Program Support Assistant

Clarification from the agency

ALL US CITIZENS DIRECT HIRE AUTHORITY: This position is being filled using Direct-Hire Authority (5 CFR 337.201) for this occupation. Reminder 2 page resume requirement. Review How to Apply section

Duties include, but are not limited to:

• Administrative Support in Pre-applicant Onboarding - Incumbent is responsible for any VA mandated staffing system(s), which purpose is to onboard employees for Federal agencies. Maintains appointment schedule in any VA mandated Electronic Medical Records (EMR) system. Prepares all papers necessary for each scheduled physical in accordance with guidelines as established by office protocol in advance of scheduled appointment.
• Clerical Processes - Incumbent processes incoming and outgoing materials such as correspondence, reports, memoranda, and other forms of written communication. Receives, schedules, refers, and contacts members of the medical center staff. Provides general clerical public contact support services such as answering the telephone, referring visitors, or providing information. Selects appropriate system, application, and format. Performs typing/word processing at a proficiency level of at least 40 words per minutes.
• Customer Service - Incumbent provides assistance when necessary to medical center staff in the use of EMR program software. Acts as liaison to other medical center services such as Infection Control, Safety, Human Resources, Industrial Hygiene, and other. Provides assistance to medical center employees and/or supervisors in regard to completion of required reports or claims pertaining to state, federal, and medical center regulations and policies (e.g., OSHA, Department of Labor, Office of Workers' Compensation).
• Clinical Support - Incumbent performs work involving the collection, compilation, and/or tracking of data and statistical information in support of the Employee Health program. Prepares, executes, and/or tracks programs specific information such as tuberculosis control, bloodborne pathogen exposure, worker injury, and medical surveillance programs. Maintains employee medical folders using proper filing methods, and files information in appropriate location within the medical folder.
• Performs other related duties as assigned by supervisor.

Work Schedule: 7:30am - 4:00pm
Position Description Title/PD#: Program Support Assistant/PD920020
Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized
Critical Skills Incentive (CSI): Not Authorized
Physical Demands: Physical requirements for the position includes intermittent light lifting, reaching, pulling, sitting, and bending, as well as carrying medical records, office supplies and filing.

Conditions of employment

• You must be a U.S. citizen to apply for this job
• Subject to a background/suitability investigation
• Selective Service Registration is required for males born after 12/31/1959
• A complete application package; Resume, Transcripts, etc. is required
• 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 identification cards that are not REAL ID compliant cannot be utilized as an acceptable form of identification for employment.

Upon completion of your probationary period, your employment will be terminated unless you receive certification, in writing, that your continued employment advances the public interest.

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

Qualifications

To qualify for this position, applicants must meet all requirements by the closing date of this announcement,10/20/2026

Time-In-Grade Requirement:

GS-06 grade level: One year of specialized experience (equivalent to the GS-05 grade level in the federal service); experience that equipped the applicant with the particular knowledge, skills and abilities (KSA's) and other characteristics to perform successfully the duties of the position, and that is typically in or related to the work of the position to be filled, in the normal line of progression for the occupation in the organization. Specialized experience includes:

• Proficient in the use of Employee Health regulations and procedures in order to process work and advise medical center employees and supervisors and resolve problems.
• Working knowledge of the Federal Employee Compensation Act, OSHA regulations, and other occupational related statutes, regulations and policies. Working knowledge and skills related to operation of a computer, EMR and related software programs.
• Proficient in the use of Microsoft Office (e.g., MS Word, MS Excel, MS PowerPoint), Microsoft Outlook and other similar software utilized in the course of Employee Health functions.
• Knowledge of correspondence formats and procedures in order to prepare responses and memos on various programs and to provide reports. Knowledge of English, grammar, spelling and punctuation.
• Performs typing/word processing at a proficiency level of at least 40 words per minutes.

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. Qualification based on education is generally not applicable.

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.

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. Applicants will be referred in the order in which they were received.

Your qualifications will be evaluated based on your application materials (e.g., resume, supporting documents), your responses on the application questionnaire, and your responses to all assessments required for this position. You will be assessed on the following Competencies for this position:

• Accountability
• Attention to Detail
• Customer Service
• Decision Making
• Flexibility
• Integrity/Honesty
• Interpersonal Skills
• Learning
• Reading Comprehension
• Reasoning
• Self-Management
• Stress Tolerance
• Teamwork

Your experience must be fully documented on your resume and must include job title, duties, month and year start/end dates AND hours worked per week. 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. IN DESCRIBING YOUR EXPERIENCE, PLEASE BE CLEAR AND SPECIFIC. WE WILL NOT MAKE ASSUMPTIONS REGARDING YOUR EXPERIENCE. Overstating your qualifications and/or experience in your application materials or application questionnaire may result in your removal from consideration. Cheating on the online assessment may also result in your removal from consideration.

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.

During the application process you may have an option to opt-in to make your resume available to hiring managers in the agency who have similar positions. Opting in does not impact your application for this announcement, nor does it guarantee further consideration for additional positions.

Documents Accepted:

• Cover Letter
• DD-214/ Statement of Service
• Disability Letter (Schedule A)
• Disability Letter (VA)
• License
• Other (1)
• Other (2)
• Other (3)
• Performance Appraisal
• Professional Certification
• Resume
• Separation Notice (RIF)
• SF-15
• SF-50/ Notification of Personnel Action
• Transcript

Documents Required:

• Resume

Please review the above list(s) to ensure you have included all necessary documents required for your application. Not every applicant will require the same documents, therefore it is the applicants responsibility to ensure that their application package includes all necessary documents to determine qualifications and eligibility for appointment, such as a copy of your SF-50, transcript, ICTAP/CTAP documentation (for displaced Federal employees).You will not be contacted for additional information. Applicants will be deemed ineligible if supporting documentation is not submitted.

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: Since the Direct-Hire Recruitment Authority is being used, traditional Veterans' Preference rules do not apply. Qualified veterans will, however, be given full consideration for this position.

Applications are accepted online. Applying online will allow you to review and track the status of your application.

Next steps