Public Affairs Specialist

Clarification from the agency

Current Federal employees with competitive status or other eligibility; Former Federal employees with reinstatement eligibility; CTAP/ICTAP eligibles; Veterans with VOW, VEOA, VRA, or 30% disability; Military Spouses; Individuals with Disabilities Schedule A; Peace Corps, Vista (AmeriCorps) eligibles; and those eligible under an OPM interchange agreement or other special appointing authority.

As a Public Affairs Specialist, you will be responsible for a wide range of complex duties. Major duties include, but are not limited to, the following:

• Develop comprehensive communication strategies that support organizational priorities, strengthen employee engagement, and enhance awareness of DOE OIG programs and accomplishments.
• Lead the Office of Inspector General's internal communications program. Develops and implements a comprehensive internal communications strategy that promotes transparency, employee engagement, and alignment with organizational priorities.
• Establish and maintain effective working relationships with members of the news media, specialized groups, and others interested in the OIG's programs and regional offices.
• Functions as the primary OIG media spokesperson.
• Provides media coaching to Senior positions within the OIG, such as the IG and Deputy IG, and they rely on the incumbent's judgement and recommendations when issuing press releases, discussing issues with the public, and answering questions before Congress.
• Develops and maintains a communication plan for timely posting of articles, executive profiles, and other items of interest on OIG's external website.

Conditions of employment

• Must be a U.S. Citizen or National.
• This employer participates in the e-Verify program.
• Males born after 12/31/1959 must be registered for Selective Service.
• Suitable for Federal employment, as determined by a background investigation.
• May be required to successfully complete a probationary period.
• May be required to submit a Financial Disclosure Statement, OGE-450 or an Executive Branch Personnel Confidential Financial Disclosure Report upon entering the position and annually (5CFR Part 2634, Subpart I USOGE, 6/08).
• You will be required to report to a DOE OIG assigned office. The essential functions of this position require physical presence in your DOE OIG assigned office.
• Must obtain and maintain a Q security clearance.
• This position is not remote, the selectee will be expected to report to the duty station(s) listed. If selected, military spouses, veteran caregivers, and spouses of foreign service employees may be eligible for applicable workplace flexibilities.
• This position is a Drug Testing Designated position and is subject to preemployment and random drug testing.
• Will be required to participate in the Direct Deposit Electronics Funds Transfer Program.

Qualifications

You must meet all qualifications and eligibility requirements by the closing date (08/21/2026) of this announcement.

Credit will be given for all appropriate qualifying experience. For current Federal employees, if hours worked per week are not included on your resume, you must submit a non-award SF-50 for each federal position listed as part of your application to be used to validate your work schedule and determine the amount of qualifying experience that you will be granted. An award SF-50 will not be acceptable documentation for which to consider your amount of qualifying experience. For all other applicants who are not current federal employees, your resume must state either "full-time" (or "40 hours a week") or "part-time" with the number of hours worked per week to ensure proper crediting of specialized experience. Failure to adequately provide information needed to determine number of hours worked in each position may result in that time not being credited when evaluating qualifying experience.

For periods of time that reflect military service, the DD-214 or Statement of Service is sufficient to meet the full and/or part-time hours requirement as the service dates will be reflected

EXPERIENCE: A qualified candidate's online application and resume must demonstrate at least one year of specialized experience equivalent to the next lower grade level (GS-13) in the Federal service. Specialized experience for this position is defined as:

1. Developing, executing, and evaluating comprehensive internal and external strategic communication plans that align workforce engagement, shape public understanding, and advance organizational priorities.
2. Serving as an official spokesperson or primary media contact to deliver public statements, manage media outreach, conduct press briefings, and execute communication strategies with journalists, industry groups, and key external stakeholders.
3. Researching, drafting, and editing high-level messaging materials (e.g., press releases, talking points, speeches, backgrounders, op-eds, FAQs) and providing strategic communication counsel within the agency and leadership.
4. Overseeing digital communication channels and website content strategy, while adhering to federal web publishing standards, digital media policies, and Section 508 accessibility compliance.

In order to qualify, you must meet the eligibility and qualifications requirements as defined above by the closing date of the announcement. Additional qualification information can be found from the following Office of Personnel Management website: General Schedule Qualification Standards

Volunteer Experience: "Experience" refers to paid and unpaid experience. Examples of qualifying unpaid experience may include: volunteer work done through National Service programs (such as Peace Corps and AmeriCorps); as well as work for other community-based philanthropic and social organizations. 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.

Time-in-Grade: Any individual who is currently holding, or has held within the previous 52 weeks, a General Schedule position under non-temporary appointment in the competitive or excepted service, must meet time-in-grade requirements (must have served 52 weeks at the next lower grade or equivalent in the Federal service). Time-in-grade requirements must be met by the closing date of this announcement. Time-In-Grade requirements also apply to former Federal civilian employees applying for reinstatement as well as current employees applying for Veterans Employment Opportunities Act of 1998 (VEOA) appt.

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 for this job based on how well you meet the eligibility and qualification requirements above. Once the announcement closes, we will conduct a review of your application package to verify your eligibility and qualifications. If you are found qualified, your application will move forward to additional phases of the review process.

