INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS SPECIALIST Job in Yokosuka, Japan

Vacancy No. DE-12995469-26-JRP Department U.S. Pacific Fleet
Salary $90,925.00 to $118,204.00 Grade 13 to 13
Perm/Temp Permanent FT/PT Full-time
Open Date 7/8/2026 Close Date 7/15/2026
Job Link Apply Online Who may apply Public
Locations:
Yokosuka, Japan


INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS SPECIALIST

Department of the Navy
U.S. Pacific Fleet

Summary

You will serve as an INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS SPECIALIST in the Navy Area Commander Communication Center of COMSUBGRU SEVEN, YOKOSUKA.

ACCESS TO MEDICAL AND DENTAL CARE IN JAPAN IS EXTREMELY LIMITED. Please see Additional Information section below.

This job is open to

The public

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

Clarification from the agency

U.S. Citizens

Duties

  • You will provide policy analysis and advice on possible effects and potential issues arising from U.S. Navy, Naval Nuclear Propulsion Program (NNPP) and Department of War (DoW) policies, programs, and activities in Japan.
  • You will develop cultural, diplomatic and military protocol recommendations, arrange and participate in formal/informal discussions, negotiations, seminars, exercise/training, conferences and real-world crisis action and contingency response.
  • You will perform as a Japanese language interpreter at formal/informal bilateral conferences, meetings, sensitive political and defense negotiations.
  • You will plan and coordinate bilateral NNPP Japanese visits/functions. ceremonies and special events hosted by senior leadership.

Requirements

Conditions of employment

  • Must be a US Citizen.
  • Must be determined suitable for federal employment.
  • Must participate in the direct deposit pay program.
  • New employees to the Department of the Navy will be required to successfully pass the E-Verify employment verification check. To learn more about E-Verify, including your rights and responsibilities, visit e-verify.gov
  • Within the Department of Defense (DoD), the appointment of retired military members within 180 days immediately following retirement date to a civilian position is subject to the provisions of 5 United States Code 3326.
  • Males born after 12-31-59 must be registered for Selective Service.
  • You will be required to obtain and maintain an interim and/or final security clearance prior to entrance on duty. Failure to obtain and maintain the required level of clearance may result in the withdrawal of a job offer or removal.
  • You will be required to complete training, obtain, and maintain a government credit card for travel and travel-related purchases.
  • This position may require travel from normal duty station to CONUS and OCONUS and may include remote or isolated sites. You must be able to travel on military and commercial aircraft for extended periods of time.
  • This is a Mission Essential position. You will be required to ensure organization or facility continuity of operations and/or completion of tasks that are considered essential to the mission designated by a local or command decision.
  • This is an overseas position. You will be subject to and must be able to satisfy the overseas requirements of the 26Jul12 DODI 1400.25 V1230: http://www.esd.whs.mil/Portals/54/Documents/DD/issuances/140025/140025v1230.pdf
  • This position may require travel to places within and outside the contiguous United States which could include remote or isolated sites. You may be required to travel on military and commercial aircraft for extended periods of time.
  • If eligible for permanent change of station, the appointee will be required to sign a transportation agreement to establish a Government time in service requirement of 12 months.
  • Generally, current federal employees applying for GS jobs must serve at least one year at the next lower grade level. This requirement is called time-in-grade. Time-in-grade requirements must be met by the closing date of this announcement.

Qualifications

Your resume must demonstrate at least one year of specialized experience at or equivalent to the GS-12 grade level or pay band in the Federal service or equivalent experience in the private or public sector as an International Relations Specialist, Foreign Area Officer (FAO), or Foreign Service Officer (FSO), with a background in political tracking, military liaison, or diplomatic reporting performing most or all the following duties: Native-level fluency and proficiency in Japanese language, or certification at JLPT N1 (oral and written) or Defense Language Proficiency (DLP) Level 3; or the ability to obtain certification at either of these levels. An in-dept understanding of Japanese culture, U.S.-Japan government affairs, and the U.S. military. Familiarity with the Japan-U.S. Security Treaty (Treaty of Mutual Cooperation and Security between Japan and the United States of America). Experience managing sensitive bilateral governmental relations, negotiations, and topics while protecting and promotion U.S. Government interests. Familiarity with planning or assisting in the execution of international protocols in official, formal, and informal bilateral settings.

