What are the responsibilities and job description for the Accountant position at U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs?
Summary
This position is located in the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) - Veterans Health Administration (VHA) - at the VA San Diego Healthcare System (VASDHS) in the Financial Resources Management Service (FRMS). The primary purpose of the Accountant is to provide accounting and budget support for VASDHS.
Qualifications
To qualify for this position - applicants must meet all requirements by the closing date of this announcement - 05/20/2026. 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-09 position you must have served 52 weeks at the GS-07. For a GS-11 position you must have served 52 weeks at the GS-09. 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. The Occupational Series 0510 includes an Individual Occupational Requirement (IOR). Candidates may not hold a position in this series without meeting one of the IOR requirements established by OPM. Degree: accounting; or a degree in a related field such as business administration - finance - or public administration that included or was supplemented by 24 semester hours in accounting. The 24 hours may include up to 6 hours of credit in business law. (The term "accounting" means "accounting and/or auditing" in this standard. Similarly - "accountant" should be interpreted - generally - as "accountant and/or auditor.") OR Combination of education and experience: at least 4 years of experience in accounting - or an equivalent combination of accounting experience - college-level education - and training that provided professional accounting knowledge. The applicant's background must also include one of the following: Twenty-four semester hours in accounting or auditing courses of appropriate type and quality. This can include up to 6 hours of business law; A certificate as Certified Public Accountant or a Certified Internal Auditor - obtained through written examination; or Completion of the requirements for a degree that included substantial course work in accounting or auditing - e.g. - 15 semester hours - but that does not fully satisfy the 24-semester-hour requirement of paragraph A - provided that (a) the applicant has successfully worked at the full-performance level in accounting - auditing - or a related field - e.g. - valuation engineering or financial institution examining; (b) a panel of at least two higher level professional accountants or auditors has determined that the applicant has demonstrated a good knowledge of accounting and of related and underlying fields that equals in breadth - depth - currency - and level of advancement that which is normally associated with successful completion of the 4-year course of study described in paragraph A; and (c) except for literal nonconformance to the requirement of 24 semester hours in accounting - the applicant's education - training - and experience fully meet the specified requirements. AND In addition to meeting the IOR - you may qualify based on your education/experience as described below: GS-09 Grade level: Education: 2 years of progressively higher level graduate education leading to a master's degree or master's or equivalent graduate degree OR Specialized Experience: 1 year equivalent to at least GS-07 - Specialized experience includes - but is not limited to: analyzing financial data to identify discrepancies - preparing and reviewing accounting reports - maintaining and reconciling accounts - using automated financial systems to record - track - and interpret financial transactions - ensuring compliance with federal regulations and organizational policies or ability to independently perform varied accounting duties. GS-11 Grade level: Education: 3 years of progressively higher level graduate education leading to a Ph.D. degree or Ph.D or equivalent doctoral degree OR Specialized Experience: 1 year equivalent to at least GS-09 - Specialized experience includes - but is not limited to: application of advanced accounting concepts - financial management techniques - and federal regulatory standards - independently analyzing complex financial transactions; preparing - reviewing - and interpreting financial statements - cost reports - reconciliations - audit packages or resolving accounting discrepancies. 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. Note: A full year of work is considered to be 35-40 hours of work per week. Part-time experience will be credited on the basis of time actually spent in appropriate activities. Applicants wishing to receive credit for such experience must indicate clearly the nature of their duties and responsibilities in each position and the number of hours a week spent in such employment. Physical Requirements: The work is sedentary - with no special physical demands required. However - there may be some walking - standing - bending - and carrying of light items such as papers - books - small parts - or driving and automobile. 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/.
Duties
This position is located in the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) - Veterans Health Administration (VHA) - at the VA San Diego Healthcare System (VASDHS) in the Financial Resources Management Service (FRMS). The primary purpose of the Accountant is to provide accounting and budget support for VASDHS.
