Summary
These are excepted service appointments in the CFPB Pathways Intern Program. The appointment will be 12 weeks and WILL NOT be eligible for conversion to a permanent position, and WILL NOT be extended.
Seeking law students to work with CFPB attorneys and other staff covering a broad range of legal work. An excellent opportunity for law students to learn about substantive consumer-protection laws, the enforcement of these laws, and the general administrative laws of a federal agency.
This job is open to
Clarification from the agency
This opportunity is open to U.S. Citizens, U.S. Nationals or Naturalized U.S. Citizens who are Students enrolled on at least a half-time basis, or accepted for enrollment, and seeking a degree (diploma, certificate, etc.) in a qualifying educational institution; have at least a cumulative (overall) 2.5 grade point average or higher on a 4.0 scale; remain in good academic standing; and be at least 16 years of age.
Duties
As a Student Trainee (Legal Intern), you may:
- Initiate and draft standardized legal documents routinely needed for specific legal actions, including motions, orders, answers, pleadings, subpoenas.
- Assist attorneys in case preparation, assembling exhibits, affidavits and other documents. Assist attorneys in researching pleadings, briefs, and other legal documents on questions relating to routine legal matters of interest.
- Maintain court calendar. Track filing, hearing and trial dates, and schedule conferences and interviews.
- Provide requested information based on own knowledge of the office's goals and priorities or refer the inquiry to an appropriate individual for response.
Please refer to the "QUALIFICATIONS" sections for a brief description of each office listed below. CFPB is seeking law students for the following offices:
- Legal Division
- Office of Enforcement
- Office of Regulations
- Office of Supervision Policy
- Office of Civil Rights
- Office of Competition & Innovation
- Office of Fair Lending & Equal Opportunity
- Other Offices with Legal Responsibilities
Requirements
Conditions of Employment
Key Requirements:
- A Public Trust background investigation will be required.
- A trial period that will cover the full period of the appointment may be required.
- Complete a Declaration for Federal Employment to determine your suitability for Federal employment, at the time requested by the agency.
- Have your salary sent to a financial institution of your choice by Direct Deposit/Electronic Funds Transfer.
- If you are a male applicant born after December 31, 1959, certify that you have registered with the Selective Service System or are exempt from having to do so.
- Go through a Personal Identity Verification (PIV) process that requires two forms of identification from the Form i-9. Federal law requires verification of the identity and employment eligibility of all new hires in the U.S.
CONDITIONS OF INTERN EMPLOYMENT: If selected for this position, you will be required to:
- Maintain status of a student.
- Must be pursuing a course of study related to the position being filled.
- During the internship students are only eligible for a transportation subsidy.
Qualifications
Applicants must meet the following requirements by the closing date of this announcement.
ELIGIBILITY: You MUST meet the definition of a STUDENT for the duration of your appointment.
The definition of a student is: an individual accepted for enrollment or enrolled and seeking a degree (diploma, certificate, etc.) in a qualifying educational institution, on a full or half-time basis (as defined by the institution in which the student is enrolled), including awardees of the Harry S. Truman Foundation Scholarship Program under Public Law 93842. Students need not be in actual physical attendance, so long as all other requirements are met. Students need not be enrolled in the summer as long as they are enrolled in both the preceding spring semester and subsequent fall semester. An individual who needs to complete less than the equivalent of half an academic/vocational or technical course load immediately prior to graduating is still considered a student for purposes of this program.
Specialized Experience: One year of specialized experience at or equivalent to the CN-22 level in the Federal service. (For qualification purposes, the CN-22 level is broadly equivalent to the GS-4 level). Specialized experience may be defined as:
- Experience that demonstrates knowledge of analytical methods and techniques. Experience should include working in a support capacity for legal professionals such as in a law firm, legal division, or other similar department with a focus on legal matters.
OR
Education: 4-year course of study leading to a bachelor's degree.