It is preferred to have academic level native fluency in Japanese, both oral and written; or is preferred to have or be capable of obtaining 3/3 Language Proficiency Ratings from the Defense Language Proficiency Test (DPLPT) or N1-level certification by Japan Language Proficiency Testing (JLPT). Skill in accurately interpreting Japanese-to-English and English-to-Japanese without loss of important details, and free of personal interpretation.

Additional qualification information can be found from the following Office of Personnel Management website:
https://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/classification-qualifications/general-schedule-qualification-standards/#url=List-by-Occupational-Series

https://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/classification-qualifications/general-schedule-qualification-standards/0100/international-relations-series-0131/

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.

Education

This position has a basic educational requirement that all applicants must meet:

1. Degree: major or equivalent, or a combination of courses totaling at least 24 semester hours in international law and international relations, political science, economics, history, sociology, geography, social or cultural anthropology, law, statistics, or in the humanities; or 12 semester hours in one of the above disciplines and 12 semester hours in statistics/quantitative methods.

OR

2. Combination of education and experience: courses equivalent to a major, or a combination of related courses totaling at least 24 semester hours, in one or more of the social sciences, or in the humanities, as shown in A above, plus appropriate experience or additional education.

OR

3.Experience: four years of appropriate experience in one or more of the fields listed above in work associated with international organizations, problems, or other aspects of foreign affairs.

Evaluation of Experience

Qualifying experience that provided an intimate knowledge of a foreign country or geographic area may have been gained through residence, study, teaching, business or commercial activities, military service, newspaper work, military or civil government activities, missionary or inter-national relief work, or other experience in foreign countries. It may also have been gained through teaching college-level courses in international relations or problems associated with a specific foreign geographic area.

To qualify for positions at grades GS-12 and above on the basis of experience, this experience must have included either (a) responsibility for the direction and coordination of research, analysis, or other professional work in one or more of the fields listed in A above, or (b) specialized professional work involving a high level of difficulty and responsibility in one or more of these fields.

Copies of Transcripts must be uploaded.

Additional Information Continued:

Military Spouse Preference applicants will be placed at the highest grade for which they have applied and are determined Best Qualified (BQ). A BQ military spouse possesses knowledge, skills, abilities, and competencies comparable to others who meet the competitive referral criteria for the specific position.

Only Military Spouse Preference/PPP applicants currently occupying positions for which a comprehensive training plan has been developed and authorized are entitled to exercise their priority status for this announcement. The most common formal training positions are apprentices, formal interns, and scientist and engineering interns. Upward Mobility Positions that have equivalent training plans are also included when the positions have been pre-identified in an Affirmative Action or similar plan. You must provide documentation supporting you are in a formal training plan (e.g., SF50 and official signed training agreement between you and your command).

Additional information

This is a public notice flyer to notify interested applicants of anticipated vacancies. Applications will not be accepted through this flyer. Interested applicants must follow the directions in the "How to Apply" section of this flyer to be considered. There may or may not be actual vacancies filled from this flyer. Notice of Result letters will not be sent to applicants who respond to this flyer.

Employees (and their family members) who require medical or dental care in Japan may experience severe limitations accessing medical care both on the military installation and the local economy, and also could incur costly medical expenses.

This position is covered by the Department of Defense Priority Placement Program.

Additional vacancies may be filled by this announcement.

Pay retention may be granted when certain conditions are met.

Certain incentives (such as Recruitment, Relocation or Student Loan Repayment) may be authorized to eligible selectees.

