Contract Specialist - Federal Acquisition Service

Summary

Are you a graduating student or a recent grad? Join our Pathways Recent Graduate Program! This two-year program offers professional and technical training, mentoring and developmental opportunities.

Location of position: Positions may be filled at any of the listed duty locations.

We are currently filling 54 vacancies, but additional vacancies may be filled as needed.

Duties

This position is in the Acquisition Talent Development Program (ATD), an entry-level professional career development opportunity for those interested in becoming government contracting professionals. As a Contract Specialist, you will:

• Consult with and support internal and external customers, as well as companies that have submitted offers and those currently under contract providing technical advice on contracting matters with guidance from higher graded specialists.
• Assist with the reviews and analyzing requests for procurements, revising/assisting with the scope of work, drawings or specifications as necessary with assistance from higher graded specialists.
• Performs cost and/or price proposal analyses for firm fixed price and similar contracts; reviews cost breakdowns, direct and indirect costs; identifies costs which are allowable and allocable to determine reasonableness.
• Assist with negotiating conventional modifications, determining contract cost changes, price adjustments, progress, partial, and final payments.
• Assist with preparing required documentation to explain rationale and methods used in arriving at the final/negotiated price. Assist with responses to inquiries, including formal protest, congressional inquiries, and Freedom of Information Act requests.
  
  
  

Requirements

Conditions of employment

• US Citizenship or National (Residents of American Samoa and Swains Island)
  
  
  

If selected, you must meet the following conditions:

• Current or Former Political Appointees: The Office of Personnel Management (OPM) must authorize employment offers made to current or former political appointees. If you are currently, or have been within the last 5 years, a political Schedule A, Schedule C or Non­Career SES employee in the Executive Branch, you must disclose this information to the HR Office. Failure to disclose this information could result in disciplinary action including removal from Federal Service.
• Register with the Selective Service, if you are a male born after 12/31/1959.
• Serve a two-year trial period, if required.
• Undergo and pass a background investigation (Tier 2 investigation level).
• Have your identity and work status eligibility verified if you are not a GSA employee. We will use the Department of Homeland Security’s e-Verify system for this. Any discrepancies must be resolved as a condition of continued employment.
• Signed participant agreement is required for employment under this Program.
  
  
  

Qualifications

For each job on your resume, provide:

• the exact dates you held each job (from month/year to month/year)
• number of hours per week you worked (if part time).
  
  
  

If you have volunteered your service through a National Service program (e.g., Peace Corps, Americorps), we encourage you to apply and include this experience on your resume.

This position has a positive education requirement: Applicants must submit a copy of their college or university transcript(s) and certificates by the closing date of announcements to verify qualifications. If selected, an official transcript will be required prior to appointment.

BASIC REQUIREMENT for Contract Specialist positions:

• A 4-year course of study leading to a bachelor's degree with a major in any field; OR
• At least 24 semester hours in any combination of the following fields: accounting, business, finance, law, contracts, purchasing, economics, industrial management, marketing, quantitative methods, or organization and management.
  
  
  

EXCEPTION: On January 1, 2000, you held a position in the federal service in the GS-1102 series and your position was at grades 5 through 12. You have continually held this occupational series since January 1, 2000.

The GS-07 salary range starts at $51,210 per year. Locality pay will be determined upon selection. If you are a new federal employee, your starting salary will likely be set at the Step 1 of the grade for which you are selected.

To qualify at the GS-07 level: In addition to the Basic Requirements above, all candidates must possess one year of specialized experience equivalent to the GS-5 in the Federal Service. Specialized experience is experience performing routine or developmental contracting assignments such as monitoring contractor performance for compliance with contract requirements, planning or carrying-out pre-award and/or post-award procurement actions, and resolving common procurement-related issues or problems.

