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INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS SPECIALIST

Department of Defense
Defense Threat Reduction Agency
This job announcement has closed

Summary

This position is part of the Defense Threat Reduction Agency.

Overview

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Hiring complete
Open & closing dates
08/21/2023 to 09/05/2023
Salary
$94,199 to - $145,617 per year
Pay scale & grade
GS 12 - 13
Location
1 vacancy in the following location:
Fort Belvoir, VA
1 vacancy
Remote job
No
Telework eligible
Yes—as determined by the agency policy.
Travel Required
Occasional travel - You may be expected to travel for this position.
Relocation expenses reimbursed
No
Appointment type
Permanent
Work schedule
Full-time
Service
Competitive
Promotion potential
13
Job family (Series)
Supervisory status
No
Security clearance
Sensitive Compartmented Information
Drug test
Yes
Position sensitivity and risk
Special-Sensitive (SS)/High Risk
Trust determination process
Announcement number
DTRA-23-12065264-DE
Control number
743911600

Duties

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As a INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS SPECIALIST at the GS-0131-12/13 some of your typical work assignments may include:

  • Represents DTRA as a subject matter expert at international, interagency working groups and backstopping meetings involving bilateral/multilateral agreement negotiations and implementation for intermediate and strategic nuclear weapons. Such international and interagency meetings typically involve representatives from the Office of the Secretary of Defense (OSD), the Departments of State and Energy (DOS/DOE), the Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS), the National Security Council (NSC) staff and the intelligence community.
  • Provides continuity to an organization that is staffed jointly with military officers and is charged with the participation in all activities related to nuclear treaties and agreements. To include activities associated with U.S.-Russian bilateral/multilateral negotiations as well as implementation of the New START and other Nuclear Treaties and agreements such as monitoring other arms control negotiations as a technical advisor for the conduct of on-site inspection and escort activities.
  • Briefs high-level officials within the Department of Defense (DoD) and other Federal agencies and departments. Interacts with top officials of Defense contractors involved in on-site inspection and monitoring efforts related to strategic nuclear weapons activities.
  • Represents DTRA as a technical advisor to the U.S. delegation for bilateral and multilateral strategic nuclear weapons and material negotiations as required.
  • Provides advice and recommendations to the Strategic, Nuclear Team Lead and/or Strategic, Nuclear, Chemical & Biological Division Chief and other key Agency members on all New START and other nuclear related activities under their purview.
  • Conducts original research; writes synopses of negotiation records, determines implementation requirements, and develops, prepares, staffs and presents DTRA positions on intermediate/strategic nuclear weapons and nuclear related matters.

Requirements

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Conditions of employment

  • Must be a U.S. citizen
  • Males born after 12-31-59 must be registered for Selective Service http://www.sss.gov
  • Resume and supporting documents (See How To Apply)
  • Suitable for Federal employment, determined by a background investigation
  • May be required to successfully complete a probationary period
  • Work Schedule: Fulltime
  • Overtime: Required; 25%
  • Tour of Duty: Flexible
  • Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized
  • Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA): Non-Exempt
  • Financial Disclosure: Not Required
  • Telework Eligibility: This position is telework eligible
  • This is a designated drug testing position.
  • Employee must obtain/maintain a Special Sensitive (TS/SCI) security clearance.
  • Potential exists for extended international TDY travel duty requirements beyond 25% of the time in order to support US and DOD delegations.

Qualifications

In addition to meeting qualifications, your application package must reflect the applicable education and/or experience to meet the Individual Occupational Requirements for the 0131 series.

A. Education: Degree-major or equivalent, or a combination of courses totaling at least 24 semester hours in international law and international relations, political science, economics, history, sociology, geography, social or cultural anthropology, law, statistics, or in the humanities; or 12 semester hours in one of the above disciplines and 12 semester hours in statistics/quantitative methods.

B. Combination of education and experience: courses equivalent to a major, or a combination of related courses totaling at least 24 semester hours, in one or more of the social sciences, or in the humanities, as shown in A above, plus appropriate experience or additional education.

C. Experience: 4 years of appropriate experience in one or more of the fields listed above in work associated with international organizations, problems, or other aspects of foreign affairs. Evaluations of Experience- Qualifying experience that provided an intimate knowledge of a foreign country or geographic area may have been gained through residence, study, teaching, business or commercial activities, military service, newspaper work, military or civil government activities, missionary or inter-national relief work, or other experience in foreign countries. It may also have been gained through teaching college-level courses in international relations or problems associated with a specific foreign geographic area.

**To qualify for positions at grades GS-12 and above on the basis of experience, this experience must have included either (a) responsibility for the direction and coordination of research, analysis, or other professional work in one or more of the fields listed in A above, or (b) specialized professional work involving a high level of difficulty and responsibility in one or more of these fields.