A relocation incentive is generally a single payment intended to offset some of the relocation costs experienced by the selectee. A relocation incentive may be authorized.

A tentative offer of employment will be rescinded if the selectee fails to meet the pre-employment requirements, including failure to report to any of the scheduled appointments.

Federal annuitant information: The selection of an annuitant is subject to the Department of Defense and Department of the Navy policy on the employment of annuitants. Policy information may be found at: http://www.secnav.navy.mil/donhr/Documents/CivilianJobs/FedCivAnnuitants.pdf.

Veteran's preference does not apply when selecting individuals under this specific hiring authority. However, if you claim veteran's preference, you will be required to submit supporting documentation with your application as described in the Required Documents section below.

Tour of duty will be 36 Months.

To learn more about the living and working conditions at this military installation and additional Foreign Overseas information, please go to: https://www.secnav.navy.mil/donhr/Overseas/Pages/default.aspx

This position is subject to work an uncommon tour, including nights, weekends, and holidays to meet mission requirements. Overtime or night differential pay and/or unusual duty hours may be required.

ICTAP Applicants: To be considered well-qualified and exercise selection priority as an ICTAP candidate for this vacancy, displaced Federal employees must satisfy all qualification requirements for the position and receive a rating in the highly qualified category or higher. ICTAP candidates must provide copies of all of the following documentation at the time of application: 1) agency notice; 2) most recent performance appraisal and 3) most recent SF-50 or notification of personnel action that includes position, grade level, and duty location. Applicants who do not provide this documentation will not receive consideration as an ICTAP candidate. For more information about ICTAP eligibility please review the following link: https://www.usajobs.gov/Help/working-in-government/unique-hiring-paths/federal-employees/career-transition/

PPP applicants will be placed at the FPL, if determined Well Qualified (WQ). To receive priority consideration, the FPL must be the same grade level or equivalent of the retained grade or the grade held immediately prior to separation.

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.

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.

In order to qualify for this position, your resume must provide sufficient experience and/or education, knowledge, skills, and abilities to perform the duties of the specific position for which you are being considered. Resumes are restricted to no more than 2 pages. Illegible/unreadable resumes will not be considered. Your resume is the key means we have for evaluating your skills, knowledge, and abilities as they relate to this position. Therefore, we encourage you to be clear and specific when describing your experience.

When the application process is complete, we will review your resume to ensure you meet the hiring eligibility and qualification requirements listed in this announcement. You will be rated based on the information provided in your resume and application package, along with your supporting documentation to determine your ability to demonstrate the following competencies:

  • INTERNATIONAL ENGAGEMENT ACTION PLANNING
  • INTERNATIONAL ENGAGEMENT ASSESSMENT AND ANALYSIS
  • INTERNATIONAL ENGAGEMENT POLICY DEVELOPMENT
  • ORAL COMMUNICATION
  • INTERCULTURAL RELATIONS
  • WRITTEN COMMUNICATION
This recruitment will utilize the following technical assessment tools: Structured Resume and Structured Interview.

As vacancies occur, the Human Resources Office will review your resume to ensure you meet the hiring eligibility and qualification requirements listed in this flyer. You will be rated based on the information provided in your resume, along with your supporting documentation.

If selected, you may be required to provide additional supporting documentation.

If after reviewing your resume and supporting documentation, a determination is made that you inflated your qualifications and/or experience, you may be found ineligible/not qualified.

Please follow all instructions carefully. Errors or omissions may affect your rating or consideration for employment.

All qualification requirements must be met before being considered for any vacancies.

Required Documents

A complete resume is required. Resumes are restricted to no more than 2 pages. Illegible/unreadable resumes will not be considered. Your resume must show relevant experience, job title, duties and accomplishments. Your resume must show complete information for each job entry to support minimum qualifications. The following information should be provided in your resume: employer's name, starting and end dates (Mo/Yr), hours per week if experience was less than full time (35-40 hours per week), and pay plan, series and grade level (e.g. GS-0201-09) for relevant federal experience. TIP: A good way to ensure you include all essential information is to use the Resume Builder in USAJOBS to create your resume.