The experience may have been gained in either the public, private sector or volunteer service. One year of experience refers to full-time work; part-time work is considered on a prorated basis. To ensure full credit for your work experience, please indicate dates of employment by month/day/year, and indicate number of hours worked per week on your résumé.
CFPB Offices seeking Legal Interns:
Legal Division: Advises on legal matters; reviews clearance, rulemaking, enforcement, and other policy documents; represents CFPB in administrative, defensive, appellate, and amicus litigation; manages responses to requests for information from Congress and other oversight bodies; and ensures compliance with federal ethics regulations and other laws, rules, and regulations. Incumbents may assist attorneys in any of the Legal Division's offices by conducting legal research on novel or complex issues; drafting memoranda, correspondence, and motions; working on litigation matters or Congressional investigations; and reviewing documents in the Bureau-wide clearance process. May also attend staff meetings, moots, court proceedings, and other exciting events.
Office of Enforcement: Responsible for investigating potential violations of Federal consumer financial laws and taking action to address violations when appropriate. Enforcement's work is critical to furthering the Bureau's mission to make consumer financial markets work, protect consumers from unfair, deceptive, or abusive practices, and take action against companies that break the law. Interns in Enforcement support active litigation and investigations. Interns are often assigned to case teams in active litigation and receive legal research and other assignments in support of other investigations and matters. When possible, interns are provided with the opportunity to observe hearings, depositions, and other proceedings.
Office of Regulations: Responsible for developing and implementing consumer financial regulations and guidance. In addition to preparing and finalizing consumer finance regulations, attorneys also conduct periodic regulatory reviews and regulatory burden reviews of existing regulations and provide guidance to other CFPB offices, government agencies, and external stakeholders on the interpretation of the CFPB's consumer financial regulations. Interns will be placed on an active rulemaking or regulatory implementation team during the internship. An intern's duties may include: researching and analyzing complex factual, legal, and policy issues; preparing memos addressing these issues; and presenting their work to team members and others.
Office of Supervision Policy: Support supervisory exams by providing legal and policy advice and developing strategy. A supervisory exam is a review of an institution's activities, management, and internal controls. OSP attorneys recommend how potential violations should be resolved and participate in interagency groups. Intern assignments focus on legal analysis, research, and writing, such as preparing a legal memorandum on whether to cite a supervised entity for a violation of law. Interns support for exams may include fact analysis, field market research, and presentations to examiners. Interns collaborate with examiners, OSP teams and other regulators.
Office of Civil Rights: Enforces employment civil rights laws and works to prevent and correct any unlawful discrimination in the workplace for employees and applicants for employment. OCR processes EEO complaints filed by employees and applicants in accordance with timeframes and guidelines set forth by the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) and issues mandated reports. Interns in OCR will have the opportunity to (1) observe the complete EEO adjudication process and assist in ADR such as mediations, reviewing affidavits and Reports of Investigations, draft and review final agency decisions and review accept/dismiss letters for legal accuracy before issuance, (2) conduct targeted legal research in civil rights laws, employment laws, and EEOC federal regulations and write clear and concise legal memorandum on issues that arise within the EEO Complaint Process, and (3) work on special projects within OCR to support its mission.
Office of Competition & Innovation: OCI is responsible for developing, coordinating, and implementing Bureau efforts to spur consumer-friendly innovation and monitor markets for competition-related issues. This includes, e.g., working with other offices on information collection initiatives and rule writing, researching and drafting reports, and coordinating with other regulators. Intern duties may include researching and analyzing complex factual, legal, and policy issues related to competition and innovation; assisting with memos, reports, and orders; reviewing third-party information submissions; participating in internal meetings; and interacting with external stakeholders. OCI is especially interested in candidates with a strong background and/or interest in fintech.