You may qualify at the GS-13, if you fulfill the following qualifications:

One year of specialized experience equivalent to the GS-12 grade level in the Federal service:

  • Utilizing the interagency process to work with multiple U.S. Government departments and/or a Policy Coordination Committee, along with having familiarity with international organizations such as the United Nations and the International Atomic Energy Agency;
  • Executing inspection and escort responsibilities for New Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty (New START or NST), Plutonium Production Reactor Agreement (PPRA) and/or International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Safeguards;
  • Working with the Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty (NPT), Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban Treaty (CTBT) and Threshold Test Ban Treaty (TTBT);
  • Monitoring arms control negotiations as a technical advisor;
  • Utilizing inspection/escort procedures with Russian Federation or other non-US inspectors;
  • Working with nuclear materials/reentry vehicles as it relates to power plants/nuclear weapons.

You may qualify at the GS-12, if you fulfill the following qualifications:

One year of specialized experience equivalent to the GS-11 grade level in the Federal service:
  • Representing a department and/or agency during interagency meetings involving multiple U.S. Government departments;
  • Utilizing the interagency process in working with the Department of Defense, Department of State, and/or Department of Energy;
  • Providing advice and support on the Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty (NPT), Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban Treaty (CTBT) and Threshold Test Ban Treaty (TTBT).
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, knowledge, and skills and can provide valuable training and experience that translates directly to paid employment. You will receive credit for all qualifying experience, including volunteer experience.

Education

Substitution of education may not be used in lieu of specialized experience for this grade level.

ARE YOU USING YOUR EDUCATION TO MEET THE INDIVIDUAL OCCUPATION REQUIREMENT? You MUST provide transcripts or other documentation to support your educational claims. Unofficial transcripts are acceptable at time of application.

All materials must be submitted by the closing date of the announcement.

GRADUATE EDUCATION: One academic year of graduate education is considered to be the number of credits hours that your graduate school has determined to represent one academic year of full-time study. Such study may have been performed on a full-time or part-time basis. If you cannot obtain your graduate school's definition of one year of graduate study, 18 semester hours (or 27 quarter hours) should be considered as satisfying the requirement for one year of full-time graduate study.

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: Foreign Education

Additional information

Re-employed Annuitant: This position does not meet criteria for re-employed annuitant. The DoD criteria for hiring Re-employed Annuitants can be found at: https://www.esd.whs.mil/Portals/54/Documents/DD/issuances/140025/1400.25-V300.pdf

All applicants must meet qualifications and eligibility criteria by the closing date of the announcement.

Interagency Career Transition Assistance Programs:
This program applies to employees who have been involuntarily separated from a Federal service position within the competitive service or Federal service employees whose positions have been deemed surplus or no longer needed. To receive selection priority for this position, you must: 1) meet ICTAP eligibility criteria; 2) be rated well-qualified for the position; Well qualified is defined as possessing the type and quality of experience that exceeds the positions minimum qualifications. and 3) submit the appropriate documentation to support your ICTAP eligibility. For more information:
https://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/workforce-restructuring/employee-guide-to-career-transition/

How you will be evaluated

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

We will review your resume and supporting documents, to ensure you meet the basic qualification requirements. We will evaluate each applicant who meets the basic qualifications on the information provided and evaluate your relevant work experiences as it relates to fundamental competencies, identified below, required for this position.

Competencies:

  • Arms Control Interagency Process
  • Influencing/Negotiating
  • Oral and Written Communication
  • Policy Development
  • Technical Competence


Based on the results of this evaluation, you will be placed in one of the following quality categories:

Best Qualified:
This highest category will be used for those candidates who possess the type and quality of experience that substantially exceeds the minimum qualifications of the position, including any selective placement factors and/or appropriate quality ranking factor(s), as determined by the job analysis.
Highly Qualified: This higher category will be used for those candidates who possess the type and quality of experience that exceed the minimum qualifications of the position, including any selective placement factors and/or appropriate quality ranking factor(s) as determined by the job analysis.
Qualified: This lowest category will be used for those candidates that meet the minimum qualifications of the position, including all selective placement factors and appropriate quality ranking factor(s) and are proficient in some, but not all, of the requirements of the position. Candidates may require extensive training and/or orientation in order to satisfactorily perform the duties of the position. https://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/hiring-information/competitive-hiring/#url=Category-Rating

Names of the candidates in the Best Qualified category will be sent first to the hiring manager for employment consideration. Applicants in other categories will be referred in accordance with category rating procedures.

Veterans Preference:
If you are entitled to veterans preference, you should indicate the type of veterans' preference you are claiming on your resume. Your veterans' preference entitlement will be verified by the employing agency. If you are entitled to veterans' preference and qualified for the position, your name will be placed above non-preference candidates on a list sent to the hiring manager for employment consideration. Qualified veterans' preference eligible with a service-connected disability of 10% or more will be listed at the top of the highest quality category depending on the position and grade level of the job.
For information on entitlement seeFeds Hire Vets - Job Seekers - Veterans.

Military Spouse Preference: If you are entitled to military spouse preference, in order to receive this preference you must choose the spousal eligibility in your application package referencing MSP Military Spouse Preference. Your preference entitlement will be verified by the employing agency. If you are claiming military spouse preference and qualified for the position, your name will be placed below preference eligible veteran candidates and above non-preference candidates on a list sent to the hiring manager for employment consideration. To claim Military Spouse Preference (MSP) please complete the Military Spouse PPP Self-Certification Checklist, save the document and attach it to your application package.

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