Summary

The Justice Management Division, Office of Acquisition Management is seeking to hire a Contract Specialist to award and administer complex, high dollar value, and mission-essential contracts on behalf of DOJ Offices, Boards and Divisions (OBDs). The OBDs include all of the major litigating divisions, the international offices of the Criminal Divisions, U.S. Attorney Offices, Immigration Courts nationwide and the Justice Management Division staff offices.

This job is open to

The public

U.S. Citizens, Nationals or those who owe allegiance to the U.S.

Career transition (CTAP, ICTAP, RPL)

Federal employees whose job, agency or department was eliminated and are eligible for priority over other applicants.

Clarification from the agency

This position is being filled using Direct-Hire Authority.

Duties

The duties and responsibilities for a Contract Specialist, GS-1102-14 generally include, but are not limited to, the following:

Coordinate the procurement of complex, high-dollar contracts for products and a broad array of professional services in various functional areas including Information Technology (IT); automated litigation support; facilities management; finance and audit; Architect-Engineering; construction, and administrative support.
Coordinate with various parties in developing acquisition strategies and mapping out strategic changes in unusually complex or politically sensitive contractual situations.
Prepare justifications and determinations for approval by senior officials.
Assist in strategic planning/organizational performance assessments by participating in agency-wide acquisition task forces, working groups and committees.

Requirements

Conditions of employment

You must be a United States Citizen or National.
You must successfully pass a security/background investigation and a drug screening.
Selective Service registration is required, see the "Additional Information" section for full details.
Financial Disclosure: If selected, you may be required to disclose financial information in accordance with DOJ and Federal ethics guidelines.
Must be able to maintain Federal Acquisition Certification in Contracting (FAC-C) (Professional) certification.
Additional selections may be made from this announcement.

Qualifications

To qualify for the position of Contract Specialist (Senior Contracting Officer), at (GS-1102-14), you must meet the basic qualification requirements listed below AND possess the required specialized experience specific to this series and grade.

BASIC QUALIFICATIONS:

A. 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

B. 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.

C. 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.

AND

Specialized Experience: One year of specialized experience equivalent to the GS-13 grade level or equivalent band in the Federal service, which includes: Serving as an expert in the functional area of procurement; Advising management on complex procurement matters; AND Providing and executing acquisition strategies and contract administration plans.

Mandatory Training: You must provide proof of an active Federal Acquisition Certification in Contracting (FAC-C) (Professional) at the time of application. If the applicant holds a valid/current Defense Acquisition Workforce Improvement Act (DAWIA) equivalency Level III contracting certification, then the applicant meets the training requirement.

You MUST meet all qualification requirements by the closing date of this announcement 12/08/2025.

Your resume must support your responses to the application questionnaire and the qualification requirements. Failure to do so may result in an ineligible rating.See the Required Documents section for important notes about what must be included in your resume.

Education

If you are relying on your education to meet qualification requirements, please see the statements below.

Education must be reviewed and certified by an accrediting institution recognized by the U.S. Department of Education, in order for it to be creditable towards your qualifications. Therefore, provide only the attendance and/or degrees from accredited institution.

FOREIGN EDUCATION: Education completed in foreign colleges or universities may be used to meet the requirements. You must show proof the education credentials have been deemed to be at least equivalent to that gained in a conventional U.S. education program. It is your responsibility to provide such evidence when applying. For special instructions pertaining to foreign education and a list of organizations that can evaluate foreign education, see the Department of Education website. If you are qualifying on foreign education, you MUST submit proof of creditability of education as evaluated by a credentialing agency. Transcripts must be uploaded with your application to verify education. All documentation must be in English or include an English translation.

Additional information

Candidates should be committed to improving the efficiency of the Federal government, passionate about the ideals of our American republic, and committed to upholding the rule of law and the United States Constitution. Candidates will not be hired based on their race, sex, color, religion, or national origin.

This announcement is being advertised under an agency specific OR a government-wide Direct-Hire Authority approved by OPM for filling vacancies when a severe shortage or critical hiring need exists. Veterans Preference and other Category Rating procedures do not apply to this announcement. The hiring office may interview and select any qualified candidate of their choosing from the qualified pool. See OPM, Direct Hire Authority for more information.

