Duties

• Guides and shapes specific short- and long-term projects of the Division of Political and Military History staff, ensuring that their work advances the mission and interpretive goals of the museum.
  
• Advances the day-to-day operations of the division and its staff; works to build a shared sense of goals and purpose among division staff.
  
• Advises the OCA Associate Director on long-term plans and intellectual emphases for the museum, the department, and the division.
  
• Conducts own research of a substantial scholarly level in the history of American political or military history and their role in the social and cultural history of the United States and the world that supports the museum's initiatives; serving on or leading teams that create exhibitions, public programs, digital outputs, or other public history works; sustaining a program of public history research; shaping and stewarding the division's collections.
• Plays a prominent role in professional circles, advancing the institution's commitment to public service.
  

Requirements

Conditions of Employment

• Pass Pre-employment Background Investigation
• Maintain a Bank Account for Direct Deposit/Electronic Transfer
• Males born after 12/31/59 must be registered with Selective Service.
• May be required to serve an 18-month probationary period for supervisors.

Conditions of Employment

COVID-19 VACCINATION REQUIREMENTS:

For the latest information on the COVID-19 vaccination requirements and its impact on your application, click on Smithsonian Institution's Frequently Asked Questions .

Qualification requirements must be met within 30 days of the job announcement closing date.

For information on qualification requirements, see Qualification Standards Handbook for General Schedule Positions on OPM website .

Qualifications

Basic Requirements:

Degree: museum work; or in an applicable subject-matter field.

OR

Combination of education and experience -- courses equivalent to a major, as shown in A above, plus appropriate experience or additional education.

OR

Four years of experience that provided knowledge comparable to that normally acquired through the successful completion of the 4-year course of study as shown in A above.

In addition to the basic requirement above all applicants must meet the following minimum qualifications:

Specialized Experience:

Grade 15: You must have one year of specialized experience (Federal or other) equivalent to the GS-14 level that is close or similar to the work of this job. For this position specialized experience is defined as managing and leading staff; researching, collecting, and exhibiting material culture related to American political or military history; and producing research products such as scholarly articles, teaching, lectures, oral histories, archival holding, museum collections, exhibitions, or public programming.

In addition to the basic requirements and minimum qualifications above all applicants must meet the following selective placement factor:

Scholarly knowledge of political or military history and their role in the social and cultural history of the United States and the world.

Proof of this requirement must be clearly stated in your resume and any additional application materials. If proof is not clearly documented, you may lose consideration for this position.

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.

Additional information

This position is not included in the bargaining unit.

Current or Former Political Appointees: Beginning January 1, 2010, agencies must seek prior approval from OPM before they can appoint a current or recent political appointee to a competitive or non-political excepted service position at any level under the provisions of title 5, United States Code. If you are currently or have been within the last 5 years, a political Schedule A, Schedule C, or Non-career SES employee in the executive branch, you MUST disclose that to the Office of Human Resources. Submit a copy of your applicable SF-50, along with a statement that provides the following information regarding your most recent political appointment:

• Position title;
• Type of appointment (Schedule A, Schedule C, Non-career SES, or Presidential Appointee);
• Agency; and,
• Beginning and ending dates of appointment.

Recruitment Incentive: Recruitment incentive(s) may be authorized for this position. However, approval for incentives are contingent upon various availability. If authorized, certain incentives will require the incumbent to sign a service agreement to remain in the Federal government for a certain time period.

Note: This statement does not imply nor guarantee an incentive will be offered and paid.

This position is being concurrently announced open to current and former federal employees, veterans and those eligible for special hiring authorities under announcement number 23R-JS-308098-MPA-NMAH.