Merit Promotion & VEOA Procedures: If you are minimally qualified for this job, your responses to the self-assessment questions (Multiple Choice, Yes/ No questions) will be evaluated to determine if you are a best qualified candidate. If you meet the qualification requirements and are determined to be among the best qualified, you will be referred to the hiring manager for consideration. Noncompetitive candidates and applicants under some special hiring authorities must meet minimum qualifications to be referred. If you rate yourself higher than is supported by your application materials, your responses may be adjusted and/or you may be excluded from consideration for this job.

Please submit 1) a copy of your most recent performance appraisal/evaluation and 2) a list of any awards (e.g. superior performance awards, special act or achievement awards, quality step increase, etc.) you received in the last 5 years. Any performance appraisal/evaluation and award documentation you provide will be forwarded to the selecting official. The selecting official will review this documentation and give it due weight consideration during the overall selection process. If you do not have your most recent performance appraisal/evaluation, please submit a statement as to why it is not available.

Your qualifications will be evaluated on the following competencies (knowledge, skills, abilities, and other characteristics):

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

Non-competitive Procedures: If you are applying under a non-competitive or special hiring authority, you will still be required to answer the assessment questions. However, you will not be evaluated against the rating and ranking criteria. Your resume and supporting documentation will be used to determine if you are minimally qualified for this job. Veterans' Preference will be applied when required by the hiring authority (e.g., VRA, Schedule A).

All qualified Non-competitive applicants and the best qualified Merit Promotion and VEOA applicants will be referred to the hiring manager for consideration.

Career Transition Assistance Program/Interagency Career Transition Assistance Program (CTAP/ICTAP): If you are a Federal employee in the competitive service and your agency has notified you in writing that you are a displaced employee eligible for CTAP/ICTAP consideration, you may receive selection priority for this position. To receive selection priority, you must: (1) meet CTAP/ICTAP eligibility criteria (2) be rated well-qualified for the position and; (3) submit the appropriate documentation to support your ICTAP eligibility. To be considered well-qualified and receive selection priority applicants must satisfy all qualification requirements for the position and receive a score of 85 or above. Additional information about the program is on OPM's Career Transition Resources website.

To preview the Assessment Questionnaire, click https://apply.usastaffing.gov/ViewQuestionnaire/13041002.

• To apply for this position, you MUST provide a complete application package which includes:
• Your two (2) page RESUMEshowing all relevant work experience (paid and unpaid) including: duties performed; full name and address of the each employer; start and end dates (month/day/year); work schedule (part-time, full-time, number of hours if intermittent); salary; and any completed education and training (program title, subject area, number of hours completed, and completion date). For more information about what to include in your resume, please view this USAJOBS Resume Tutorial video on YouTube.
• Cover Letter, optional, expressing additional information not covered in your resume.
• SF-50, "Notification of Personnel Action" (current/former federal employees): Most recent Promotion, Within-Rate Increase (WRI/WGI), or Appointment/Conversion SF-50 or Notification of Personnel Action showing you are/were in the competitive service and the highest grade or promotion potential held. If your current position SF50 does not indicate you have competitive service status or does not reflect the pay plan and grade of the highest position you have held in the competitive service, in addition to your current SF50, you must provide your previous SF-50s that verify competitive status and highest grade held on a permanent basis. To properly verify status eligibility, your SF-50 must show the following: Full position title; appointment type; occupational series; pay plan, grade, and step; tenure code; and service computation date (SCD). If you do not submit an appropriate SF-50, we cannot verify your status eligibility.
• Most recent performance appraisal: All Applicants regardless of eligibility(ies) selected, MUST submit their most recent (within the past 18 months) performance evaluation or appraisal, which shows a final rating. If an evaluation or rating is not available, you must provide a statement indicating the reason. If you do not submit an appropriate appraisal or statement, you WILL NOT receive consideration for this position.
• Transcripts, if specific educational requirements are indicated in this job announcement. Unofficial transcripts or any report listing institution, course title, credits earned (semester or quarter hour) and final grade is acceptable. It is your responsibility to provide adequate proof that you meet the educational requirements.

• Veterans: DD-214 Member Copy 4 showing type of discharge/character of service; current active duty members- certification of expected discharge or release from active duty under honorable conditions dated within 120 days; SF-15 Form and related documentation; VA letter. For more information visit the USAJOBS Help Center & OPM CHCOC website for VOW information.
• Individuals with Disabilities: Schedule A letter from a physician, local, state or federal rehabilitation office citing your eligibility under 5 CFR 213.3102 (u). For more information visit the USAJOBS Help Center.
• Certain Military Spouses: Permanent Change of Station (PCS) orders authorizing you to accompany the Military member to the new duty permanent station; OR verification of the member's 100% disability (VA Letter); and/or verification of the member's death while on active duty (DD-1300 and Death Certificate) AND verification of the marriage to the service member (i.e., a marriage license or other legal documentation verifying marriage). For more information visit the USAJOBS Help Center.
• Other non-competitive or special appointing authorities: provide documentation which supports your eligibility.
• Career Transition Assistance Program/Interagency Career Transition Assistance Program documentation, if applicable(e.g., Certification of Expected Separation, Reduction-In-Force Separation Notice, or Notice of Proposed Removal; SF-50 that documents the RIF separation action; and most recent performance appraisal.) For more information see the OPM Guide to Career Transition.

Failure to submit any of the above mentioned required documents may result in loss of consideration due to an incomplete application package. It is your responsibility to ensure all required documents have been submitted.

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