Clarification from the agency

This vacancy is open to current, permanent Gulf Coast Veterans Health Care System Employees including satellites and CTAP eligibles.

VA offers a comprehensive total rewards package: HR Specialist Total Rewards

Major Duties of the Program Specialist include, but are not limited to:

• Providing oversight of the daily operations of the Office of the Chief of Staff.
• Working closely with the other Executive Leadership Team (ELT) Secretaries to schedule meetings, events, accreditation visits, and other functions requiring the participation of the ELT.
• Performing a variety of clerical, administrative and technical duties/responsibilities in support of the Associate Director of Patient Care Services (ADPCS), with the intent of accomplishing the administrative requirements for the service.
• Assisting in the development of internal administrative standard operating procedures by researching prior publications, regulations, and recommending new policies and/or changes.
• Interpreting work materials and determining the extent to which the organization is affected and advising operating officials.
• Maintaining control of action correspondence; performing follow-up action to ensure timely reply/action.
• Receiving and logging outgoing correspondence, reviewing it for correct format, punctuation, spelling, grammatical accuracy, factual correctness, enclosures, dates, signatures, complete addresses, etc.
• Formulating and recommending changes in administrative policies/procedures with a view toward obtaining maximum effectiveness in the coordination and control of recurring reports.
• Assisting in resolving administrative problems by researching office files, historical data, etc.; withdrawing material for use in preparation of typed material and/or furnishes administrative advice on the adequacy and feasibility of proposals and recommendations.
• Maintaining a continual accumulation of all types of data for use in preparation of a variety of reports.
• Compiling and preparing a wide variety of continuing or one-time special statistical and narrative reports from records maintained.
• Identifying and recommending performance indicators/goals such as performance awards, leave, equal employment opportunity, suggestions, value engineering, etc.
• Effectively enhancing the ability of the office to support overall mission requirements through developing methods for automating administrative data collection requirements and reports considering the interrelationships of reports and multiple uses of data.
• Coordinating with staff Administrative Officer on personnel management matters and with other staff organizations on various administrative activities to obtain information for accomplishment of own assignments or to provide to others.

Promotion Potential: The selectee may be promoted to the full performance level without further competition when all regulatory, qualification, and performance requirements are met. Selection at a lower grade level does not guarantee promotion to the full performance level.

Work Schedule: Full-time, Monday - Friday, 7:30 am - 4:00 pm. Subject to change based on the needs of the facility.
Telework: VA supports the use of telework as a way to help attract and retain talented individuals in public service, increase worker productivity, and better prepare the agency to operate during emergencies. This position may be authorized for telework. Telework eligibility will be discussed during the interview process.
Virtual: This is not a virtual position.
Position Description/PD#: Program Specialist/PD03604A and PD03603A
Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized.
Critical Skills Incentive (CSI): Not Approved.
Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized.

Conditions of employment

• You must be a U.S. Citizen to apply for this job
• Selective Service Registration is required for males born after 12/31/1959
• 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 dentification cards that are not REAL ID compliant cannot be utilized as an acceptable form of identification for employment.
• Participation in the seasonal influenza vaccination program is a requirement for all Department of Veterans Affairs Health Care Personnel (HCP)

As a condition of employment for accepting this position, you will be required to serve a 1-year probationary period or 2-year trial 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 or trial 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, 03/24/2026.

Time-In-Grade Requirement: Applicants who are current Federal employees and have held a GS grade any time in the past 52 weeks must also meet time-in-grade requirements by the closing date of this announcement.

• For a GS-7 position you must have served 52 weeks at the GS-5.
• For a GS-9 position you must have served 52 weeks at the GS-7.

The grade may have been in any occupation, but must have been held in the Federal service. An SF-50 that shows your time-in-grade eligibility must be submitted with your application materials. If the most recent SF-50 has an effective date within the past year, it may not clearly demonstrate you possess one-year time-in-grade, as required by the announcement. In this instance, you must provide an additional SF-50 that clearly demonstrates one-year time-in-grade. Note: Time-In-Grade requirements also apply to former Federal employees applying for reinstatement as well as current employees applying for Veterans Employment Opportunities Act of 1998 (VEOA) appointment.

