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Secretary (OA)

Department of Veterans Affairs
Veterans Health Administration
Boise VA Medical Center

Summary

The position provides administrative and clerical support to the Chief of Staff (COS) at the Boise VA Medical Center in Boise, Idaho. The position is assigned to the office of the Medical Center Director and is supervised by the Chief of Staff. The Boise VAMC serves a Veteran population of about 58,000 in a 65,000-square-mile area.

Overview

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Accepting applications
Open & closing dates
04/07/2026 to 04/15/2026
Salary
$50,460 - $65,599 per year
Pay scale & grade
GS 7
Location
1 vacancy in the following location:
Boise, ID
1 vacancy
Remote job
No
Telework eligible
No
Travel Required
Not required
Relocation expenses reimbursed
No
Appointment type
Permanent
Work schedule
Full-time
Service
Competitive
Promotion potential
None
Job family (Series)
Supervisory status
No
Security clearance
Not Required
Drug test
No
Position sensitivity and risk
Non-sensitive (NS)/Low Risk
Trust determination process
Financial disclosure
No
Bargaining unit status
Yes
Announcement number
CBSV-12929653-26-SE
Control number
864147700

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Duties

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Duties include, but may not be limited to the following:
The incumbent provides comprehensive administrative and technical support to the Chief of Staff's office. As the executive secretary for the Boise VA Medical Center, the incumbent ensures that the practices and procedures used by subordinate offices are consistent with those of the Executive Office. They coordinate with other staff in the Executive Office to ensure smooth workflow and appropriate office coverage. On their own initiative, the incumbent recommends changes in administrative policies.

The incumbent is responsible for receiving all visitors and telephone calls for the Chief of Staff (COS). Reception responsibilities frequently require initiative, knowledge, and decision-making on the part of the incumbent, who represents the facility in highly sensitive contacts. They screen all contacts to determine the nature and purpose of calls, referring those not requiring the COS's attention to the appropriate clinical service chiefs or independently addressing matters without referral. When situations must be referred to the COS, the incumbent provides the COS with information to aid in the discussion.

The incumbent frequently interacts with both internal and external customers to resolve a variety of complaints from patients and their families, including potentially hostile or aggressive visitors.

The incumbent independently exercises exclusive responsibility for maintaining a complex calendar for the COS. In collaboration with the COS and using independent discretion, the incumbent establishes and adjusts priorities, schedules or reschedules appointments, and accepts or declines invitations to meetings. On their own initiative, the incumbent coordinates with staff involved in the meetings, arranging for appropriate meeting facilities either at the Medical Center or at remote locations, including audiovisual equipment, teleconferencing equipment, etc.

The incumbent prepares and distributes agendas or visit itineraries, arranges for refreshments or meals as appropriate, and assists with travel arrangements or provides information on lodging and travel as necessary.

The incumbent responds to inquiries and administrative problems brought to the COS by members of the staff and officials of the agency, VASN 20's central offices, state and local governments, other hospitals and organizations, other federal agencies, and congressional staff.
The incumbent prepares a wide variety of internal recurring reports and documents from information obtained from staff files and other sources. Works with and safeguards confidential information on sensitive matters such as medical or administrative staff problems, labor and Employee Relations issues, personnel grievances, and evaluations of key personnel.

The incumbent responds to inquiries and administrative problems brought to the COS by members of the staff and officials of the agency, VASN 20's central offices, state and local governments, other hospitals and organizations, other federal agencies, and congressional staff.

Work Schedule: Monday - Friday, 7:30am - 4:00pm MTD
Virtual: This is not a virtual position.
Position Description/PD#: Secretary (OA)/PD607930
Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not authorized
Critical Skills Incentive (CSI): Not Approved
Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not authorized

