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CISA - Scholarship for Service (SFS) Post Grad - Accepting Resumes, Transcripts, and Service Letters

Department of Homeland Security
Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency

Summary

This is a CyberCorps® Scholarship for Service (SFS) resume repository for ONLY SFS scholarship recipients. CISA is interested in recruiting SFS scholars to participate in the 2026 post graduate cohort. Selectee(s) will receive a full-time position in the excepted service.

Overview

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Open & closing dates
12/15/2025 to 02/27/2026
Salary
$34,454 to - $82,108 per year

Salary range listed reflects the GS base rate (not including locality pay), see the "Additional Information" section of the announcement for details.

Pay scale & grade
GS 5 - 11
Locations
MANY vacancies in the following locations:
Oakland, CA
Denver, CO
Pensacola, FL
Atlanta, GA
Remote job
No
Telework eligible
No
Travel Required
Occasional travel - You may be expected to travel for this position.
Relocation expenses reimbursed
No
Appointment type
Recent graduates
Work schedule
Full-time
Service
Excepted
Promotion potential
None
Supervisory status
No
Security clearance
Sensitive Compartmented Information
Drug test
Yes
Position sensitivity and risk
Special-Sensitive (SS)/High Risk
Financial disclosure
No
Bargaining unit status
No
Announcement number
OEE-SFS-12822341-26-DW
Control number
851950500

This job is open to

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Clarification from the agency

Open to Scholarship for Service (SFS) recipients who have obtained (or will obtain within 9 months from the date of application) a qualifying bachelors or graduate degree that included major study in the cybersecurity field from a qualifying educational SFS institution.

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Duties

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Typical opportunities within CISA can include, but are not limited to, the following occupation:

  • IT Cybersecurity Specialist (Technical Support), GS-2210-5/7/9/11
Typical work assignments include, but are not limited to:
  • This is a developmental role designed to build the skills needed to perform the full duties of higher-level cybersecurity positions. The work is similar to more senior roles but is performed with closer supervision. As training and experience increase, assignments become more complex and responsibilities expand.
  • Assignments focus on cybersecurity and information security, providing hands-on experience applying core cybersecurity principles, processes, tools, regulations, and procedures.
  • On-the-job training is provided through selected assignments to develop foundational knowledge of cybersecurity and IT security and to build an understanding of the IT security environment.
SERVICE COMMITMENT AND CONVERSION
CyberCorps: Scholarship for Service (SFS) Post Graduates may be non-competitively converted to a permanent position (or, in some limited circumstances, to a term position lasting 1-4 years) within the competitive service after fulfilling their required service commitment. The duration of the service commitment varies from 1 to 3 years and is dependent upon the number of academic years the recipient's scholarship was awarded. The time served under the service commitment does not count toward tenure. Conversion to the competitive service will require a one-year probationary period.

Requirements

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Conditions of employment

  • You must be a U.S. citizen.
  • Selective Service - Males born after 12/31/59 must be registered or exempt from Selective Service see http://www.sss.gov/
  • All Federal employees are required to participate in Direct Deposit/Electronic Funds Transfer for salary payments.
  • DHS uses e-Verify, an Internet-based system, to confirm the eligibility of all newly hired employees to work in the United States. Learn more about E-Verify, including your rights and responsibilities.
  • You must be able to obtain and maintain a security clearance suitable for Federal employment as determined by a background investigation. This may include a credit check, a review of financial issues, as well as certain criminal offenses and illegal use or possession of drugs.
  • This position requires a pre-employment drug test. All applicants tentatively selected for this position will be required to submit to a drug test to screen for illicit/illegal drug use prior to receiving a final offer of employment. A final offer of employment is contingent upon a negative drug test result.

Qualifications

BASIC ELIGIBILITY

Applicants must:

  • Have obtained (or will obtain no more than 9 months from the date of application) a qualifying bachelor's, master's, or doctorate degree with an emphasis in cybersecurity or research-based doctoral program at an institution that has been awarded a National Science Foundation (NSF) grant under the SFS program.
  • Signed a CyberCorps® Scholarship for Service (SFS) Program Agreement to Serve or Repay
  • Your application package MUST include the following:
  1. Resume - not to exceed 2-pages (Please see Required Documents section).
  2. Copy of current unofficial transcripts no more than 30 days old. Please provide transcripts from all institutions attended and degrees obtained if applicable.
  3. Scholarship for Service (SFS) service agreement letter.

IN ADDITION TO MEETING THE BASIC ELIGIBILITY ABOVE, YOU MUST ALSO MEET THE FOLLOWING MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS:

To be considered minimally qualified for a position, you must demonstrate that you have the required education for the respective grade level in which you are applying.

You qualify for the GS-05 grade level, if you have:
EDUCATION:
A.
Bachelor's degree or equivalent undergraduate degree from an accredited institution.
OR
B. Completion of four (4) full academic years of post-high school study leading to a bachelor's degree or equivalent undergraduate degree from an accredited institution. (NOTE: Four (4) academic years of undergraduate education is defined as 120 semester hours or 180 quarter hours.)

