KEY REQUIREMENTS



• Incumbent will be subject to random drug testing.
• Must be able to obtain and maintain a Top Secret
  security clearance.
• Obtain/maintain eligibility to access Sensitive Compartmented Information
• U.S. Citizenship is required.
• Relocation expenses will NOT be paid.
• One year probationary period, unless excepted by
  regulation.

-Represents the Department in interagency meetings, provides guidance to Department policymakers, briefs members of Congress, and serves as an expert in various intergovernmental and non-governmental fora.  Supports INR/OTR Director’s role as INR representative to the IC’s National Open Source Committee (NOSC). 

 -Advises on and performs research and other professional work drawing on open source and outreach capabilities in support of the formulation and direction of U.S. foreign policy and bearing on U.S. relations with foreign governments and international organizations.  Maintains a detailed understanding of key international issues, reflecting the broad coverage of global affairs, with focused expertise on open source and outreach programs across the IC. 

 -Identifies open source needs of Department principals and policy Bureaus, INR analytical offices, and other Intelligence Community agencies; determines how those needs can be met; and arranges funding and support for them from the INR budget or from other agencies.  Brings resources of INR’s and IC’s outreach and open source activities to State Department policymakers. 

-Oversees preparation and dissemination of INR outreach products, primarily summaries of outreach projects.  

Applicants must meet all the required qualification requirements, including education and any selective placement factors described below by the closing date of this announcement.  Education may only be substituted in accordance with the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) Qualification Standards Handbook.  Education must be accredited by an accrediting institution recognized by the U.S. Department of Education in order to be credited towards qualifications.

Education completed in foreign colleges or universities may be used to meet the education requirements if you can show that the foreign education is comparable to that received in an accredited educational institution in the United States.  It is your responsibility to provide such evidence when applying.  Click on the link for a list of accredited organizations recognized as specializing in interpretation of foreign education credentials.

Applicants must have the required experience or education as described below and meet any selective factors, when specified.BASIC REQUIREMENTS:

Have a bachelor's or graduate degree from an accredited college or university in international law, international relations, political science, economics, history, sociology, geography, social or cultural anthropology, law, statistics, or in the humanities;
OR
Have a bachelor's or graduate degree from an accredited college or university that included a combination of courses, with at least 24 semester hours in international law and international relations, political science, economics, history, sociology, geography, social or cultural anthropology, law, statistics, or in the humanities;
OR
Have 12 semester hours in one of the above disciplines and 12 semester hours in statistics / quantitative methods.
OR
Have a combination of education and experience where your coursework was equivalent to a major, or a combination of related courses totaling at least 24 semester hours, (as shown above), PLUS appropriate relevant experience OR additional education.
OR
Have completed at least 4 years of appropriate experience in one OR more of the fields listed above in work associated with international organizations, problems, or other aspects of foreign affairs. (NOTE: qualifying work experience may have been gained through residence, study, teaching, business or commercial activities, military service, newspaper work, military or civil government activities, missionary or international relief work, or other experience in foreign countries.)
Note:  If you are qualifying based on education, you MUST submit transcripts as verification of educational requirement by the closing date of this announcement.  If you fail to provide requested information, or the information you submit is insufficient to verify your eligibility, you WILL lose consideration for this position.

IN ADDITION to the basic requirements, this position requires one year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the GS-13 level in the Federal service which provided the applicant with the particular knowledge, skills and abilities to perform the duties of the position.  Qualifying specialized experience must demonstrate the following:

- Experience using open source information in the US Intelligence Community to conduct research on foreign policy topics

-Experience assessing and summarizing the relevance and implications of global, social, political, economic, geographic, and military issues, developments, and events affecting the formulation and execution of US foreign policy

- Experience providing advice, guidance, and consultation to senior officials with regard to research and other professional work drawing on open source and outreach capabilities in support of the formulation and direction of US foreign policy

- Experience establishing and maintaining liaison throughout the foreign affairs community

Note:  If you are qualifying based on education, you MUST submit transcripts as verification of educational requirement by the closing date of this announcement.  If you fail to provide requested information, or the information you submit is insufficient to verify your eligibility, you WILL lose consideration for this position.

.

HOW YOU WILL BE EVALUATED:

Your application will be evaluated and rated under the Category Rating and Selection procedures.  Based on your responses to the job-specific self-assessment questions, eligible candidates are placed for selection consideration into one of three pre-defined quality categories as described below:

Highly-qualified Category - In addition to meeting minimum qualifications for the position, candidates must fully demonstrate proficiency in all major aspects of the position.  

