Senior Policy and Project Analyst

Clarification from the agency

Current DHS employees serving in a permanent position in the competitive or excepted service. Current DHS employees serving in a permanent, Schedule Policy/Career (P/C) excepted service position. You must submit an SF-50 that shows you currently work for DHS.

Serving as a Senior Policy and Project Analyst GS-0301-14/15 makes you a valuable member of the Federal Law Enforcement Training Centers (FLETC) team and mission. This position is located in the Office of the Associate Director for Training Ops (TOPS) or NCR Training Operations Directorate (NCR), located in either Glynco, Georgia or Cheltenham, Maryland.

The primary purpose of this position is to provide counsel to the Assistant Director (AD) and Deputy Assistant Director (DAD) on all activities and matters involving FLETC initiatives, operations, and programs.

Typical duties include:

• Maintaining continuing contact with senior management officials to assess and gauge changes and their potential impact on operating policies that may affect FLETC.
• Directing the analysis of changes, developments, and initiatives and generating formal recommendations and proposals for the AD's and DAD's consideration and final decision.
• Developing and providing the AD and DAD with new and unique perspectives, analyses, best approaches, and other authoritative advice to implement and achieve cooperative activities, resolving philosophical and operating differences, and coordinating high level and sensitive joint policy issues affecting FLETC.
• Overseeing projects involving the most effective allocation and commitment of resources.
• Working with other Senior Project and Policy Analysts, Senior Policy Advisors, and program managers across Directorate lines to develop recommendations for the AD and DAD regarding effective allocation of Directorate resources.
• Serving as the AD's liaison in many areas, often involving controversial, complex, and unprecedented issues and other matters that impact FLETC-wide, agency, and Departmental operations.

View common definitions of terms found in this announcement: Common Definitions.

Conditions of employment

• You must be a U.S. citizen to apply for this position.
• Males born after 12/31/1959 must be registered for Selective Service.
• You will need to set up direct deposit so we can pay you.
• You must successfully pass a background investigation.
• Current and former federal employees within the General Schedule (GS) must meet the time-in-grade requirements outlined in the "Qualifications" section of this announcement.
• This is a non-bargaining unit position.
• Must possess and maintain a valid state issued driver's license to conduct official government business.
• As a condition of employment for accepting this position, you will be serving in a position in Schedule Policy/Career of the Excepted service.
• Your employment in this position will be at-will.
• Merit Systems Protection Board (MSPB) appeals of adverse actions concerning performance, discipline, and other matters arising under chapters 23, 43, and 75 of title 5, USC will not be available to an individual serving in this position.
• The DHS Office of General Counsel will enforce prohibitions on prohibited personnel practices and not the Office of Special Counsel.
• This position is eligible for situational-only telework based on agency policy.
• Occasional travel may be required.
• Overtime may be required.
• This position is Emergency Essential and required to sustain FLETC’s operations under all conditions.
• Required to file an OGE 278, Executive Branch Personnel Public Financial Disclosure Report within 30 days of appointment to this position and annually thereafter as long as you occupy a position that requires financial disclosure reporting.
• You will obtain competitive status after two years of service in this position [if applicable].

Qualifications

A resume must be no more than two pages. If an applicant's resume exceeds two pages, the USAJOBS database will not allow the application to be submitted. For additional assistance, please visit: USAJOBS Help Center - Update your resume now so it meets new resume requirements

Specialized Experience for the GS-15:
You qualify for the GS-15 grade level if you possess one year of specialized experience, equivalent to the GS-14 grade level in the Federal government, performing duties such as:
(1) Independently leading and providing authoritative recommendations on complex, sensitive, or high-impact policy and program analyses affecting organizational, component, Departmental, or interagency operations. (2) Directing or overseeing resource, strategic-planning, and performance-management activities across multiple organizational elements, including budget formulation and execution, risk analysis and mitigation, workforce planning, program evaluation, strategic initiatives, and executive reporting. (3) Representing senior leadership in high-level forums and negotiations with agency, Departmental, interagency, and external stakeholders; developing, defending, and implementing policy positions, agreements, directives, and executive-level communications on complex and potentially controversial issues.

Substitution of education in lieu of specialized experience may not be used for this grade level.

Specialized Experience for the GS-14:
You qualify for the GS-14 grade level if you possess one year of specialized experience, equivalent to the GS-13 grade level in the Federal government, performing duties such as:
(1) Analyzing and supporting policy, program, and operational initiatives by researching issues and preparing recommendations for senior officials.; (2) Assisting with resource stewardship and program execution, including budget formulation and execution and tracking of projects or strategic initiatives.; (3) Communicating and coordinating with internal and external stakeholders to develop briefing materials, issue papers, correspondence, reports, talking points, and other executive-level products to support policy implementation and resolve issues.