Career Transition Programs (CTAP or ICTAP): These programs apply to Federal and/or DOJ employees who meet the definition of surplus or displaced from a position in the competitive service. To receive selection priority for this position, you must:

Be rated well-qualified for the position based on the competencies listed above; and
submit the appropriate documentation to support your CTAP or ICTAP eligibility. Well-qualified is defined as having knowledge, skills, abilities, and/or competencies clearly exceeding the minimum qualification requirements for the vacancy.

EEO Statement/Policy: The United States government does not discriminate in employment on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, pregnancy, national origin, political affiliation, sexual orientation, marital status, disability, genetic information, age, membership in an employee organization, retaliation, parental status, military service or other non-merit factor.

DOJ Reasonable Accommodation Statement: Federal agencies must provide reasonable accommodation to applicants with disabilities where appropriate. Applicants requiring reasonable accommodation for any part of the application and hiring process should contact the hiring agency directly. Determinations on requests for reasonable accommodation will be made on a case-by-case basis. The DOJ Reasonable Accommodation policy can be found here: https://www.justice.gov/jmd/reasonable-accommodation#policy

Selective Service: If you were born male, on or after December 31, 1959, you must certify that you have registered with the Selective Service System, or are exempt from having to do so under the Selective Service Law. Additional information is found at: www.sss.gov.

Fair Chance to Compete for Jobs: The Fair Chance Act prohibits Federal agencies from requesting an applicant's criminal history information before the agency makes a conditional offer of employment. If you believe a DOJ employee or Federal contractor acting on its behalf has violated your rights under this Act, you may submit a written complaint within 30 days of the date of the alleged non-compliance directly to the hiring office using the contact information listed in the announcement. Note: In accordance with 5 U.S. Code § 9202(c) and 5 C.F.R § 920.201(b) certain positions are exempt from the provisions of the Fair Chance Act.

This position is excluded from the bargaining unit.

A career with the U.S. government provides employees with a comprehensive benefits package. As a federal employee, you and your family will have access to a range of benefits that are designed to make your federal career very rewarding. Opens in a new windowLearn more about federal benefits.

Review our benefits

Eligibility for benefits depends on the type of position you hold and whether your position is full-time, part-time or intermittent. Contact the hiring agency for more information on the specific benefits offered.

How you will be evaluated

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

Once the job opportunity announcement closes (at 11:59 pm ET on 12/08/2025), a review of your resume and supporting documentation will be conducted, the information will be compared against your responses to the application questionnaire to determine your eligibility for Federal employment, and then whether you are qualified for this particular position. Per Direct-Hire Authority requirements, all qualified candidates will be referred to the hiring office for consideration. The hiring office may select any qualified candidate without regard to special eligibility considerations. Veterans' preference is not applicable.

Acquisition Services and Advice
Acquisition Services and Advice
Administer Contracts for Products and Services
Minimum Qualifications
Negotiates and Administers Contracts for Products and Services

When addressing the specialized experience statement, applicants must present evidence of the experience in their resume. If the specialized experience statement is repeated, in the applicant's resume, Human Resources will deem the applicant as ineligible.

If you would like to preview the application questionnaire, please see: https://apply.usastaffing.gov/ViewQuestionnaire/12837585

Required Documents

It is your responsibility to carefully review the list of required documents below and submit the necessary documentation based on your eligibility.

Professional Certification
Resume
Transcript

Resume - All Applicants: You must submit a resume (a two page or less resume is required) containing the following pieces of information for each job entry listed in your employment history:

Official position title,
Employer name and contact information,
Start and end dates (including month and year),
Indicate full-time or number of hours worked per week if part-time,
A list of duties performed and accomplishments.

CTAP/ICTAP eligibility documentation - If you are a displaced Federal employee claiming eligibility under CTAP or ICTAP, you must submit:

A copy of the agency notice (i.e., letter of intent to separate, separation notice, or agency RIF letter),
Your most recent performance appraisal, and
Most recent SF-50 showing current/former position, grade, promotion potential, and duty location.

