Program Specialist
What you'd do
This position serves as a Program Specialist within the Oversight & Accountability Division (EDU) on the Investigations, Compliance, and Enforcement team responsible for providing administrative support and advice within an assigned portfolio in support of EDU's mission. This position reports directly to the Chief Program Oversight Officer.
Major duties
Specific duties include: Independently perform administrative and technical tasks supporting approval, compliance, and liaison activities while ensuring alignment with policies and organizational goals. Review and cross-check completed work for clarity, format, and compliance; prepare statistical and narrative reports using various software tools. Assist with memoranda, budget and narrative reports, meeting coordination, and special projects impacting administrative and program operations. Manage internal and external correspondence, track suspense dates, determine proper disposition, and respond to inquiries within administrative responsibilities. Resolve education-related inquiries from SCOs and staff, follow up on required actions, and distribute correspondence for final review. Support leadership with administrative tasks such as travel, timekeeping, and policy updates; advise staff to ensure efficient team operations. Perform HR administrative functions, maintain employee records, and ensure timely completion of personnel actions, certifications, and timekeeping. Prepare SF-52s, update organizational charts and emergency contact plans, and coordinate performance appraisal documentation. Work with HR liaison to maintain accurate employee files and prepare confidential personnel materials. Maintain calendars for required reports, assist leadership with analysis, and serve as office timekeeper. Process IT and ISO access requests for systems such as LAN, Salesforce (eFORCE), TIMS, LTS, and WEAMS, including onboarding, access updates, and account terminations. Perform other duties as assigned. Work Schedule: Monday - Friday 8:00 am - 4:30 pm Compressed/ Flexible: Not Available Telework: This position is eligible for situational (ad hoc) telework only. The selectee is required to report to the official duty station each scheduled workday. Telework may be approved only on a case-by-case basis with supervisory approval. Routine or recurring telework is not authorized for this position. Virtual: This is not a virtual position. Position Description/PD#: Program Specialist; PD42198-A Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized Financial Disclosure Report: Not Required Bargaining Unit: Yes
What you need to qualify
To qualify for this position, applicants must meet all requirements by the closing date of this announcement:07/28/2026. TIME-IN-GRADE REQUIREMENT: As a current Federal, GS employee you must meet time-in-grade requirements by the closing date of this announcement. For a GS-09 position you must have served 52 weeks at the GS-07 level. The grade may have been in any occupation, but must have been held in the Federal service. An SF-50 that shows your time-in-grade eligibility must be submitted with your application materials. If the most recent SF-50 has an effective date within the past year, it may not clearly demonstrate you possess one-year time-in-grade, as required by the announcement. In this instance, you must provide an additional SF-50 that clearly demonstrates one-year time-in-grade. MINIMUM QUALIFICATION REQUIREMENT: You may qualify based on your experience and/or education as described below: GS0-9 Grade Level: Specialized Experience: Specialized experience includes performing a wide range of administrative, technical, and program support activities requiring knowledge of federal laws, regulations, and policies related to education approvals, compliance, and liaison operations. Experience includes independently reviewing and routing correspondence; analyzing information to determine appropriate disposition; and preparing statistical, narrative, and management reports using automated systems such as Microsoft Word, Excel, and other VA applications. Coordinating with internal and external stakeholders, responding to complex inquiries and ensuring timely completion of suspense actions and reporting requirements. Additional experience includes supporting budget, meeting, and project preparation; monitoring program workflow for alignment with organizational goals; maintaining personnel records; preparing HR actions; processing system access requests; advising employees on administrative requirements; and assisting leadership on policies involving travel, timekeeping, and office operations. OR Education Substitution: You may substitute education for the required experience. To qualify based on education you must have: A master's or equivalent graduate degree in an accredited or pre-accredited college or university; or 2 full years of progressively higher level graduate education leading to such a degree; or possession of a LL.B. or J.D degree, if related. Graduate level education must demonstrate the competencies necessary to do the work of the position. Combining Education & Experience: If you do not fully meet the length of experience and education described for a specific grade level (e.g. have six months of experience and some coursework but not a degree), the two can be combined to total 100% of the requirement. Click here for more information. Volunteer Experience: 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; religions; 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. Full vs. Part-Time Employment: Full-time employment is considered to be at least 35 hours per week. Part-time experience will be credited on a pro-rated basis; when including part-time employment in your resume you must specify the average hours worked per week. Physical Requirements: The work is mostly sedentary; however, some walking and bending will be required. For more information on these qualification standards, please visit the United States Office of Personnel Management's website at http://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/classification-qualifications/general-schedule-qualification-standards/.
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