Instructional Systems Specialist Job

Vacancy No. PATHWAYS-FY26-FS-CSA-JLE-8 Department Air Force Civilian Career Training
Salary $50,460.00 to $97,087.00 Grade 7 to 7
Perm/Temp Permanent FT/PT Full-time
Open Date 5/31/2026 Close Date 6/3/2026
Job Link Apply Online Who may apply Status Candidates
Locations:
Goodfellow AFB, TXSheppard AFB, TX


Summary

Click on "Learn more about this agency" button below to view Eligibilities being considered and other IMPORTANT information.

The primary purpose of this position is to perform a variety of conventional duties relating to a variety of Instructional Systems program areas and to complete developmental assignments and training outlined in the formal training and development program.

This job is open to

Recent graduates

Individuals who have graduated from an accredited educational institute or certificate program within the last 2 years or 6 years for Veterans.

Duties

  • Attends education and training courses and briefings during the first eight months of assignment.
  • Completes rotational assignments within the training squadron/group. Performs routine taskings, or assists other with more complex assignments, which require the application of professional education/instructional design.
  • Conducts routine classroom, laboratory or field instruction.
  • Accomplishes special projects.
  • Maintains professional and technical expertise.

Requirements

Conditions of employment

  • You will be required to provide proof of U.S. Citizenship
  • Must be registered for Selective Service, see Legal and Regulatory Guidance
  • Must sign a mobility agreement
  • Must sign a participant agreement
  • A security clearance may be required
  • Student Loan Repayment Program may be offered for eligible candidates
  • Must meet suitability for Federal employment
  • You will be in a trial period throughout your entire Pathways appointment
  • Disclosure of Political Appointments
  • Selective Service: Males born after 12-31-59 must be registered or exempt from Selective Service. For additional information, click here.
  • Direct Deposit: All federal employees are required to have direct deposit.
  • Student Loan Repayment may be authrized
  • You will be in a trial period throughout your entire Pathways appointment

Qualifications

Any individual who completed all requirements for a bachelor, master, professional, or doctorate degree from a qualifying educational institution within the previous two years before the date of appointment meets the basic eligibility requirement to apply for the Pathways Recent Graduate Program.

-OR-

Any veteran released or discharged from active duty within the previous two years, but due to a military service obligation, was precluded from applying for a recent graduate position during any portion of the two-year eligibility period following completion of applicable degree, and not more than six years have transpired since completing the requirements for the degree


Qualified candidates will be considered in accordance with the Office of Personnel Management Pathways Guidelines . You can also visit: http://www.opm.gov/qualifications/standards/index-Standards.asp for additional qualification standards.

KNOWLEDGE, SKILLS AND ABILITIES (KSAs): Your qualifications will be evaluated on the basis of your level of knowledge, skills, abilities and/or competencies in the following areas:
1. Knowledge of the principles, practices, and techniques of instruction.
2. Ability to absorb and apply and variety of educational and instructional systems principles and theories.
3. Ability to effectively communicate both orally and in writing.
4. Ability to analyze problems and develop appropriate solutions.
5. Ability to work harmoniously with all levels of personnel within the component.
6. Ability to instruct.

PART-TIME OR UNPAID EXPERIENCE: Credit will be given for appropriate unpaid and or part-time work. You must clearly identify the duties and responsibilities in each position held and the total number of hours per week.

VOLUNTEER WORK EXPERIENCE: Refers to paid and unpaid experience, including volunteer work done through National Service Programs (i.e., Peace Corps, AmeriCorps) and other organizations (e.g., professional; philanthropic; religious; spiritual; community; student and social). Volunteer work helps build critical competencies, knowledge and skills that can provide valuable training and experience that translates directly to paid employment.You will receive credit for all qualifying experience, including volunteer experience.

Education

This position has an education requirement. You MUST provide transcripts to support your educational claims. Education must be accredited by an accrediting institution recognized by the U.S. Department of Education. http://www2.ed.gov/admins/finaid/accred/index.html

Degree: that included or was supplemented by at least 24 semester hours appropriate to the work of the position to be filled. The course work must have included study in at least four of the following five areas:

  1. Learning theory, psychology of learning, educational psychology: Study of learning theories as they relate to the systematic design, development, and validation of instructional material.
  2. Instructional design practices: Study of the principles and techniques used in designing training programs, developing design strategy and models, and applying design methods to the improvement of instructional effectiveness.
  3. Educational evaluation: Study of the techniques for evaluating the effectiveness of instructional/educational programs, including developing written and performance tests and survey instruments, and determining reliability and validity of evaluation instruments.
  4. Instructional product development: Study of the techniques appropriate for developing training materials, including identifying learner characteristics, specifying objectives, applying training strategy, validating training materials, and evaluating training.
  5. Computers in education and training: Study of the application of computers in education and training, including selecting appropriate computer software.

