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Information Technology Specialist (Software Systems Disaster Recovery Specialist)

Department of Justice
Bureau of Prisons/Federal Prison System

Summary

Corrections professionals who foster a humane and secure environment and ensure public safety by preparing individuals for successful reentry into our communities.

Overview

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Accepting applications
Open & closing dates
02/17/2026 to 03/03/2026
Salary
$143,913 to - $187,093 per year
Pay scale & grade
GS 14
Location
Washington, DC
1 vacancy
Remote job
No
Telework eligible
No
Travel Required
Occasional travel - Travel may be required for training and/or work related issues.
Relocation expenses reimbursed
No
Appointment type
Permanent
Work schedule
Full-time
Service
Competitive
Promotion potential
14
Supervisory status
No
Security clearance
Other
Drug test
No
Bargaining unit status
No
Announcement number
CO-2026-0146
Control number
857958800

This job is open to

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Clarification from the agency

• THIS IS A DELEGATED EXAMINING ANNOUNCEMENT OPEN TO ALL U.S. CITIZENS. • Division: Systems Development Branch, Information Technology and Data Division • Duty Location: Central Office, Washington D.C.

Duties

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Defines and validates the need for proposed new systems through consultation with program officials.

Conducts preliminary analyses of business processes for which systems are being developed.

Provides high-level technical expertise to accomplish analysis of options and development of the design for advanced systems software and complex programming specifications.

Using advanced programming techniques, designs and writes programs which contain a variety of complex features, such as numerous input and output files, complex data manipulation, table handling, on-line processing and frequent modifications.

Designs, writes, tests, debugs and maintains software applications that meet technical and functional requirements; designs and develops efficient and effective applications through optimal use of reusable components; and ensures applications are consistent with the current and planned infrastructure and data environments.

Requirements

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Conditions of employment

  • U.S. Citizenship is Required.
  • See Special Conditions of Employment Section.
  • Selective Service Requirement: http://www.sss.gov

Career Transition Programs (CTAP or ICTAP): These programs apply to Federal and/or DOJ employees who meet the definition of surplus or displaced from a position in the competitive service. To receive selection priority for this position, you must:

  • 1. Meet CTAP or ICTAP eligibility criteria;
  • 2. Be rated well-qualified for the position, scoring at least half of the total possible points for the vacancy KSAs or competencies; and
  • 3. Submit the appropriate documentation to support your CTAP or ICTAP eligibility.

NOTE: Applicants claiming CTAP/ICTAP eligibility must complete all assessment questions to be rated under the established category rating criteria.

Qualifications

To be considered for the position, you must meet the following qualification requirements.

Basic Requirements:

Education:

There is no substitution of education for specialized experience at this grade level.

Experience:

You must have IT related experience demonstrating each of the four competencies listed below:

  • Attention to detail - Is thorough when performing work and conscientious about attending to detail.
  • Customer Service - Works with clients and customers (that is, any individuals who use or receive the services or products that your work unit produces, including the general public, individuals who work in the agency, other agencies, or organizations outside the Government) to assess their needs, provide information or assistance, resolve their problems, or satisfy their expectations; knows about available products and services; is committed to providing quality products and services.
  • Oral communication - Expresses information (for example, ideas or facts) to individuals or groups effectively, taking into account the audience and nature of the information (for example, technical, sensitive, controversial); makes clear and convincing oral presentations; listens to others, attends to nonverbal cues, and responds appropriately.
  • Problem Solving - Identifies problems; determines accuracy and relevance of information; uses sound judgment to generate and evaluate alternatives, and to make recommendations.

AND

Specialized Experience:

You must have one year of specialized experience at the next lower level in federal government. Specialized experience is experience that has equipped the applicant with the particular qualifications to successfully perform the duties of the position and is typically in or related to the work of the position to be filled. Such experience is typically gained in the IT field or through the performance of work where the primary concern is IT.

Some examples of this qualifying experience are:

  • Experience in applying applications software development concepts and techniques, methods for integrating and optimizing components, infrastructure requirements, database management features, and test and evaluation methods sufficient to provide technical guidance in designing, coding, testing, debugging and maintaining programs.
  • Experience in utilizing languages or software development environments such as C, C++, Microsoft Windows Operating Systems and utilities, OS/VS COBOL, TSO/ISPF, MVS/JCL, 3270 teleprocessing monitors including INTERCOMM or CICS, mainframe database management systems including IDMS, DB2, or VSAM, HTML, JAVA, Javascript, SQL, and/or Windows.
  • Experience which demonstrates knowledge and skill to assist in the recovery of enterprise application systems in the event of a disaster. This includes mainframe applications such as SENTRY and web-based applications running in part on hardware, in the Central Office, but using the mainframe to house their databases.

AND

Selective Placement Factors:

Applicants applying for this position MUST also possess the following Selective Placement Factors. In the event you do not possess the Selective Placement Factor, you will be found ineligible for the position.

