Secretary (OA)
What you'd do
The incumbent serves as the principal Secretary to the Medical Center Director of the VA Texas Valley Coastal Bend Health Care System. The position performs a wide range of executive administrative responsibilities including managing reports and correspondence; screening calls and visitors; coordinating the Director's calendar and meetings; maintaining filing and records systems; supporting personnel actions and timekeeping processes; and coordinating training and travel arrangements.
Major duties
As the Lead Secretary, the incumbent coordinates closely with staff at all levels of the organization to establish, improve upon and provide continuity of office operations. Upon request, informs the Director on such matters as past practice with respect to various reports, miscellaneous recurring requirements and continuing obligations, and sources from which the Director can obtain a quick explanation of various matters. Assists the Director's subordinates by relaying specific instructions and giving advice concerning procedural and administrative requirements. Reports and Correspondence: Monitors, routes, and tracks all incoming and outgoing correspondence, ensuring accuracy, completeness, and compliance with VA and VHA correspondence requirements. Screens all incoming correspondence and reports. Coordinates and assures timely completion of all reports, correspondence and personnel actions. Responsible for review and final preparation of all outgoing correspondence, reports etc. in accordance with VHA Directive 1216. Contacts other members of leadership to develop information and assemble data not readily available for use by the Director in replying to correspondence. Transcribes letters, memorandums, and reports from dictated material, voice recording, and handwritten drafts into final form. Types a variety of documents into final form, ensuring correct grammar, spelling, punctuation, format and style. Calendar and Meetings: Independently maintains the Director's enterprise calendar; prioritizes requests; deconflicts appointments; and ensures alignment with mission priorities. Tracks and documents official activities as federal records; applies NARA GRS 5.1 (Common Office Records) for calendars/appointment records; applies GRS 5.2 for transitory scheduling messages. Ensures calendar content that contains personally identifiable information (PII) is handled in accordance with the Privacy Act; prepares calendar extracts for public release when appropriate under FOIA, applying exemptions as necessary. Calls and Visitors: Screens phone calls and in-person visitors, determining priority and nature of requests prior to routing to the Director. Provides authoritative information on office procedures, meeting requirements, communication protocol, and accurate referral contacts. Ensures visitor access aligns with security and PIV/HSPD-12 credentialing procedures. Maintains confidentiality and provides customer service consistent with VA values and privacy requirements File System and Records Management: Establishes, organizes, and maintains electronic and physical filing systems for the Office of the Medical Center Director. These files must be appropriately handled, stored and destroyed in accordance with applicable federal law and records management policies. Personnel Actions and Human Resources Support: Assists in preparing, routing, and tracking personnel-related documents including: Recruitment requests and onboarding materials; Position descriptions and job analyses; Awards (Special Contribution, Time-Off, On-the-Spot, performance awards) Training and Travel: Coordinates registration, monitoring, and documentation of required training for the Director and designated staff. Maintains training records consistent with NARA GRS 2.6 retention requirements. Arranges local and long-distance travel, ensuring compliance with the Federal Travel Regulation (FTR). Work Schedule: Monday - Friday, 8:00am - 4:30pm Telework: This position may be authorized for ad-hoc telework. Telework eligibility will be discussed during the interview process. Virtual: This is not a virtual position. Position Description/PD#: Secretary (OA)/PD013330 Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized
What you need to qualify
To qualify for this position, applicants must meet all requirements by the closing date of this announcement, 07/27/2026. Time-In-Grade Requirement: Applicants who are current Federal employees and have held a GS grade any time in the past 52 weeks must also meet time-in-grade requirements by the closing date of this announcement. For a GS-08 position you must have served 52 weeks at the GS-07. 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. Note: Time-In-Grade requirements also apply to former Federal employees applying for reinstatement as well as current employees applying for Veterans Employment Opportunities Act of 1998 (VEOA) appointment. Proficiency Requirements: In addition to meeting experience or education requirements, applicants for these positions must show possession of the following skills, as appropriate. Applicants may meet these requirements by passing the appropriate performance test, presenting a certificate of proficiency from a school or other organization authorized to issue such certificates by the Office of Personnel Management local office, or by self-certifying their proficiency. Performance test results and certificates of proficiency are acceptable for 3 years. Agencies may verify proficiency skills of self-certified applicants by administering the appropriate performance test. 40 words per minute typing speed You may qualify based on your experience as described below: Specialized Experience: You must have one year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the next lower grade GS-07 in the normal line of progression for the occupation in the organization. Examples of specialized experience would typically include, but are not limited to: Comprehensive knowledge of executive-level office operations, correspondence management, timekeeping procedures, records management, and federal administrative processes; Knowledge of VA and VHA directives, standard operating procedures, and regulations governing correspondence, records, privacy, FOIA, timekeeping, personnel actions, and travel; Proficiency with office automation systems, virtual meeting platforms, manuscript editing, proofreading, and document formatting; Ability to interpret and apply administrative policies, anticipate leadership needs, and independently resolve complex administrative problems; and expert knowledge of the English language, grammar and the ability to use this knowledge in crafting executive level correspondence. For more information on these qualification standards, please visit the United States Office of Personnel Management's website at https://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/classification-qualifications/general-schedule-qualification-standards/.
Before you apply
Federal applications are different: your resume should be 3–5 pages and mirror the language of this announcement. Read our federal resume guide first — it's the #1 reason qualified people get screened out.
Don't miss the next one.
Get an email the moment a similar federal job opens — postings can close in as little as 5 days.