You qualify for the GS-07 grade level, if you have:
EDUCATION:
A.
Completion of one (1) full academic year of graduate education from an accredited institution. (NOTE: One (1) academic year of graduate education is defined as the number of credit hours that the school attended has determined to represent one (1) academic year of full-time study. If that information cannot be obtained from the school transcript(s), then 18 semester hours or 27 quarter hours is considered as satisfying the one (1) year of full-time study requirement.)
OR
B. Bachelor's degree or equivalent undergraduate degree from an accredited institution with Superior Academic Achievement (SAA) is based on one of the following:

(1) Class Standing - Applicants must be in the upper third of the graduating class in the college, university, or major subdivision, such as the College of Liberal Arts or the School of Business Administration, based on completed courses; OR

(2) Grade-Point Average (G.P.A.) - Applicants must have a grade-point average of:
  • 3.0 or higher out of a possible 4.0 ("B" or better) as recorded on your official transcript, or as computed based on 4 years of education, or as computed based on courses completed during the final 2 years of the curriculum; or
  • 3.5 or higher out of a possible 4.0 ("B+" or better) 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.; OR
NOTE: Grade-point averages are rounded to one decimal place. For example, 2.95 will round to 3.0 and 2.94 will round to 2.9.

(3) Honor Society Membership - Applicants can be considered eligible based on membership in one of the national scholastic honor societies recognized by the Association of College Honor Societies.

You qualify for the GS-09 grade level, if you have:
EDUCATION:
A.
Master's or equivalent graduate degree from an accredited institution.
OR
B.
Completion of two (2) full academic years of graduate level education leading to a master's degree or equivalent graduate degree from an accredited institution. (NOTE: Two (2) academic years of graduate education is defined as the number of credit hours that the school attended has determined to represent two (2) academic years of full-time study. If that information cannot be obtained from the school transcript(s), then 36 semester hours or 54 quarter hours is considered as satisfying the two (2) years of full-time study requirement.)

You qualify for the GS-11 grade level, if you have:
EDUCATION:
A.
Research-based Ph.D. or equivalent doctoral degree from an accredited institution.
OR
B.
Completion of three (3) full academic years of graduate level education leading to a research-based Ph.D. or equivalent doctoral degree from an accredited institution.

NOTE: When academic credit is expressed in contract months, units, or other terms that differ from conventional semester or quarter hours, it is the responsibility of the applicant to provide an interpretation of such credits from the appropriate institution in order to equate them to the specified semester or quarter hours.

All qualification requirements must be met by the closing date of this announcement.

Education

You MUST submit a copy of your transcripts or equivalent (e.g., letter from the registrar, unofficial transcripts) showing completion or intended completion (not to exceed 9 months from the date of application) of all educational requirements by the closing date of the announcement. Unofficial transcripts will be accepted that includes your name, the name of the educational institution, course title(s), number of credits, grade, and date of completion. An official transcript will be required if you are selected.

Education must be from an accredited institution recognized by the U.S. Department of Education in order for it to be credited towards qualifications. Therefore, provide only the attendance and/or degrees from schools accredited by accrediting institutions recognized by the U.S. Department of Education.

Foreign Education: Education completed in foreign colleges or universities may be used to meet the qualification requirements. You must show the education credentials have been evaluated by a private U.S. organization that specializes in interpretation of foreign educational credentials and such education has been deemed equivalent to that gained in an accredited U.S. education program. It is your responsibility to provide such evidence with your application. See Recognition of Foreign Qualifications for more information.

Additional information

  • If you receive a conditional offer of employment for this position, you will be required to complete an Optional Form 306, Declaration for Federal Employment, and to sign and certify the accuracy of all information in your application, prior to entry on duty. False statements on any part of the application may result in withdrawal of offer of employment, dismissal after beginning work, fine, or imprisonment.
  • This Public Notice will serve as a resume repository - positions may or may not be filled from this announcement.
  • The salary range indicated in this announcement reflects the minimum base pay, GS-5, step 1 up to the maximum base pay, GS-11, step 10. This announcement covers multiple locations. The actual salary will be adjusted based on the grade, step, and locality for the selectee's duty location. General Schedule (GS) locality pay tables may be found at Salaries & Wages.
Reasonable Accommodation Requests: This agency provides reasonable accommodation to otherwise qualified applicants and employees with a disability covered under the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, as amended, unless to do so would create an undue hardship to the agency (29 CFR 1614.203 (2017)). If you need a reasonable accommodation for any part of the application or hiring process, contact the CISA Office of Privacy, Access, Civil Liberties, and Transparency (PACT) by sending an email to CISA_ReasonableAccommodation@cisa.dhs.gov with the subject line, "Reasonable Accommodation Request @ CISA." In the email itself, you must include your name, vacancy announcement number(s), and state your intent to seek a reasonable accommodation. Decisions on requests for Reasonable Accommodations are made on a case-by-case basis. For more information or inquiries, please contact the CISA Reasonable Accommodation Program at CISA_ReasonableAccommodation@cisa.dhs.gov.

Current or Former Political Appointees: The Office of Personnel Management (OPM) must authorize employment offers made to current or former political appointees. If you are currently, or have been within the last 5 years, a political Schedule A, Schedule C, Non-career SES or Presidential Appointee employee in the Executive Branch, you must disclose this information to the Human Resources Office.

Candidates should be committed to improving the efficiency of the Federal government, passionate about the ideals of our American republic, and committed to upholding the rule of law and the United States Constitution.

How you will be evaluated

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

Under the provisions of the CyberCorps: Scholarship for Service (SFS) Program, veterans' preference does not apply.

Your qualifications will be evaluated based on your application materials (e.g., resume, transcripts, and SFS agreement) and the responses you provide on the application questionnaire.

Traditional rating and ranking of applications do not apply to this announcement.

If you are determined qualified, you may be referred to the hiring manager for consideration and may be called for an interview. The interview process may consist of in-person or phone panel interview.

To preview the application questionnaire, click here: https://apply.usastaffing.gov/ViewQuestionnaire/12822341

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