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Summary

This position is located with the Bureau of Indian Affairs, Southwest Region in Albuquerque, New Mexico. You will provide essential social casework services to Native American Indian children, individuals, elderly and families.

Overview

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Accepting applications
Open & closing dates
07/07/2025 to 08/06/2025
Salary
$61,774 to - $97,158 per year
Pay scale & grade
GS 9 - 11
Location
1 vacancy in the following location:
Albuquerque, NM
Remote job
No
Telework eligible
Yes—as determined by the agency policy.
Travel Required
Occasional travel - You may be expected to travel for this position.
Relocation expenses reimbursed
No
Appointment type
Permanent
Work schedule
Full-time
Service
Competitive
Promotion potential
11
Job family (Series)
Supervisory status
No
Security clearance
Other
Drug test
No
Position sensitivity and risk
Moderate Risk (MR)
Trust determination process
Announcement number
STIMP-25-12759689-CAWZ-DYA
Control number
840201700

This job is open to

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Clarification from the agency

Preference in filling vacancies is given to qualified Indian candidates in accordance with the Indian Preference Act of 1934 (title 25, USC Section 472). Verification form BIA -4432 must be submitted with the application if claiming Indian Preference. No other documents will be accepted as proof of Indian Preference.

Duties

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  • Serves as a Child Welfare Social Worker in conjunction with the Regional Social Worker in program planning developing, and monitoring of child protection services.
  • Assists with policy development surrounding all subcomponents of a Human Services program.
  • Provides critical protective services to children, vulnerable adults, and the elderly to include protective service investigations, conducting risk and safety assessments, and case management services.
  • Arranges for foster care placements, institutional placements, and out-of-home placements based on the outcome of a protective service investigation.
  • Provides technical assistance and training to Tribal Indian Child Welfare Act (ICWA) program staff.
  • Assists with the planning and implementation of monthly, quarterly, annual child welfare trainings.
  • Assists with conducting Social Service and ICWA field program reviews.
  • Provides technical assistance in the development of protective service teams.
  • Assists in reviewing, researching and responding to incoming ICWA notices within a regulatory timeframe.
  • Enters all received ICWA notices into the Bureaus case management system on a regular basis.
  • Reviews and consolidates received ICWA reports and seeks clarification from tribes as needed.
  • Serves as an Awarding Official Technical Representative for Social Service and Indian Child Welfare Act (ICWA) contracts and grants.

Requirements

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Conditions of employment

  • U.S. Citizenship Required.
  • Preference in filling vacancies is given to qualified Indian candidates in accordance with the Indian Preference Act of 1934 (title 25, USC Section 472). Form BIA -4432 must be submitted with the application if claiming Indian Preference.
  • You will be required to have federal payments made by Direct Deposit
  • You may be required to successfully complete a probationary/trial period
  • A background security investigation will be required for all new hires. Appointment will be subject to the applicant's successful completion of a background security investigation and favorable adjudication.
  • If you are a male applicant born after 12/31/1959 and are required to register under the Military Selective Service Act, the Defense Authorization Act of 1986 requires that you be registered or you are not eligible for appointment in this agency.
  • Incumbent may be required as an incidental duty to operate a government-owned or leased motor vehicle. If selected, you will be required to complete an Incidental Motor Vehicle Operator's Certification Form.
  • The pay flexibilities of a recruitment or student loan repayment incentive may be authorized pending availability of funds and management approval.
  • TRAVEL AND RELOCATION EXPENSES WILL NOT BE AUTHORIZED. ANY RELOCATION EXPENSES ASSOCIATED WITH REPORTING FOR DUTY WILL BE THE RESPONSIBILITY OF THE SELECTED EMPLOYEE.

Qualifications

EXPERIENCE AND EDUCATION REQUIREMENTS: (OPM Operating Manual, Qualification Standards for Professional and Scientific Positions and Individual Occupational Requirements for GS-0185: Social Work Series).

BASIC REQUIREMENT FOR ALL GRADES: Masters Degree: Social Work. Must fulfill all of the requirements for the MASTERS DEGREE in social work in a school accredited by the Council on Social Work Education.

ADDITIONAL EXPERIENCE REQUIRED: In addition to meeting the basic qualification requirement, applicants must have the following:

GS-09: Qualifying is one year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the GS-07 grade level in the Federal service. This experience includes, but is not limited to, work involving: 1.) applying professional knowledge of the principles and practices of social work; 2.) recommending direct services to individuals, families, and groups; 3.) educating or assisting with instruction, training, and guidance or providing consultation and technical assistance on social work related questions and services. (Your resume must support this experience.) OR 2 years of progressively higher level graduate education leading to a master's degree or master's or equivalent graduate degree.