Qualifications
To qualify for this position - applicants must meet all requirements by the closing date of this announcement - 05/20/2026. 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-09 position you must have served 52 weeks at the GS-07. For a GS-11 position you must have served 52 weeks at the GS-09. 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. The Occupational Series 0510 includes an Individual Occupational Requirement (IOR). Candidates may not hold a position in this series without meeting one of the IOR requirements established by OPM. Degree: accounting; or a degree in a related field such as business administration - finance - or public administration that included or was supplemented by 24 semester hours in accounting. The 24 hours may include up to 6 hours of credit in business law. (The term "accounting" means "accounting and/or auditing" in this standard. Similarly - "accountant" should be interpreted - generally - as "accountant and/or auditor.") OR Combination of education and experience: at least 4 years of experience in accounting - or an equivalent combination of accounting experience - college-level education - and training that provided professional accounting knowledge. The applicant's background must also include one of the following: Twenty-four semester hours in accounting or auditing courses of appropriate type and quality. This can include up to 6 hours of business law; A certificate as Certified Public Accountant or a Certified Internal Auditor - obtained through written examination; or Completion of the requirements for a degree that included substantial course work in accounting or auditing - e.g. - 15 semester hours - but that does not fully satisfy the 24-semester-hour requirement of paragraph A - provided that (a) the applicant has successfully worked at the full-performance level in accounting - auditing - or a related field - e.g. - valuation engineering or financial institution examining; (b) a panel of at least two higher level professional accountants or auditors has determined that the applicant has demonstrated a good knowledge of accounting and of related and underlying fields that equals in breadth - depth - currency - and level of advancement that which is normally associated with successful completion of the 4-year course of study described in paragraph A; and (c) except for literal nonconformance to the requirement of 24 semester hours in accounting - the applicant's education - training - and experience fully meet the specified requirements. AND In addition to meeting the IOR - you may qualify based on your education/experience as described below: GS-09 Grade level: Education: 2 years of progressively higher level graduate education leading to a master's degree or master's or equivalent graduate degree OR Specialized Experience: 1 year equivalent to at least GS-07 - Specialized experience includes - but is not limited to: analyzing financial data to identify discrepancies - preparing and reviewing accounting reports - maintaining and reconciling accounts - using automated financial systems to record - track - and interpret financial transactions - ensuring compliance with federal regulations and organizational policies or ability to independently perform varied accounting duties. GS-11 Grade level: Education: 3 years of progressively higher level graduate education leading to a Ph.D. degree or Ph.D or equivalent doctoral degree OR Specialized Experience: 1 year equivalent to at least GS-09 - Specialized experience includes - but is not limited to: application of advanced accounting concepts - financial management techniques - and federal regulatory standards - independently analyzing complex financial transactions; preparing - reviewing - and interpreting financial statements - cost reports - reconciliations - audit packages or resolving accounting discrepancies. 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. Note: A full year of work is considered to be 35-40 hours of work per week. Part-time experience will be credited on the basis of time actually spent in appropriate activities. Applicants wishing to receive credit for such experience must indicate clearly the nature of their duties and responsibilities in each position and the number of hours a week spent in such employment. Physical Requirements: The work is sedentary - with no special physical demands required. However - there may be some walking - standing - bending - and carrying of light items such as papers - books - small parts - or driving and automobile. 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/.
Duties
- Duties include - but not limited to: Research complex accounting and processing problems Technical liaison between the Medical Center and Austin Processing Center in solving non-routine accounting problems Reviews accounting transactions and monthly reports to ensure technical accuracy or all accounting records Analyze cost accounting reports - status of funds type reports - and other financial reports for the preparation of summary statements Prepare recurring financial reports for submission to VISN/VACO Use in-depth knowledge of the VA's Financial Management System (FMS) and various other computer systems Assist with completion of annual Fiscal Quality Assurance System audits Provide periodic technical training and development for new professional and technical staff
- Provide ongoing refresher training and education for staff Periodically update desktop procedures to align with revisions to policies and procedures Provide individual and large group instruction using well developed writing skills - verbal communication techniques Assist with preparation - planning - review - and reporting of data/statistical results of project initiatives and studies Promotion Potential: The selectee may be promoted to the full performance level without further competition when all regulatory - qualification - and performance requirements are met
- Selection at a lower grade level does not guarantee promotion to the full performance level
- Full performance is GS-11
- Work Schedule: Monday through Friday - 8:00am - 4:30am PST Virtual: This is not a virtual position
- Position Description/PD#: Accountant/PD10850A Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized Critical Skills Incentive (CSI): Not Approved Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized
Salary : $70,507 - $110,905