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Assistant Director - Office of Investor Education and Assistance

Securities and Exchange Commission
Office of Investor Education and Assistance (OIEA)

Summary

The Office of Investor Education and Assistance is seeking two Supervisory Attorney Advisers (Assistant Directors) to help advance the Commission's mission to protect investors, promote capital formation, and maintain fair, orderly, and efficient markets. These positions lead teams responsible for assisting individual investors with questions and complaints, as well as developing and delivering investor education content.

Overview

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Accepting applications
Open & closing dates
05/11/2026 to 05/26/2026
Salary
$185,350 - $292,300 per year

Starting salary is based on experience. The range is listed for informational purposes. Initial pay will be set below the maximum. See more below.

Pay scale & grade
SK 17
Location
2 vacancies in the following location:
Washington, DC
Remote job
No
Telework eligible
No
Travel Required
Not required
Relocation expenses reimbursed
No
Appointment type
Permanent
Work schedule
Full-time
Service
Excepted
Promotion potential
17
Job family (Series)
Supervisory status
Yes
Security clearance
Not Required
Drug test
No
Position sensitivity and risk
High Risk (HR)
Trust determination process
Financial disclosure
No
Bargaining unit status
No
Announcement number
26-IN-12952060-BS
Control number
868795800

This job is open to

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Clarification from the agency

This position is open to: Current permanent SEC employees in the Office of Investor Education and Assistance only.

Duties

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In this role as a Supervisory Attorney Adviser, you will be responsible for:

  • Managing, assigning and coordinating the work of teams of attorneys and other staff in a collaborative and positive environment to achieve OIEA objectives and Commission priorities.
  • Establishing and maintaining effective working relationships and communication with Commission staff at all levels.
  • Consulting and coordinating with other regulators, SROs, broker-dealers, and other financial market participants, as well as Commission staff as necessary and appropriate to complete assignments.
  • Providing legal counsel on a broad range of sensitive and complex matters relating to retail investors.
  • Assessing and optimizing processes to enhance efficiency, eliminate redundancies, and align the OIEA's activities with effective mission delivery.
  • Creating or supporting the creation of content on key securities topics, including investing principles, emerging products, and violations of securities laws to support OIEA initiatives.

Requirements

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Conditions of employment

  • CITIZENSHIP: You must be a US Citizen.
  • SELECTIVE SERVICE: Males born after 12/31/59 must be registered or exempt from Selective Service (see https://www.sss.gov/).
  • DRUG TESTING: This position may be subjected to drug testing requirements.
  • PERMANENT CHANGE OF STATION (PCS): Moving/Relocation expenses are not authorized.
  • DIRECT DEPOSIT: All Federal employees are required to have Federal salary payments made by direct deposit to a financial institution of their choosing.
  • TRIAL PERIOD: Consistent with 5 U.S.C. § 7511, you will be required to serve a two-year trial period (one year for preference eligible veterans) if the position to which you have applied is not the same or similar to your current position of record.
  • SUPERVISORY TRIAL PERIOD: This appointment may require completion of a two year supervisory/managerial trial period.
  • You must possess a J.D. or LL.B Degree and you must be an active member of the bar in good standing.
  • If selected, you may receive a salary increase for the duration of the temporary promotion. You will be returned to your original salary at the end of the appointment.

Qualifications

Applicants are responsible for confirming all required materials are submitted by the closing date of the announcement. Please check the How You Will Be Evaluated and Required Documents sections carefully, as missing documents will render the application incomplete and ineligible for review.

Qualifying experience may be obtained in the private or public sector. 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, religious, 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. Qualifying education must have been obtained from an accredited college or university recognized by the U.S. Department of Education. All qualification requirements must be met by the closing date of this announcement.

BASIC REQUIREMENT: All applicants must possess the following

  • J.D. or LL.B. degree --AND--
  • Active membership of the bar in good standing in any state, territory of the United States, the District of Columbia, or the commonwealth of Puerto Rico. (Note: proof of bar membership will be required before entry on duty).

MINIMUM QUALIFICATION REQUIREMENT: In addition to meeting the basic requirement, applicants must also meet the minimum qualification requirement.

SK-17: Applicant must have one year of specialized experience equivalent to the GS/SK-14 level. Specialized experience includes:

1) Providing guidance and expertise in the evaluation of legal and policy issues; AND

2) Researching and interpreting provisions of the federal securities laws and related regulations in responding to investor questions and complaints; AND

3) Communicating with retail investors.

ACCOMPLISHMENT RECORD COMPETENCIES: Your Accomplishment Record narratives should address the following competencies. See the How You Will Be Evaluated section below for more information:

Developing and Managing Others - Ability to recruit, develop and manage the workforce to meet organizational goals, with little or no guidance.

Program Management - Ability to develop and execute programs to deliver results that efficiently and effectively meet SEC's mission, strategic plan and goals, with little or no guidance.

Strategic Execution - Understand and implement SEC's and Division/Office's policies and goals, with regard to personnel or programs in their purview anticipating, identifying, and addressing the impact of internal and external environmental factors, linking them to capabilities and potential of the organization.

Building Teams - Ability to create and foster cohesive and effective teams.