Requirements

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Conditions of employment

  • You must be a U.S. Citizen to apply for this job
  • To be considered for this position, you must complete all required steps in the process. In addition to the application and questionnaire, this position requires an online assessment. The online assessment measures critical general competencies required to perform the job.
  • Selective Service Registration is required for males born after 12/31/1959
  • Physical Requirements: The work required does not inherently include any physical requirements essential for successful job performance that could not otherwise be performed with accommodation or workplace adjustment. A pre-placement physical examination is not required.
  • Subject to background/security investigation
  • Selected applicants will be required to complete an online onboarding process. Acceptable form(s) of identification will be required to complete pre-employment requirements (https://www.uscis.gov/i-9-central/form-i-9-acceptable-documents). Effective May 7, 2025, driver's licenses or state-issued dentification cards that are not REAL ID compliant cannot be utilized as an acceptable form of identification for employment.
  • Participation in the seasonal influenza vaccination program is a requirement for all Department of Veterans Affairs Health Care Personnel (HCP)
As a condition of employment for accepting this position, you will be required to serve a 1-year probationary period or 2-year trial 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.

Qualifications

To qualify for this position, applicants must meet all requirements within 30 days of the closing date of this announcement, 04/15/2026.

Time-In-Grade Requirement: Applicants who are current Federal employees and have held a GS grade any time in the past 52 weeks must also meet time-in-grade requirements by the closing date of this announcement. For a GS-7 position you must have served 52 weeks at the GS-6. The grade may have been in any occupation, but must have been held in the Federal service. An SF-50 that shows your time-in-grade eligibility must be submitted with your application materials. If the most recent SF-50 has an effective date within the past year, it may not clearly demonstrate you possess one-year time-in-grade, as required by the announcement. In this instance, you must provide an additional SF-50 that clearly demonstrates one-year time-in-grade. Note: Time-In-Grade requirements also apply to former Federal employees applying for reinstatement as well as current employees applying for Veterans Employment Opportunities Act of 1998 (VEOA) appointment.

You may qualify based on your experience as described below:

Specialized Experience: You must have one year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the next lower grade GS-6 in the normal line of progression for the occupation in the organization. Examples of Specialized experience includes, but is not limited to: independently planning and effectively setting priorities; coordinating activities; performing a wide range of administrative support tasks; answering and screening telephone calls; arranging meetings and conference calls; coordinating schedules; maintaining a complex calendar; booking conference rooms and equipment; preparing agendas and minutes; processing correspondence, reports, memos, and other forms; handling confidential information; reviewing and editing policies and procedures; performing timekeeping functions; maintaining a government credit card to order non-routine supplies; working with databases; and utilizing various applications such as Microsoft Word, Excel, PowerPoint, and Outlook. This position also requires strong knowledge of grammar, spelling, punctuation, syntax, and travel preparation.
Note: Experience must be fully demonstrated and documented on your resume and must include job title, duties, month & year starting and ending dates and hours worked per week.

Proficiency Requirements-In addition to meeting experience requirements, applicants for this position must show possession of the following proficiency: ability to type 40 words per minute. Applicants may meet this requirement by passing the appropriate performance test, presenting a certificate of proficiency from a school or other organization authorized to issue such certificates by the Office of Personnel Management local office, or by self-certifying their proficiency. Performance test results and certificates of proficiency are acceptable for 3 years.


For more information on these qualification standards, please visit the United States Office of Personnel Management's website at https://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/classification-qualifications/general-schedule-qualification-standards/.

Education

There is no educational substitution at this grade level.

Additional information

Under the Fair Chance to Compete Act, the Department of Veterans Affairs prohibits requesting an applicant's criminal history prior to accepting a tentative job offer. For more information about the Act and the complaint process, visit Human Resources and Administration/Operations, Security, and Preparedness (HRA/OSP) at The Fair Chance Act.

Reasonable Accommodation (RA) Requests: If you believe you have a disability (i.e., physical or mental), covered by the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 as amended that would interfere with completing the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments, you will be granted the opportunity to request a RA in your online application. Requests for RA for the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments and appropriate supporting documentation for RA must be received prior to starting the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments. Decisions on requests for RA are made on a case-by-case basis. If you meet the minimum qualifications of the position, after notification of the adjudication of your request, you will receive an email invitation to complete the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments, based on your adjudication decision. You must complete all assessments within 48 hours of receiving the URL to access the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments if you received the link after the close of the announcement. To determine if you need a RA, please review the Procedures for Requesting a Reasonable Accommodation for Online Assessments.