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 conventional U.S. education program. It is your responsibility to provide such evidence when applying.

Additional information

YOUR TRAINING AND DEVELOPMENT COVERS:

  • Participant Agreement
  • Orientation program
  • Mentorship throughout the Program
  • Individual Training & Development Plan to assist with career planning, professional development, and training activities
  • At least 40 hours of formal, interactive training each year of the Program
  • Opportunity for career advancement
AFTER PROGRAM COMPLETION:
  • Recent Graduates who are selected for conversion must have completed all requirements of the program successfully
  • Demonstrated successful job performance consistent with the applicable performance appraisal program
  • Met the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) qualification standard for the position to which the Recent Graduate will be converted
NOTE: It is important to remember that eligibility for conversion does not guarantee that the Department of the Air Force will offer conversion.

Employed Annuitants (Reemployed Annuitants): Applicants in receipt of an annuity based on civilian employment in the Federal Service are subject to the DoD Policy on The Employment of Annuitants. Click here for more information.

Disabled veteran leave is available to a Federal employee hired on/after 5 Nov 2016, who is a veteran with a service-connected disability rating of 30% or more. For more information, click here.

If you have questions regarding this announcement and have hearing or speech difficulties click here.

Appointments under the Recent Graduates Program may be for 1 or 2 years depending on the position. After completing the 1 or 2 year period as a Recent Graduate, you may be noncompetitively converted into a term or permanent position and placed on a "career or career-conditional" appointment. However, service in a Pathways Recent Graduate Program confers no right to further employment in the competitive service.

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.

Your application package (resume, supporting documents, and responses to the questionnaire) will be used to determine your eligibility, qualifications, and quality ranking for this position. Please follow all instructions carefully. Errors or omissions may affect your rating or consideration for employment.

Your responses to the questionnaire may be compared to the documents you submit. The documents you submit must support your responses to the online questionnaire. If your application contradicts or does not support your questionnaire responses, you will receive a rating of "not qualified" or "insufficient information" and you will not receive further consideration for this job.

If qualified, we will then place you in one of the three categories described below:
1. Best-qualified category: Master's or higher degree in Learning theory, Psychology of learning; Instructional design practices; Educational evaluation; Instructional product knowledge; or Computers in education and training and a GPA of 3.50 or higher.

2. Highly-qualified category: Bachelor's degree in Learning theory, Psychology of learning; Instructional design practices; Educational evaluation; Instructional product knowledge; or Computers in education and training and one year (12 months) specialized work and a GPA between 2.95 - 3.49

3. Qualified category: Bachelor's degree in Learning theory, Psychology of learning; Instructional design practices; Educational evaluation; Instructional product knowledge; or Computers in education and a GPA of 2.95.

Applicants in the Best-qualified category will be referred to the selecting official for further review. Applicants who disqualify themselves will not be evaluated further.

Required Documents

The following documents are required and must be provided with your application for this Public Notice:

  1. Online Application - Questionnaire
  2. Resume: Your resume may NOT exceed two pages, and the font size should not be smaller than 10 pts. You will not be considered for this vacancy if your resume is illegible/unreadable. Additional information on resume requirements can be located under "How To Apply".
  3. Transcripts - can be a copy
  4. Registration/License - active, current registration/license if applicable for the position
  5. Veterans: If claiming 30% Disabled Veteran or Veteran's Preference - Submit VOW certification memo or copy of the official DD-Form 214, which must include the character of service (i.e., with an honorable or general discharge). This will be annotated in block 24 on member copy 2, 4, or 7 of the DD-Form 214. If claiming 30% Disabled Veteran, you must also submit a VA Letter or a disability determination from a branch of the Armed Forces. NOTE: All veterans claiming 10-point preference must also submit a SF-15.
ACTIVE DUTY SERVICE MEMBERS: The VOW Act requires agencies to treat active duty service member as veterans, disabled veterans, and preference eligible, when they submit, at the time they apply for a Federal job, a "certification" of active service in lieu of a DD214, assuming the service member is otherwise eligible. A "certification" letter should be on letterhead of the appropriate military branch of the service and contain (1) the military service dates including the expected discharge or release date; and (2) the character of service. The "certification" must reflect the service member is expected to be discharged or released from active duty service in the armed forces under honorable conditions not later than 120 days after the date of submission. The "certification" must be signed by, or by direction of, the adjutant, personnel officer, or commander of your unit or higher headquarters and must indicate when your terminal leave will begin (if applicable), your rank, dates of active duty service, the type of discharge and character of service (i.e. honorable). Further, agencies are required to verify a qualifying separation from military service prior to appointment, through the DD214 or other appropriate documentation. Active duty members that fail to provide a valid "certification" of service with their application will be found "not eligible." Military members may be appointed before the effective date of their military retirement/separation if member is on terminal leave.