OR

Superior Academic Achievement (SAA) at the baccalaureate level is fully qualifying at the GS-7 level. To claim SAA, submit documentation of one of the following:

• Class standing -- You must be in the upper third of your 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.
• Grade-point average (rounded to one decimal point) of:
• 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 your curriculum; or
• 3.5 or higher out of a possible 4.0 ("B " or better) based on the average of the required courses completed in your major field or the required courses in your major field completed during your final 2 years of the curriculum.
• Election to membership in a national scholastic honor society in one of the national scholastic honor societies listed by the Association of College Honor Societies.
  
  

OR

EDUCATION: 1 year of full-time graduate level education in one or a combination of the following fields: accounting, business, finance, law, contracts, purchasing, economics, industrial management, marketing, quantitative methods, or organization and management.

OR

COMBINATION: Combination of experience and graduate level education as described above that, when combined, fulfills the requirements.

The GS-09 salary range starts at $62,640 per year. Locality pay will be determined upon selection. If you are a new federal employee, your starting salary will likely be set at the Step 1 of the grade for which you are selected.

To qualify at the GS-09 level: In addition to the Basic Requirements above, all candidates must possess one year of specialized experience equivalent to the GS-7 in the Federal Service. Specialized experience is defined as experience performing the full range of well defined and well precedented routine and developmental contracting assignments. Procurement at this level include:

• Determine appropriate contract vehicles (i.e. purchase orders, blanket purchase agreements, etc...) to plan and carry out acquisition actions;
• Evaluating vendor offers for responsiveness;
• Identifying excessive or underestimated prices and negotiates prices;
• Responding to and resolving common acquisition issues/questions.
  
  
  

OR

EDUCATION:Master's (or equivalent graduate degree) or have completed 2 years of progressively higher graduate education leading to a Master's or equivalent degree. To be creditable, graduate education must be in one or a combination of the following fields: accounting, business, finance, law, contracts, purchasing, economics, industrial management, marketing, quantitative methods, or organization and management.

OR

COMBINATION: Combination of graduate education and specialized experience that when combined fulfills the requirements.

Additional information

Candidates will not be hired based on their race, sex, color, religion, or national origin.

Applicants are encouraged to make their resume searchable in their USAJOBS.gov profile. This will allow Federal hiring specialists and hiring managers across agencies to find their resume as part of agency recruitment campaigns or staffing searches.

If you apply to this position and are selected, we will not ask about your criminal history before you receive a conditional job offer. If you believe you were asked about your criminal history improperly, contact the agency or visit GSA's webpage.

If you are selected at a grade lower than the full performance level, you may be promoted up to that grade level without having to re-apply or compete against other applicants.

Relocation-related expenses are not approved and will be your responsibility.

Travel expenses associated with interviews maybeapproved. Determinations will be made on a case-by-case basis.

On a case-by-case basis, the following incentives may be approved:

• Recruitment incentive if you are new to the federal government
• Relocation incentive if you are a current federal employee
• Credit toward vacation leave if you are new to the federal government
  
  
  

Additional vacancies may be filled through this announcement in this or other GSA organizations within the same commuting area as needed; through other means; or not at all.

Candidates should be committed to improving the efficiency of the Federal government, passionate about the ideals of our American republic, and committed to upholding the rule of law and the United States Constitution.

Benefits





A career with the U.S. government provides employees with a comprehensive benefits package. As a federal employee, you and your family will have access to a range of benefits that are designed to make your federal career very rewarding. Opens in a new windowLearn more about federal benefits.

You will have access to many benefits including:

• Health insurance (choose from a wide range of plans)
• Life insurance coverage with several options
• Sick leave and vacation time, including 11 paid holidays per year
• Thrift Savings Plan (similar to a 401(k) plan)
• Flexible work schedules
• Transit and child care subsidies
• Flexible spending accounts
• Long-term care insurance
• Training and development
  
  
  

Eligibility for benefits depends on the type of position you hold and whether your position is full-time, part-time or intermittent. Contact the hiring agency for more information on the specific benefits offered.