Assistant Grants Management Specialist (AGMS)

Clarification from the agency

United States Citizens eligible for Pathways, Recent Graduates

This position is located in the Office of Programs & Partnerships (P&P), Immediate Office, at the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA). As an Assistant Grants Management Specialist, Typical work assignments include:

• Assisting with application and grant processes, including receiving, reviewing, processing, and organizing applications for panel review.
• Coordinating advisory panel review activities, prepare panel materials, and process panelist forms, affiliations, and payment documents.
• Providing technical assistance and administrative guidance to applicants and panelists on application timelines, work samples, and review processes.
• Entering and verifying grant data, to include disposition codes, accounting codes, project descriptions, award amounts, and civil rights review data.
• Preparing spreadsheets, presentations, reports, panel books, grades and comments reports, risk reports, minutes, and post-panel meeting materials. Coordinating schedules, meetings, travel, logistics, correspondence, records, procurements, and internal communications for the P&P Immediate Office.
• Responding to constituent inquiries, maintain correspondence records, and refer sensitive or complex matters to appropriate NEA staff.

Conditions of employment

• Must be a U.S. Citizen or National.
• Must be found suitable for Federal employment, determined by a background investigation.
• Males born after 12 -31-59 must be registered for Selective Service.
• Complete the initial online assessment and USAHire Assessment, if required
• All qualification requirements must be met by the closing date of this announcement and clearly documented in your resume.
• If selected, you must sign the Pathways Participant agreement.
• If selected, you must sign an Individual Development Plan.
• Recent Graduate appointments are intended to last for a 1-year period.
• Recent Graduate appointment may be extended up to an additional 120 days under rare or unusual circumstances to complete the program requirements.
• The duration of the Recent Graduates appointment in the excepted service is a trial period.
• If Recent Graduate successfully completes the program requirements and converted to competitive service, time spent in trial period will count towards the required one-year probationary period.
• Recent Graduates may be non-competitively converted to a term or permanent position in the competitive service, provided that there is an available position. Recent Graduates converted to term appointments may later be non-competitively converted to a permanent competitive service position. Placement in the program does not guarantee conversion to a permanent appointment, nor is it mandatory.
• Individuals who successfully complete the program can be converted into either a time-limited or permanent appointment.

Qualifications

To qualify under Recent Graduates, you must meet one of the following:

1. A recent graduate who has completed a qualifying associate's, bachelor's, master's, professional, doctorate, vocational, or technical degree, or a certificate from a qualifying educational institution within the previous 2 years; or
2. A recent graduate who has completed a qualifying career or technical education program that awards a recognized post-secondary credential (such as a Registered Apprenticeship Program or Job Corps) within the previous 2 years; or
3. A veteran, who, due to a military service obligation, was precluded from applying to the Recent Graduates Program during any portion of the 2-year eligibility period described above. (Note: A veteran's eligibility period may not extend beyond 6 years from the date on which the individual completed the requirements of an academic course of study or career or technical education program).

In addition to qualifying as a Recent Graduate, you must also meet one of the following qualification requirements:

A. Have at least one year of full-time specialized experience equivalent to the GS-5 grade level in the federal government (obtained in either the public or private sectors) with experience in all of the following duties:

1. Utilizing knowledge of one or more arts disciplines to provide subject matter input on arts funding programs.
2. Prioritizing and performing administrative processes and procedures, such as developing correspondence, coordinating calendars, and preparing for meetings.
3. Utilizing office automation to prepare reports and maintain records for staff, reviewers, or leadership officials.
4. Communicating effectively and accurately with internal and external customers.

(You must clearly show in your resume and claim on the questionnaire how you meet the above experience if you are claiming this option, or you will be rated ineligible)

-OR-

B. Have a bachelor's degree from an accredited college or university, AND meet one of the following provisions of Superior Academic Achievement:

1. Maintained a grade-point average of "B" (a GPA of 3.0 or higher) as recorded on your official transcript, or as computed based on 4 years of education, or as computed based on courses completed during the final 2 years of the curriculum;
2. Maintained a grade-point average "B+" (a GPA of 3.5 or higher) based on the average of the required courses completed in the major field or the required courses in the major field completed during the final 2 years of the curriculum;
3. Rank in the upper one-third of your class in the college, university, or major subdivision;
4. Be a member of a national honor society (other than freshman honor societies) recognized by the Association of College Honor Societies.

