Clarification from the agency

The IHS is required by law to give absolute preference to qualified applicants who meet the Secretary of the Interior's definition of Indian for appointment to vacancies within the IHS in accordance with established IHS policy as outlined in the Indian Health Manual Part 7, Chapter 3.

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Total Compensation Package - Check out IHS's outstanding total compensation package for this job:
Dental Assistant Total Compensation | Pay (ihs.gov)

• Instructs, updates, and orients dental staff to new materials and techniques, clinical equipment, and safety and infection control procedures.
• Plans and prepares for upcoming clinic needs based on historical needs data and adjusting for varying staffing patterns and CDE courses.
• Dental prophylaxis, TBI, fluoride treatment and dental sealants.
• Assists the dentist at chairside to perform all dental procedures done at the Service Unit. This assistance includes retraction of tissues, evacuation of debris from the oral cavity, anticipation of the dentist's needs so as to select the appropriate instrument to pass during the procedure and the proper handling of all dental materials needed in the procedure.
• Correctly exposes processes and mouths both intra and extra-oral dental radiographs and operates both the panoramic and cephalometric units.
• Obtains and records patient identification according to procedure.
• Ensures the dental unit is cleaned at all times in accordance to the clinic's established infection control standards.

Conditions of employment

Selectee may be subject to a probationary period
ESEP appointees typically serve a two year probationary period
U.S. Citizenship is required
Selective Service Registration is required for males born after 12/31/1959

This is a designated position covered by Public Law 101-630, requiring contact or control over Indian children. Due to this requirement, the agency must ensure that persons hired for these positions have not been found guilty of or pleaded nolo contendere or guilty to certain crimes.

A one-year supervisory/managerial probationary period may be required upon selection/placement.

Confidential Financial Disclosure Form required.

Successfully pass the E-Verify employment verification check. To learn more about E-Verify, including your rights and responsibilities, visit www.dhs.gov/E-Verify/.

Schedule: Monday to Friday; 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.

You will need to set up direct deposit so we can pay you.

Background Investigation Requirement:
*This position requires the successful completion of a federal background investigation as a condition of employment.
*A background investigation is a standard process used by the Federal Government to verify an individual's identity, employment history, education, and other relevant information to determine suitability for Federal service.
*Upon receipt of instructions, applicants must complete all required background investigation forms within five (5) calendar days of issuance. Timely completion is critical to avoid delays in processing or a determination of unsuitability.
*Applicants are strongly encouraged to prioritize this requirement and to maintain regular communication with their assigned Personnel Security Specialist throughout the process.

Qualifications

To qualify for this position, your resume must state sufficient experience and/or education, to perform the duties of the specific position for which you are applying.

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; social). You will receive credit for all qualifying experience, including volunteer and part time experience. You must clearly identify the duties and responsibilities in each position held and the total number of hours per week.

BASIC REQUIREMENT(S):
Individual Occupational Requirements:
Note: Public Law 97-35 requires that persons who administer radiologic procedures meet the credentialing standards in 42 CFR Part 75. Essentially, they must (1) have successfully completed an education program that meets or exceeds the standards described in that regulation and is accredited by an organization recognized by the Department of Education, and (2) be certified as radiographers in their field. The following meet these requirements:

1. Persons employed by the Federal Government as radiologic personnel prior to the effective date of the regulation (January 13,1986) who show evidence of current or fully satisfactory performance or certification of such as a Doctor of Medicine, osteopathy, dentistry, podiatry, or chiropractic who prescribes radiologic procedures to others.
2. Persons first employed by the Federal Government as radiologic personnel after the effective date of the regulation who (a) received training from institutions in a State or foreign jurisdiction that did not accredit training in that particular field at the time of graduation, or (b) practiced in a State or foreign jurisdiction that did not license that particular field or did not allow special eligibility to take a licensure examination for those who did not graduate from an accredited educational program, provided such persons show evidence of training, experience, and competence, as determined by OPM or the employing agency.

In addition to the Basic Requirements, you must also meet the Minimum Qualifications stated below.

MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS:
GS-07: Your resume must demonstrate at least one (1) year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the GS-06 grade level in the Federal service obtained in either the private or public sector performing the following type of work and/or tasks: Make adjustments as needed for minimizing the disruption of patient care. Assign workload and duties of dental assistant personnel. Develop and evaluate employee work performance. Perform administrative supervision of multiple employees. Provide chair-side assistance and dental therapy duties for general dentists and dental specialists in all aspects of dentistry. Supervises the maintenance of clinic records being recorded by subordinates. Specialty experience examples include: Clinical Emphasis: Perform in a lead role with experience in dental assisting duties in a clinic setting. Record patient complaints. Provide guidance for patience related to form completion and triage of patients. Community Outreach: Attend dental community outreach as a lead dental assistant at events such as dental screenings, fluoride application and similar outreach events. Infection control: performed as a lead a dental department in all matters pertaining to infection control, including adherence to policies and conduct training as needed;

OR

Completed 1 year (18 semester hours) of graduate education that is directly related to the work of the position. Transcripts must be submitted;

OR

Special Requirements for GS-5 and above Dental Assistant (Expanded Function):
Applicants for Dental Assistant (Expanded Function) positions must have completed l year of acceptable course work, preceptorship, or other formal training and/or work assignments specifically designed to equip them with knowledge and skills required to perform intra-oral procedures involved in the position to be filled. Examples of acceptable training are:

• Courses in a dental hygiene or dental assistant program accredited by the American Dental Association's Commission on Accreditation that are directly related to the intra-oral procedures (also referred to as expanded functions) that are to be performed in the position to be filled.
• U.S. Army's Dental Therapy Assistant Training Program.
• Continuing education courses in expanded functions for dental assistants offered by the Indian Health Service of the Department of Health and Human Services.
• Other training comparable to the above in private or governmental hospitals, clinics, or schools that included formal classroom instruction and clinical training in the knowledge and skills required to perform intra-oral procedures in the position to be filled.

Time In Grade
Federal employees in the competitive service are also subject to the Time-In-Grade Requirements: Merit Promotion (status) candidates must have completed one year of service at the next lower grade level. Time-In-Grade provisions do not apply under the Excepted Service Examining Plan (ESEP).

You must meet all qualification requirements within 30 days of the closing date of the announcement.

How you will be evaluated

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

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

Once the application process is complete, the first two pages of your resume and supporting documentation will be used to determine whether you meet the job qualifications.

Structured Resume Review: Subject matter experts (SMEs) will review your resume to determine your technical qualifications for this position based on the required competencies. SMEs will review ONLY the first two (2) pages of your resume. SMEs will not review additional information beyond your resume (e.g., cover letter, links embedded in your resume).

Once the announcement closes, we will conduct a review of your application package to verify your eligibility and qualifications. If you are found qualified, your application will move forward to additional phases of the review process.

To ensure a fair and consistent hiring process, IHS uses a multi-hurdle assessment process. Each "hurdle" must be passed before moving to the next step. This helps us evaluate applicants based on job-related qualifications, competencies, and experience.

Below is what applicants can expect:
________________________________________
1. Minimum Qualifications Review - Hurdle 1
HR reviews your resume to confirm you meet the eligibility and minimum qualifications for the position (education and/or licensure (if applicable), listed above).
Note: the first two pages of your resume and supporting documentation will be used to determine whether you meet the minimum qualifications.
If you meet eligibility and minimum qualifications, you move to the next hurdle.
2. Technical Assessment (Subject Matter Expert Resume Review) - Hurdle 2
A panel of subject matter experts (SME) will review your resume to determine whether you clearly show the required specialized experience listed below.
Note: SMEs will review ONLY the first two (2) pages of your resume. SMEs will not review additional information beyond your resume (e.g., cover letter, links embedded in your resume).

This assessment is Pass/Fail.

Applicants who demonstrate the required experience will advance.


Demonstration of these specialized experience statements ascertain your competency in the following:

• Customer Service (Clerical/Technical)
• Managing Human Resources
• Planning and Evaluating
• Technical Competence

Click here to view vacancy questions: https://apply.usastaffing.gov/ViewQuestionnaire/12999129.

All documents above MUST be received by 11:59 pm (Eastern Standard Time) of the closing date of, 07/24/2026, to be considered.