Clarification from the agency

This job is open to current permanent Department of Veteran Affairs employees and CTAP eligible applicants only. See the eligibility section in the questionnaire for a list of all eligible candidates and the How You Will Be Evaluated section below for more details.

Cut-off Date: This announcement will remain open until the closing date, 05/14/2026. The cut-off date is Monday, May 11, 2026. The cut-off date will be used to evaluate candidates for the initial available vacancies. Applications received after the initial cut-off date (5/11/2026) may not receive consideration unless otherwise requested by management. If management requests additional certificates, applicants will continue to be reviewed in the order they applied by date (e.g., the 2nd cut-off date will be 5/12/2026, and the 3rd cut-off date will be 5/13/2026).


Duties include, but are not limited to:

Receives telephone calls from veterans, their family members and/or legal representatives concerning general information, directory assistance and complaint resolution. The services provided involve a broad range of topics that directly impact all three administrations with Veterans Affairs. The representative must ask clarifying and probing questions to capture the root cause of the customer's needs and ensure that the primary issue of the customer is identified as well as determine any other concerns or issues that may or may not be related.

Controls the conversation, in a courteous, empathetic, tactful, and respectful manner, to ensure that the caller's inquiry is resolved timely. Prepares well-defined and detailed case notes to effectively communicate the customer's needs and to increase the efficiency of a suitable resolution.

• Determines the appropriate VA services to meet the specific needs of customers.
• Establishes and maintains effective communication and working relationships across the full spectrum of Veterans Affairs.
• Interprets case resolution and feedback from various VA agencies for the customer.
• Triages cases that need immediate attention and alerts key stakeholders as needed.
• Maintains professionalism and controls the call while working under pressure when handling abusive, life-threatening or otherwise difficult calls.
• Asks appropriate and probing questions to identify complex or vague requests for VA services.
• Accurately records details of calls and other service requests in a limited time frame.
• Utilizes a multi-screen computer system including a Customer Relationship Management (CRM) application, phone system, headset, facsimile machine and other office equipment.
• Identifies calls which must be referred to Veterans Crisis Line, Homeless Center, Department of Homeland Security Emergency Operations Center, United States Secret Service or to any higher-level VA staff.
• Respect the right of privacy and maintain confidentiality of callers.
• Simultaneously perform numerous customer service related duties while remaining focused on the needs of the customer.
• Demonstrates strong interpersonal skills by effectively listening, empathizing and speaking with the customer to cultivate a rapport and trustworthy relationship.
• Determines most appropriate action or identifies alternative in resolving issue(s) interpretation and analysis of information contained within the knowledge management platform and several other resources.
• Utilizes resources through VA websites, Knowledge articles and wide variety of other applicable resources as needed
• Communicates with internal and external key contributors through Microsoft Outlook, Skype messaging system, Chatter groups located in the Customer Relationship Management system.
• Appropriately uses the Workforce Management System to listen to call recordings and enter exceptions to provide details of work-related activities.
• Responds to unusual questions or when reasonable attempts to satisfy an irate caller have been unsuccessful with limited or no assistance.

Conditions of employment

Conditions of Employment

• You must be a U.S. Citizen to apply for this job
• Selective Service Registration is required for males born after 12/31/1959
• You may be required to serve a probationary period
• 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 identification cards that are not REAL ID compliant cannot be utilized as an acceptable form of identification for employment.

• 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.

Qualifications

To qualify for this position, applicants must meet all requirements by the closing date of this announcement, 05/14/2026.

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-6 position you must have served 52 weeks at the GS-5. 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 some former Federal employees applying for reinstatement, as well as current employees applying for Veterans Employment Opportunities Act of 1998 (VEOA) appointment. See the Required Document section below for more information regarding the SF-50s needed to verify time-in-grade.


