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ACCOUNTANT

Department of State
Department of State - Agency Wide
This job announcement has closed

Summary

This position is located in the Bureau of the Comptroller and Global Finance Services (CGFS). The incumbent of this position performs professional accounting activities involved in ensuring that the financial operations of the Bureau of the Comptroller and Global Financial Services are sound and in compliance with applicable legislation, regulations, policies, and standards.

Overview

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Hiring complete
Open & closing dates
02/13/2024 to 02/27/2024
Salary
$72,553 to - $113,047 per year
Pay scale & grade
GS 11 - 12
Location
Many vacancies in the following location:
Charleston, SC
Many vacancies
Remote job
No
Telework eligible
Yes—as determined by the agency policy.
Travel Required
Occasional travel - Occasional domestic and/or overseas travel may be required.
Relocation expenses reimbursed
No
Appointment type
Permanent
Work schedule
Full-time
Service
Competitive
Promotion potential
12
Job family (Series)
Supervisory status
No
Security clearance
Top Secret
Drug test
Yes
Position sensitivity and risk
High Risk (HR)
Announcement number
HRSC/CGFS-2024-0014
Control number
775704100

Duties

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  • Performs accounting work which involves the analysis and resolution of conventional accounting problems and issues.
  • Initiates and implements internal control measures to ensure overall financial integrity of accounting databases/systems.
  • Audits and verifies commitment, obligation and expenditure information. Advises operating officials and management staff on specific accounting issues.
  • Reconciles documents, schedules and statements with data in accounting systems.
  • At the GS-11 level, the incumbent performs essentially the same duties as outlined above; however, the scope and complexity of assignments are of less responsibility and independence and receives closer supervision than the GS-12 level.

Requirements

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Conditions of employment

  • U.S. Citizenship is required.
  • Incumbent will be subject to random drug testing.
  • Must be able to obtain and maintain a Top Secret security clearance.
  • Successfully pass the E-Verify employment verification check. To learn more about E-Verify, including your rights and responsibilities, visit: www.dhs.gov/E-Verify/

Qualifications

Applicants must meet all the required qualification requirements described below by the closing date of this announcement.

If you are qualifying based on education OR if there are mandatory education requirements listed below, you MUST submit a copy of your college transcript with your application.

NOTE: Applicants must meet time-in-grade and time after competitive appointment requirements, by the closing date of this announcement.

Time-In-Grade Requirements: Federal applicants must have served 52 weeks at the next lower grade to satisfy time-in-grade restrictions, per 5CFR 300, Subpart F.

All applicants MUST meet one of the basic qualification requirements described below for this position:

BASIC QUALIFICATION REQUIREMENTS:

A. Applicants must have a degree from an accredited college or university in accounting and/or auditing OR a degree in a related field such as business administration, finance, or public administration that included or was supplemented by 24 semester hours in accounting and/or auditing. (The 24 semester hours may include up to 6 hours of credit in business law);

OR

B. Combination of Education and Experience: Have at least 4 years of experience in accounting, or an equivalent combination of accounting experience, college-level education, and training that provided professional accounting knowledge AND meet 1, 2 or 3 below:

1. Twenty-four semester hours in accounting or auditing courses. (This can include up to 6 hours of business law.)

2. A certificate as a Certified Public Accountant or a Certified Internal Auditor obtained through a written examination.

3. Have at least 4 years of experience in accounting AND completion of the requirements for a degree that included substantial course work in accounting or auditing, (e.g., 15 semester hours) but that does not fully satisfy the 24-semester-hour requirement described in paragraph A above, AND (a) have successfully worked at the full-performance level in accounting, auditing, or a related field, (e.g., valuation engineering or financial institution examining); AND (b) a panel of at least two higher level professional accountants or auditors determined that I have demonstrated a good knowledge of accounting and of related and underlying fields that equals in breadth, depth, currency, and level of advancement that which is normally associated with successful completion of the 4-year course of study described in paragraph A above; AND (c) except for literal nonconformance to the requirement of 24 semester hours in accounting, my education, training, and experience fully meet the specified requirements.

Note: All applicants MUST submit transcripts as verification of educational requirement OR a certificate as a Certified Public Accountant or a Certified Internal Auditor, obtained through written examination OR panel recommendation that includes all the requirements as described under Combination of Education and Experience #3 above by the closing date of this announcement. If you fail to provide requested information, or the information you submit is insufficient to verify your eligibility, you WILL lose consideration for this position.

