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PUBLIC AFFAIRS SPECIALIST

Department of the Air Force
United States Space Force

Summary

Click on "Learn more about this agency" button below to view Eligibilities being considered and other IMPORTANT information.

The primary purpose of this position is to carry out a wide range of public affairs assignments that include elements of media operations, social media, community engagement, command information, visual information, communication planning, contingency/crisis response, special event planning, environmental, security, policy review, and public affairs resource management.

Overview

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Accepting applications
Open & closing dates
03/11/2026 to 03/17/2026
Salary
$34,799 to - $82,938 per year

Salary range does not include locality pay.

Pay scale & grade
NH 2
Location
FEW vacancies in the following location:
Peterson AFB, CO
Remote job
No
Telework eligible
Yes—as determined by the agency policy.
Travel Required
25% or less - You may be expected to travel for this position.
Relocation expenses reimbursed
No
Appointment type
Permanent
Work schedule
Full-time
Service
Competitive
Promotion potential
None
Job family (Series)
Supervisory status
No
Security clearance
Secret
Drug test
No
Position sensitivity and risk
Noncritical-Sensitive (NCS)/Moderate Risk
Trust determination process
Financial disclosure
No
Bargaining unit status
No
Announcement number
6X-AFPC-12907165-158506-DVL
Control number
860584800

Duties

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  1. Coordinates the planning and development of complex, high level public affairs assignments in support of commander's programs and priorities.
  2. Researches, drafts, coordinates, produces, and reviews public affairs products such as news releases, talking points, fact sheets, news and feature articles, web-based content, briefings, speeches and scripts, newsletters, photographs, videos, pod casts, and other materials.
  3. Represents the office with a variety of installation and local governmental, media, community engagement, service, and educational organizations.
  4. Assists in the planning, organizing and carrying out the visual information program. Helps design, create, and assemble material for presentations, publications, and exhibits.

Requirements

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Conditions of employment

  • U.S. Citizenship is required
  • Males must be registered for Selective Service, see Legal and Regulatory Guidance
  • If authorized, PCS will be paid IAW JTR and AF Regulations. If receiving an authorized PCS, you may be subject to completing/signing a CONUS agreement. More information on PCS requirements, may be found at: https://afciviliancareers.com/regulatory/
  • This posn is subject to provisions of the DoD Priority Placement Program
  • For more information on Acq Demo please go to DoD AcqDemo Homepage http://acqdemo.hci.mil/ and Fact Sheet http://acqdemo.hci.mil/faq.html
  • Disclosure of Political Appointments
  • All federal employees are required to have direct deposit
  • This announcement may result in a 120-day register that may be used to fill like vacancies for 120 days after the closing date. Applicants may be referred for consideration as vacancies occur.
  • Depending on the type of position (competitive/excepted) you are selected for, you will be required to serve a 1-year probationary period OR 2-year trial period.
  • Upon completion of your probationary/trial period, your employment will be terminated unless you receive certification, in writing, that your continued employment advances the public interest.
  • May be required to travel by military or commercial aircraft in the performance of TDY assignments. Subject to 15 days per year TDY.
  • Shift work may be required.
  • May be required to be on call and/or to work other than normal duty hours, which may include evenings, weekends, and/or holidays.
  • Recall to duty may be a requirement of this position.
  • May perform periodic weekly 24-hour alert duty as the public affairs on-call representative to answer news media and other inquiries after duty hours.
  • May serve as public affairs point of contact during deployment with news media representatives to a forward operating location in the event of hostilities or a major wing deployment.
  • Must be able to obtain and maintain a Secret Security Clearance or a higher security clearance required for this position.
  • May be required to work overtime on an unscheduled or emergency basis.
  • Required to handle and safeguard sensitive and/or classified information in accordance with regulations to reduce potential compromise.

Qualifications

In order to qualify, you must meet the specialized experience requirements described in the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) Qualification Standards for General Schedule Positions, Administrative and Management Positions.

SPECIALIZED EXPERIENCE: Applicants must have at least one (1) year of specialized experience at the next lower broadband NH-01, equivalent to the next to lower grade GS-04 or equivalent in the Federal Service. Specialized experience must include using rules, procedures, and practices within the Public Affairs discipline with the ability to apply this expertise to develop new approaches, methods, or procedures in regards to media relations, community engagement, command information and senior leader support; Possess analytical skills to include: gathering, evaluating, and interpreting complex data in all areas of the Public Affairs discipline; and drawing appropriate conclusions from conflicting data including determining what kinds of information are needed and ways of collecting data.

OR
EDUCATION:
I have successfully completed 4 years course of study leading to a bachelor's degree. NOTE: YOU MUST SUBMIT COPIES OF YOUR TRANSCRIPTS. NOTE: You must submit your transcripts.

OR
COMBINATION OF EXPERIENCE AND EDUCATION:
Combination of specialized experience and graduate level education that has provided the knowledge, skills and abilities to perform the duties of this position. Only graduate level education in excess of the first year may be used as qualifying when combining education and experience. NOTE: You must submit your transcripts.