GS-11: Qualifying is one year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the GS-09 grade level in the Federal service. This experience includes, but is not limited to, work involving: 1.) applying professional knowledge of the principles and practices of social work; 2.) providing direct services to individuals and families, and groups; 3.) educating or providing instruction, training, consultation and/or advice on social work related questions and services; 4.) interprets and applies specialized program knowledge and skill of the Social Services Program; 5.) serve as a case manager of assigned cases; 6.) maintains a formalized case management system which documents the workflow of case services with individual case plan. (Your resume must support this experience.) OR 3 years of progressively higher level graduate education leading to a Ph.D. degree or Ph.D. or equivalent doctoral degree.

Combination of Education and Experience: A combination of graduate level education and appropriate specialized experience that together meet the qualification requirements of this position.

Graduate Education: Graduate education must be related to the occupation and demonstrate the knowledge, skills, and abilities necessary to do the work.

Specialized Experience: Experience that equipped the applicant with the particular knowledge, skills, and abilities (KSA's) to perform successfully the duties of the position, and is typically in or related to the position to be filled.

All qualification requirements must be met by the closing date of this announcement.

Merit Promotion candidates must also meet time-in-grade requirements by the announcement closing date.

Preference in filling vacancies is given to qualified Indian candidates in accordance with the Indian Preference Act of 1934 (title 25, USC Section 472).

Additional selections may be made from this announcement if identical vacancies occur in the same location within 90 days from the closing date.

Education

If you are qualifying based on your 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 of your courses, grades, semester, year, and credit for the course. All materials must be submitted by the closing date of the announcement.

If more than 10 percent of your undergraduate course work (credit hours) were taken on a pass/fail basis, your claim of superior academic achievement must be based upon class standing or membership in an honor society.

One academic year of graduate education is considered to be the number of credits hours your graduate school has determined to represent one academic year of full-time study. Such study may have been performed on a full-time or part-time basis. If you cannot obtain your graduate school's definition of one year of graduate study, 18 semester hours (or 27 quarter hours) should be considered as satisfying the requirement for one year of full-time graduate study.

If you are using education completed in foreign colleges or universities to meet the qualification requirements, you must send a Certificate of Foreign Equivalency with your transcript in order to receive credit for that education which shows the education credentials have been evaluated by a private organization that specializes in interpretation of foreign education programs and such education has been deemed equivalent to that gained in an accredited U.S. education program; or full credit has been given for the courses at a U.S. accredited college or university. For further information, visit: FOREIGN EDUCATION

If you are using education completed in foreign colleges or universities to meet the qualification requirements, you must send a Certificate of Foreign Equivalency with your transcript in order to receive credit for that education which shows the education credentials have been evaluated by a private organization that specializes in interpretation of foreign education programs and such education has been deemed equivalent to that gained in an accredited U.S. education program; or full credit has been given for the courses at a U.S. accredited college or university. For further information, visit: FOREIGN EDUCATION

Additional information

All new hires earn the beginning salary of their pay grade (Step 1). See 2025 Salary Tables and select the pay chart for Albuquerque, New Mexico.

The full performance level is GS-11. A career ladder promotion is at the discretion of management, and in no way guaranteed.

TELEWORK: The duties of this position are suitable for telework only during an emergency or natural disaster.

CAREER TRANSITION ASSISTANCE PROGRAMS: These programs apply to employees who have been involuntarily separated from a Federal service position within the competitive service or Federal service employees whose positions have been deemed surplus or no longer needed. To receive selection priority for this position, you must: (1) meet CTAP or ICTAP eligibility criteria; (2) be rated well-qualified for the position with a score of 85 or above; and, (3) submit the appropriate documentation to support your CTAP or ICTAP eligibility. For more information visit: http://www.opm.gov/rif/employee_guides/career_transition.asp .

LAND MANAGEMENT WORKFORCE FLEXIBILITY ACT: If applying under the Land Management Workforce Flexibility Act, you must provide documentation to support your eligibility (SF-50) and performance (references and/or performance appraisal). Under the Land Management Workforce Flexibility Act (LMWFA) two groups of individuals are eligible to apply under this announcement: current and/or former employees serving or who have served under time-limited competitive appointments at land management agencies. Land Management Agencies include: Bureau of Indian Affairs, Bureau of Land Management, Bureau of Reclamation, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, National Park Service, and U.S. Forest Service.

