Duties

SEC Scholars Business students will be assigned to work with SEC staff members on projects and assignments that cover a broad range of the Commissions' work. That work depends upon the division or office where the student works. Business intern assignments range from supporting securities regulations to assisting in professional administrative duties such as human resources, contracting, auditing, etc.

The SEC Scholars Program will be full-time or part-time in the Spring. This will be determined and agreed upon based on the selectees academic course load schedule and division/office needs. You will have the opportunity to discuss schedule, hours, etc. upon selection and acceptance into the program. Interns must work a minimum of 15 hours per week.

The following divisions and offices within our Washington, D.C. Headquarters are seeking undergraduate and graduate students to work with us during the Spring 2023 program at the SEC. You will be asked to rank your top three choices of office. You will be given priority consideration of these offices, but may be contacted by any of them.
SEC.gov | SEC Divisions Homepages

• Division of Corporation Finance (CF)
• Division of Economic & Risk Analysis (DERA)
• Division of Enforcement (ENF)
• Division of Examinations (EXAMS)
• Division of Investment Management (IM)
• Office of the Chief Operating Officer (OCOO)
• Office of Credit Ratings (OCR)
• Office of the Ethics Counsel (OEC)
• Office of the General Counsel (OGC)
• Office of Human Resources (OHR)
• Office of International Affairs (OIA)
• Office of Inspector General (OIG)
• Office of the Information Technology (OIT)
• Office of Public Affairs (OPA)
• Office of the Secretary (OS)
• Office of Support Operations (OSO)

Requirements

Conditions of Employment

• Application procedures are specific to this vacancy announcement. Please read all the instructions carefully. Failure to follow the instructions may result in you not being considered for this position.
• Supplementary vacancies may be filled in addition to the number stated in this announcement.
• SECURITY CLEARANCE: Entrance on duty is contingent upon completion of a pre-employment security investigation. Favorable results on a Background Investigation may be a condition of employment or selection to another position.
• DRUG TESTING: This position may be subjected to drug testing requirements.
• PERMANENT CHANGE OF STATION (PCS): Moving/Relocation expenses are not authorized.
• DIRECT DEPOSIT: All Federal employees are required to have Federal salary payments made by direct deposit to a financial institution of their choosing.
• This position is not in the BU in the collective bargaining unit.
• UNITED STATES CITIZENSHIP: Must be a U.S. citizen to apply for this position.
• SELECTIVE SERVICE: Males born after 12/31/1959 must be registered for the Selective Service.
• GPA: You must have and maintain at least a cumulative grade point average (GPA) of a 2.5 on a 4.0 scale or the equivalent.
• PATHWAYS AGREEMENT: You will be required to sign a Pathways Internship Program Participant Agreement.
• ENROLLMENT REQUIREMENT: You must be enrolled at least half-time at a qualifying educational institution pursuing a degree or certificate.
• PROOF OF ENROLLMENT: You must provide proof of enrollment at a qualifying institution. For students who have been accepted for enrollment but do not yet have a transcript (e.g. first-year, transfer students), you must provide your acceptance letter.
• STUDENT STATUS: You must maintain status as a current student while on this appointment.
• WORK SCHEDULES: The SEC Scholars Program will be full-time or part-time. This will be discussed, determined, and agreed upon based on the selectees academic course load schedule and division/office needs.
• The anticipated start date of this position is January 30, 2023. You must meet the definition of a "student" currently and after this date to be eligible for hire.
• Due to COVID-19, the SEC is currently in an optional telework posture. Once employees are permitted to return to the office, you will be expected to report to the duty station.
• If you wish to continue to the next session, you must reapply and start the program again.

Qualifications

The SEC is looking for undergraduate and graduate students in the following fields of study:

• Accounting
• Anthropology
• Applied Economics
• Biology
• Biostatistics
• Bio-Technology
• Blockchain Technology
• Business Analytics
• Business/Business Administration
• Chemistry
• Communications
• Computer Science
• Contracts/Purchasing
• Criminal Justice
• Cybersecurity
• Data Management
• Data Science
• Distributed Ledger Technology
• Econometrics/Quantitative Economics
• Electrical/Computer Engineering
• English
• Finance
• Financial Technology (FinTech)
• Geographic Information Systems (GIS)
• Government
• Graphic/Web Design
• History
• Human Resource Management
• Industrial Engineering
• Industrial Management
• Information Systems
• Information Technology
• International Affairs
• Journalism
• Labor Relations
• Library Sciences
• Literature
• Management/Project Management
• Marketing
• Mathematics
• Operations Research
• Philosophy
• Physics
• Political Science
• Psychology
• Public Administration
• Quantitative Methods
• Social Media
• Social Sciences
• Sociology
• Statistics
• Systems Engineering

Eligibility Requirements

In order to be eligible for this internship under the SEC Scholars Program:

• You must be accepted for enrollment or enrolled and seeking a degree or certificate at a qualifying educational institution on at least a half-time basis (as determined by the educational institution); AND
• You must possess a cumulative grade point average (GPA) of a 2.5 or higher on a 4.0 scale, or the equivalent.