Office of Fair Lending & Equal Opportunity: The Office of Fair Lending and Equal Opportunity (OFLEO) is the Bureau's fair lending policy office and is charged with advancing the CFPB's role as a national leader in ensuring fair, equitable, and nondiscriminatory access to credit for individuals, small businesses and communities. OFLEO's work focuses on many different areas of consumer finance including home loans, student loans, auto loans, and small business loans. Interns in OFLEO will have an opportunity to assist with the Bureau's fair lending work through policy development, supervision and enforcement activity, economic and market research, and rule-making initiatives. Interns' focus may include algorithmic bias, appraisal bias, justice-involved individuals and families, redlining, discriminatory targeting, student lending, small business lending, and other fair lending topics.
Education
This appointment is being filled under the Pathways Internship Program. You MUST submit transcripts or equivalent. Education may be substituted for experience as described in "Qualifications."
***Must be pursuing a course of study to obtain a Law Degree***
Second year law school students are preferred however, first year law students should consider our general internships (in accordance with ABA - NALP Section D "Principles and Standards for Law Placement and Recruitment Activities").
A college or university degree generally must be from an accredited (or pre-accredited) college or university recognized by the U.S. Department of Education. For a list of schools which these criteria, please refer to www.ed.gov.If you are qualifying based on foreign education, you must submit proof of creditability of education as evaluated by a credentialing agency; more information may be found http://www.opm.gov/qualifications/SEC-II/s2-e4.asp#e4a.
Benefits
A career with the U.S. government provides employees with a comprehensive benefits package. As a federal employee, you and your family will have access to a range of benefits that are designed to make your federal career very rewarding. Opens in a new windowLearn more about federal benefits.
Eligibility for benefits depends on the type of position you hold and whether your position is full-time, part-time or intermittent. Contact the hiring agency for more information on the specific benefits offered.
How You Will Be Evaluated
You will be evaluated for this job based on how well you meet the qualifications above.
The Fair Chance to Compete for Jobs Act prohibits specific inquiries concerning an applicant's criminal or credit background unless the hiring agency has made a conditional offer of employment to the applicant. An applicant may submit a complaint, or any other information, to the agency within 30 calendar days of the date of alleged non-compliance by contacting: Ana.GuzmanEvans@cfpb.gov
What are criminal history inquiries?
Your application includes your:
- Résumé (REQUIRED)
- Responses to the online questions,
- Transcripts* - Proof of enrollment (REQUIRED). It is highly recommended that students provide a recent transcript (i.e. Fall 2024) to prove their student status. Unofficial transcript or a screen shot of current classes are acceptable at the point of application.
- Cover letter (HIGHLY RECOMMENDED)
We use a multi-step process to evaluate and refer applicants:
- Minimum Requirements: Your application must show that you meet all minimum qualifications as described under the Qualifications section. If your application is incomplete, you will not be considered.
- Application Review: The hiring manager may review the application of all qualified individuals and make selection(s).
Veterans' preference is applied after applicants are assessed. Preference-eligibles will be listed at the top of their assigned category and considered before non-preference-eligibles in that category. Qualified preference-eligibles with a compensable service-connected disability of 10% or more will be listed at the top of the highest category.
- Referral: If you are among the top qualified candidates, your application will be referred to a selecting official for consideration and possible interview.
Required Documents
Please note that if you do not provide all required information, as specified in this announcement, you may not be considered for this position (or may not receive the special consideration for which you may be eligible). Please ensure all required documents, including any required work samples, narratives, or other materials as stated in this announcement, are attached to your application package.
It is anticipated that there will be significant interest in the announcement. As a result, the announcement will close at 11:59 p.m. ET on the date of receipt of the 300th application or at 11:59 p.m. ET on 09/18/2024; whichever occurs first. Any required documents should be submitted at the time that you apply as documents will not be accepted after the vacancy closes.
FOR QUALIFICATION: If you are qualifying based on education, you MUST submit a copy of your transcripts or a list of courses showing title, number of credits, grade, and date of completion.
FOR ELIGIBILITY: Both official AND unofficial transcripts are acceptable as part of the application process. To verify you are eligible for the Pathways program you must submit proof that you are pursuing a degree in a related field. If you are selected, you will be required to provide an official transcript before your final offer of employment. If you have not completed any post-high school course work, you are only required to submit proof of enrollment, or acceptance of enrollment, at a qualified educational institution at this time. See "Requirements" section for the definition of a qualifying educational institution.
