International Trade Specialist

Qualification requirements in the vacancy announcements are based on the U.S. Office of Personnel Management (OPM) Qualification Standards Handbook, which contains federal qualification standards. This handbook is available on the Office of Personnel Management’s website located at: https://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/classification-qualifications/general-schedule-qualification-standards/ Applicants must possess one year of specialized experience equivalent in difficulty and responsibility to the next lower grade level in the Federal Service. Specialized experience is experience that has equipped the applicant with the particular competencies/knowledge, skills and abilities to successfully perform the duties of the position. This experience need not have been in the federal government. 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, religious; 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. To qualify at the GS-12 level: SPECIALIZED EXPERIENCE GS-12: You must possess one full year (52 weeks) of specialized experience equivalent to the GS-11 grade level in the Federal service. Specialized experience is defined as experience: Negotiating strategies, and developing and disseminating trade information to U.S. businesses or associations; Performing U.S. export facilitation, foreign direct investment promotion, and trade promotion through trade-policy analysis, the resolution of trade barriers, and negotiations. To qualify at the GS-13 level: SPECIALIZED EXPERIENCE GS-13: You must possess one full year (52 weeks) of specialized experience equivalent to the GS-12 grade level in the Federal service. Specialized experience is defined as experience: Performing U.S. export facilitation, foreign direct investment promotion, trade promotion through trade-policy analysis, the resolution of trade barriers, and negotiations; Recommending empirical trade information with interpretation and prediction of influences of economic, market, political, and other events; Developing strategies for U.S. business facilitation, trade and investment promotion initiatives, regulatory, and global trade-policy positions.
This vacancy is for an International Trade Specialist in the International Trade Administration within the Department of Commerce.