You must continue to meet these eligibility requirements throughout the duration of your appointment under the SEC Scholars Program.

Note : A "certificate program" is defined as a post-secondary education, in a qualifying educational institution, equivalent to at least one academic year of full-time study that is part of an accredited college-level, technical, trade, vocational, or legal school curriculum.

All qualification requirements must be met by the start of the program.

Qualifying education must have been obtained from an accredited college or university recognized by the U.S. Department of Education.

In order to qualify for this position at the grade GS/SK-03 level you must have successfully completed at least one full year above high school (e.g. completed freshman year of college).

In order to qualify for this position at the grade GS/SK-04 level you must have successfully completed at least two full years above high school OR an associate's degree (e.g. completed sophomore year of college).

In order to qualify for this position at the grade GS/SK-05 level you must have successfully completed at least a four year course of study leading to a bachelor's degree OR a bachelor's degree.

In order to qualify for this position at the grade GS/SK-07 level you must have successfully completed:
(A) One full year of graduate level education.
OR
(B) Completed all the requirements for a bachelor's degree and claim Superior Academic Achievement. In order to be creditable under this provision, Superior Academic Achievement must have been gained in a curriculum that is qualifying for the position to be filled. Superior Academic Achievement is based on: (1) Class Standing - You must be in the upper third of the graduating class in the college, university, or major subdivision, such as the College of Liberal Arts or the School of Business Administration, based on completed courses; OR (2) Grade Point Average (G.P.A.) - You must have a grade point average of either (a) 3.0 or higher out of a possible 4.0 ("B" or better) as recorded on your official transcript, or as computed based on 4 years of education, or as computed based on courses completed during the final 2 years of the curriculum; or (b) 3.5 or higher out of a possible 4.0 ("B+" or better) based on the average of the required courses completed in the major field or the required courses in the major field completed during the final 2 years of the curriculum; OR (3) Honor Society Membership - You may be considered eligible based on membership in one of the approved national scholastic honor societies listed by the Association of College Honor Societies.

Education

You MUST provide transcripts or other documentation to support your educational claims. All materials must be submitted by the closing date of the announcement. See Required Documents section below.

PASS/FAIL COURSES: If more than 10 percent of your undergraduate course work (credit hours) were taken on a pass/fail basis, your claim of superior academic achievement must be based upon class standing or membership in an honor society.

FOREIGN EDUCATION: If you are using education completed in foreign colleges or universities to meet the qualification requirements, you must show the education credentials have been evaluated by a private organization that specializes in interpretation of foreign education programs and such education has been deemed equivalent to that gained in an accredited U.S. education program; or full credit has been given for the courses at a U.S. accredited college or university. For further information, visit: http://www.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ous/international/usnei/us/edlite-visitus-forrecog.html

Additional information

To ensure compliance with an applicable preliminary nationwide injunction, which may be supplemented, modified, or vacated, depending on the course of ongoing litigation, the Federal Government will take no action to implement or enforce the COVID-19 vaccination requirement pursuant to Executive Order 14043 on Requiring Coronavirus Disease 2019 Vaccination for Federal Employees. Therefore, to the extent a Federal job announcement includes the requirement that applicants must be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 pursuant to E.O. 14043, that requirement does not currently apply. Federal agencies may request information regarding the vaccination status of selected applicants for the purposes of implementing other workplace safety protocols, such as protocols related to masking, physical distancing, testing, travel, and quarantine.

Benefits include Federal paid holidays and other benefits which may include a flexible work schedule. Selectees for this position are ineligible for health benefits, life insurance, retirement (including the Thrift Savings Plan), and long term care insurance. As a federal employee, selectees are eligible to receive a transit subsidy each month to compensate you for your travel to and from work via certain types of public transportation.

Converting to the Competitive Service: This appointment does not confer eligibility to be noncompetitively converted to a term, career or career-conditional appointment in the competitive service.

Reasonable Accommodation: If you are an applicant who needs a reasonable accommodation for disability to participate in the application process at the SEC, submit the form for Reasonable Accommodation for Participation in Job Application Process here . Please be sure to submit your request at least 5 business days in advance of the date you need the requested accommodation.

Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO) Information for SEC Job Applicants: Federal EEO laws protect all applicants from discrimination on the following bases: race, color, sex (not limited to conduct which is sexual in nature, includes pregnancy, gender identity, sexual orientation, transgender status), age (40 and over), religion, national origin, disability, genetic information, retaliation for participating in the EEO process or opposing discrimination. Applicants who believe they have been discriminated against on any EEO basis can seek recourse through the SEC's administrative complaints process. To be timely, an individual must enter the EEO process within 45 days from when they know (or should have known) of the alleged discrimination. Click here for additional information.

TTY/ASCII: Video Relay Service users are welcome to contact the appropriate SEC office or employee via the contact information listed above. If you do not otherwise have access to a Video Phone or Video Relay service, you may send us an email or use the Federal Video Relay Service via the internet. For more information about using the Federal Relay Service and to create a new account, please see: https://www.federalrelay.us/