Contract Specialist

Clarification from the agency

ALL US CITIZENS DIRECT HIRE AUTHORITY: This position is being filled using Direct-Hire Authority (5 CFR 337.201) for this occupation.

Major duties include but are not limited to:

• Applies Federal Acquisition Regulations in preparing request for proposals (RFP) and request for quotes (RFQ) to ensure full compliance;
• Oversees planning, preparation and conduct of pre-solicitation, pre-proposal and/or post-awards functions on contracts;
• Prepares award contracts using contracting language, source selection procedures;
• Reviews contracts to ensure proper funding allocations and timely payments;
• Analysis acquisition processes, audits, and small business practices to ensure compliance;
• Assesses requests for the procurement of complex equipment and services;
• Provides technical advice, guidance and legal interpretation in all areas of contracting;
• Utilizes electronic contract management system(s);
• Communicates as a business advisor to internal and external acquisition customer; and
• Analysis acquisition processes, audits, and small business practices to ensure compliance.

Work Schedule: Monday - Friday, 8:00 a.m. - 4:30 p.m. EST.
Compressed/Flexible: Available
Telework: Available - Ad Hoc telework (situational telework) as determined by the agency policy.
Virtual: This is not a virtual position.
Position Description Title/PD#: Contract Specialist~/00332A
Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized
Financial Disclosure Report: Required
Physical Requirements: The work is primarily sedentary, although there are regular and recurring construction inspections requiring a considerable amount of walking, stooping, bending and climbing.

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
• 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 identification cards that are not REAL ID compliant cannot be utilized as an acceptable form of identification for employment.

As a condition of employment for accepting this position, you will be required to serve a 1-year probationary 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, 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.

Selective Placement Factor: Applicants must possess an active Federal Acquisition Certification in Contracting (FAC-C) (Professional) from the Office of Federal Procurement Policy's (OFPP) at the time of application. Applicants who do not meet this requirement will be found ineligible for further consideration.

Individual Occupational Requirements: To qualify for this position, you must meet the individual occupational requirements for Contracting Series, 1102 for GS-13 and above which include:

• Completion of all mandatory training prescribed by the head of the agency for progression to GS-13 or higher level contracting positions, including at least 4-years experience in contracting or related positions. At least 1 year of that experience must have been specialized experience at or equivalent to work at the next lower level of the position, and must have provided the knowledge, skills, and abilities to perform successfully the work of the position; and
• A 4-year course of study leading to a bachelor's degree, that included or was supplemented by at least 24 semester hours in any combination of the following fields: accounting, business, finance, law, contracts, purchasing, economics, industrial management, marketing, quantitative methods, or organization and management.

Exceptions: Employees in GS-1102 positions will be considered to have met the standard for positions they occupy on January 1, 2000. This also applies to positions at the same grade in the same agency or other agencies if the specialized experience requirements are met. However, they will have to meet the basic requirements and specialized experience requirements in order to qualify for promotion to a higher grade, unless granted a waiver by the the senior procurement executive of the selecting agency.

Waiver: When filling a specific vacant position, the senior procurement executive of the selecting agency, at his or her discretion, may waive any or all of the requirements of Paragraphs A and B above if the senior procurement executive certifies that the applicant possesses significant potential for advancement to levels of greater responsibility and authority, based on demonstrated analytical and decision making capabilities, job performance, and qualifying experience. With respect to each waiver granted under this Paragraph D, the senior procurement executive must document for the record the basis of the waiver. If an individual is placed in a position in an agency on the basis of a waiver, the agency may later reassign that individual to another position at the same grade within that agency without additional waiver action.

GS-14 grade level: One year of specialized experience (equivalent to the GS-13 grade level in the federal service); experience that equipped the applicant with the particular knowledge, skills and abilities (KSA's) and other characteristics to perform successfully the duties of the position, and that is typically in or related to the work of the position to be filled, in the normal line of progression for the occupation in the organization. Specialized experience includes:

• Leading architect-engineer and construction contract negotiation teams by planning, directing, and coordinating complex actions involving multiple requirements, long-term efforts of up to five years, limited historical cost data, multiple contractors and subcontractors, collaboration among acquisition specialists-including engineers, production specialists, legal advisors, auditors, logistics specialists, and financial managers-and interrelated contracts in which changes to one may affect others;
• Marshaling expert knowledge of procurement regulations, contracting principles, and current methods-including sophisticated pricing arrangements (e.g., Forward Pricing Rate Agreements (FPRAs), Fixed-Price Incentive Firm (FPIF), Cost-Plus-Incentive-Fee (CPIF), etc.), cost accounting, and life-cycle costing-to plan, develop, implement, maintain, and administer all contractual aspects of architect-engineer and construction contract initiation and implementation programs; or
• Applying initiative, resourcefulness, and sound judgment to interpret procurement laws (e.g. Title 41, United States Code (Public Contracts), Competition in Contracting Act (CICA), Small Business Act, Procurement Integrity Act, etc.), federal regulations (i.e., Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) & Veterans Affairs Acquisition Regulation (VAAR)), and agency contracting policies from the VA Acquisition Manual (VAAM) to resolve unique issues not addressed by existing guidance-including award-fee contracts, leasing agreements, design-to-cost option clauses, and fixed-price research and development contracts-and develop new or revised techniques to achieve effective results for architect-engineer and construction contract initiation and implementation programs.

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

There is no educational substitution for the GS-14 level.

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.

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. Applicants will be referred in the order in which they were received.

Documents Accepted:

• Cover Letter
• DD-214/ Statement of Service
• Disability Letter (VA)
• Office of Federal Procurement Policy’s (OFPP) Federal Acquisition Certification in Contracting (FAC-C) (Professional)
• Performance Appraisal
• Professional Certification
• Resume
• Separation Notice (RIF)
• SF-50/ Notification of Personnel Action
• Transcript

Documents Required:

• Office of Federal Procurement Policy’s (OFPP) Federal Acquisition Certification in Contracting (FAC-C) (Professional)
• Resume

Please review the above list(s) to ensure you have included all necessary documents required for your application. Not every applicant will require the same documents, therefore it is the applicants responsibility to ensure that their application package includes all necessary documents to determine qualifications and eligibility for appointment, such as a copy of your SF-50, transcript, ICTAP/CTAP documentation (for displaced Federal employees).You will not be contacted for additional information. Applicants will be deemed ineligible if supporting documentation is not submitted.

Veterans' Preference: Since the Direct-Hire Recruitment Authority is being used, traditional Veterans' Preference rules do not apply. Qualified veterans will, however, be given full consideration for this position.

Applications are accepted online. Applying online will allow you to review and track the status of your application.

Next steps

Additional locations