Duties

Summary

This position is located in the Public Affairs and Strategic Communications, Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs. The incumbent collaborates on the content and presentation of the speeches and public statements, maintains awareness and understanding of major policy issues and how they impact foreign policy and public diplomacy, and provides authoritative advice and management support regarding outreach, messaging, and media relations activities.

Learn more about this agency

Responsibilities

• Drafts all formal speeches and other written material.
• Coordinates all speeches, public statements, Congressional testimony, opinion pieces, and correspondence with stakeholders.
• Advises management of public attitudes, audience reaction, and opinion on international exchange issues and key policies.
• Arranges special events, ceremonies, round tables, press conferences, and other activities.
• Coordinates the extensive documentation flow in and out of the Front office.

Travel Required

25% or less - Support for the Assistant Secretary in speech writing and other high policy objectives.

Supervisory status
No

Promotion Potential
14

Requirements

Conditions of Employment

• Incumbent will be subject to random drug testing.
• One year probationary period, unless excepted by regulation.
• Must be able to obtain and maintain a Secret security clearance.
• U.S. Citizenship is required.
• Verification of employment eligibility in the United States is required.

Qualifications

Applicants must have 1 year of specialized experience equivalent to 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 planning, implementing, and evaluating public communications and media outreach activities among the general public and specialized groups and organizations.

Experience writing speeches and other materials.

Experience in planning, designing, and implementing outreach events, materials, and informational request from a broad range of stakeholders.

Experience in dealing with diverse groups in an unstructured setting that may result in potential conflict interest and divergent points of view.

There is no substitute of education for specialized experience for the GS-14 position.

Education

See the qualifications section of this vacancy announcement for education requirements, if applicable.

Additional information

For reasonable accommodation at the U.S. Department of State, please contact the Office of Accessibility and Accommodations at (202) 663-3474 or ReasonableAccommodations@state.gov.

EMPLOYMENT ELIGIBILITY VERIFICATION PROGRAM (E-Verify) - U.S. law requires organizations to employ only individuals who may legally work in the United States - either U.S. citizens, or foreign citizens who have the necessary authorization. This agency utilizes E-Verify to compare information from the Form I-9, Employment Eligibility Verification, to data from U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and Social Security Administration (SSA) records to confirm employment eligibility. If the employee's information does not match DHS and/or SSA records, the employee is given an opportunity to resolve the problem. If eligibility cannot be verified, employment will be terminated.

If eligible, applicants to this announcement may be referred to other positions in other Bureaus/Offices in the Department.

How You Will Be Evaluated

You will be evaluated for this job based on how well you meet the qualifications above.

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:

Knowledge of public communication principles, methods, practices, and techniques.

Knowledge of speaking styles and preferences.

Ability to analyze people and complex situations in order to conduct audience analysis.

Ability to communicate effectively, both orally and in writing.

Your resume serves as the basis for qualification determinations and must highlight your most relevant and significant work experience and education (if applicable) as it relates to this job opportunity. 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). Your resume should include the dates of all qualifying experience (from month/year to month/year) and the number of hours worked/volunteered per week. For assistance with creating a resume, please click
here .

Qualified candidates are assigned a score between 70 and 100. Agency Career Transition Assistance Program (CTAP) or Interagency Career Transition Assistance Program (ICTAP) candidates must be rated "Well Qualified" for the position and earn a score of at least 85 (when applicants are rated in a range of 70 to 100) to receive consideration for selection priority.

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.

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

To preview questions please click here .

Background checks and security clearance

Security clearance
Secret

Drug test required
Yes

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 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. Performance Appraisal - All current Federal employees and reinstatement eligible applicants must submit a copy of your most recent completed annual performance appraisal that includes the final rating. If a performance appraisal does not exist, is incomplete or unavailable, a Form DS-1812 (Applicant Appraisal) or equivalent form from another agency signed by the current supervisor is acceptable. Mid-year progress reviews will not be accepted.

5. All current Federal employees and reinstatement eligible applicants must submit an SF-50, Notification of Personnel Action, documenting proof of competitive status, tenure, position, grade level and step.

6. All non-competitive eligible applicants must submit proof of eligibility (i.e., SF-50 documenting the full performance level of a position held on a permanent basis).

7. Veterans who are preference eligibles OR who have been separated from the Armed Forces under honorable conditions (honorable or general discharge) after 3 or more years of continuous active service may apply under the Veterans Employment Opportunities act (VEOA). You must submit a DD-214 Certificate of Release or Discharge from Active Duty (Member Copy 4 is preferable) showing the dates you served as well as your type of discharge and qualifying service campaign medals OR if you are still on active duty, you MUST submit a certification on letterhead from your military branch which contains your military service dates, expected date of discharge or release, and the character of service to show that your military service was performed under honorable conditions. The expected date of discharge or release must be no later than 120 days after the certification is submitted for consideration for this job announcement.

For Sole Survivorship preference, you must provide a copy of your DD-214 (Member Copy 4 is preferable) or another form of official documentation which shows your discharge or release from active duty occurred on or after August 29, 2008 and was based on a sole survivorship discharge.

If you are claiming 10-point veterans' preference, in addition to the DD-214 or certification, you must also submit a current version of the SF-15 (Application for 10-Point Veteran Preference), dated October 2013, and the required supporting documents listed on that form. Previous editions of the SF-15 will not be accepted. For more information on veterans' preference, click here .

If the appropriate information is not submitted to confirm the current or expected discharge status, dates of service, etc., you will not be considered as a preference eligible. To gain access to your DD-214 online, click here .

Current Federal employees applying under the Veterans Employment Opportunities Act (VEOA) must submit a qualifying SF-50 to show you meet time-in-grade requirements.

For more information on Veteran Authorities, consult the Vet Guide .

8. 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.

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

ICTAP Considerations

CTAP Considerations

10. If you are applying under a special hiring authority you MUST submit proof of eligibility with your application. For information related to special hiring authorities for veterans, click here . For information related to special hiring authorities for severely disabled persons, click here . 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.

11. All applicants who are not current Department of State employees must complete, sign, date and submit a Declaration for Federal Employment form (OF-306) with their application. The OF-306 will be reviewed in order to determine applicants' suitability for employment, which may be obtained by clicking here .

If you are relying on your education to meet qualification requirements:

Education must be accredited by an accrediting institution recognized by the U.S. Department of Education in order for it to be credited towards qualifications. Therefore, provide only the attendance and/or degrees from schools accredited by accrediting institutions recognized by the U.S. Department of Education .

Failure to provide all of the required information as stated in this vacancy announcement may result in an ineligible rating or may affect the overall rating.