If you are using education to qualify for this position, or education is required:

You must submit a transcript, which may be unofficial, as long as it contains a full listing of courses, credit earned, grade and grade-point-average, subject area, degree(s) earned, and dates of award.
Your transcript must come from a nationally-accredited educational institution recognized by the Department of Education.
Please do not submit electronic transcripts with documentation security protection. These may prevent our application system from accepting and processing the document.
If submitting a foreign transcript, you must have the transcript reviewed by an approved foreign education review organization recognized by the Department of Education. Your transcript must also be in English or have an English translation included.

** Must provide proof of an active Federal Acquisition Certification in Contracting (FAC-C) (Professional) or Defense Acquisition Workforce Improvement Act (DAWIA) certificate at the time of application.**

If you are relying on your education to meet qualification requirements:

Education must be accredited by an accrediting institution recognized by the U.S. Department of Education in order for it to be credited towards qualifications. Therefore, provide only the attendance and/or degrees from schools accredited by accrediting institutions recognized by the U.S. Department of Education.

Failure to provide all of the required information as stated in this vacancy announcement may result in an ineligible rating or may affect the overall rating.

How to Apply

To apply for this position, you must complete the online application questionnaire and submit your supporting documentation. Your complete application package must be submitted by 11:59 PM (EST) on 12/08/2025 to receive consideration.

The application process is as follows:

Click Apply to access the online application. You will need to be logged into your USAJOBS account to apply. If you do not have a USAJOBS account, you will need to create one before beginning the application.
Follow the prompts to select your resume and/or other supporting documents to be included with your application package. You will have the opportunity to upload additional documents to include in your application before it is submitted. Your uploaded documents may take several hours to clear the virus scan process.
After acknowledging you have reviewed your application package, complete the Include Personal Information section as you deem appropriate and click to continue with the application process.
You will be taken to the online application which you must complete in order to apply for the position. Complete the online application, verify the required documentation is included with your application package, and submit the application.

Essay Questions: The following four narrative questions provide an opportunity for you to highlight your dedication to public service for the hiring manager and agency leadership (or designee(s)). While your responses are not required and will not be scored, we encourage you to thoughtfully address each question. Please provide a response of 200 words or less to each question (see the application questionnaire). You will be asked to certify that you are using your own words and did not use a consultant or artificial intelligence (AI) such as a large language model (LLM) like ChatGPT or Copilot.

How has your commitment to the Constitution and the founding principles of the United States inspired you to pursue this role within the Federal government? Provide a concrete example from professional, academic, or personal experience.
In this role, how would you use your skills and experience to improve government efficiency and effectiveness? Provide specific examples where you improved processes, reduced costs, or improved outcomes.
How would you help advance the President's Executive Orders and policy priorities in this role? Identify one or two relevant Executive Orders or policy initiatives that are significant to you, and explain how you would help implement them if hired.
How has a strong work ethic contributed to your professional, academic or personal achievements? Provide one or two specific examples, and explain how those qualities would enable you to serve effectively in this position.

NEED HELP?
If you need help with USAJOBs or the application process, please see the USAJOBS Help or Application Manager Online Help websites which includes information on managing your account, creating an application, uploading documents, etc.

Reasonable Accommodation: To request reasonable accommodation for any part of the application and hiring process, please contact tamara.d.shelton@usdoj.gov at or (202) 286-6440 for assistance.

Agency contact information

Tamara Shelton

Phone: 202-286-6440
Email: tamara.d.shelton@usdoj.gov

Address: Justice Management Division - Office of Acquisition Management
2 Constitution Square
145 N Street, NE
Washington, DC 20530
US

Next steps

You will receive e-mail notifications as your application status is updated by DOJ. However, you can also see your application status any time by logging in to your USAJOBS account and looking on the "Applications" page. Click the position title to expand the display for each application in the list.

We strive to extend a final offer of employment within 90 days from the close of this announcement. Additional selections may be made from this announcement within 90 days.

Contract Specialist (Senior Contracting Specialist) Job in Washington, DC