For the GS-11:

IN ADDITION to meeting one of the basic qualification requirements listed above, the applicant MUST have at least one year of specialized experience that has equipped them with the particular knowledge, skills, and abilities to successfully perform the duties of the position. This experience is related to the work of the position and equivalent to at least the GS-09 level in the Federal service.

Qualifying specialized experience must demonstrate the following:

  • Experience assisting in the development and/or implementation of internal control measures ensuring overall financial integrity.
  • Experience reconciling financial, budgetary, and/or accounting data and identifying accounting discrepancies.
  • Experience providing routine customer support to a diverse financial customer base.

OR

IN ADDITION to meeting one of the basic qualification requirements listed above, the applicant MUST have 3 full years of progressively higher-level graduate education leading to a Ph.D. degree or Ph.D. or equivalent doctoral degree. This education demonstrates the knowledge, skills, and abilities to do the work of the position to be filled.

OR

IN ADDITION to meeting one of the basic qualification requirements listed above, the applicant MUST have a combination of graduate level education and specialized experience which is equivalent to the work of the position and equivalent to the GS-09 level in the Federal service. This education and experience meets 100% of the qualification requirements for this position.

For the GS-12:

IN ADDITION to meeting one of the basic qualification requirements listed above, the applicant MUST have at least one year of specialized experience that has equipped them with the particular knowledge, skills, and abilities to successfully perform the duties of the position. This experience is related to the work of the position and equivalent to at least the GS-11 level in the Federal service.

Qualifying specialized experience must demonstrate the following:

  • Experience independently developing and/or implementing internal control measures ensuring overall financial integrity.
  • Experience independently reconciling financial, budgetary, and/or accounting data; identifying accounting discrepancies; and making accounting adjustments.
  • Experience developing, nurturing, and improving customer relationships with a diverse financial customer base.

There is no substitute of education for specialized experience for the GS-12 position.

Education

See the qualifications section of this vacancy announcement for education requirements.

When an applicant has less than one year of specialized experience as described in the announcement, he or she may combine successfully completed graduate-level education with experience to meet the total qualification requirements. Generally, 18 graduate semester hours is equivalent to 1 full-time year of graduate study (your school and department determine what constitutes 1 full time year of graduate study). The percentage of specialized work experience (for example, 6 months equals 50%) and the percentage of graduate study (for example, 9 graduate hours for a GS-07 equals 50% where 18 graduate hours constitute a full time year) must total at least 100%.

Education completed in foreign colleges or universities may be used to meet the education requirements if you can show that the foreign education is comparable to that received in an accredited educational institution in the United States. It is your responsibility to provide such evidence when applying. For a list of accredited organizations recognized as specializing in interpretation of foreign education credentials, visit: www.naces.org/members.php.

Additional information

  • For reasonable accommodation at the U.S. Department of State, please contact the Office of Accessibility and Accommodations at (202) 663-3474 or OAA@state.gov.
  • If eligible, telework agreements may be permitted with supervisory approval. 
  • Multiple positions may be filled from this announcement.  If eligible, applicants to this announcement may be referred to other similar positions in other Bureaus/Offices in the Department for up to 240 days.  Telework eligibility and security clearance requirements may vary for such similar positions. 

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, a review of your resume will be conducted and compared against your responses to the assessment questions to determine if you are qualified for this job.  Note:  Responses to questions that are not fully supported by the information in your resume may result in adjustments to your rating. 

Applicants who meet the minimum qualification requirements, as described in the “Qualifications” section of this announcement, will be assigned a score between 70 and 100.  The assessment is used to measure the degree in which your background matches the competencies (knowledge, skills, and abilities) required for this position. Your qualifications will be evaluated on the following competencies:

  • Knowledge of generally accepted accounting principles, concepts and theories.
  • Knowledge of financial analysis and evaluation techniques.
  • Ability to conduct studies to improve effectiveness, efficiency, and economy of operations.
  • Ability to organize, interpret, and evaluate financial and management data to solve related problems.
  • Ability to research and interpret US laws and regulations related to accounting / auditing procedures.
  • Ability to communicate both orally and in writing in a manner that is appropriate for a given audience.

Applicants found to be among the top qualified candidates will be referred to the hiring official for further consideration and possible interview.  Qualified non-competitive candidates must be deemed best qualified based on the applicant assessment in order to be referred to the hiring official for further consideration and possible interview.

Agency Career and Interagency Career Transition Assistance Program (CTAP and ICTAP) candidates must be rated "Well Qualified" for the position and earn a score of at least 85 (when applicants are rated in a range of 70 to 100) to receive consideration for selection priority.


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