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Personnel Security Assistant

Department of Veterans Affairs
Veterans Health Administration
VISN 17: VA Heart of Texas Health Care Network

Summary

Incumbent of this position serves as a Personnel Security Assistant and performs security-related functions in support of a Network Personnel Suitability and Credentialing Program. The program assures that all appointees have the appropriate level of security/suitability clearance commensurate with their assignment. Incumbent serves as an assistant to the Personnel Security Specialist.

Overview

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Accepting applications
Posted this week · Apply by 06/11/26
Due by 11:59 p.m. ET on June 11, 2026
This job will close when we have received 75 applications which may be sooner than the closing date. Learn more
Location
2 vacancies in the following locations:
Work site options
Telework eligible
No
Remote job
No
Relocation expenses reimbursed
No
Salary
$40,332 - $64,952 per year

Listed salary for Rest of the U.S., Salary will be determined by location.

Pay scale & grade
GS 5 - 7
Promotion potential
7
Pay scale and grade determines the salary of the job.
Work schedule
Full-time
Travel Required
Not required
Appointment type
Permanent
Occupations and job series
Supervisory status
No
Federal service type
This job is in the Competitive Service
Represented by a union
No
Drug test
No
Security clearance
Other
Position sensitivity and risk
Noncritical-Sensitive (NCS)/Moderate Risk
Jobs require a background check and some require a security clearance. The type depends on the job.
Background check type
Financial disclosure required
No
Some jobs require financial disclosure to identify conflicts of interests.
Announcement number
CAZM-12978561-26-MO
Control number
871914800

Videos

Duties

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Join the VISN 17: VA Heart of Texas Health Care Network as a Personnel Security Assistant. This position serves as the Personnel Security Assistant and is a member of the VISN 17 PERSEC Service under the Human Resources Management Service. The primary purpose of this position is to maintain the integrity of the Personnel Suitability and Personnel Identity Verification programs by providing administrative support in Personnel Security. The duties of the position include but are not limited to:PIV BadgingPIV Registrar Duties:

  • Appoint, certify, and validate the identity of the Sponsor
  • Document and maintain a list of all appointed and certified Sponsors
  • Identity proofing of all applicants
  • Determine if a temporary identity badge should be issued to an applicant pending results of the background investigation
  • Capture fingerprints of the PIV applicant
  • Send original documents to the PIV card issuer
PIV Printer & Activator Duties:
  • Print, issue and credential PIV cards
  • Inspect printed cards for quality and compliance
  • Active/re-activate printed PIV card
  • Terminate/destroy PIV cards
Advanced Personnel security Assistant Duties in Suitability
  • Utilize and maintain HR onboarding systems for new hire processing
  • Initiate background investigation application, e-App
  • Review e-Apps and other boarding documents for completeness & accuracy
  • Query security data in OPM/VHA Security systems
Promotion Potential: The selectee may be promoted to the full performance level without further competition when all regulatory, qualification, and performance requirements are met. Selection at a lower grade level does not guarantee promotion to the full performance level.

Work Schedule: Monday - Friday 8:00 a.m. - 4:30 p.m.(Alternate schedules may be necessary to meet the needs of the organization)
Telework: This position may be eligible for Ad-hoc telework per supervisory discretion.
Remote: This is not a remote position.
Position Description/PD#: Personnel Security Assistant/PD99952S
Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized
Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized
Financial Disclosure Report: Not required

Requirements

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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
  • 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.
  • 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 or trial 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 by the closing date of this announcement, 06/11/2026.

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-06 position you must have served 52 weeks at the GS-05. For a GS-07 position you must have served 52 weeks at the GS-06. 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 and/or education as described below:

GS-5 Specialized Experience: You must have one year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the next lower grade GS-4 in the normal line of progression for the occupation in the organization. Examples of specialized experience would typically include: performing administrative tasks associated with the authorization and issuance of the PIV card, a standardized identification badge designed to increase security related with physical access to Federal facilities and networks and logical access to computer systems; working with applicants who may be experiencing difficulties with completion of electronic forms related to the background screening process and working with Recruitment and Staffing to assure required background documents are complete and accurate as per policy.
~OR~
Education: Applicants may substitute education for the required experience. To qualify based on education for this grade level you must have completed 4 years above high school. This education must have been obtained in an accredited business, secretarial or technical school, junior college, college or university. One year of full-time academic study is defined as 30 semester hours, 45 quarter hours, or the equivalent in a college or university, or at least 20 hours of classroom instruction per week for approximately 36 weeks in a business, secretarial, or technical school.(TRANSCRIPT REQUIRED)
~OR~
Combination: Applicants may also combine education and experience to qualify at this level. You must have a combination of specialized experience and education beyond the first 60 semester hours (i.e., beyond the second year) to be creditable. One full academic year of study (30 semester hours) beyond the second year is equivalent to 6 months of specialized experience. (TRANSCRIPT REQUIRED)

GS-6 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: reviewing position risk sensitivity levels as full assistant to the Personnel Security Specialist to ensure appropriate background investigation is initiated for specific positions; assisting in the execution of personnel security-related functions as they relate to VA subjects in Veterans Affairs Centralized Adjudication and Background Investigation System (VA-CABS); and performing minor PIV troubleshooting of the PIV System during malfunctions to resolve system issues.

