Summary
This position is in the U.S. Department of Education (ED), Federal Student Aid (FSA), Chief Technology Office (CTO), Technology Operations Division (TOD). The Technology Operations Division provides information technology operations services for all FSA systems, promoting the effective and secure use of technology to achieve FSA's strategic objectives through sound planning, investments, integrated technology architectures and standards, production support, and cybersecurity services.
Duties
APPLICATION LIMIT: This vacancy announcement is limited to the first 200 applications received and will close at 11:59PM Eastern Time on the day that we receive the 200th application, or at 11:59PM Eastern Time on the listed closing date, whichever occurs first. We encourage you to read this entire vacancy announcement prior to submitting your application. This position is eligible for Remote/Virtual work. However, this position may fall under the Presidential Memorandum titled "Return to In-Person Work" which will require you to go into the office if you are located within 200 miles of a Department of Education facility in these locations: Washington, DC, Dallas, TX, San Francisco, CA, Seattle, WA, Kansas City, MO, Chicago, Il, Atlanta, GA, Philadelphia, PA, and New York City, NY,. Actual salary will be based on location of selectee. Locality pay tables available at www.opm.gov. As a IT Specialist 'End User SME' GS-2210-15, you will be responsible for: Conducting research on network products, services, protocols and standards to remain abreast of developments in the networking industry. Communicating complex technical requirements to non-technical personnel; and preparing and presenting briefings to senior management officials on complex and controversial issues. Providing network and security support for the Department's information and communication's technology infrastructure for voice, mobility, video, and data services across the enterprise, including technologies such as Software Defined Wide Area Network (SD-WAN), Local Area Network (LAN) and Wireless LAN topologies, Zero Trust Architecture (ZTA), Secure Access Service Edge (SASE), and Internet Protocol Version IPv4 and IPv6. Developing and maintaining plans to support the development of security measures, mitigation of controls for boundary defense, incident response planning. Ensuring that the network solution complies with Federal and Department requirements to include, but not limited, baseline secure configuration, network security hardening, network security monitoring, network encryption, redundant connections, optimized network configuration, right sizing network bandwidth, Managed Trusted Internet Protocol Service/Trusted Internet Connections, and integration of cloud hosting providers to the network infrastructure.
Requirements
The U.S. Department of Education (ED) has interagency agreements (IAAs) with other agencies to ensure efficient delivery of funded programs and activities and move closer to fulfilling the President's promise to return education to the states. Employees may receive detail assignments to these agencies in support of the IAAs. Condition of Employment: As a condition of employment for accepting this position, you may be required to serve a probationary period or trial period during which we will evaluate your fitness and whether your continued employment advances the public interest. In determining if your employment advances the public interest, we may consider: - your performance and conduct; - the needs and interests of the agency; - whether your continued employment would advance organizational goals of the agency or the Government; and - whether your continued employment would advance the efficiency of the Federal service. Upon completion of your probationary period OR trial period your employment will be terminated unless you receive certification, in writing, that your continued employment advances the public interest. Key Requirement - Relocation will not be paid. Key Requirement - Males 18 and over must be registered with the Selective Service. Key Requirement - Must be a US Citizen Key Requirement - Must complete a Background Investigation and Fingerprint check. Key Requirement - This position is subject to drug testing. Key Requirement - You may be subject to serve a one-year probationary period.
Education
Education cannot be substituted for experience for this position and grade level. Foreign Education: Education completed in foreign colleges or universities may be used to meet education requirements if you can show that the foreign education is comparable to that received in an accredited educational institution in the United States. It is your responsibility to provide such evidence when applying. If you are using foreign education to meet qualification requirements, you must submit a Certificate of Foreign Equivalency with your transcript in order to receive credit for that education. For further information, please click Foreign Education.
How you will be evaluated
We use a multi-step process to review and evaluate applicants: 1. Eligibility and Minimum Qualifications Once the vacancy announcement closes, we will review your submitted resume and documents to determine if you meet the eligibility and minimum qualification requirements, including any required education, experience, and/or selective placement factors. You will be rated as ineligible if you are outside of the area of consideration (i.e., who may apply) or your application is missing any required documents. You will be rated as not qualified if you do not possess the minimum qualification requirements. 2. Rating and Ranking If you are found to meet both the eligibility and minimum qualification requirements, we will assess the quality of your experience and the extent to which you possess the required KSAs by comparing your submitted resume and supporting documentation. You will be evaluated based on how well you meet the qualifications and competencies listed in this vacancy announcement (if applicable). Your qualifications will be evaluated based on your application materials (e.g., resume, supporting documents), and the result of the USA Hire Assessment(s) (if applicable) required for this position. You will be assessed on the following competencies (knowledge, skills, abilities, and other characteristics): Non-Supervisory: Accountability, Attention to Detail, Customer Service, Decision Making, Flexibility, Influencing/Negotiating, Integrity/Honesty, Interpersonal Skills, Learning, Reading Comprehension, Reasoning, Self-Management, Stress Tolerance, and Teamwork Based on the outcome of this evaluation, your application data may be further assessed by a Subject Matter Expert (SME) panel. If your qualifications are not substantiated by your submitted resume, you may be eliminated from receiving further consideration. 3. Referral and Selection If you are found to be amongst the most highly qualified applicants, you will be referred to the selecting official. As part of the assessment and selection process, the selecting official may invite you to participate in a structured interview, check your references, and/or request that you submit a writing sample or complete a written assessment or exercise to further evaluate your qualifications for this position.