Clarification from the agency

United States citizens. Veterans. Current or former federal employees, regardless of tenure. Individuals with disabilities. Internal agency employees; including agency temporary employees, eligible agency Experts, and eligible agency personal services contractors. Recently Returned Peace Corps Volunteers and qualified Returned Peace Corps Response Volunteers with Peace Corps Eligibility.

The Program Specialist (Education) performs the following major duties:

• Serves as a resource to the agency and the field in the identification of prevailing trends, critical issues, promising practices and problems related to the design, implementation and evaluation of education projects related to Peace Corps service.
• Participates in the determination of regional and country development objectives and strategies, based on cooperating country requests, perceived needs, Peace Corps policy, and priorities.
• Identifies resources needed to effectively run a project and provides short-term consultancies to the field.
• Collaborates with other program specialists to promote global awareness of trends and promising practices in education.
• Serves as an expert consultant in the design, delivery and evaluation of staff development related to education program areas.
• Designs and delivers courses, workshops, and other staff development activities to strengthen staff competencies in the education areas in which Volunteers work.
• Researches, develops and applies new program methods, approaches, and technology to support Volunteer activities in education and learning promotion.
• Works with Monitoring and Evaluation (M&E) Specialists to support posts to develop and use M&E systems related to education.
• Plans and conducts analyses that result in new design guidelines for education projects related to TEFL, literacy, and math and science that have a profound effect on program or training capabilities and/or operating procedures.
• Collaborates with partners when appropriate, including Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs), United States Government (USG) agencies and host country partners to create opportunities and leverage resources for the field.

Conditions of employment

Applicants selected for this position are subject to the following Conditions of Employment:

• You must be a U.S. citizen and at least 18 years old.
• Males born after December 31, 1959, must be registered with Selective Service (see www.sss.gov).
• Prior to employment, Peace Corps will review records for Returned Peace Corps Volunteers and former employees, as required by statutes 5 USC 3322 and 22 USC 2507b.
• You must submit a signed statement acknowledging adherence to the Peace Corps Conditions of Employment before your first day.
• You must successfully complete a Public Trust background investigation.
• A one-year probationary period may be required.
• The initial appointment to this position cannot exceed five years.

Qualifications

Applicants must meet all qualification requirements prior to the closing date of this announcement, 06/02/2026. You will receive credit for all qualifying experience demonstrated in your resume, including volunteer work. Qualification claims are subject to verification. This vacancy is being announced at one grade level.

Specialized Experience at the FP-03 (GS-13) Level: To qualify for this position at the FP-03 level, you must have at least one year of specialized experience equivalent to the next lower level in the normal line of progression, FP-04 or GS-11/12. This experience must be directly related to the work of the position and must have equipped you with the knowledge, skills, and abilities necessary to successfully perform the duties of the role. Specialized experience includes:

• Experience guiding interdisciplinary teams through the design, implementation, and reporting education sector projects and training to achieve project outcomes.
• Experience providing training, consultations, and tools to strengthen the monitoring, learning, adapting, and reporting cycles of education sector projects.
• Experience adapting evidence-based education and community development standards to low-resource settings by translating promising practices into culturally appropriate, locally feasible interventions.

Education cannot be substituted for experience at this grade level.

~AND~

Time-in-Grade Requirements: Current or former Federal employees, including Peace Corps employees, must meet applicable Time-in-Grade requirements to be eligible for this position. For positions above the FP-09 (GS-05) level, you must have completed at least one year (52 weeks) at the next lower grade in the normal line of progression for the position to which you are applying.

All current or former Federal employees, including internal employees, must provide a copy of their SF-50(s), "Notification of Personnel Action," to demonstrate that you meet Time-in-Grade requirements. For more information, refer to the "Required Documents" section below.

Please note:

• Experience that satisfies the Specialized Experience requirements must be clearly documented in your resume. Failure to provide this information may result in disqualification. Please review the "Required Documents" section of this announcement for further information on resume requirements.
• Specialized experience may be gained in the public sector, private sector, or through volunteer service (e.g., National Service programs such as Peace Corps or AmeriCorps, or other organizations such as professional, philanthropic, religious, spiritual, community, student, or social groups).
• One year of experience refers to full-time work. Part-time work will be credited on a prorated basis.
• For more details on qualification requirements, refer to the OPM Qualifications Standards Handbook for General Schedule Positions, available on the OPM web site.

