Program Specialist (Congressional Liaison) –Detail

To qualify for this position, applicants must meet all requirements by the closing date of this announcement, 11/01/2024. Time-In-Grade Requirement: Applicants who are current Federal employees and have held a GS grade any time in the past 52 weeks must also meet time-in-grade requirements by the closing date of this announcement. For a GS-11 position you must have served 52 weeks at the GS-09. The grade may have been in any occupation, but must have been held in the Federal service. An SF-50 that shows 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. 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. You may qualify based on your experience and/or education as described below: Specialized Experience: You must have one year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the next lower grade GS-09 in the normal line of progression for the occupation in the organization. Examples of specialized experience would typically include, but are not limited to: Ability to communicate orally and in writing, make clear and convincing presentations, explain, and justify recommendations, provide guidance, respond to inquiries, and prepare detailed oral and written reports. Effective written and verbal communication skills to interact with individuals from different backgrounds and levels of understanding. To include clerical, technical, administrative, and professional (medical and nonmedical) at all levels inside and outside the agency. Communications and writing skills are critical to interface effectively with senior staff, the Network office, Congressional staffers, and various administrative staff on and off-campus. Knowledge of laws, regulations, policies, and standards as it relates to Veteran healthcare eligibility and other issues relevant to the delivery of Government services. OR, Education: Applicants may substitute education for the required experience. To qualify based on education for this grade level you must have a Ph.D or equivalent doctoral degree or 3 full years of progressively higher level graduate education leading to such degree or LL.M; if required. OR, Combination: Applicants may also combine education and experience to qualify at this level. You must have an combination of specialized experience and education beyond education listed above. You will be rated on the following Competencies for this position: Analytical Reasoning Communications Interpersonal Skills Problem Solving Writing 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. Note: 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. Physical Requirements: The work is primarily sedentary, although some slight physical effort may be required. 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/.
The Correspondence Analyst and Congressional Liaison reports to the Public Affairs Officer. The incumbent serves as the coordinator, and monitor point for all correspondence and tasks from internal and external stakeholders. Correspondence and tasks may come from various sources, including but not limited to the White House, Congressional Offices/Staffers, OIG, VACO, VISN, VSO, Veteran patients, Veteran family members, contract vendors, and other internal/external sources.