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***THIS IS NOT A VIRTUAL POSITION, YOU MUST LIVE WITHIN OR BE WILLING TO RELOCATE WITHIN A COMMUTABLE DISTANCE OF THE DUTY LOCATION***

NOTE: This is a TERM appointment (not-to-exceed 8/31/2026). Term appointments are non-status, non-permanent appointments of limited duration (more than 1 year but not more than 4). Term employees are eligible to earn leave and generally have the same benefits as permanent employees including health and life insurance, within-grade increases and Federal Employees Retirement System and Thrift Savings Plan coverage. Term appointments may be extended without further competition (up to the 4-year maximum). The appointment to a Term position does not confer eligibility for promotion or reassignment to other positions or the ability to be non-competitively converted to permanent employment.

The major duties and responsibilities include but are not limited to:

• Managing the entire critical pre-award and post-award program for the VAGLA Research & Development program.
• Carrying out critical activities and making unilateral decisions in assigned areas, including delegated institutional authority to approve and submit funding applications for VA-sponsored research grants.
• Providing the ACOS, Deputy ACOS, Budget Manager and Administrative Officer (AO), with information and recommendations that will facilitate program growth and future improvement.
• Functioning as an advisor, mentor and coordinator to principal investigators, their research staff, and new scientist sharing with the diverse requirements and deadlines of the pre- and post-award programs.
• Providing guidance in budget preparation to ensure compliance with multiple Veterans Healthcare Administration handbooks and directives.
• Evaluating proposed unfunded research submissions for task appropriateness and adherence to stipulated guidelines and assisting the AO to advise principal investigators throughout the course of their study regarding expenditures.
• Serving as a Signing Official for Electronic Research Administration (eRA) Commons, managing affiliations for investigators in Electronic Research Administration (eRA). This includes creation of new Electronic Research Administration (eRA) Commons IDs as needed, affiliating existing Electronic Research Administration (eRA) IDs with VAGLA using appropriate user roles, and assisting in delegating access to investigator reports as needed for support personnel within a research study team.
• Preparing, reviewing, and submission of research proposals to VA Central Office (VACO) in Washington, DC.
• Assuring that all proposals are administratively and technically correct, include documentation to ensure the availability and approval of necessary resources (space, personnel, and equipment). The use of investigational drugs, the use of human and animal subjects, the use of biohazards, budgetary requirements, and the appropriateness of the requested funding level.
• Must be fluent with the software platforms used to submit such awards (eRA Commons, Grants.gov) and with the desktop software such as Microsoft Word and Adobe Acrobat Pro used in support of grant submission activities.
• Responsible for submitting final application packages to Grants.gov, and for ensuring that submitted packages are received, validated, and pass all eRA Commons automated checks for critical errors prior to the grant submission deadlines.
• Post submission processes include monitoring status of submitted proposals, communication of all decisions by VACO to investigators, and guidance on the next steps the investigator must take to initiate approved proposals or resubmit applications not selected for funding.
• Monitoring completion of the required annual Research Performance Progress Report (RPPR) in eRA Commons for each funded award, and for managing closeout (Final RPPR) for completed awards.
• Providing pre- and post-award support for extramural funding submitted through the Academic Affiliate and VA-NPC.
• Assisting specific investigators in the development of new or revised applications for extramural funding.
• Independently collecting and analyzing data used to prepare and submit a variety of reports to the ACOS and AO for R&D, the facility R&D Committee, Medical Center Director, and Chief of Staff, VISN leadership, Office of R&D (ORD), Office of Research Oversight, and VA Central Office.
• Performing other related duties assigned.

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 dentification 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)

Qualifications

To qualify for this position at the GS-11 level, you must meet one of the following requirements:

SPECIALIZED EXPERIENCE: You must have at leastone (1) full year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the next lower grade level (GS-9) in the Federal Service that has given me the particular knowledge, skills and abilities required to successfully perform the duties of a Grants Management Specialist, and that is typically in or related to the work of the position to be filled? Qualifying specialized experience includes working in a Medical Research Organization Grant Section, preparation, review and submission of research proposals, advising investigators on pre-award and post award requirements, assist investigators in preparing documents critical to the submission or post-award approval of applications, experience using various computer hardware and software systems, collecting and analyzing data used to prepare and submit a variety of reports, and possessing basic accounting skills to manage research budgets. NOTE: Experience must be fully documented on your resume and must include job title, duties, month and year start/end dates, AND hours worked per week. 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.

-OR-

SUBSTITUTION OF EDUCATION FOR EXPERIENCE: You must possess a Ph.D. or equivalent doctoral degree or 3 full years of progressively higher-level graduate education leading to such a degree or LL.M., if related, which demonstrates the knowledge, skills, and abilities necessary to do the work of this Grants Management Specialist position. One year of full-time graduate education is considered to be the number of credit hours that the school attended has determined to represent 1 year of full-time study. If that number cannot be obtained from the school, 18 semester hours should be considered an academic year of graduate study. NOTE: Transcripts must be submitted with your application materials. Education cannot be credited without documentation.

-OR-

COMBINATION OF EXPERIENCE AND EDUCATION: You must possess an equivalent combination of successfully completed related graduate level education and specialized experience as described above, to meet the total experience requirements for this position at the GS-11 level. NOTE: Transcripts must be submitted with your application materials. Education cannot be credited without documentation.

You will be rated on the following Competencies as part of the assessment questionnaire for this position:

• Manages and Organizes Information
• Project Management
• Research
• Technical Competence

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. If your resume does not support your questionnaire answers, we will not allow credit for your response(s).

Your responses to the assessment questionnaire will be reviewed along with the information provided in your resume and supporting documentation to determine if you are qualified for the position. If, after reviewing your resume and/or supporting documentation, a determination is made that you have inflated your qualifications and or experience, your rating may be lowered and/or you may lose consideration for this position. Please follow all instructions carefully. Errors or omissions may affect your eligibility.

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.

Candidates who apply under All U.S. Citizens announcements will be rated and ranked using Category Rating procedures. Qualified candidates will be assigned to a quality category. The categories are defined as follows:

• Best qualified - applicants possessing experience that substantially exceeds the minimum qualifications of the position including all selective factors, and who are highly proficient in all requirements of the job and can perform effectively in the position;
• Highly qualified - applicants possessing experience that exceeds the minimum qualifications of the position including all selective factors, and who are proficient in most of the requirements of the job;
• Well qualified - applicants possessing experience that meets the minimum qualifications of the position including all selective factors, and who are proficient in some, but not all, of the requirements of the job; and
• Qualified - applicants possessing experience and/or education that meets the minimum qualifications of the position including all selective factors.