  • Applicant must have experience in planning for and/or executing software systems disaster recovery plans. Such as planning for and/or executing software redundancy and recovery in a cloud computing environment or on-premises computing environments.

AND

  • Applicant must have 18 consecutive months of enterprise software development experience using the Java, C/C++, Rust, or COBOL programming languages.

AND

  • Applicant must have development experience using Postgres Structured Query Language (SQL), International Business Machines (IBM) DB2, or equivalent relational database technology on cloud-based or on-premises computing environments.

AND

  • Applicant must have development experience for the Amazon Web Services (AWS) Cloud Environment.

NOTE: Applicants must clearly address this experience in their resume to be found qualified.

If applicable, credit will be given for paid and unpaid experience. To receive proper credit, you must show the actual time (such as the number of hours worked per week) spent in activities.

**Your eligibility for consideration will be based on your responses to the questions in the application.**

Education

See Qualifications Section for education requirements, if applicable.

ONLY if education is a requirement/substitution for specialized experience, applicant MUST upload legible transcripts as verification of educational requirement. Transcripts MUST be uploaded and electronically linked from USAJOBS at the time you apply and MUST include identifying information to include School Name, Student Name, Degree and Date Awarded (if applicable). All academic degrees and coursework must be completed at a college or university that has obtained accreditation or pre-accreditation status from an accrediting body recognized by the U.S. Department of Education. For a list of schools that meet this criteria, Click Here.

Foreign Education: For information regarding foreign education requirements, please see Foreign Diploma and Credit Recognition at the U.S. Department of Education website: Recognition of Foreign Qualifications.

If you are selected for this position and qualified based on education (i.e. basic education requirement and/or substitution of education), you will be required to provide an OFFICIAL transcript prior to your first day on duty.

Additional information

Appointment is subject to satisfactory completion of a pre-employment and panel interview, urinalysis, physical, and background investigation.

All applicants are subject to, and must satisfactorily pass all screening requirements in relation to National Crime Information Center (NCIC) and credit check.

Additional selections may be made if vacancies occur within the life of the certificate.

Current Federal Law Enforcement Employees:

A prerequisite of the secondary law enforcement position is the completion of the mandatory courses in "Introduction to Correctional Techniques Phase I and Phase II".  If you have not completed the mandatory courses in "Introduction to Correctional Techniques Phase I and Phase II", you are ineligible for secondary law enforcement position(s) and coverage but may still be considered for a non-law enforcement position.

If you are not a current Bureau of Prisons employee, you must submit training records demonstrating you have completed the mandatory courses in "Introduction to Correctional Techniques Phase I and Phase II" to your hiring Human Resource office prior to appointment. 

Individuals selected who are under the Federal Employees Retirement System (FERS) or Civil Service Retirement System (CSRS) and who have not had three years "primary" law enforcement retirement coverage, will not be covered by law enforcement retirement while in this position. To regain coverage, individuals must return to a position with "primary" coverage.

As a condition of employment for accepting this position, you will be required to serve a 1-year probationary period during which we will evaluate your fitness and whether your continued employment advances the public interest. In determining if your employment advances the public interest, we may consider:

  • your performance and conduct;
  • the needs and interests of the agency;
  • whether your continued employment would advance organizational goals of the agency or the Government; and
  • whether your continued employment would advance the efficiency of the Federal service.

Upon completion of your probationary period your employment will be terminated unless you receive certification, in writing, that your continued employment advances the public interest. Exceptions may apply. See 5 CFR part 11.

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.

Your application will be evaluated and rated under DOJ's Category Rating and Selection Procedures. Based upon your responses to the assessment questions during the application process, your application will be placed into one of three categories: Best Qualified, Highly Qualified, or Qualified. Applications will be reviewed from the top quality category. Your resume and supporting documentation will be used to determine whether you meet the job qualifications listed in this announcement. If you are found qualified for this job, your resume and supporting documentation will be compared to the responses you provided on the online assessment.

NOTE: Candidates within the top quality category and who are eligible for veterans preference will receive selection priority over non-veteran preference eligibles.

If you are entitled to veterans preference, you should indicate the type of veterans preference you are claiming on your resume. Although veterans preference points are not assigned under the category rating procedures described under "How You Will Be Evaluated", veterans preference eligibles are listed ahead of non-veterans within each category for which they are qualified.

Preference eligibles who meet the minimum qualification requirements and who have a compensable service-connected disability of at least 10 percent must be listed in the highest quality category (except in the case of scientific or professional positions at the GS-9 level or higher). As noted above, an agency may not select a non-preference eligible in lieu of a preference eligible in the same category unless there are grounds for a passover and the agency has complied with the passover procedures at 5 U.S.C. § 3318(b).

What Competencies/Knowledge, Skills and Abilities are Required for this Position?

The following Competencies/Knowledge, Skills and Abilities (KSA's) are required:

  • Oral Communication
  • Written Communication
  • Planning and Evaluating
  • Design and Implement Computer Systems
  • Manage resources and provide general program direction

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