Accountant (Recent Grads) GS-9
Overview
- Open & closing dates
06/11/2024 to 06/25/2024
- Salary
$68,405 - $88,926 per year
First time hires to the federal government typically start at the beginning salary in the range for their respective grade level.
- Pay scale & grade
GS 9
- Location
1 vacancy in the following location: Sterling, VA
- Remote job
No
- Telework eligible (hybrid)
Yes—as determined by the agency policy.
- Travel Required
Occasional travel - You may be expected to travel for site visits, meetings, training, and conferences.
- Relocation expenses reimbursed
No
- Appointment type
Permanent
- Work schedule
Full-time
- Service
Excepted
- Promotion potential
12
- Job family (Series)
Accountant (Recent Grads)
DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
Bureau of Ocean Energy Management
Office of Budget and Administration, Budget Branch
Summary
This opportunity is open to applicants who within two years of the closing date of this announcement have a qualifying associates, bachelors, masters, professional, doctorate, vocational or technical degree or certificate from a qualifying educational institution.
This job is open to
Duties
This position is in the Department of the Interior, Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, Office of the Director, Office of Budget and Administration, Budget Branch, duty stationed in Sterling, VA.
At the full performance level (GS-12) the major duties of this position include but are not limited to the following:
1. Plans and conducts accounting/financial management studies that involve analysis of complex, interrelated administrative processes (e.g., budgetary, accounting, and procurement management functions); develops innovative recommendations for eliminating problems or improving the operation under study and writes reports that document findings and recommendations; reviews and evaluates accounting/financial systems for effectiveness of internal controls and integrity of the organization's financial information.
2. Prepares external accounting/budgetary management reports, statements, supporting schedules, justifications, and related documentation as required by OMB, Treasury, and/or the Department of the Interior to ensure data consistency and integrity.
3. Reviews and analyzes the effect of new or revised regulatory changes; develops accounting management reporting procedures; reviews accounting management policies, practices, techniques, and procedures that guide primary office financial work; identifies those guidelines that are in need of revision and develops recommendations for changes; and analyzes the impact of changes.
4. Provides and implements solutions to correct internal control and reporting weaknesses. Reviews and analyzes financial reports generated by the accounting/financial system and determines compatibility of each with plans, prior month status, other relevant reports, and the general ledger.
5. Identifies problems and discrepancies by determining if adjustments or corrections are required and takes necessary action to correct and produce reports.
The Bureau of Ocean Energy Management has determined that the duties of this position are suitable for telework and the selectee may be allowed to telework with supervisor approval.
Salary Range Information (per annum):
GS-09: $68,405 - $88,926
First time hires to the federal government typically start at the beginning salary in the range for their respective grade level.
Duration of Appointment / Job Status: This is a 1-year appointment in the excepted service. Recent Graduates may be converted to a permanent position upon completion of the Pathways Recent Graduate Program.
Requirements
Conditions of Employment
- U.S. Citizenship required.
- Appointment subject to background investigation and favorable adjudication.
- Meet Selective Service Registration Act requirement for males.
- Complete the initial online assessment and USAHire Assessment, if required.
- Selectee will be required to participate in the Direct Deposit Electronics Funds Transfer Program.
Recent Graduate Program Requirements:
- Students MUST submit transcripts with conferred or degree earned date (unofficial transcripts are acceptable). If selected, official transcripts will be required.
- An Individual Development Plan (IDP) will be completed within 45 days of appointment to track the Recent Graduates' career planning, professional development, and training activities.
- Selectee will be required to sign Recent Graduates Participant Agreement.
- Within the first year of employment, the incumbent will be provided a minimum of 40 formal hours of training.
- The incumbent will be assigned a mentor within 90 days of appointment
Qualifications
To be eligible for this Recent Graduates Program ALL of the following requirements must be met:
1. You must provide a resume.
2. You have a qualifying associates, bachelors, masters, professional, doctorate, vocational or technical degree or certificate from a qualifying educational institution within two years of the closing date of this announcement. The two year eligibility will be extended for veterans who were precluded from applying within the two year eligibility period following graduation due to a military service obligation. In such cases, veterans will have up to six years from the date of discharge or release from active duty to apply.
