Summary Incumbent of this position serves as a Personnel Security Assistant and performs security-related functions in support of a Network Personnel Suitability and Credentialing Program. The program assures that all appointees have the appropriate level of security/suitability clearance commensurate with their assignment. Incumbent serves as an assistant to the Personnel Security Specialist. Responsibilities Join the VISN 17: VA Heart of Texas Health Care Network as a Personnel Security Assistant. This position serves as the Personnel Security Assistant and is a member of the VISN 17 PERSEC Service under the Human Resources Management Service. The primary purpose of this position is to maintain the integrity of the Personnel Suitability and Personnel Identity Verification programs by providing administrative support in Personnel Security. The duties of the position include but are not limited to: PIV Badging PIV Registrar Duties: Appoint, certify, and validate the identity of the Sponsor Document and maintain a list of all appointed and certified Sponsors Identity proofing of all applicants Determine if a temporary identity badge should be issued to an applicant pending results of the background investigation Capture fingerprints of the PIV applicant Send original documents to the PIV card issuer PIV Printer & Activator Duties: Print, issue and credential PIV cards Inspect printed cards for quality and compliance Active/re-activate printed PIV card Terminate/destroy PIV cards Advanced Personnel security Assistant Duties in Suitability Utilize and maintain HR onboarding systems for new hire processing Initiate background investigation application, e-App Review e-Apps and other boarding documents for completeness & accuracy Query security data in OPM/VHA Security systems 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. Work Schedule: Monday - Friday 8:00 a.m. - 4:30 p.m.(Alternate schedules may be necessary to meet the needs of the organization) Telework: Ad-hoc telework only. Remote: This is not a remote position. Position Description/PD#: Personnel Security Assistant/PD99952S Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized Financial Disclosure Report: Not required Requirements Conditions of Employment You must be a U.S. Citizen to apply for this job To be considered for this position, you must complete all required steps in the process. In addition to the application and questionnaire, this position requires an online assessment. The online assessment measures critical general competencies required to perform the job. Physical Requirements: The work required does not inherently include any physical requirements essential for successful job performance that could not otherwise be performed with accommodation or workplace adjustment. A pre-placement physical examination is not required. Subject to background/security investigation Selected applicants will be required to complete an online onboarding process. Acceptable form(s) of identification will be required to complete pre-employment requirements (https://www.uscis.gov/i-9-central/form-i-9-acceptable-documents). Effective May 7, 2025, driver's licenses or state-issued dentification cards that are not REAL ID compliant cannot be utilized as an acceptable form of identification for employment. Participation in the seasonal influenza vaccination program is a requirement for all Department of Veterans Affairs Health Care Personnel (HCP) As a condition of employment for accepting this position, you will be required to serve a 1-year probationary period or 2-year 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, your employment will be terminated unless you receive certification, in writing, that your continued employment advances the public interest. Qualifications To qualify for this position, applicants must meet all requirements by the closing date of this announcement, 04/10/2026. 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-06 position you must have served 52 weeks at the GS-05. For a GS-07 position you must have served 52 weeks at the GS-06. 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. You may qualify based on your experience and/or education as described below: GS-5 Specialized Experience: You must have one year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the next lower grade GS-4 in the normal line of progression for the occupation in the organization. Examples of specialized experience would typically include: performing administrative tasks associated with the authorization and issuance of the PIV card, a standardized identification badge designed to increase security related with physical access to Federal facilities and networks and logical access to computer systems; working with applicants who may be experiencing difficulties with completion of electronic forms related to the background screening process and working with Recruitment and Staffing to assure required background documents are complete and accurate as per policy. ~OR~ Education: Applicants may substitute education for the required experience. To qualify based on education for this grade level you must have completed 4 years above high school. This education must have been obtained in an accredited business, secretarial or technical school, junior college, college or university. One year of full-time academic study is defined as 30 semester hours, 45 quarter hours, or the equivalent in a college or university, or at least 20 hours of classroom instruction per week for approximately 36 weeks in a business, secretarial, or technical school.