Well Qualified Category - In addition to meeting minimum qualifications, candidates must demonstrate proficiency in some but not all of the major aspects of the position.

Qualified Category - In addition to meeting minimum qualifications, applicants must demonstrate a basic level of knowledge, skill and ability of the position.

Your qualifications will be evaluated on the following knowledge, skills, abilities (KSAs) and other characteristics that are relevant to the duties of this position and must be fully supported by information in your resume:

1.  Knowledge of, and experience in, the use of open source information in the US Intelligence community to conduct research on foreign policy topics

2.  Knowledge of, and experience in, assessing and summarizing the relevance and implications of global, social, political, economic, geographic and military issues, developments, and events affecting the formulation and execution of US foreign policy

3.  Skill at providing advice, guidance, and consultaiton to senior officials with regard to research and other professional work drawing on open source and outreach capabilities;

4.  Ability to establish and maintain liaison throughout the foreign affairs community

5.  Ability to develop and present breifings to senior level officials

6.  Ability to plan, initiate, organize, and corrdinate activities within and outside the government

Your resume serves as the basis for qualification determinations and must highlight your most relevant and significant work experience(s) and education (if applicable) as it relates to this job opportunity.  In order to fully evaluate your application and receive proper credit, your resume should include: (1) paid and non-paid experience, job title, dates held (month and year for qualifying purposes to receive credit), number of hours worked per week, and salary (2) knowledge of the subject matter and technical skills pertinent to this position; (3) specific duties performed that fully detail the level and complexity of the work; and (4) names and phone numbers of your current and/or previous supervisor(s). Your resume should contain sufficient information to make a valid determination that you fully meet the basic/specialized experience requirements as stated in this job opportunity announcement for each grade level(s) for which you are applying.  This information should be clearly identified in your resume.  Failure to provide information sufficient to determine your qualifications for the position will result in loss of consideration.  For tips on writing your resume, please visit the USAJOBS Resource Center.

If, after reviewing your resume and self-assessment questionnaire responses and a determination is made that you have inflated your qualifications and/or experience, a score will be manually determined that reflects your documented experience.  This may result in a lower score, which may also eliminate you from consideration for this position.

Application of Veterans Preference: The Category Rating Method does not add veterans' preference points or apply the "rule of three," but protects the rights of veterans by placing them ahead of non-preference eligibles within each pre-defined quality category. Preference eligibles who meet minimum qualification requirements and who have a compensable service-connected disability of at least 10 percent (i.e., CPS and CP) must be listed in the highest quality category, except when the position being filled is scientific or professional at the GS-09 grade level or higher.

Agency Career Transition Assistance Program (CTAP) or Interagency Career Transition Assistance Program (ICTAP) candidates must be rated "Well Qualified" for the position to receive consideration for special priority.

Applicants must meet all the qualification requirements and submit any required supporting documentation by the closing date of this announcement.  Applicants found to be among the top qualified candidates will be referred to the hiring official for further consideration and possible interview.

The Department of State offers a comprehensive benefits package that includes, in part, paid vacation, sick leave, holidays, life insurance, health benefits, and participation in the Federal Employees Retirement System. In addition to these benefits, we also offer the Student Loan Repayment Program, Child Care Centers, Child Care Subsidy, Flexible work schedule, Transit Subsidy Program. For additional information on Federal benefits click here.

OTHER INFORMATION:

SOCIAL SECURITY NUMBER - Your Social Security Number is requested under the authority of Executive Order 9397 to uniquely identify your records from those of other applicants who may have the same name.  As allowed by law or Presidential directive, your Social Security Number is used to seek information about you from employers, schools, banks, and others who may know you.  Failure to provide your Social Security Number on your application materials will result in your application not being processed.

SELECTIVE SERVICE - If you are a male applicant born after December 31, 1959, you must certify at the time of appointment that you have registered with the Selective Service System, or are exempt from having to do so under Selective Service law.

REASONABLE ACCOMMODATION - This agency provides reasonable accommodations to applicants with disabilities.  If you need a reasonable accommodation for any part of the application and hiring process, please notify the Office of Employee Relations, Disability/Reasonable Accommodations Division, at (202) 261-8180.  The decision on granting reasonable accommodation will be on a case-by-case basis.

EQUAL EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITY - The United States Government does not discriminate in employment on the basis of race, color, religion, sex (including pregnancy and gender identity), national origin, political affiliation, sexual orientation, marital status, disability, genetic information, age, membership in an employee organization, retaliation, parental status, military service, or other non-merit factor.

Please carefully read all the instructions before you begin the application process.