3. You graduated by way of good academic standing (Grade Point Average/G.P.A. of at least a 2.0).
4. You must provide a transcript (official or unofficial) showing your degree was conferred (An official transcript may be requested at the time of appointment).
Pathways Participant Agreement: All Recent Graduates are required to sign the Pathways Program Participant Agreement which outlines program requirements and noncompetitive conversion eligibility.
Click https://www.usajobs.gov/Help/working-in-government/unique-hiring-paths/students/ for more information on Pathways program participants.
To be eligible for conversion to a permanent or term position, Recent Graduates must have:
- Successfully completed at least 1-year of continuous service in addition to all requirements of the Program.
- Demonstrated successful job performance.
- Met the Office of Personnel Management's qualifications for the position to which the Recent Graduate will be converted.
Minimum Qualification Requirements:
In addition to meeting the criteria above, to qualify for this position you must meet the (1) Basic Educational Requirements AND (2) Specialized Experience and/or Education.
(1) Basic Educational Requirements:
To meet the basic qualification requirements for this position, you must have:
A. 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-
B. 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:
- 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;
- 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
- 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.
NOTE: You are required to submit a copy of your unofficial or official transcripts with your application package in order to verify that you meet the basic educational requirements for this position. Failure to provide this information will result in your receiving an "INELIGIBLE" rating.
In addition to meeting the educational requirement above ALL applicants are required to meet the additional qualification requirements below for the grade with which they are applying.
(2) Specialized Experience:
To qualify for the GS-09 grade level applicants must meet A, B, or C defined below.
To qualify for the GS-09, you must possess at least one full year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the GS-07 grade level in the Federal service, or comparable experience not gained through Federal service. Specialized experience is experience that equipped the applicant with the particular knowledge, skills, and abilities to perform successfully the duties of the position, and that is typically in or related to the work of the position to be filled. Specialized experience is defined as demonstrated experience:
1. Performing reconciliation activities within enterprise resource planning software(s) for budgeting, finance, and/or reporting needs.
2. Examining accounting processes or systems in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles.
3. Verifying the accuracy of accounting/budgetary/financial data or transactions within an enterprise resource planning database.
Must meet 2 of 3 statements defined above.
-OR-
B. Education:
Completion of 2 full years of progressively higher level graduate education leading to a master's degree or master's or equivalent graduate degree in a field related to the position to be filled.
-OR-
C. Combination of Specialized Experience and Education: A qualifying combination of specialized experience and post-baccalaureate education that totals 100% of the requirement.
All qualifications must be met by the closing date of this announcement-06/18/2024-unless otherwise stated in this vacancy announcement.
Credit will be given for all appropriate qualifying experience. To receive credit for experience, your resume MUST clearly indicate the nature of the duties and responsibilities for each position, starting and ending dates of employment (month/year), and the resume must reflect full and/or part-time or total number of hours worked (i.e., work 40+ hours a week, rather than indicating full-time). If part-time, the hours must be annotated to be able to pro-rate the amount qualified specialized experience.
Note: Applicants qualifying based in whole or part on education are required to provide transcripts (unofficial) as proof of meeting the requirements. Failure to provide the documents will result in you receiving an INELIGIBLE rating.
Volunteer Experience: 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; religious; 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.
Education
To qualify based on education, you must submit a legible copy of transcripts from an accredited institution with your name, school name, credit hours, course level, major(s), and grade-point average or class ranking. Transcripts do not need to be official, but if you are selected for this position and you used your education to qualify, you must provide official transcripts before you begin work.
You will NOT be considered under Pathways unless you provide supporting information from your school. Documentation may be provided in letter format from your academic advisor, school counselor, admission office, etc. to prove enrollment OR it may be provided in the form of several official documents from your school such as a copy of your official transcripts and a copy of your class schedule for next semester. Copies of documents from your school website are acceptable if they contain all relevant information as listed above. Letters from advisors or other school officials must be on school letterhead.