-OR-

C. Have one full year of graduate level study, in a field that provided the knowledge, skills, and abilities necessary to do the work. NOTE: One academic year of graduate education is considered to be the number of credit hours that your graduate school has determined to represent one academic year of full-time study. 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.

-OR-

D. Have a combination of some specialized experience as described above, but less than one year; and have some graduate education but less than one year of education as described above. However, you have a combination of specialized experience and graduate level education that when combined, equals at least 100% of the total requirement.

Note: You must submit transcripts to document any educational claims, or you will be rated ineligible.

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.

Experience refers to paid and unpaid experience, including volunteer work done through National Service programs (e.g., professional, philanthropic, religious, 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 must submit transcripts to document any educational claims, or you will be rated ineligible.

How you will be evaluated

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

How you will be evaluated:
You will be evaluated based on how well you meet the qualifications listed in this vacancy announcement. Your qualifications will be evaluated based on your application materials (e.g., resume, supporting documents), the responses you provide on the application questionnaire, and the result of the online assessments required for this position. You will be assessed on the following competencies (knowledge, skills, abilities, and other characteristics):

You will be assessed on the following competencies (knowledge, skills, abilities, and other characteristics):

• Attention to Detail
• Customer Service
• Integrity/Honesty
• Interpersonal Skills
• Teamwork
• Reading Comprehension

In order to be considered for this position, you must complete all required steps in the process. In addition to the application and application questionnaire, this position requires an online assessment. The online assessment measures critical general competencies required to perform the job.

The USA Hire assessment includes 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

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.

Category Rating Procedures: If you meet the minimum qualifications, you will be placed in one of the following categories:

1. Best-Qualified: Applicants possessing experience that substantially exceeds the minimum qualifications of the position and demonstrate high proficiency in all of the critical competencies, including all Selective Placement Factors (SPF) and appropriate Quality Ranking Factors (QRF) as determined by the job analysis.
2. Well-Qualified: Applicants possessing experience that exceeds the minimum qualifications of the position and demonstrates acceptable proficiency in all of the critical competencies, including all SPFs and appropriate QRFs as determined by the job analysis.
3. Qualified: Applicants possessing experience that meets the minimum qualifications of the position and demonstrate basic proficiency in most of the critical competencies, including all SPFs and appropriate QRFs as determined by the job analysis.

Veterans: Qualified veterans who have a compensable service-connected disability of at least 10% are listed in the best-qualified category, except when the position being filled is scientific or professional at the GS-09 grade level, or higher. This position is not considered scientific/professional. Other 10-point preference eligibles and veterans with 5-point preference who meet the eligibility and qualification requirements are placed above non-preference eligibles within the category in which they qualify. View information on www.fedshirevets.gov

1. Your resume showing a detailed description of your job-related qualifications that includes beginning and ending dates with the month and year and hours worked per week for each paid and non-paid work experience job title listed.
2. Cover letter (optional)
3. Your transcripts. Unofficial copies are sufficient with the application; however, if selected, official transcripts will be required. Submit a complete, unofficial copy of your transcripts that shows your entire college academic record as of the date of this announcement. The transcript can be retrieved by following the academic institutions instructions to obtain an unofficial copy. Please do not submit screenshots of your coursework.
4. Other supporting documents (only submit if applicable to you):
   • Are you claiming veterans' preference? Submit Member Copy 4 of your DD-214 or other (Certificate of Release or Discharge from Active Duty) or notice form. Those applying for 10-Point preference must fill out the SF-15 and provide an official document dated 1991 or later, from the Department of Veterans Affairs or from a branch of the Armed Forces, and/or any other associated documentation based on your preference. If applying based on eligibility under the Veterans Opportunity to Work (VOW) Act, you must submit certification from the Armed Forces that you will be discharged or released from active duty within 120 days from the date you submit your application. This must indicate your dates of service, your rank, and confirm that you will be separated under honorable conditions. For more information on veterans' preference see http://www.fedshirevets.gov/.
   • Are you a current or former political Schedule A, Schedule C, Non-career SES or Presidential Appointee employee? The Office of Personnel Management (OPM) must authorize employment offers made to current or former political appointees. If you are currently, or have been within the last 5 years, a political Schedule A, Schedule C, Non-career SES or Presidential Appointee employee in the Executive Branch, you must disclose this information to the Human Resources Office. Submit a copy of your applicable SF-50, along with a statement that provides the following information regarding your most recent political appointment:
   • Position title;
   • Type of appointment (Schedule A, Schedule C, Non-career SES, or Presidential Appointee);
   • Agency; and
   • Beginning and ending dates of appointment.

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