USAJOBS account to check your application status.
You must choose to turn on email notifications in your USAJOBS profile if you want to receive important email notifications that may impact your applicant experience (e.g. If you start an application and do not submit it prior to the closing date, USAJOBS will send an email reminder that the closing date is approaching and your application is in an incomplete status).
Multiple positions may be filled from this announcement.
The Federal hiring process is set up to be fair and transparent. Please read the following guidance.
The following documents are required for your applicant package to be complete. Our office cannot be responsible for incompatible software, your system failure, etc. Encrypted documents will not be accepted. Failure to submit required, legible documents may result in loss of consideration.
Resume that includes:1) personal information such as name, address, contact information; 2) education; 3) detailed work experience related to this position as described in the major duties including work schedule, hours worked per week, dates of employment (month/year); title, series, grade (if applicable); 4) other qualifications.
You must submit a copy of your college transcripts which reflect field of study, school name, students name, GPA or academic standing, past and current coursework, degree program and major/consideration, degree conferment date (if applicable).An unofficial copy is sufficient with the application if it includes your name and the necessary course information; however, if you are selected, you will be required to submit official transcripts prior to entering on duty. Education must have been successfully obtained from an accredited school, college or university. If any education was completed at a foreign institute, you must submit with your application evidence that the institute was appropriately accredited by an accrediting body recognized by the U.S. Department of Education as equivalent to U.S. education standards. There are private organizations that specialize in this evaluation and a fee is normally associated with this service. For a list of private organizations that evaluate education visit NACES website. All transcripts must be in English or include an English translation.
If claiming veteran's preference, you must submit a DD214, Certificate of Release from Active Duty, which shows dates of service and discharge under honorable conditions. If currently on active duty you must submit a certification of expected discharge or release from active duty service under honorable conditions not later than 120 days after the date the certification is submitted. Veteran's preference must be verified prior to appointment. Without this documentation, you will not receive veteran's preference and your application will be evaluated based on the material(s) submitted.
If claiming 10-point veteran's preference you must provide the DD214 or certification requirements (see above bullet), plus the proof of entitlement of this preference as listed on the SF-15 Application for 10-point Veterans' Preference. The SF-15 should be included but is not required. Failure to submit these documents could result in the determination that there is insufficient documentation to support your claim for 10-point preference. For more information on veterans' preference visit FEDSVISITVETS.
Surplus or displaced employees eligible for RPL priority must provide proof of eligibility (RIF separation notice, notice of proposed removal for declining a transfer of function or directed reassignment to another commuting area, notice of disability annuity termination), SF-50 documenting separation (as applicable), and your most recent SF-50 noting position, grade level, and duty location with your application per 5 CFR 330.
Although Veteran's Preference does not apply to the Post-Secondary Student Hiring Authority, upon selection Veteran's documentation may be required.
If you are relying on your education to meet qualification requirements:
Failure to provide all of the required information as stated in this vacancy announcement may result in an ineligible rating or may affect the overall rating.
Please read the entire announcement and all instructions before you begin. You must complete this application process and submit all required documents electronically by 11:59p.m. Eastern Time (ET) on the closing date of this announcement.
Applying online is highly encouraged. We are available to assist you during business hours (normally 8:00a.m. - 4:00p.m., Monday - Friday). If applying online poses a hardship, contact the Agency Contact listed below well before the closing date for an alternate method. All hardship application packages must be complete and submitted no later than noon ET on the closing date of the announcement in order to be entered into the system prior to its closing.
This agency provides reasonable accommodation to applicants with disabilities on a case-by-case basis; contact the Agency Contact to request this.
To begin, click "Apply Online" and follow the instructions to complete the Assessment Questionnaire and attach your resume and all required documents.
NOTE: Please verify that documents you are uploading from USAJOBs transfer into the Agency's staffing system as there is a limitation to the number of documents that can be transferred. However, once in the Agency's staffing system, you will have the opportunity to upload additional documents. Uploaded resumes must be less than 5MB and in one of the following document formats: GIF, JPG, JPEG, PNG, RTF, PDF, TXT or Word (DOC or DOCX). Do not upload Adobe Portfolio documents because they are not viewable.
Rural Development
1400 Independence Ave SW
Washington, DC 20250
US
Next steps
Your application will be reviewed to verify that you meet the eligibility and qualification requirements for the position prior to issuing referral lists to the selecting official. If further evaluation or interviews are required, you will be contacted. Log in to your USAJOBS account to check your application status.
You must choose to turn on email notifications in your USAJOBS profile if you want to receive important email notifications that may impact your applicant experience (e.g. If you start an application and do not submit it prior to the closing date, USAJOBS will send an email reminder that the closing date is approaching and your application is in an incomplete status).
Multiple positions may be filled from this announcement.
Fair and transparent
The Federal hiring process is set up to be fair and transparent. Please read the following guidance.