Substitution of education in lieu of specialized experience may not be used for this grade level.

All qualifications and eligibility requirements must be met by the closing date of the announcement.

Time-in-grade: Current General Schedule (GS) federal employees, and those that have served in GS positions within the last 52 weeks, must have served 52 weeks at the next lower grade, or a combination of the next lower grade level and an equivalent band in the federal service by the closing of this announcement.

Note: Current DHS employees MUST submit a copy of their SF-50 Form. If you are applying for a higher grade, please provide the SF-50 Form which shows the length of time you have been in your current/highest grade (examples of appropriate SF-50s include promotions, With-in Grade/Range Increases, and SF-50s dated a year apart within the same grade/job). If you have promotion potential in your current position, please provide proof. IF YOU DO NOT SUBMIT ALL OF THE REQUIRED DOCUMENTATION, YOU WILL NOT RECEIVE CONSIDERATION AS A STATUS CANDIDATE.

Current or Former Political Appointees: The Office of Personnel Management (OPM) must authorize employment offers made to current or former political appointees. If you are currently, or have been within the last 5 years, a political Schedule A, Schedule C, Non-career SES or Presidential Appointee employee in the Executive Branch, you must disclose this information to the Human Resources Office.

Pursuant to Executive Order 12564 and FLETC policy, FLETC is committed to maintaining a drug-free workplace and, therefore, conducts random and other drug testing of its employees in order to ensure a safe and healthy work environment. FLETC personnel in safety- or security-sensitive positions are subject to random drug testing and all applicants tentatively selected for employment at FLETC are subject to drug testing resulting in a negative test result.

Re-employed annuitants' annual salaries will be reduced by the amount of their retirement annuity and by further cost of living increases. FERS retirees receiving a FERS annuity supplement must also be aware that, like social security benefits, their FERS annuity supplement is subject to an earnings test and may be reduced if the salary earned is more than the social security exempt amount of earnings. Additional information is available on OPM's website or by contacting OPM.

How you will be evaluated

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

A resume must be no more than two pages. If an applicant's resume exceeds two pages, the USAJOBS database will not allow the application to be submitted.

We will review your resume and supporting documentation to ensure you meet the minimum qualification requirements. If met, we will use multiple assessments to determine the degree to which your experience, education, and training demonstrate the following competencies needed to perform this job:

To be considered for this position, you must complete all required steps in the process, including the application, structured resume review and the subject matter expert question and answer session (SME Q&A).

Structured Resume Review: Subject matter experts (SMEs) will review your resume to determine your technical qualifications for this position based on the required specialized experience. SMEs will review ONLY two (2) pages of your resume, starting at your work experience. SMEs will not review additional information beyond your resume (e.g., links embedded in your resume will not be opened). Applicants passing the resume review will move on to the next phase of the assessment process.

Subject Matter Expert Question and Answer Session: At this phase, qualified candidates will participate in an SME Q&A to further assess your technical qualifications relative to the required specialized experience. Applicants passing the SME Q&A will be rated and ranked as described below.

Preview the job questionnaire https://apply.usastaffing.gov/ViewQuestionnaire/13053499

If, after reviewing your resume and/or supporting documentation, a determination is made that you have overstated your qualifications and/or experience, you may be removed from consideration or your score may be lowered.

Due weight will be given to performance appraisals and incentive awards in merit promotion selection decisions in accordance with 5 CFR 335.103(b)(3).

After FLETC completes its hiring, the resumes of the remaining candidates referred for selection consideration may be shared with other DHS Components. During the application process, you may choose to opt-in if you would like your name, application material, and assessment results to be shared. There is no guarantee of further consideration, and you can continue to explore other job opportunity announcements."

1. Your resume (click the link for information on what to include). If you are a current or former Federal employee, your resume must indicate the GS or pay band level for each position held. Limit your resume to no more than two pages. The USAJOBS database will not allow an applicant to submit an application that includes a resume over two pages.
2. Your responses to the job questionnaire https://apply.usastaffing.gov/ViewQuestionnaire/13053499
3. Are you current Department of Homeland Security (DHS) employee? Submit a copy of your most recent SF-50 showing your current grade and tenure; An SF-50 showing highest (permanent) grade ever held, if different from your current grade. Please note: Performance award, Details, and Realignments are not acceptable SF-50s. If you are applying for a higher grade, please provide an SF-50 or SF-50s which show the length of time in the current/highest grade (examples of appropriate SF50s include promotions, With-in Grade/Range Increases, and SF-50s dated one year apart within the same grade/job) to support meeting time-in-grade requirements.
4. You may be asked to provide a copy of your recent performance appraisal and/or incentive awards.

Next steps