  • Current appointees: 1) must have been hired under competitive examining procedures to a time limited appointment with a land management agency; 2) must have served under one or more time limited appointment(s) by a land management agency for a period totaling more than 24 months without a break in service of 2 or more years; AND 3) must have performed at an acceptable level during each period of service.
  • Former appointees: 1) must have been hired under competitive examining procedures to a time limited appointment with a land management agency; 2) must have served under one or more time limited appointment(s) by a land management agency for a period totaling more than 24 months without a break in service of 2 or more years; 3) must have separated for reasons other than misconduct or performance; AND 4) must have performed at an acceptable level through the service period.
SPECIAL APPOINTING AUTHORITY: Certain candidates may be eligible to apply under a special hiring authority including those for disabled individuals, Peace Corps employees, Foreign Service employees, veterans, etc. For more information, visit the following OPM websites: USAJOBS Information Center: https://www.usajobs.gov/Help/; Vets Info Guide: http://www.fedshirevets.gov/.VOLUNTARY SEPARATION INCENTIVE PAYMENT: Former Federal Employees are required to indicate whether they received a Voluntary Separation Incentive Payment (VSIP) buyout in their previous employment with the Federal government, and are required to submit a copy of the applicable Notification of Personnel Action (SF-50) regarding the VSIP. Most individuals who accept reemployment with the Federal government within 5 years of receiving the VSIP amount, must repay the gross amount of the separation pay prior to reemployment.

How you will be evaluated

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

Please limit your resume to no more than 2 pages. If more than 2 pages are submitted, only the first 2 pages will be reviewed to determine your eligibility/qualifications. Your application package will be evaluated against the minimum qualification requirements specified above. In order to qualify, your resume must specifically describe your work history and the duties you performed in each position. Your resume will be evaluated after the closing date of 08/06/2025 to determine whether you meet the minimum qualification requirements for this position. Qualified candidates will then be rated as best qualified, well qualified, or qualified depending on their possession of the knowledge, skills, abilities, competencies and experience requirements as demonstrated by your responses to the assessment questions.

Competencies measured include:

  • Administration and Management
  • Customer Service (Clerical/Technical)
  • Decision Making
  • Interpersonal Skills
  • Organizational Awareness
  • Written Communication


We will compare your resume and supporting documentation to your responses on the assessment questionnaire. If the information in your resume does not support your responses to the assessment questions, your score may be adjusted to more accurately reflect your qualifications. DESCRIBING YOUR EXPERIENCE: PLEASE BE CLEAR AND SPECIFIC. WE WILL NOT MAKE ASSUMPTIONS REGARDING YOUR EXPERIENCE. If your resume/application does not support your Assessment Questionnaire answers, we will not allow credit for your response(s). Your resume must contain sufficiently detailed information upon which to make a qualification determination. Please ensure that your resume contains specific information such as position titles, beginning and ending dates of employment for each position, average number of hours worked per week, and if the position is/was in the Federal government, you should provide the position series and grade level.

Preference in filling vacancies is given to qualified Indian candidates in accordance with the Indian Reorganization Act of 1934 (Title 25, USC, Section 472). Verification Form BIA-4432 must be submitted with the application if claiming Indian Preference. Indian Preference eligibles not currently employed in Federal service may be appointed under the Excepted Service Appointment Authority Schedule A, 213.3112(a)(7). Consideration will be given to Non-Indian applicants in the absence of qualified Indian Preference eligibles. For more information, please visit: https://www.bia.gov/jobs.Qualified Indian preference candidates will be referred to the hiring manager in order of veterans' preference.

DUE WEIGHT FOR PERFORMANCE APPRAISALS AND AWARDS. For Current and Former Federal Employees, due weight will be given for performance and awards. Any performance appraisal/evaluation and award documentation you provide will be forwarded to the selecting official. The selecting official will review this documentation and give it due weight consideration during the overall selection process. If you do not have your most recent performance appraisal/evaluation, please submit a statement as to why it is not available. Please indicate if any prior performance appraisals/evaluations were at an acceptable level.

REVIEW BEFORE YOU SUBMIT: You may preview the assessment questions here in the https://apply.usastaffing.gov/ViewQuestionnaire/12759689.

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