Clarification from the agency

Open to competitive service appointments, former federal employees with reinstatement eligibility, persons eligible for non-competitive appointment under special appointment authorities, persons eligible under the Interchange Agreements; 30% or more disabled veterans; Veterans Employment Opportunity Act (VEOA) eligible.

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Work Schedule: Mon - Fri 7:00 am - 3:30 pm
Compressed/Flexible Schedule: Not Available
Telework: Not Available
Duty Location Status: Will work from a VA owned or leased space
Position Description Title/PD#: Research Budget Analyst/ PD46967A
Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized
Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized
Financial Disclosure Report: Not Authorized
Physical Demands: The work is sedentary. Some walking, lifting and carrying may be required.

This position involves a multi-grade career ladder. The major duties listed below represent the full performance level of GS-11. At the GS-11 grade level, you will perform assignments of a more limited scope and with less independence. You will progressively acquire the background necessary to perform at the full performance level of GS-11. Promotion is at the discretion of the supervisor and is contingent upon satisfactory performance, availability of higher level work, and availability of funds. Promotion is not guaranteed and no promise of promotion is implied.

Major Duties:

• Oversee all aspects of the Research Service fiscal program in conjunction with the Administrative Officer (AO) and Associate Chief of Staff (ACOS) for Research.
• Strategically plan, prepare, and carry out the fiscal program for Research Service, for both immediate and long-range plans.
• Develops budgetary plans, projections, and reports, and interprets information received from Office of Research and Development (ORD), the individual VA Research programs, Fiscal Service, and other sources.
• Maintains cost accounting ledgers for current and prior year appropriations assigned to research.
• Reconciles cost control records with monthly, quarterly, and annual fiscal reports.
• Provides financial advice to investigators and/or other members of the ORD service on budget related matters such as types of available funding, formulation of their research budget, preparation of budgetary sections of VA grant funding submissions, etc. forecasts needs, tracks, and allocates funds for Principal Investigators (PI) funded via Merit Review or other VA Research Programs.
• Performs studies and audits on control and use of funds throughout each fiscal year.
• Analyzes historical financial operating data and spending patterns.
• Serves as an expert on VA regulations, rules, procedures, and practices for initiating, preparing, and monitoring procurement, and contractual agreements.
• Serve as a COR designee for the service and oversees areas of acquisition administration and contractor's performance, as it pertains to Research and Development.

Conditions of employment

• You must be a U.S. Citizen to apply for this job
• To be considered for this position, you must complete all required steps in the process. In addition to the application and questionnaire, this position requires an online assessment. The online assessment measures critical general competencies required to perform the job.
• Selective Service Registration is required for males born after 12/31/1959
• Physical Requirements: The work required does not inherently include any physical requirements essential for successful job performance that could not otherwise be performed with accommodation or workplace adjustment. A pre-placement physical examination is not required.
• 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)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 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, 12/09/2025.

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-07 position you must have served 52 weeks at the GS-05. 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.

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-09 position you must have served 52 weeks at the GS-07. 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.

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-11 position you must have served 52 weeks at the GS-09. 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.

Provide a copy of your last or most recent SF-50, "Notification of Personnel Action" to indicate your current federal status. You must also submit additional SF-50(s) to clearly demonstrate one year time-in-grade as required in the announcement. If the most recent SF-50 has an effective within the past year, it may not clearly demonstrate that you possess one year time-in-grade. In this instance, you must provide an additional SF-50 that clearly demonstrates one year time-in-grade.

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.

AND

You may qualify based on your education/experience/combination as described below.

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

GS-07 Grade Level

Specialized Experience: One year of specialized experience equivalent to the GS-05 level. Examples of specialized experience include:

• Applying federal budget and finance regulations, procedures, and processes;
• Assisting in the analysis of obligations and expenditures using accounting and auditing skills;
• Using accounting and management software;
• Understanding research requirements, grant administration, and fiscal requirements for foundation accounts;
• Applying knowledge of policies and procedures governing federal research grant programs.