VETERANS' PREFERENCE DOCUMENTATION: If you are claiming veterans' preference, you must submit a copy of your Certificate of Release or Discharge From Active Duty, DD-214 (Member 4 copy), or other official documentation from a branch of the Armed Forces or the Department of Veterans Affairs showing dates of service and type of discharge. Compensably disabled preference eligibles must also submit an Application for 10-point Veteran Preference, SF-15, along with the required documentation listed on the back of the SF-15 form. An SF-15 may be found at the OPM Forms page. For more information on veteran's preference, click here.
RECOMMENDED DOCUMENTS:
- COVER LETTER - It is highly recommended that you submit a cover letter when applying for this vacancy.
If you are relying on your education to meet qualification requirements:
Education must be accredited by an accrediting institution recognized by the U.S. Department of Education in order for it to be credited towards qualifications. Therefore, provide only the attendance and/or degrees from
schools accredited by accrediting institutions recognized by the U.S. Department of Education.
Failure to provide all of the required information as stated in this vacancy announcement may result in an ineligible rating or may affect the overall rating.
How to Apply
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau has partnered with the Treasury's Bureau of the Fiscal Service to provide certain personnel services to its organization. Fiscal Service's responsibilities include advertising vacancies, accepting and handling applications, and extending job offers.
Please review the entire announcement before applying.
The following instructions outline our application process. You must complete this application process and submit any required documents by 11:59 p.m. Eastern Time (ET) on the closing date of this announcement. We are available to assist you during business hours (normally 8:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m. ET, Monday - Friday). If applying online poses a hardship, please contact us by noon ET on the announcement's closing date.
You may be entitled to a reasonable accommodation as part of the job application process if you need one due to a disability or religion. Learn more about reasonable accommodations.
If you applied for a job at CFPB and think you may have been subjected to unlawful discrimination related to your application, you have rights. Learn more about raising an Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO) issue.
- To begin, click Apply to access the online application. You will need to be logged into your USAJOBS account to apply. If you do not have a USAJOBS account, you will need to create one before beginning the application.
- Follow the prompts to select your résumé and/or other supporting documents to be included with your application package. You will have the opportunity to upload additional documents to include in your application before it is submitted. Your uploaded documents may take several hours to clear the virus scan process.
- After acknowledging you have reviewed your application package, complete the Include Personal Information section as you deem appropriate and click to continue with the application process.
- You will be taken to the online application which you must complete in order to apply for the position. Complete the online application, verify the required documentation is included with your application package, and submit the application.
To verify the status of your application:
-Log into your USAJOBS account ( USAJOBS Login), all of your applications will appear on the Welcome screen
-Under "application status," click "Track this application" and you will be taken to the agency website where you can check your application status.
For more information regarding the job and applicant status, please refer to https://www.usajobs.gov/Help/how-to/application/status/ If you wish to make changes/updates to your application and the vacancy is still open, you can click on the job announcement and "Update Application" to be taken back to your application. No updates can be made once the announcement has closed. Please notify us if your contact information changes after the closing date of the announcement. Also, note that if you provide an email address that is inaccurate or if your mailbox is full or blocked (e.g., spam-blocker), you may not receive important communication that could affect your consideration for this position.
For additional information on how to apply, please visit the Partnership for Public Service's Go Government website.
To preview the assessment questionnaire: https://apply.usastaffing.gov/ViewQuestionnaire/12511156
Next steps
Once the online application is submitted, you will receive an acknowledgement email that your submission was successful. We will review your résumé and transcript(s) (if appropriate) to ensure you meet the basic qualification requirements. We will evaluate each applicant who meets the basic qualifications on the information provided and may interview the best-qualified applicants. After making a tentative job offer, we will conduct any required suitability and/or security background investigation.
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