How you will be evaluated

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

You will be evaluated based on how well you meet the qualifications listed in this vacancy announcement. Your qualifications will be evaluated based on your application materials, your responses on the application questionnaire, and your responses to all assessments required for this position. Please follow all instructions carefully. Errors or missing information may affect our ability to verify your eligibility or qualifications. We use a multi-step application review process:

USA Hire Assessment: If you are required to complete any USA Hire Assessments, you will be notified after submitting your application:

• Refer to the "How to Apply" section for more information on USA Hire Assessments.

Eligibility: We review your resume and supporting documents to confirm you meet the eligibility requirements of the position, including Time-in-Grade requirements.

You will be rated ineligible if:

• You are outside of the area of consideration (i.e., who may apply). Refer to the "This job is open to" section for more information about the area of consideration. Refer to the "Required Documents" section for more information about the documentation required to verify your eligibility to apply.
• You do not meet the Time-in-Grade requirement. Refer to the "Qualifications" section for more information about Time-in-Grade. Refer to the "Required Documents" section for more information about the documentation required to verify Time-in-Grade.

Minimum Qualifications, Rating and Ranking: After we determine you meet the eligibility requirements, we assess your experience by comparing your resume to the specialized experience required for the grade level(s) to which you applied. A "final score cut point" may be used when reviewing applications. We also review other qualification factors, such as Selective Placement Factors and education requirements.

You will be disqualified if:

• Your resume does not demonstrate that you possess the minimum qualifications. Refer to the "Specialized Experience" listed in the "Qualifications" section for more information about the minimum qualifications.
• You inflate or falsify qualifications, education, or experience on your resume.
• You cheat on any assessments.

Referral and Selection: Highly qualified applicants are referred to the selecting official. The selecting official may:

• Conduct a structured interview.
• Check your references.
• Request a writing sample or conduct an additional job-related assessment.

You will be assessed on the following competencies:

• Attention to Detail
• Decision Making
• Flexibility
• Integrity/Honesty
• Interpersonal Skills
• Reading Comprehension
• Reasoning
• Self-Management
• Teamwork

Your complete application includes your resume, your responses to the online questionnaire, and documents which establish your eligibility to apply. If you fail to provide any of these items, your application will be marked as incomplete, and you will be disqualified from further consideration.

All required documents listed below, as applicable to you, must be submitted by 11:59 p.m. Eastern Time (ET) on the closing date of this announcement, 06/02/2026.

1) Resume - All applicants must submit a detailed resume that includes all relevant work experience (paid and unpaid), job titles, and duties performed:

• You must limit your resume to no more than 2 pages. If more than 2 pages are submitted, only the first 2 pages will be reviewed to determine eligibility and qualifications.
• The resume must be uploaded under the "Resume" document type in the application system.
• You may submit only one resume. If multiple resumes are submitted, only the latest submission in the "Resume" document type will be reviewed.

The following information must be included for each position listed in your resume:

• Name of the employer
• Official position title
• Start and end dates of employment (including month, day, and year)
• If you are a current federal employee or former federal employee, you must include your pay plan, series, and grade level (e.g. GS-0201-09)
• A detailed list of duties and accomplishments

• Time-in-grade documentation - If you are applying for a higher grade level and your most recent SF-50 has an effective date within the past year, it may not clearly demonstrate that you meet the one-year Time-in-Grade requirement. You must provide an SF-50 that clearly shows you meet this requirement, such as a:
  • Within-grade increase at the highest grade held
  • Promotion with an effective date more than one year old
  • SF-50(s) showing the highest grade held with an effective date more than one year old
• Award SF-50s do not provide sufficient information and will not be accepted for verifying Time-in-Grade.
• More than one SF-50 may be submitted to demonstrate that you meet the Time-in-Grade requirement.

• DD-214 - Must be the member 4 copy, showing dates of service, character of service, and discharge type.
• If you are a Veteran with a service-connected disability rating of 30% or more, you must also submit:
  • SF-15 (Application for 10-point Veterans' Preference)
  • VA Letter stating your disability rating.

• Be on official letterhead.
• Include your full name.
• State that you have a disability or targeted disability and are eligible for appointment under Schedule A (5 CFR 213.3102(u)).
• Be signed by one of the following:
  • A licensed medical professional
  • A licensed rehabilitation professional
  • A federal, state, D.C., or U.S. territory agency that provides disability benefits

• In most cases, this will be your Description of Service (DOS). Please upload this under the "Proof of Volunteer with PC, VISTA, ACTION etc." document placeholder.
• The final paragraph of the signed DOS must include the following statement: "This is to certify in accordance with Section 6.0 of Peace Corps Manual Section 285 that (NAME) served satisfactorily as a Peace Corps (Response) volunteer for a full term of service under an appointment of (X) months."
• Peace Corps Response Volunteers should also include their Verification of Service letter, which is important for retirement and leave documentation.

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