OR

Education: One full year of graduate-level education or Superior Academic Achievement (SAA).

OR

Combination of Education and Experience: A combination of education and experience may be used to qualify. Only graduate-level education in excess of a bachelor's degree may be combined with experience to qualify.

GS-09 Grade Level

Specialized Experience: One year of specialized experience equivalent to the GS-07 level. Examples include:

• Implementing spending priorities and maintaining organized financial records;
• Using specialized budgeting software (e.g., Scoro, Centage, Sage 50, QuickBooks Enterprise, Financial Force Accounting);
• Utilizing office applications (e.g., Access, Publisher, PowerPoint) to produce reports;
• Communicating budget information clearly to non-financial personnel.

OR

Education: A master's or equivalent graduate degree, or two full years of progressively higher-level graduate education leading to such a degree, or an LL.B. or J.D., if related.

OR

Combination of Education and Experience: A combination of specialized experience and graduate-level education may be used to qualify.

GS-11 Grade Level

Specialized Experience: One year of specialized experience equivalent to the GS-09 level. Examples include:

• Developing and executing complex budgets for research programs;
• Identifying waste or unnecessary expenditures;
• Collaborating with fiscal departments to track and distribute grant funding;
• Analyzing long-term financial data to project strategic financial plans;
• Preparing grant funding allocations and managing pay/cost deadlines;
• Preparing financial statements and ledgers in compliance with legal and policy requirements.

OR

Education: A Ph.D. or equivalent doctoral degree, or three full years of progressively higher-level graduate education leading to such a degree, or an LL.M., if related.

OR

Combination of Education and Experience: A combination of specialized experience and education at the doctoral level may be used to qualify.

Note: If qualifying based on education or a combination of education and experience, transcripts must be submitted with your application.

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

• Accounting
• Contracting/Procurement
• Manages resources

Per Office of Personnel Management General Schedule Qualification Policies, federal employees are assumed to have gained experience by performing duties and responsibilities appropriate for their official series and grade level as described in their position description. Experience that would not normally be part of the employee's position is creditable when documented by satisfactory evidence (e.g., a memorandum from the manager, human resources director, or official documentation such as SF-52, SF-50 documenting an official detail/assignments, or other comparable documentation). The documentation must indicate whether the employee performed the duties full time or, if part-time, the percentage of times the employee performed the additional duties.

To receive credit for experience in your resume that is not within the official series and grade level of your position, you must provide official documentation of such experience as indicated above.

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 OPM's web site at http://www.opm.gov/qualifications/standards/indexes/alph-ndx.asp.

How you will be evaluated

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

Your qualifications will be evaluated based on your application materials (e.g., resume, supporting documents), your responses on the application questionnaire, and your responses to all assessments required for this position. You will be assessed on the following Competencies for this position:

• Accounting
• Contracting/Procurement
• Financial Management

USA Hire Assessments include a cut score based on the minimum level of required proficiency in these critical general competencies. You must meet or exceed the cut score to be considered. You will not be considered for the position if you score below the cut score or fail to complete the assessment.

Your 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. 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. IN DESCRIBING YOUR EXPERIENCE, PLEASE BE CLEAR AND SPECIFIC. WE WILL NOT MAKE ASSUMPTIONS REGARDING YOUR EXPERIENCE. Overstating your qualifications and/or experience in your application materials or application questionnaire may result in your removal from consideration. Cheating on the online assessment may also result in your removal from consideration.

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.

During the application process you may have an option to opt-in to make your resume available to hiring managers in the agency who have similar positions. Opting in does not impact your application for this announcement, nor does it guarantee further consideration for additional positions.

Special Employment Consideration: VA encourages persons with disabilities to apply, including those eligible for hiring under 5 CFR 213.3102(u), Schedule A, Appointment of persons with disabilities [i.e., intellectual disabilities, severe physical disabilities, or psychiatric disabilities], and/or Disabled veterans with a compensable service-connected disability of 30% or more. Contact the Agency Contact for information on how to apply under this appointment authority via the Selective Placement Coordinator.