Duties

Summary

About the Position: This position is being filled under the Direct Hire Authority for Recent Graduates.

This is a permanent position with Humphreys Center Support Activity (HECSA), Contracting Center located at 7701 Telegraph Road in Alexandria, Virginia.

For more information on HECSA, please visit: http://www.usace.army.mil/HECSA.aspx .

Learn more about this agency

Responsibilities

• This is a developmental position in which the incumbent will work closer under normal supervision performing assignments and completing training to perform the duties as outlined below:
• Serves as a Contract Specialist for pre-award and post award functions, including acquisition planning, price/cost analysis, negotiation, administration, coordinating, and controlling the full range of contracting functions.
• Performs procurement planning and in coordination with the technical office, develops the contractual strategy to be used in the procurement of a specific contract/contract program.
• Identifies and works with customers and contractors to resolve specification problems which increase contract costs and to modify contract provisions which discourage competition.
• Attends conferences and exhibits or initiates meetings with industry associations, Small Business Administration, and others for the purpose of expanding competition.
• Analyzes proposals and negotiate terms and conditions of contracts and prepares Price Negotiation Memorandums (PNMs) in order to make fair and reasonable price determinations.
• Performs contract management monitoring a group of contracts during the post-award contract phase of the procurement cycle to assure timely receipt of all contractual data specified.
• Prepares Price Negotiation Memorandums (PNMs) in order to make fair and reasonable price determinations.
• Advises the Contracting Officer and other Government personnel on the contractor?s compliance with contract requirements and recommends alternatives available for effecting corrective actions.
• Prepares response for all contract related inquiries, to include requests for approval of contract deviations.

Travel Required

Not required

Supervisory status
No

Promotion Potential
12

Requirements

Conditions of Employment

• A trial or probationary period may be required in accordance with agency policy.
• Appointment may be subject to a suitability or fitness determination, as determined by a completed background investigation.
• This position requires an Intermediate level II Defense Acquisition Workforce Improvement Act (DAWIA) certification within 24 months of entrance on duty, requirements found in the Defense Acquisition University Catalog at http://www.dau.mil/.

Qualifications

Who May Apply: To be eligible for consideration you must meet the definition of Recent Graduate (RG) as defined below:

Recent Graduate: a person who was awarded a degree by an institution of higher education not more than two years before the date of the appointment of the applicant. Exception: For a person who has completed a period of obligated service in a uniformed service of more than four years, the degree may be awarded by an institution of higher education not more than four years before the date of the appointment of the applicant.

In order to qualify, you must meet the education and/or experience requirements described below. 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).

You will receive credit for all qualifying experience, including volunteer experience. Your resume must clearly describe your relevant education and experience.

Additional information about transcripts is in this document .

Basic Requirement for Contract Specialist:
Degree: Bachelor's degree (or higher degree) from an accredited educational institution authorized to grant baccalaureate degrees.

OR

Exemption: You are exempt from the education requirements above if (A) you are a current DoD employee, in any occupational series, who has served on or before September 30, 2000, as follows: (1) Served as a GS/equivalent-1102 position or contracting officer position with authority to award or administer contracts above the SAT in any Federal agency, OR (2) Served as a military member in a comparable military occupational specialty; OR (B) you are a current member of the armed forces who occupied a position within an occupational specialty similar to the GS-1102 series on or before September 30, 2000.

In addition to meeting the basic requirement above, to qualify for this position you must also meet the qualification requirements listed below:

Specialized Experience at GS-07: One year of specialized experience which includes: assisting with solicitations for contracts; participating in contract negotiations; and/or assisting in contract administration, keeping the team leader and/or supervisor informed of current changes in reference directives and manuals. This definition of specialized experience is typical of work performed at the second lower grade/level position in the federal service (GS-05).

OR

Education: One full year of graduate level education in a field which demonstrates the knowledge, skills, and abilities necessary to do the work of the position, such as: Accounting, Finance, Business Management.

OR

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, such as that identified in Education above. Superior Academic Achievement is based on:
(1) Class Standing - Applicants 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.) - Applicants 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 - Applicants may be considered eligible based on membership in one of the approved national scholastic honor societies listed by the Association of College Honor Societies (https://www.achsnatl.org/).

OR

Combination of Education and Experience: A combination of education and experience may be used to qualify for this position as long as the computed percentage of the requirements is at least 100%. To compute the percentage of the requirements, divide your total months of experience by 12. Then divide the total number of completed graduate semester hours (or equivalent) by 18. Add the two percentages.

Specialized Experience at GS-09: One year of specialized experience which includes: performing procurement planning; and communicating routinely with contractors and representatives of industry, and request and negotiate settlement proposals. This definition of specialized experience is typical of work performed at the second lower grade/level position in the federal service (GS-07).