Are you claiming membership in any professional organizations, or possession of a license, certificate or credentials? Check the Conditions of Employment section above to see if any are required. If you claim membership, license, certification, or credentials, you must submit a copy of said document in your application package.

Are you using education as a substitute for some or all of the experience requirement? Is there a basic education requirement for this position? Check the Education section above to see what is allowed and what is required. Any claims you make in your resume or assessment questionnaire regarding education or degrees MUST be supported by submitting with your application official or unofficial transcripts or a list of courses, grades earned, completion dates, and quarter and semester hours earned issued from your school. While unofficial transcripts are acceptable for initial application, an official transcript will ultimately be required if you are selected for the position. You may submit a copy your degree(s) if specific coursework does not have to be verified.

Are you a veteran claiming 5-point veterans' preference or claiming sole survivorship preference? You must submit a copy of your latest DD-214 Certificate of Release or Discharge from Active Duty (any copy that shows all dates of service, as well as character of service [Honorable, General, etc.] is acceptable) OR a VA letter that shows dates of service or service connected disability AND character of service. If you have more than one DD-214 for multiple periods of active duty service, submit a copy for each period of service. If you were issued a DD-215 to amend aforementioned information on the DD-214 you must submit that too. If you are not sure of your preference eligibility, visit the Department of Labor's website: Veterans' Preference Advisor

Are you a disabled veteran or claiming 10-point veterans' preference?
If you are eligible to claim 10 point veterans preference you must submit a DD-214 Certificate of Release or Discharge from Active Duty as described above for 5-point preference.

You must also provide the applicable supporting documentation of your disability (e.g. disability letter from the VA) as described on Standard Form-15 (SF-15). http://www.opm.gov/forms/pdf_fill/SF15.pdf.

Are you an active duty service member? Active Duty Service Members are required to submit a statement of service printed on command letterhead and signed by the command. The statement of service must provide the branch of service, rate/rank, all dates of service, the expected date of discharge and anticipated character of service (Honorable, General, etc.).

Application documents, including supplemental ones, may be shared outside the Human Resources Office. Supplemental documents may contain your SSN, DOB, or personal information of others (e.g., on military orders, marriage certificates). You may redact this information before submitting; however, if selected, you mustprovide unredacted originals.

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

Interested Applicants must submit resumes/application packages to:

mark.c.waller.civ@us.navy.mil

Facsimile applications will not be considered.

All resumes/applications must be received no later than the close date of this flyer. Resumes are restricted to no more than 2 pages. Illegible/unreadable resumes will not be considered.

It is the applicant's responsibility to verify that all information in their resume and documents, are received, legible, and accurate. HR will not modify answers/documents submitted by an applicant.

Failure to submit a complete application package will result in an ineligible rating and loss of consideration.

Agency contact information

Mark Waller
Email
mark.c.waller.civ@us.navy.mil
Address
COMSUBGRU SEVEN, YOKOSUKA
Commander Submarine Group
FPO, AP 96349
US

Next steps

Qualified applicants will be referred to the hiring manager. The selecting official may choose to conduct interviews.

Our evaluation will be based on the information you provide. You should expect that we will verify performance, suitability, and security information and take that information into account in making employment offers.

U.S. Pacific Fleet

The Navy and Marine Corps team offers innovative, exciting and meaningful work linking military and civilian talents to achieve our mission and safeguard our freedoms. Department of the Navy provides competitive salaries, comprehensive benefits, and extensive professional development and training. From pipefitters to accountants, scientists to engineers, doctors to nurses-the careers and opportunities to make a difference are endless.

Civilian careers-where purpose and patriotism unite!

Agency contact information

Mark Waller
Email
mark.c.waller.civ@us.navy.mil
Address
COMSUBGRU SEVEN, YOKOSUKA
Commander Submarine Group
FPO, AP 96349
US

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