You may qualify based on your experience and/or education as described below:

• Specialized Experience: You must have one year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the next lower grade GS-5 in the normal line of progression for the occupation in the organization. Examples of specialized experience would typically include, but are not limited to:
• Call center experience handling complaints and directory assistance.
• Experience responding to calls from veterans, their families, and legal representatives, providing general information, assistance, and complaint resolution.
• Maintaining and controlling conversations with empathy and respect, even under stressful situations.
• Experience effectively communicating, active listening, and using interpersonal skills for building rapport and trust.
• Identifying caller needs through probing questions, resolving complex inquiries, and escalating critical cases when necessary.
• Documenting case details accurately, prioritizing tasks, and ensuring confidentiality.
• Experience multitasking with various systems and tools to track inquiries, utilize resources, and collaborate with internal and external teams.
• Critical skills include de-escalating difficult situations and managing crisis calls with sensitivity and professionalism.

• Telephone and/or customer service experience
• Conduct personal or telephone interviews, treating a variety of routine problems, questions, or situations within the work environment.
• Call Center experience handling complaints, directory assistance, crisis, or request for general information

• Accountability
• Attention to Detail
• Customer Service
• Customer Service (Clerical/Technical)
• Decision Making
• Flexibility
• Integrity/Honesty
• Interpersonal Skills
• Learning
• Negotiation
• Organizational Awareness
• Reading Comprehension
• Reasoning
• Self-Management
• Stress Tolerance
• Teamwork
• Technical Competence
• Writing

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.

Note: Resume must include job title and employer name, number of hours worked per week, start and end dates (including month and year), list of duties and responsibilities for each position held. In addition, if the experience was a federal position, you must list series and grade for each position held. Failure to include this information may result in an ineligible rating. A full year of work is considered to be 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.

Physical Requirements: The work is sedentary with no special physical demands. The employee is often required to talk, type and navigate systems for long periods of time.

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

The 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 found well qualified, applicants must meet the following qualifications:

• Resolving complex or escalated customer inquiries received by telephone or electronic communication by researching issues, analyzing available information, and providing accurate responses or referrals.
• Documenting customer contacts and researching inquiries using automated systems such as Customer Relationship Management (CRM) applications and other office technologies.
• Reviewing work in progress and completed actions to ensure adherence to established procedures, quality standards, and supervisor instructions.
• Monitoring individual operational performance and contributing to production or workload reporting to support management in tracking key performance indicators.
• Performing administrative support functions such as maintaining accurate records, identifying potential process issues, and elevating concerns to supervisors to ensure workflow efficiency and adherence to organizational standards.

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/.


Local Commuting Area: The local commuting area for this position is defined as the employee's official duty location (i.e., agency-approved alternative worksite) In accordance with 5 CFR 351.203. In other words anywhere in the U.S.

How you will be evaluated

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

IN DESCRIBING YOUR EXPERIENCE, PLEASE BE CLEAR AND SPECIFIC. WE WILL NOT MAKE ASSUMPTIONS REGARDING YOUR EXPERIENCE.

You will be evaluated based on how well you meet the qualifications listed in this vacancy announcement. 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.



The USA Hire Assessments includes a cut score based on the minimum level of required proficiency in these critical general competencies. You must meet or exceed the cut score to be considered. You will not be considered for the position if you score below the cut score or fail to complete the assessment.


Overstating your qualifications and/or experience in your application materials or application questionnaire may result in your removal from consideration. Cheating on an assessment may also result in your removal from consideration.


Narrative responses are not required at this time. If you are referred for consideration, you may be contacted for an interview. Your resume and/or supporting documentation will be verified. Please follow all instructions carefully. Errors or omissions may affect your rating or consideration for employment.

The Department of Veterans Affairs performs pre-employment reference checks as an assessment method used in the hiring process to verify information provided by a candidate (e.g., on resume or during interview or hiring process); gain additional knowledge regarding a candidate's abilities; and assist a hiring manager with making a final selection for a position.

Area of Consideration: Eligible applicants will be reviewed and referred in the following order:

• All current, permanent VA Employees

Cut-off Date: This announcement will remain open until the closing date, 05/14/2026. The cut-off date is Monday, May 11, 2026. The cut-off date will be used to evaluate candidates for the initial available vacancies. Applications received after the initial cut-off date (5/11/2026) may not receive consideration unless otherwise requested by management. If management requests additional certificates, applicants will continue to be reviewed in the order they applied by date (e.g., the 2nd cut-off date will be 5/12/2026, and the 3rd cut-off date will be 5/13/2026).


During the application process, you will 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.