Education and Experience Requirement: In addition to meeting the above Time-In-Grade requirement, applicants must also meet the experience and/or directly related education relevant to this position. You may qualify based on your experience and/or education as described below:

GS-7:
Specialized Experience: You must have one year of specialized experience equivalent to the GS-05 level or higher and/or meet educational requirements or a combination of specialized experience and education.
Examples of specialized experience would typically include, but are not limited to:

• Performing a variety of clerical, administrative and technical duties/responsibilities in a healthcare setting.
• Assisting in the development and maintenance of administrative standard operating procedures.
• Communicating factual and procedural information clearly, orally and in writing while maintaining timelines.
• Assisting in resolving administrative problems by interpreting data and analyzing the effects on the organization.
• Utilizing computers, software applications, databases and automated systems to accomplish administrative tasks.

OR
Education Substitution (transcripts required):

• Successfully completed one full year of graduate level education in a field related to this position that demonstrates the knowledge, skills, and abilities necessary to do the work of this position. OR,
• Superior Academic Achievement (SAA):Completed all the requirements for a bachelor's degree in a curriculum that is qualifying (i.e. hospital administration, public health administration, or related fields such as course work in health care administration) for the position to be filled and I meet one of the following:
  • Rank in the upper one-third of your class in the college, university or major subdivision;
  • A grade-point average of "B" (a GPA of 2.95 or higher out of a possible 4.0) for all completed undergraduate courses, or those completed in the last two years of undergraduate study;
  • A grade point average of "B+" (a GPA of 3.45 or higher out of a possible 4.0) for all courses in your major field of study, or those courses in your major completed in the last two years of undergraduate study;
  • Membership in a national honor society (other than freshman honor societies) recognized by the Association of College Honor Societies. For a list of recognized honor societies please visit http://www.achsnatl.org/quick_link.asp.

OR
Combination of Specialized Experience and Education (transcripts required): Equivalent combination of successfully completed education and specialized experience to meet the total experience requirements. The education portion must include graduate courses that demonstrates the knowledge, skills, and abilities necessary to do the work of the position. Only education beyond a bachelor's degree may be used to qualify for the GS-07 level.

GS-9:
Specialized Experience: You must have one year of specialized experience equivalent to the GS-07 level or higher and/or meet educational requirements or a combination of specialized experience and education.
Examples of specialized experience would typically include, but are not limited to:

• Researching and applying federal and organizational regulations, practices and standards while performing a variety of clerical, administrative and technical duties/responsibilities in a healthcare setting.
• Reviewing and researching program operations and procedures and assisting in identifying issues and recommending new policies and solutions that support program requirements and the overall mission of the VA healthcare system.
• Providing professional support, including acting as a liaison to ensure a smooth flow of communication between leadership and staff.
• Utilizing analytical and problem-solving strategies to enhance the ability of the office to support overall mission requirements through developing methods for automating administrative data collection requirements and reports considering the interrelationships of reports and multiple uses of data.
• Maintaining various types of data and records for use in compiling and preparing a wide variety of reports.

OR
Education Substitution (transcripts required): Successfully completed a Master's or equivalent, or 2 years of progressively higher level education leading to such a degree, or an LL.B or J.D.in a field related to this position that demonstrates the knowledge, skills, and abilities necessary to do the work of this position.
OR
Combination of Specialized Experience and Education (transcripts required): Equivalent combination of successfully completed graduate education and specialized experience (beyond the first graduate year or 18 semester hours) and specialized experience to meet the total experience requirements. The education portion must include graduate courses that demonstrates the knowledge, skills, and abilities necessary to do the work of the position.


You will be rated on the following Competencies for this position:

• Administration and Management
• Analytical Reasoning
• Communication
• Computer Skills

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.