*There is no educational substitution at GS-6 grade level.

GS-7 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 would typically include: initiating, reviewing and releasing appointees background investigations in the Office of Personnel Management's Electronic Questionnaires for Investigations Processing (e-QIP) system or in conjunction with the VA- Adjudication Center (VA-AC) to meet OPM regulation standard; providing technical advice and guidance to employees, contractors, affiliates, and volunteers regarding matters pertaining to the PIV Program and maintaining required files related to the suitability process in accordance with OPM/agency guidelines.

*There is no educational substitution at GS-7 grade level.

You will be rated on the following Competencies for this position:

  • Database Management Systems
  • Interpersonal Skills
  • Technical Competence
  • Compliance
  • Audit Reporting
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: 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.

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

GS-5: A transcript must be submitted with your application if you are basing all or part of your qualifications on education.

GS-6 and GS-7: There is no educational substitution at this grade level.

Note: If your school has changed names, or is no longer in existence, you must provide this information in your application.

Note: Only education or degrees recognized by the U.S. Department of Education from accredited colleges, universities, schools, or institutions may be used to qualify for Federal employment. You can verify your education here: http://ope.ed.gov/accreditation/. If you are using foreign education to meet qualification requirements, you must send a Certificate of Foreign Equivalency with your transcript in order to receive credit for that education. For further information, visit: https://sites.ed.gov/international/recognition-of-foreign-qualifications/.

Additional information


Receiving Service Credit for Earning Annual (Vacation) Leave: Federal Employees earn annual leave at a rate (4, 6 or 8 hours per pay period) which is based on the number of years they have served as a Federal employee. Selected applicants may qualify for credit toward annual leave accrual, based on prior work experience or military service experience. This credited service can be used in determining the rate at which they earn annual leave. Such credit must be requested and approved prior to the appointment date and is not guaranteed.

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

If you are unable to apply online or need an alternate method to submit documents, please reach out to the Agency Contact listed in this Job Opportunity Announcement.

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.

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.

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

Narrative responses are not required at this time. If you are referred for consideration, you may be asked to submit additional job related information, which may include, but not limited to; responses to the knowledge, skills and abilities; completion of a work sample, and/or contact 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.

For more information on the "Who may apply" eligibility requirements, please refer to the OHRM Status Candidates and Other Candidate Definitions document.

Placement Policy: The posting of this announcement does not obligate management to fill a vacancy or vacancies by promotion. The position may be filled by reassignment, change to lower grade, transfer, appointment, or reinstatement. Management may use any one or any combination of these methods to fill the position.

It is the policy of the VA to not deny employment to those that have faced financial hardships or periods of unemployment.

Veterans and Transitioning Service Members: Please visit the VA for Vets site for career-search tools for Veterans seeking employment at VA, career development services for our existing Veterans, and coaching and reintegration support for military service members.

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?

Veterans Integrated Service Network (VISN) 17 better known as the VA Heart of Texas Health Care Network encompasses most of the state of Texas and has an administrative office in Arlington. Currently, VISN 17 oversees 7 Health Care Systems: Amarillo VA HCS , Central Texas Veterans HCS (Temple), El Paso VA HCS, South Texas Veterans HCS (San Antonio), VA North Texas HCS (Dallas), VA Texas Valley Coastal Bend HCS (Harlingen) and West Texas VA HCS (Big Spring). This large geographic area ranges from urban centers such as Dallas and Austin, to largely rural areas such as Bonham and Kerrville, to the rapidly expanding Lower Rio Grande Valley. Our mission is to be a premier network of integrated health care systems that provide optimal access, scope and quality healthcare to Veterans; to be recognized for excellence in medical research and the education of healthcare professionals; to demonstrate continuous improvement and innovation in service delivery that has high patient satisfaction, is cost effective and anticipates changes in technology and the health care requirements of the population served; and to be a resource for national emergencies.

Agency contact information

Madelyn O'Brien
Email
Madelyn.O'Brien@va.gov
Address
VHA VISN 17 Human Resources
2301 E. LAMAR BLVD
SUITE 650
ARLINGTON, TX 76006-7428
US

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