To apply for this job opportunity, you must submit a resume and an on-line application through the Office of Personnel Management's (OPM) application system, USAJOBS.  This information will be transferred to the Department of State's Gateway to State Automated Application System.

You have until 11:59 p.m. Eastern Time (ET) on the closing date of this announcement to complete the following four-step application process:

STEP 1: Select the "Apply On-line" button and follow the instructions to register or sign into USAJOBS.

STEP 2: Submit a detailed resume or any other written format you choose documenting your job-related qualifications, experience, and education (if applicable).  Cover letter is optional.  If you submit a cover letter, you must also submit a resume.  Please see the "How You Will Be Evaluated" section for specific information that should be outlined in your resume.

STEP 3: Answer the job-specific self-assessment questions on-line through the Gateway to State automated application system.  These questions will be used to evaluate your qualifications and experience for this job opportunity.  

STEP 4: Submit all required documentation, applicable to you, listed in the Required Documents section of this job opportunity to the Department's automated application system "Gateway to State" prior to the closing date of this announcement.  For instructions on how to view the status of your supporting documentation, please click here.

Technical assistance with your on-line application can be obtained by contacting the Help Desk at mgshelp@monster.com OR by calling (866) 656-6830 or (703) 269-4944 between the hours of 7:00 a.m. and 7:00 p.m. ET

ALTERNATE APPLICATION PROCEDURES

NOTE:  If applying online poses an extreme hardship, you may request alternate application procedures to submit your application package by fax.  Contact the Human Resources office listed on the announcement between the business hours of 8:15 a.m. and 5:00 p.m. ET, at least two working days prior to the closing date of this announcement.  The application package for alternate application procedures must be submitted and received in the Human Resources office no later than 11:59 p.m. ET on the closing date of this announcement.

NOTE:  Paper applications and information sent by mail WILL NOT BE ACCEPTED.

REQUIRED DOCUMENTS:

All required documents listed below, that are applicable to you, must be submitted to our automated system "Gateway to State" by 11:59 p.m. Eastern Time (ET) on the closing date of this announcement.

1. Resume - your resume or any other written format you choose should contain the required information as specified in the "How You Will Be Evaluated" section.  Insufficient information will result in an ineligible rating.

2. A completed online job specific self-assessment questionnaire through the Department's automated system "Gateway to State".

3. Transcripts - if you are qualifying based on education OR if there are mandatory education requirements listed under the Qualifications and Evaluations section, you MUST submit a copy of your college transcript(s) with your application.  If selected, an official/sealed college transcript(s) will be required to verify education prior to employment.

4. Veterans Preference - If claiming veteran's preference, you must indicate the type of veteran's preference you are claiming on your resume.

For 5-point veteran's preference, you must provide a copy of your DD-214 Certificate of Release or Discharge which must show the type of discharge and dates of active duty.  If you are currently on active duty, you must provide an official statement of service from your command/unit which states the date you entered active duty, expected discharge type and date, and campaign medals you have received OR other official documentation (e.g., documentation of receipt of a campaign badge or expeditionary medal) that proves your military service was performed under honorable conditions.  If the appropriate information is not submitted to confirm your discharge status, dates of service, etc., you will not receive credit for the claimed active duty military service.

For 10-point veteran's preference, you must submit a SF-15 and any documentation required by this form to support your claim.  If we cannot verify your 10-point preference status, you will receive 5-point preference if veterans' preference requirements have been met.  For further information regarding Veterans, click here.

To gain access to your DD214 online, please visit: http://www.archives.gov/veterans/military-service-records/get-service-records.html

5. If you are qualifying based on other criteria listed under the Qualification Section of this announcement, you MUST submit the required supporting documentation (certificates, certifications, etc.) with your application.

6. CTAP/ICTAP eligibles must submit a copy of the appropriate documentation with their application. See links below:

ICTAP Considerations
CTAP Considerations

All documentation, applicable to you, must be submitted by the closing date of this announcement.  If the information you submit is insufficient to verify your eligibility or you fail to submit any of the required documents, it will disqualify you from being considered for this job opportunity.

AGENCY CONTACT INFO:

WHAT TO EXPECT NEXT:

After all application packages have been received, we will review your resume to ensure you meet the basic qualification requirements.  After we review and evaluate all applications, the most highly qualified candidates will be referred to the hiring manager for further consideration and possible interviews.  After a tentative job offer, we will conduct a suitability and or security background investigation.
 
You will be notified up to four times during the hiring process:

1. Upon receipt of your application.
2. Upon minimum qualification determinations.
3. After the certificate is issued.
4. After final selection is made.

For instructions on how to view the status of your application, please click here.