If you are using education completed in foreign colleges or universities to meet qualification requirements, you must show that your education credentials have been evaluated by a private organization that specializes in interpretation of foreign education programs and such education has been deemed equivalent to that gained in an accredited U.S. education program; or full credit has been given for the courses at a U.S. accredited college or university.
Additional information
A selectee receiving a first appointment to the Federal Government (Civil Service) is entitled only to the lowest step of the grade for which selected. The display of a salary range on this vacancy shall not be construed as granting an entitlement to a higher rate of pay.
This announcement may be used to fill additional positions if identical vacancies occur within 90 days of the issue date of the referral certificate.
Promotion to the full performance level is neither guaranteed nor implied and will be based solely on your ability to satisfactorily perform the work of the position, existing work at the higher grade level, and recommendation by the position's supervisor.
If selected, you will be required to sign a Pathways Agreement which specifies the conditions of your employment as we've indicated in this job announcement. You must continue to meet the Pathways Program requirements throughout the duration of your appointment. To verify that you do, we will require proof of your continued enrollment and good standing each semester or grading period throughout your internship. Failure to do so will result in termination of your internship and employment.
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 here: https://help.usastaffing.gov/Apply/index.php?title=Reasonable_Accommodations_for_USA_Hire
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.
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.
How You Will Be Evaluated
You will be evaluated for this job based on how well you meet the qualifications above.
A review of your resume and supporting documentation will be made and compared against your responses to the Assessment Questionnaire to determine if you are qualified for this job. If your resume is incomplete or does not support the responses provided in the Assessment Questionnaire, or if you fail to submit all required documentation, you will be rated 'ineligible', 'not qualified', or your score will be adjusted accordingly. If a determination is made that you have inflated your qualifications or experience, you can lose consideration for this position. Please follow all instructions carefully; errors or omissions can affect your rating.
You will be evaluated based on how well you meet the qualifications listed in this vacancy announcement. Your qualifications will be evaluated based on your application materials (e.g., resume, supporting documents), your responses on the application questionnaire, and your responses to all assessments required for this position. You will be assessed on the following competencies (knowledge, skills, abilities, and other characteristics):
- Accountability
- Arithmetic/Mathematical Reasoning
- Attention to Detail
- Customer Service
- Decision Making
- Flexibility
- Integrity/Honesty
- Interpersonal Skills
- Learning
- Reasoning
- Self-Management
- Stress Tolerance
- Teamwork
The USA Hire Assessment includes a cut score based on the minimum level of required proficiency in these critical general competencies. You must meet or exceed the cut score to be considered. You will not be considered for the position if you score below the cut score or fail to complete the assessment.
Overstating your qualifications and/or experience in your application materials or application questionnaire may result in your removal from consideration. Cheating on an assessment may also result in your removal from consideration.
To preview the application questionnaire, click the following link:
Required Documents
The following documents are required and must be submitted by 11:59 PM (EST) on 06/18/2024:
- Resume which includes a list of all significant jobs held and duties performed, with dates specified in month and year format, and, indicate hours worked per week. If military or civilian, please include your rank and/or grade.
- A complete Occupational Questionnaire
-
Other Supporting Documents, if applicable, such as:
-
Veterans Preference Documentation:
- If you are a Discharged, Non-Disabled Veteran, you must submit a copy of your DD-214 showing character of discharge (Member 4 copy), or other Documentation of Service and Separation under Honorable Conditions, as listed on the SF15. If you don't have your DD-214, you may request it after discharge from the National Archives.
- If you are a veteran within 120 days of discharge, you must submit signed documentation from the Armed Forces certifying: 1) your expected release/retirement from active duty, 2) under honorable conditions, 3) your pay grade/rank/rate at time of discharge, 4) dates of active duty service, 5) any campaign or expeditionary medals received, & 6) dated within 120 days of your separation.
