Summary This position is located in the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), Office of The Chief Financial Officer. The primary purpose of this position is to serve as a Student Trainee (Program Specialist), GS-0399-07, within the Office of The Chief Financial Officer (OCFO), supporting office operations and serving as a liaison for the program served. Responsibilities As a STUDENT TRAINEE (PROGRAM SPECIALIST) PATHWAYS STUDENT INTERNSHIP, GS-0399-7, your typical work assignments may include the following under supervision: Perform a variety of specialized work in support of programs and functions. Conduct special studies or research projects related to specific program goals and issues. Assist management on the identification of solutions of administrative problem and issues. All DHS-HQ announcements have a 5 business day open period due to the number of applications received. This announcement will be open for 5 business days OR until the first 150 applications have been received, whichever happens first. View common definitions of terms found in this announcement: Common Definitions. Requirements Conditions of Employment Qualifications To be eligible for this internship, ALL of the following requirements must be met: Student Status: You must be enrolled or accepted for enrollment in an accredited high school, technical or vocational school, two-year or four-year college or university, graduate/professional school, or certificate program equivalent to at least one academic year of full-time study pursuant to 5 CFR 362. You must be considered in good academic standings by the school. Individuals must be taking at least a half-time academic, vocational, or technical course load leading to a degree, diploma, or certificate. "Half-time" is defined by the school in which the student is enrolled. Grade Point Average: You must have at least a 2.0 GPA, or a 3.0 GPA if enrolled in a Master's or Professional degree program. AND You must also meet all qualification requirements below: You qualify at the GS-7 grade level if you possess the following: Completion of 1 full academic year of graduate level education; OR Superior Academic Achievement and completion of a bachelor's degree. Superior Academic Achievement is defined as: A bachelor's degree with superior academic achievement, which is based on (1) class standing, (2) grade-point average, or (3) honor society membership: Class standing - Applicants must be in the upper third of the 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 (GPA.) - Applicants must have a grade-point average of: 3.0 or higher out of a possible 4.0 ("B" or better) as recorded on their official transcript, or as computed based on 4 years of education, or as computed based on courses completed during the final 2 years of the 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 the major field or the required courses in the major field completed during the final 2 years of the curriculum. Election to membership in a national scholastic honor society -- Applicants can be considered eligible based on membership in one of the national scholastic honor societies listed by the Association of College Honor Societies. Membership in a freshman honor society cannot be used to meet the requirements of this provision. An academic year is computed as follows: At the undergraduate level, successfully completed education that has not led to possession of a degree is credited based on its relationship to 120 semester hours or 180 quarter hours. For example, 30 semester hours or 45 quarter hours is comparable to 1 year of undergraduate education. Four years of progressive study or 120 semester hours meets the degree requirements. Additional credit cannot be given for duplicate course work. For study at a business or technical school, 36 weeks of study (20+ classroom hours per week) is comparable to 1 academic year above high school. An academic year of graduate education is considered to be the number of credit hours that the school attended has determined to represent 1 academic year of full-time study. This determination is made based on normal course loads for a full year of study in the graduate program. If that information cannot be obtained from the school, 18 semester hours or 27 quarter hours should be considered as satisfying the 1 year of full-time study requirement. Part-time graduate education is creditable in accordance with its relationship to a year of full-time study at the school attended. When academic credit is expressed in contract months, units, or other terms that differ from conventional semester or quarter hours, it is the responsibility of the applicant to provide an interpretation of such credits from the appropriate institution in order to equate them to the semester or quarter hours specified in the standard. NOTE: If your school's definition of "academic year" differs from above, you must submit proof of this difference (e.g., copy of course catalog that defines an academic year). Absent this documentation, you will screened for academic qualifications based on the hours defined in the bullets above. All qualifications and eligibility requirements must be met by the closing date of the announcement. 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. 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, Non-career SES or Presidential Appointee employee in the Executive Branch, you must disclose this information to the Human Resources Office. Education 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; applicant's resumes and supporting documentation should only reflect education received from schools accredited by such institutions. Applicants can verify accreditation at the following Website: https://ope.ed.gov/dapip/#/home. You must submit a copy of your transcript. An unofficial transcript or a list of courses, grades earned, completion dates, and quarter and semester hours earned can be used as a substitute for the official transcript at the time of application. Official transcripts will be required if you are selected for the position. If you are using foreign education to meet qualification requirements, you must send a Certificate of Foreign Equivalency (a U.S. private organization's interpretation that such education has been deemed at least equivalent to conventional U.S. education programs) with your transcript in order to receive credit for that education. For more information regarding evaluation of foreign education for federal employment, please visit the U.S. Department of Education webpage on the Recognition of Foreign Qualifications. Additional Information The Department of Homeland Security encourages persons with disabilities to apply, to include persons with intellectual, severe physical or psychiatric disabilities, as defined by 5 CFR 213.3102(u), and or Disabled Veterans with a compensable service-connected disability of 30 percent or more as defined by 5 CFR 315.707. Veterans, Peace Corps, VISTA volunteers, and persons with disabilities possess a wealth of unique talents, experiences, and competencies that can be invaluable to the DHS mission. If you are a member of one of these groups, you may not have to compete with the public for federal jobs. To determine your eligibility for non-competitive appointment and to understand the required documentation, click on the links above or contact the servicing Human Resources Office listed at the bottom of this announcement. Pursuant to Executive Order 12564 and DHS policy, DHS is committed to maintaining a drug-free workplace and, therefore, conducts random and other drug testing of its employees in order to ensure a safe and healthy work environment. Headquarters personnel in safety- or security-sensitive positions are subject to random drug testing and all applicants tentatively selected for employment at DHS Headquarters are subject to drug testing resulting in a negative test result. If you receive a conditional offer of employment for this position, you will be required to complete an Optional Form 306, Declaration of Federal Employment, and to sign and certify the accuracy of all information in your application, prior to entry on duty. False statements on any part of the application may result in withdrawal of offer of employment, dismissal after beginning work, fine, or imprisonment. Background Investigation: To ensure the accomplishment of our mission, DHS requires every employee to be reliable and trustworthy. To meet those standards, all selected applicants must undergo and successfully pass a background investigation for Moderate Risk as a condition of placement in this Non-Sensitive position. This review may include financial issues such as delinquency in the payment of debts, child support and/or tax obligations, as well as certain criminal offenses and illegal use or possession of drugs. This appointment may be extended until the selectee's educational program requirements have been completed. After successful completion of the program requirements, the individual may be converted to a term or permanent appointment at the agency's discretion. CONVERSION ELIGIBILITY: Interns may be converted, without a break in service, to a term, career or career conditional appointment upon completion of program requirements. To be eligible for conversion, Interns must: Be a U.S. Citizen Complete at least 640 hours of work experience acquired through the Internship Program Complete their degree or certificate requirements Meet the qualification standards for the position to which the Intern will be converted Meet agency-specific requirements as specified in the Participant's Agreement Perform their job successfully CAUTION FOR STUDENTS IN THEIR FINAL YEAR: Students that are graduating and are not subsequently enrolled in another program might not meet the work-hour requirements prior to graduation and will be at risk for not being able to convert to a career or career-conditional appointment.