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

The complete Application Package must be submitted by 11:59 PM (ET) on 06/03/2026

To preview the Application Questionnaire, please click the following link: https://apply.usastaffing.gov/ViewQuestionnaire/12949325

To begin the process, click the Apply Online button to create an account or log in to your existing USAJOBS account. Follow the prompts to complete the application questionnaire. Please ensure you click the Submit My Application button at the end of the process.

To apply for this position, you must provide a complete Application Package which includes:

1. Your Resume. If you submit more than one resume, only the most recent will be reviewed. The "most recent" is considered the resume with the latest timestamp.

  • Resumes may not exceed two pages. The two-page resume ensures the most relevant experience is reviewed and considered, which is a common practice in both the public and private sectors. Resumes exceeding two pages will be removed from consideration. Additional information on how to complete or update your resume may be located here.
  • For qualification determination your resume must contain hours worked per week and dates of employment (i.e., month/year to month/year or month/year to present). If your resume does not contain this information, your application may be marked as insufficient, and you will not receive consideration for this position. If you are a current Federal employee or previous Federal employee, provide your pay plan, series and grade, i.e. GS-0301-09. Current Federal Civilian Employees may list any relevant performance related rating (given within the last three years) and/or incentive awards in your resume.
  • Do NOT include photographs, inappropriate material, inappropriate content, nor personal information such as age, gender, religion, social security number, etc., on your resume. If the resume you submit contains such information you will not be considered for this vacancy.
  • Your name, first and last, MUST be included on your resume.
2. A complete Application Questionnaire
3. Additional Required Documents (see Required Documents section). Ensure all submitted documents contain your full name.
4. Help recruiters find you. Make your resume and profile searchable, which means recruiters may contact you about possible jobs. Additional information may be located here.

PLEASE NOTE: It is the applicant's responsibility to verify that information entered and/or uploaded, (i.e., resume) is received, accurate, and submitted by the closing date. You may verify your documents have been processed with your application package successfully. You can access your USAJOBS account to do so by clicking here. Uploaded documents may take up to one hour to clear the virus scan.

Human Resources WILL NOT modify or change any answers submitted by an applicant.

Agency contact information

Total Force Service Center
Phone
1-800-525-0102
Email
DO.NOT.EMAIL@CALL.ONLY
Address
AF Force Renewal
550 C Street W
JBSA Randolph AFB, TX 78150
US

Next steps

Once your application package is received an acknowledgement email will be sent.

If you provided an email address, you will receive an email message acknowledging receipt of your application. Your application package will be used to determine your eligibility and qualifications for consideration. If you are determined to be ineligible or not qualified, your application will receive no further consideration.

To check the status of your application or return to a previous or incomplete application, log into your USAJOBS account, select My Applications, and click on the more information link under the application status for this position.

If you do not provide an email address, you are responsible for checking status updates and notifications in USAJOBS. Hard copy notifications will not be sent to you.

Air Force Civilian Career Training

The mission of the United States Air Force is: To fly, fight, and win ... Airpower anytime, anywhere. To achieve that mission, the Air Force has a vision of Global Vigilance, Global Reach and Global Power. That vision orbits around three core competencies: Developing Airmen, Technology-to-Warfighting and Integrating Operations. Core competencies and distinctive capabilities are based on a shared commitment to three core values -- integrity first, service before self, and excellence in all we do.

Are you looking for a unique opportunity to gain valuable work experience? The Department of the Air Force offers challenging work and the satisfaction of knowing you've made a difference. We're offering you an exciting opportunity to gain "real world" experience as a Recent Graduate hired under the Central Salary Account (CSA).

Appointments under the Recent Graduates Program may be for 1 or 2 years depending on the position. After completing the 1 or 2 year period as a Recent Graduate, you may be noncompetitively converted into a term or permanent position and placed on a "career or career-conditional" appointment. However, service in a Pathways Recent Graduate Program confers no right to further employment in the competitive service.

Agency contact information

Total Force Service Center
Phone
1-800-525-0102
Email
DO.NOT.EMAIL@CALL.ONLY
Address
AF Force Renewal
550 C Street W
JBSA Randolph AFB, TX 78150
US