(TRANSCRIPT REQUIRED) ~OR~ Combination: Applicants may also combine education and experience to qualify at this level. You must have a combination of specialized experience and education beyond the first 60 semester hours (i.e., beyond the second year) to be creditable. One full academic year of study (30 semester hours) beyond the second year is equivalent to 6 months of specialized experience. (TRANSCRIPT REQUIRED) GS-6 Specialized Experience: You must have one year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the next lower grade GS-5 in the normal line of progression for the occupation in the organization. Examples of specialized experience would typically include: reviewing position risk sensitivity levels as full assistant to the Personnel Security Specialist to ensure appropriate background investigation is initiated for specific positions; assisting in the execution of personnel security-related functions as they relate to VA subjects in Veterans Affairs Centralized Adjudication and Background Investigation System (VA-CABS); and performing minor PIV troubleshooting of the PIV System during malfunctions to resolve system issues. There is no educational substitution at GS-6 grade level. GS-7 Specialized Experience: You must have one year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the next lower grade GS-6 in the normal line of progression for the occupation in the organization. Examples of specialized experience would typically include: initiating, reviewing and releasing appointees background investigations in the Office of Personnel Management's Electronic Questionnaires for Investigations Processing (e-QIP) system or in conjunction with the VA- Adjudication Center (VA-AC) to meet OPM regulation standard; providing technical advice and guidance to employees, contractors, affiliates, and volunteers regarding matters pertaining to the PIV Program and maintaining required files related to the suitability process in accordance with OPM/agency guidelines. There is no educational substitution at GS-7 grade level. You will be rated on the following Competencies for this position: Database Management Systems Interpersonal Skills Technical Competence Compliance Audit Reporting 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. 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/. Education GS-5: A transcript must be submitted with your application if you are basing all or part of your qualifications on education. GS-6 and GS-7: There is no educational substitution at this grade level. Note: If your school has changed names, or is no longer in existence, you must provide this information in your application. Note: Only education or degrees recognized by the U.S. Department of Education from accredited colleges, universities, schools, or institutions may be used to qualify for Federal employment. You can verify your education here: http://ope.ed.gov/accreditation/. If you are using foreign education to meet qualification requirements, you must send a Certificate of Foreign Equivalency with your transcript in order to receive credit for that education. For further information, visit: https://sites.ed.gov/international/recognition-of-foreign-qualifications/. Additional Information Under the Fair Chance to Compete Act, the Department of Veterans Affairs prohibits requesting an applicant's criminal history prior to accepting a tentative job offer. For more information about the Act and the complaint process, visit Human Resources and Administration/Operations, Security, and Preparedness (HRA/OSP) at The Fair Chance Act. Reasonable Accommodation (RA) Requests: If you believe you have a disability (i.e., physical or mental), covered by the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 as amended that would interfere with completing the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments, you will be granted the opportunity to request a RA in your online application. Requests for RA for the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments and appropriate supporting documentation for RA must be received prior to starting the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments. Decisions on requests for RA are made on a case-by-case basis. If you meet the minimum qualifications of the position, after notification of the adjudication of your request, you will receive an email invitation to complete the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments, based on your adjudication decision. You must complete all assessments within 48 hours of receiving the URL to access the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments if you received the link after the close of the announcement. To determine if you need a RA, please review the Procedures for Requesting a Reasonable Accommodation for Online Assessments. Receiving Service Credit for Earning Annual (Vacation) Leave: Federal Employees earn annual leave at a rate (4, 6 or 8 hours per pay period) which is based on the number of years they have served as a Federal employee. VA may offer newly-appointed Federal employee's credit for their job-related non-federal experience or active duty uniformed military service. This credited service can be used in determining the rate at which they earn annual leave. Such credit must be requested and approved prior to the appointment date and is not guaranteed. This job opportunity announcement may be used to fill additional vacancies. The Interagency Career Transition Assistance Plan (ICTAP) and Career Transition Assistance Plan (CTAP) provide eligible displaced VA competitive service employees with selection priority over other candidates for competitive service vacancies. To be qualified you must submit appropriate documentation (a copy of the agency notice, your most recent performance rating, and your most recent SF-50 noting current position, grade level, and duty location) and be found well-qualified for this vacancy. To be well-qualified: applicants must possess experience that exceeds the minimum qualifications of the position including all selective factors, and who are proficient in most of the required competencies of the job. Information about ICTAP and CTAP eligibility is on OPM's Career Transition Resources website at http://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/workforce-restructuring/employee-guide-to-career-transition/.