OR

Education for the GS-09: Master's or equivalent graduate degree or 2 full years of progressively higher level graduate education leading to such a degree in a field which demonstrates the knowledge, skills, and abilities necessary to do the work of the position, such as: [insert applicable field(s) of study].

OR

Combination of Education and Experience: A combination of education and experience may be used to qualify for this position as long as the computed percentage of the requirements is at least 100%. To compute the percentage of the requirements, divide your total months of experience by 12. Then divide the total number of completed graduate semester hours (or equivalent) beyond the first year (total graduate semester hours minus 18) by 18. Add the two percentages.

Specialized Experience at GS-11: One year of specialized experience which includes: performing procurement planning; communicating routinely with contractors and representatives of industry; and requesting and negotiating settlement proposals, and analyzing requirements to determine method of contracting (firm fixed/negotiated). This definition of specialized experience is typical of work performed at the second lower grade/level position in the federal service (GS-09).

OR

Education for the GS-11: Ph.D. or equivalent doctoral degree or 3 full years of progressively higher level graduate education leading to such a degree in a field which demonstrates the knowledge, skills, and abilities necessary to do the work of the position, such as: [insert applicable field(s) of study].

OR

Combination of Education and Experience for the GS-11: A combination of education and experience may be used to qualify for this position as long as the computed percentage of the requirements is at least 100%. To compute the percentage of the requirements, divide your total months of experience by 12. Then divide the total number of completed graduate semester hours (or equivalent) beyond the second year (total graduate semester hours minus 36) by 18. Add the two percentages.

Education

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

• Male applicants born after December 31, 1959, must complete a Pre-Employment Certification Statement for Selective Service Registration.
• You will be required to provide proof of U.S. Citizenship.
• Direct deposit of pay is required.
• This is a Career Program (CP) 14 - Contracting and Acquisition position.
• Multiple positions may be filled from this announcement.
• Salary includes applicable locality pay or Local Market Supplement.
• If you are unable to apply online or need to fax a document you do not have in electronic form, view the following link for information regarding an Alternate Application .
• Payment of Permanent Change of Station (PCS) costs is not authorized, based on a determination that a PCS move is not in the Government interest.
• Recent Graduates will be appointed to a permanent, career or career-conditional appointment in the competitive service.
• May be selected at any grade level with non-competitive promotion potential to target grade (GS-12). Non-competitive promotion potential to the target grade is based on time-in-grade requirements and demonstrated ability to perform the higher graded duties.

How You Will Be Evaluated

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

Once the announcement has closed, a review of your application package (resume, supporting documents, and responses to the questionnaire) will be used to determine whether you meet the qualification requirements listed on this announcement. If, after reviewing your résumé and/or supporting documentation, a determination is made that you have inflated your qualifications and/or experience, you may lose consideration for this position. Please follow all instructions carefully when applying, errors or omissions may affect your eligibility.

You should list any relevant performance appraisals and incentive awards in your resume as that information may be taken into consideration during the selection process. If selected, you may be required to provide supporting documentation.

Background checks and security clearance

Security clearance
Not Required

Drug test required
No

Position sensitivity and risk
Non-sensitive (NS)/Low Risk

Trust determination process
Suitability/Fitness

Required Documents

The documents you are required to submit vary based on whether or not you are eligible for preference in federal employment. A complete description of preference categories and the associated required documents is in the Applicant Checklist (External)

As described above, your complete application includes your resume, your responses to the online questionnaire, and documents which prove your eligibility to apply. If you fail to provide these documents, you will be marked as having an incomplete application package and you will not be considered any further.

1. Your resume:

• Your resume may be submitted in any format and must support the specialized experience described in this announcement.
• If your resume includes a photograph or other inappropriate material or content, it will not be used to make eligibility and qualification determinations and you may not be considered for this vacancy.
• For qualifications determinations your resume must contain hours worked per week and the dates of employment (i.e., HRS per week and month/year to month/year or month/year to present). If your resume does not contain this information, your application will be marked as incomplete and you will not receive consideration for this position.
• For additional information see: What to include in your resume .

2. Other supporting documents:

• Cover Letter, optional
• Most recent Performance Appraisal, if applicable
• You must submit a copy of your transcript to determine eligibility under this hiring authority. Further, if you claim qualifications based on education and do not submit a supporting transcript, your education will not be used in making a qualification determination and you may be found not qualified. See: Transcripts and Licenses
• License/Certification: If the position has a license/certification requirement, you MUST submit a copy of your current, active, valid, unrestricted license/certification. See: Transcripts and Licenses

NOTE: Documents submitted as part of the application package, to include supplemental documents, may be shared beyond the Human Resources Office. Some supplemental documents such as military orders and marriage certificates may contain personal information for someone other than you. You may sanitize these documents to remove another person's personal information before you submit your application. You may be asked to provide an un-sanitized version of the documents if you are selected to confirm your eligibility.

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.