KNOWLEDGE, SKILLS AND ABILITIES (KSAs): Your qualifications will be evaluated on the basis of your level of knowledge, skills, abilities and/or competencies in the following areas:

1. Knowledge of concepts, principles, and practices of a public affairs program and written and oral communication principles, techniques, and analytical methods to perform a wide range of public affairs assignments to develop intercommunication between the agency and a variety of stakeholders.
2. Knowledge of the organization's operations and functions sufficient to communicate accurate information and modify standard methods and adapt approaches in the development of new information materials to meet organizational needs.
3. Knowledge of the concepts, principles, policies and practices of visual information activities, which may include illustrations, photography, presentations, television/motion picture production, and base cable access television.
4. Skill in gathering, evaluating, and interpreting data to identify potential problems, arrive at valid conclusions, and offer meaningful recommendations and/or resolutions.
5. Skill in working with people to establish and maintain effective working relationships with groups interested in or affected by public affairs programs or policies and producing written information conveying complex information to publics with different levels of understanding.
6. Ability to plan and develop news stories, features, and quasi-technical articles.

PART-TIME OR UNPAID EXPERIENCE: Credit will be given for appropriate unpaid and or part-time work. You must clearly identify the duties and responsibilities in each position held and the total number of hours per week.

VOLUNTEER WORK EXPERIENCE: Refers to paid and unpaid experience, including volunteer work done through National Service Programs (i.e., Peace Corps, AmeriCorps) and other organizations (e.g., professional; philanthropic; religious; spiritual; community; student and social). Volunteer work helps build critical competencies, knowledge and skills that can provide valuable training and experience that translates directly to paid employment. You will receive credit for all qualifying experience, including volunteer experience.

Education

ARE YOU USING YOUR EDUCATION TO QUALIFY? If position has a positive degree requirement or education forms the basis for qualifications, you MUST submit transcriptswith the application. Official transcripts are not required at the time of application; however, if position has a positive degree requirement, qualifying based on education alone or in combination with experience; transcripts must be verified prior to appointment. An accrediting institution recognized by the U.S. Department of Education must accredit education. Click here to check accreditation.

FOREIGN EDUCATION: Education completed in foreign colleges or universities may be used to meet the requirements. You must show proof the education credentials have been deemed to be at least equivalent to that gained in conventional U.S. education program. It is your responsibility to provide such evidence when applying.

Additional information

AcqDemo Expanded Probationary Period for Supervisors and Managers: An additional supervisory probationary period of one year may be required when an employee is officially assigned to a different supervisory position.

This is an acquisition demonstration project position NH-02 equivalent to a GS-05 to GS-11.

Interagency Career Transition Assistance Program (ICTAP): For information on how to apply as an ICTAP eligible click here. To be well-qualified and exercise selection priority for this vacancy, displaced Federal employees must be rated well qualified or above for this position. You must submit a copy of the agency notice, your most recent performance rating, and most recent SF-50 noting position, grade, and duty location.

Employed Annuitants (Reemployed Annuitants): Applicants in receipt of an annuity based on civilian employment in the Federal Service are subject to the DoD Policy on The Employment of Annuitants. Click here for more information.

Current Federal Civilian employees may apply for temporary and term positions and if selected, a break in service may be required prior to appointment to the position.

Temporary and Term Appointments: If you are selected for a temporary or term position in the competitive service, your appointment may be extended to the maximum period allowed by law without further competition.

Military Spouse Preference (MSP) Eligible: MSP applicants, if determined best qualified, must be selected and placed at the highest grade for which they applied. You must include a completed copy of the DD Form 3145-4, Military Spouse PPP Self-Certification Checklist dated within 30 days along with the documents identified on the checklist to verify your eligibility for MSP. Click here to obtain/download a copy of the DD Form 3145-4, Military Spouse PPP Self-Certification Checklist.

Priority Placement Program (PPP) Applicant Eligible: PPP Applicants determined well qualified and selected, will be placed at the full performance level. You must include the applicable completed PPP Self-Certification Checklist dated within 30 days along with the documents identified on the checklist to verify your eligibility as a PPP Applicant. Click here to obtain/download a copy of the applicable PPP Self-Certification Checklist (DD3145-1 through DD3145-4, select the appropriate checklist for your claimed preference). To determine the applicable PPP Self-Certification Checklist required to substantiate the eligibilities you are claiming, refer to the AF Civilian Employment Eligibility Guide located in the Required Documents section of this announcement.

Disabled veteran leave is available to a Federal employee hired on/after 5 Nov 2016, who is a veteran with a service-connected disability rating of 30% or more. For more information, click here.

If you have questions regarding this announcement and have hearing or speech difficulties click here.

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 package (resume, supporting documents, and responses to the questionnaire) will be used to determine your eligibility, qualifications, and quality ranking for this position. Please follow all instructions carefully. Errors or omissions may affect your rating or consideration for employment.

BASIS OF RATING: Your application will be rated under the Cut Point procedures based on the extent to which the quality, depth, and complexity of your experience and education relate to the qualification requirements. Additional points are not added for Veteran's Preference; however, Veteran's Preference is considered where applicable.

Best Qualified Group: Candidates in this category possess exceptional skills and experience to exceed well above the minimum requirements.
Fully Qualified Group: Candidates in this category possess good skills and experience above the minimum requirements.
Basically Qualified Group: Candidates in this category meet the minimum education and/or experience requirements.

Your responses to the questionnaire may be compared to the documents you submit. The documents you submit must support your responses to the online questionnaire. If your application contradicts or does not support your questionnaire responses, you will receive a rating of "not qualified" or "insufficient information" and you will not receive further consideration for this job.

Applicants who disqualify themselves will not be evaluated further.

APPRAISALS/AWARDS: Hiring Managers use objective methods and consider previous performance appraisals and awards in the selection process. Current Federal Civilian employees should list any relevant performance related rating and/or awards in your resume.

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