This job opportunity announcement may be used to fill additional vacancies.

The Interagency Career Transition Assistance Plan (ICTAP) and Career Transition Assistance Plan (CTAP) provide eligible displaced VA competitive service employees with selection priority over other candidates for competitive service vacancies. To be qualified you must submit appropriate documentation (a copy of the agency notice, your most recent performance rating, and your most recent SF-50 noting current position, grade level, and duty location) and be found well-qualified for this vacancy. To be well-qualified: applicants must possess experience that exceeds the minimum qualifications of the position including all selective factors, and who are proficient in most of the required competencies of the job. Information about ICTAP and CTAP eligibility is on OPM's Career Transition Resources website at http://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/workforce-restructuring/employee-guide-to-career-transition/.
Special Employment Consideration: VA encourages persons with disabilities to apply, including those eligible for hiring under 5 CFR 213.3102(u), Schedule A, Appointment of persons with disabilities [i.e., intellectual disabilities, severe physical disabilities, or psychiatric disabilities], and/or Disabled veterans with a compensable service-connected disability of 30% or more. Contact the Agency Contact for information on how to apply under this appointment authority via the Selective Placement Coordinator.

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 qualifications will be evaluated based on your application materials (e.g., resume, supporting documents), your responses on the application questionnaire, and your responses to all assessments required for this position. You will be assessed on the following Competencies for this position:

  • Accountability
  • Attention to Detail
  • Customer Service
  • Decision Making
  • Flexibility
  • Integrity/Honesty
  • Interpersonal Skills
  • Learning
  • Reading Comprehension
  • Reasoning
  • Self-Management
  • Stress Tolerance
  • Teamwork


Your experience must be fully documented on your resume and must include job title, duties, month and year start/end dates AND hours worked per week. A full year of work is considered to be 35-40 hours of work per week. Part-time experience will be credited on the basis of time actually spent in appropriate activities. Applicants wishing to receive credit for such experience must indicate clearly the nature of their duties and responsibilities in each position and the number of hours a week spent in such employment. IN DESCRIBING YOUR EXPERIENCE, PLEASE BE CLEAR AND SPECIFIC. WE WILL NOT MAKE ASSUMPTIONS REGARDING YOUR EXPERIENCE. Overstating your qualifications and/or experience in your application materials or application questionnaire may result in your removal from consideration. Cheating on the online assessment may also result in your removal from consideration.

Resume Reminder - Your resume must include the following information for each job listed:

  • Job title
  • Duties (be as detailed as possible)
  • Month & year start/end dates (e.g. June 2007 to April 2008)
  • Full-time or part-time status (include hours worked per week)
  • Salary/Rank etc.
  • Series and Grade, if applicable, for all Federal positions you have held
  • References, current or recent supervisor
Do not include the following types of information in your resume:
  • Classified or Government sensitive information
  • Social Security Number (SSN)
  • Photos of yourself
  • Personal information, such as age, gender, religious affiliation, etc.
Please be aware that your answers will be verified against information provided on your resume. Be sure that your resume clearly supports your responses to all of the questions by addressing your work experience in detail. The experience stated in your resume must support your assessment responses.

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; religions; 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.

During the application process you may have an option to opt-in to make your resume available to hiring managers in the agency who have similar positions. Opting in does not impact your application for this announcement, nor does it guarantee further consideration for additional positions.

Veterans Health Administration

OUR MISSION: To fulfill President Lincoln's promise "To care for those who have served in our nation's military and for their families, caregivers, and survivors" - by serving and honoring the men and women who are America's Veterans. How would you like to become a part of a team providing compassionate whole health care to Veterans?

Boise
Boise, Idaho, is known as the "City of Trees". The city, located on the Boise River, is the capital of Idaho and the most populous city in the state. Downtown Boise offers residents and visitors a variety of shopping and dining choices and is the city's cultural center, home to many small businesses.
To learn more about Boise, click on this link!

Agency contact information

Suzy Everett
Phone
702-817-6811
Email
Suzy.Everett@va.gov
Address
Boise VA Medical Center
500 West Fort Street
Boise, ID 83702
US

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https://www.va.gov/jobs/

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