Location: Washington,DC, USA
Summary This position serves as a Foreign Affairs Specialist in the Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS) Integration Office. Supports the mission of the Office with a focus on international activities and the global leadership strategic initiative. Responsibilities Performs a mixture of routine and varying assignments under the limited direction of a manager, project/program manager, team leader, or more experienced technical specialist. Coordinates with the manager and more experienced foreign affairs specialists to plan time and use assigned resources to accomplish assignments. Supports the management, coordination, and preparation of programs to further the office's mission with a specific focus on the international aspects of UAS integration. This support includes, but is not limited to the following tasks: assist with coordination of a subset of UAS international work in technical/policy areas; researching U.S. and foreign aviation policies and programs; attending meetings, and supporting the wider FAA team to work with key stakeholders both within the FAA and with foreign counterparts. Facilitates FAA involvement in projects, as well as visits by foreign officials. Applies experience, knowledge, and understanding of international aviation programs to accomplish assignments. Works with subject matter experts and senior representatives to perform the following activities: (1) collects, records and analyzes data/information, as appropriate, for briefing and background papers on technical, policy and political aspects of international aviation issues, in preparation for and in support of anticipated meetings, travel, or decision-making by senior FAA officials. Arranges the necessary logistical support for such events and ensures appropriate FAA representation. (2) Develops international agreements, coordinates program requirements, and arranges for the resources (personnel, equipment, funding) required to execute agreed upon FAA responsibilities associated with international technical assistance; (3) collect, analyze, and distribute critical information and intelligence in his/her area of responsibility; (4) Assists in developing targets and initiatives for formulating FAA's international strategy. Drafts briefing materials for FAA specialists and senior officials engaged in training and technical activities; collects and records information about policies, programs, and state of aviation related to UAS. Maintains open and effective communication, cooperation, and coordination with internal and external stakeholders. Identifies, interprets and applies guidance, policy, and regulations to assigned projects. Works deliverables to completion, assists with resolving complex problems and issues, and follows schedules and milestones. Participates on project meetings and periodic reviews, involving a wide variety of stakeholders and prepares accurate and timely project status reports. Established policies/procedures provide guidance for most assignments, but allow some discretion to select the most appropriate approach. Typically receives guidance on selecting approach from a manager, project/program manager, team leader, or more experienced technical specialist. May provide recommendations to improve work processes. Frequently refers problems and work issues to a manager, project/program manager, team leader, or more experienced technical specialist when existing guidelines are not available or applicable. Work is reviewed periodically during assignments and at completion to ensure timeliness and technical compliance with the requirements of the project or other work activity. Work activities typically support the work of other employees and contribute to activities of the organizational unit. Requirements Conditions of Employment We are not accepting applications from noncitizens. Qualifications To view the complete qualification standard, applicants should reference - U.S. Office of Personnel Management the Individual Occupational Requirements for Foreign Affairs Series: Basic Requirements: Degree: major or equivalent, or a combination of courses totaling at least 24 semester hours, in international law and international relations, political science, economics, history, sociology, geography, social or cultural anthropology, law, statistics, or in the humanities; or 12 semester hours in one of the above disciplines and 12 semester hours in statistics/quantitative methods. -OR- Combination of education and experience: courses equivalent to a major, or a combination of related courses totaling at least 24 semester hours, as shown in A above, plus appropriate experience or additional education. -OR- Experience: four years of appropriate experience in one or more of the fields listed above in work associated with international organizations, problems, or other aspects of foreign affairs. To qualify for this position you must also demonstrate in your application that you possess at least one year of specialized experience equivalent to the FV-G, FG/GS-5/7/9 in the Federal Service. Specialized experience is experience that has equipped you with the particular knowledge, skills, and abilities to perform successfully the duties of the position. Specialized experience includes: Experience developing presentations, briefings, issue papers, reports, speeches and other correspondence for management's review. Experience analyzing data and preparing reports to support management level decision making. OR 3 years of progressively higher-level graduate education leading to a Ph.D. degree or Ph.D. or equivalent doctoral degree. Applicants should include examples of specialized experience in their resume. Qualifications must be met by the closing date of this vacancy announcement. Eligible applicants meeting the minimum qualification requirements and selective factor(s), if applicable, may be further evaluated on the Knowledge, Skills and Ability (KSA) listed in the announcement. Based on this evaluation, applicants will be placed in one of the following categories: score order, category grouping, or alphabetical order and referred to the selecting official for consideration. Employees must submit a copy of their most recent SF-50, Notification of Personnel Action. See Required Documents. Please ensure you answer all questions and follow all instructions carefully. Errors or omissions may impact your rating or may result in you not being considered for the job. If the selecting official decides to interview any employee on the selection list for a vacancy, then all who remain under consideration for the position at that point in the process must be interviewed. If the selection list is shortened to a best qualified list through a comparative process, then the best qualified list shall be considered to be the selection list. Education This position has a positive education requirement: Applicants must submit a copy of their college or university transcripts(s) and certificates by the closing date of announcement to verify qualifications. If selected, an official transcript will be required prior to appointment. You may upload these documents with your application in USAJOBS or fax it to fax number provided in the announcement (please include announcement number on each page). Failure to do so will result in loss of consideration. Schools must be accredited by an accrediting institution recognized by the U.S. Department of Education. Accreditation may be verified at the following website: www.ed.gov/accreditation. Foreign education must be evaluated by a private professional organization specializing in interpretation of foreign education credentials or an accredited U.S. educational institution in terms of equivalence to a degree acquired at an American college or university. A copy of the evaluation results must be included, otherwise your foreign education will not be considered. Additional Information We may use this vacancy to fill other similar vacant positions. Position may be subject to a background investigation. A one-year probationary period may be required. The U.S. Department of Transportation strives to ensure that equity, transparency, accountability, collaboration, and communication permeate all that we do for the betterment of the Department, the traveling public, and our nation. As such, DOT values a highly diverse workforce of persons who promote a culture of belonging by respecting the personal dignity and worth of each individual and fostering a positive environment where all feel safe and welcome. If these commitments coincide with your personal ideals and professional aspirations, please consider joining the DOT family. Leave Enhancement: FAA organizations may offer enhanced annual leave accrual to newly appointed or reappointed employees. In order to receive consideration for such a benefit, applicants' prior non-Federal service or active duty uniformed service must directly relate to the duties of the position to which appointed. Granting enhanced annual leave is at the sole discretion of the hiring organization, and granting such benefit is not an entitlement nor guaranteed to any newly hired employee. As a part of the Federal-Wide Hiring Reform Initiative (streamlining the hiring process), the FAA is committed to eliminating the use of the Knowledge, Skills and Ability (KSA) narratives from the initial application in the hiring process for all announcements. Therefore, as an applicant for this announcement, you are NOT required to provide a narrative response in the text box listed below each KSA. In lieu of providing a KSA narrative response in the text box listed below each KSA your work history, please include information that provides specific examples of how you meet the response level or answer you chose for each KSA. Your work history examples should be specific and clearly reflect the highest level of ability. Your KSA answers will be evaluated further to validate whether the level that you selected is appropriate based on the work history and experience you provided. Your answers may be adjusted by a Human Resource Specialist as appropriate. Links to Important Information: Locality Pay, COLA