Note: A full year of work is considered to be 35-40 hours of work per week. Part-time experience will be credited on the basis of time actually spent in appropriate activities. Applicants wishing to receive credit for such experience must indicate clearly the nature of their duties and responsibilities in each position and the number of hours a week spent in such employment.

Physical Requirements: No special physical qualifications required. The position requires sitting, walking, bending and carrying light items such as books, papers and files.

For more information on these qualification standards, please visit the United States Office of Personnel Management's website at https://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/classification-qualifications/general-schedule-qualification-standards/.

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.

Narrative responses are not required at this time. If you are referred for consideration, you may be asked to submit additional job related information, which may include, but not limited to; responses to the knowledge, skills and abilities; completion of a work sample, and/or contact for an interview. Your resume and/or supporting documentation will be verified. Please follow all instructions carefully. Errors or omissions may affect your rating or consideration for employment.

The Department of Veterans Affairs performs pre-employment reference checks as an assessment method used in the hiring process to verify information provided by a candidate (e.g., on resume or during interview or hiring process); gain additional knowledge regarding a candidate's abilities; and assist a hiring manager with making a final selection for a position.

For more information on the "Who may apply" eligibility requirements, please refer to the OHRM Status Candidates and Other Candidate Definitions document.

Placement Policy: The posting of this announcement does not obligate management to fill a vacancy or vacancies by promotion. The position may be filled by reassignment, change to lower grade, transfer, appointment, or reinstatement. Management may use any one or any combination of these methods to fill the position.

It is the policy of the VA to not deny employment to those that have faced financial hardships or periods of unemployment.

Veterans and Transitioning Service Members: Please visit the VA for Vets site for career-search tools for Veterans seeking employment at VA, career development services for our existing Veterans, and coaching and reintegration support for military service members.

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

• Resume
• SF-50/ Notification of Personnel Action

Resume Requirement: Your resume must include the following information: Job title, description of duties, beginning and ending date (month/year) of employment, and average hours worked per week.

The following documents are accepted, and may be required if applicable to your eligibility and/or qualifications for this position. Please make sure you have included other documents required for your application, such as a copy of your transcript (if using education to qualify), SF-50's (current/former Federal employees), documentation to support Veterans Preference claims, or ICTAP/CTAP documentation (for displaced Federal employees). You will not be contacted for additional information.

• Cover Letter
• Other (1)
• Performance Appraisal
• Resume
• Separation Notice (RIF)
• SF-50/ Notification of Personnel Action
• Transcript

SF-50, Notification of Personnel Action (if applicable for Time in Grade and/or Eligibility):

• Most recent SF-50 if you are a current or former Federal employee
• An SF-50 showing your time-in-grade eligibility must be submitted with your application materials. If the most recent SF-50 has an effective date within the past year, it may not clearly demonstrate you possess one-year time-in-grade, as required by the announcement. In this instance, you must provide an additional SF-50 that clearly demonstrates one-year time-in-grade
• Award 50's do not provide sufficient information and will not be accepted for the purpose of verifying time-in-grade.
• Examples of appropriate SF-50's include:
  • Within grade increases at the highest grade held; or
  • Promotions with an effective date more than one year old; or
  • SF-50's at the highest grade held with an effective date more than one year old.

Veterans' Preference: When applying for Federal Jobs, eligible Veterans should claim preference for 5pt (TP), 10pt (CP/CPS/XP), or for Sole Survivor Preference (SSP) in the questionnaire. You must provide a legible copy of your DD214(s) which shows dates and character of service (honorable, general, etc.). If you are currently serving on active duty and expect to be released or discharged within 120 days you must submit documentation related to your active duty service which reflects the dates of service, character of service (honorable, general, etc.), and dates of impending separation. Additionally, disabled veterans and others eligible for 10-point preference (such as widows or mothers of eligible Veterans) must also submit an SF-15 "Application for 10 Point Veteran Preference" with required proof as stated on the form. Documentation is required to award preference. For more information on Veterans' Preference, please visit Feds Hire Vets - Veterans - Job Seekers - Veterans' Preference.

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