Education

You MUST provide transcripts or other documentation to support your educational claims. Unless otherwise stated: (1) official or unofficial transcripts are acceptable, or (2) you may submit a list with all your courses, grades, semester, year, and credit for the course. If you are qualifying for this position by substituting education or training for experience, you must submit a copy of your unofficial transcripts or equivalent by the closing date of the announcement. Qualifying education must have been obtained from an accredited college or university recognized by the U.S. Department of Education. Internal Applicants: OHR will verify education qualifications for internal applicants using documents in the Electronic Official Personnel Folder (eOPF). If required transcripts or certificates are not present in your eOPF, you will be required to provide them to OHR. If selected, a start date will not be established until official transcripts are received.

FOREIGN EDUCATION: If you are using education completed in foreign colleges or universities to meet the qualification requirements, you must show the education credentials have been evaluated by a private organization that specializes in interpretation of foreign education programs. For more information, click here.

Applicants may also find the following helpful:
National Association of Credential Evaluation Services (NACES) is an association of 19 credential evaluation services with admission standards and an enforced code of good practice.

Association of International Credentials Evaluators (AICE) is an association of 10 credential evaluation services with a board of advisors and an enforced code of ethics.

Additional information

Supplementary vacancies may be filled in addition to the number stated in this announcement and may be filled from any division or office within the agency.

SEC COMPENSATION PROGRAM: Total salary (base pay + locality) is dependent upon duty location. The overall salary range listed above is provided for informational purposes. The pay for current SEC employees will be determined according to the procedures specified in the agency's policy.

IMPORTANT INFORMATION FOR SURPLUS OR DISPLACED FEDERAL EMPLOYEES: Career Transition Assistance Plan (CTAP) is available to individuals who have special priority selection rights under this plan. Individuals must be minimally qualified for this position to receive consideration for special priority selection. CTAP eligibles will be considered minimally qualified if they meet the minimum requirements for this position.

Reasonable Accommodation: If you are an applicant who needs a reasonable accommodation to participate in the SEC application process due to a medical disability, please contact reasonableaccommodation@sec.gov. For religious-based accommodations, please contact religiousaccommodation@sec.gov . Please be sure to submit your request at least 5 business days in advance of the date you need the requested accommodation.

Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO) Information for SEC Job Applicants: For more information, please click here.

The Fair Chance Act prohibits specific inquiries concerning an applicant's criminal or credit background unless the hiring agency has made a conditional offer of employment to the applicant. An applicant may submit a complaint, or any other information, to the agency within 30 calendar days of the date of alleged non-compliance by contacting the Legal and Policy Office in the Office of Human Resources at ElliottT@sec.gov.

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.

If you are found minimally qualified, the Office of Human Resources will contact you to request an Accomplishment Record. You will have 3 business days from the date of the request to submit it. Failure to submit the Accomplishment Record on time will remove you from further consideration. Because of the short turnaround time, you are strongly encouraged to begin preparing your Accomplishment Record in advance.

Once your Accomplishment Record is received, a rating panel will review both your resume and your narrative responses. Your Accomplishment Record must clearly demonstrate your proficiency in the competencies listed in the Qualifications section. Click here for guidance on writing your Accomplishment Record.

Your resume must provide evidence that supports the claims in your Accomplishment Record. Each narrative must describe one specific, relevant example from your experience or training. Responses are limited to 300 words per competency; any text beyond this limit will not be reviewed.

You must upload one document containing your narrative responses for all four competencies. Failure to address each competency annotated on the announcement or failure to provide the correct document will result in loss of further consideration. Please note: A Performance Appraisal does not satisfy the requirement for an Accomplishment Record.

Required Accomplishment Record Format:
Competency Title

  • Position title and dates from your resume that this experience was obtained
  • Describe the situation (i.e., the challenged faced, the problem solved)
  • Describe the specific actions you took
  • State the outcome, results, or long-term impact of your accomplishment
  • Name and email address of someone who can verify this information
Reference checks may be conducted as part of the final selection process, and you will be notified before any contacts are made.

Basis for Rating: The rating panel will evaluate applicants' accomplishment records and resume, then place them into one of the following categories:
  • Highly Qualified - Meets the minimum qualification requirements and has extensive skills and experience in most of the job related competencies.
  • Well Qualified - Meets the minimum qualification requirements and has a moderate amount of skills and experience in most of the job related competencies.
  • Qualified - Meets the minimum qualification requirements, but may have a limited amount of experience in several of the job related competencies.
Top ranked applicants will be referred to the hiring office for further review and consideration. The hiring office may directly contact recommended candidates for interview(s).

To preview the Questionnaire, click https://apply.usastaffing.gov/ViewQuestionnaire/12952060

Securities and Exchange Commission

Our mission includes advocating for investors who seek to secure a future for their family, providing guidance and regulations for the nation's securities industry in an increasingly global market, and taking action with an eye toward promoting the capital formation necessary to sustain economic growth.

A career with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) offers work that is exciting, challenging and rewarding. You can contribute to securities regulation and enforcement while making a positive difference for the American investing public. The SEC provides:

  • Careers that broaden and deepen your already accomplished knowledge, skills and abilities;
  • An environment that allows you to work and learn with the nation's experts;
  • Benefits, compensation and career expansion opportunities; and
  • A balance between your professional and family life.
The SEC offers a number of enhanced pay and benefits plus the standard Federal benefits. Please be sure to visit the SEC's compensation and benefits program pages.

Agency contact information

ask HR
Email
askHR@sec.gov
Address
Office of Investor Education and Advocacy
100 F Street NE
Washington, DC 20549
US

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https://www.sec.gov.

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