- If you are a Disabled Veteran, Purple Heart Recipient, or Mother or Spouse of a Disabled or Deceased Veteran, you must submit all additional proof required by the SF15, and if applicable, a completed SF15. You may request a copy of your Department of Veterans Affairs letter from www.ebenefits.va.gov or call 1-800-827-1000 to establish proof of disability.
- If you are requesting a reasonable accommodation to the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments, submit documentation to support your request, including the Reasonable Accommodation Request Form found here.
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Veterans Preference Documentation:
- Documentation that you meet Selective Factors.
- Proof of Eligibility Documentation: College transcripts, including degree completion date.
Do not submit photographs with your application package. Documents with photographs may not be seen by hiring officials - you must remove your image from any badges, licenses, etc.
Do not upload Adobe portfolio documents. Adobe portfolio documents are not viewable by our agency's staffing offices.
If you are relying on your education to meet qualification requirements:
Education must be accredited by an accrediting institution recognized by the U.S. Department of Education in order for it to be credited towards qualifications. Therefore, provide only the attendance and/or degrees from schools accredited by accrediting institutions recognized by the U.S. Department of Education.
Failure to provide all of the required information as stated in this vacancy announcement may result in an ineligible rating or may affect the overall rating.
How to Apply
Please read the entire announcement and all the instructions before you begin an application. To apply and be considered for this position, you must complete all required questionnaires, assessments, and required documentation as specified in the How to Apply and Required Documents section. The complete application package must be submitted by 11:59 PM (ET) on the closing date of the announcement to receive consideration. You must provide documentation to support your claim for each eligibility selected. Please review the required documentation listed in the eligibilities language to ensure you submit the appropriate information. Note: You will only be marked eligible for those eligibilities that you selected and provided the appropriate supporting documentation. The application process is as follows:
- Click the Apply Online button.
- Answer the questions presented in the application and attach all necessary supporting documentation.
- Click the Submit Application button prior to 11:59 PM (ET) on the announcement closing date.
- If you are required to complete any USA Hire Assessments, you will be notified after submitting your application. The notification will be provided in your application submission screen and via email. The notification will include your unique assessment access link to the USA Hire system and the completion deadline. Additionally, in USAJOBS you can click "track this application" to return to your assessment completion notice.
- Access USA Hire using your unique assessment link. Access is granted through your USAJOBS login credentials.
- Review all instructions prior to beginning your assessments. You will have the opportunity to request a testing accommodation before beginning the assessments should you have a disability covered under the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 as amended.
- Set aside at least 3 hours to take the USA Hire assessments; however, most applicants complete the assessments in less time. If you need to stop the assessments and continue later, you can re-use your unique assessment link.
- Your responses to the USA Hire Assessments will be reused for one year (in most cases) from the date you complete an assessment. If future applications you submit require completion of the same assessments, your responses will be automatically reused.
For more general information, system requirements, reasonable accommodation information, and to request assistance regarding the USA Hire Assessments, review the following resources: https://help.usastaffing.gov/Apply/index.php?title=USA_Hire_Assessments.
To update your application, including supporting documentation: During the announcement open period, return to your USAJOBS account, find your application record, and click Edit my application. This option will no longer be available once the announcement has closed.
To view the announcement status or your application status: Click on this: https://www.usajobs.gov/Help/how-to/application/status/. Your application status page is where you can view your application status, USA Hire assessment completion status, and review your notifications sent by the hiring agency regarding your application.
Agency contact information
HR Assistant
Phone
Address
Bureau of Ocean Energy Management
45600 Woodland Road
Sterling, VA 20166
US
Next steps
Once the Occupational Questionnaire is received you will receive acknowledgement that your submission was successful. If you are among the most qualified candidates and your name is referred to the hiring official, you may be contacted directly for a possible interview. You will be notified of the status of your Application Package at the time candidates are referred for consideration, and when the selection process is complete.
To be considered for the position, you must meet all qualifications, including meeting or exceeding the cut score on the required assessments.