Job Information
Drug Enforcement Administration Foreign Administrative Support Specialist in Sydney, Australia
Summary TOUGH WORK. VITAL MISSION. Challenge yourself! You have the power to help combat drug trafficking. Be a part of DEA! It's tough work, but a vital mission. Whatever your background or expertise, your work at DEA will be tremendously rewarding because it will have a daily impact on national security and the quality of life of all Americans. This position is located in the DEA, Sydney, Australia Resident Office. Responsibilities As a Foreign Administrative Support Specialist your typical work assignments may include: Manages office budget; controls financial operations and manages accounting records. Performs accounts reconciliations. May be required to maintain imprest account. Serves as personnel liaison representative. Provides human resources advice and assistance concerning personnel actions, time and attendance, pay issues, foreign allowances, leave administration, and security clearance process. Performs procurement and property management functions to include procuring supplies and services; maintaining stock level controls; negotiating with vendors to obtain best price and warranties; and performing annual inventory of all accountable property. Obtains and manages official government vehicles, arranges for servicing, maintains vehicle usage records, prepares monthly reports, and coordinates the disposal of vehicles. ASSIGNMENT INFORMATION: Length of Tour: Employees are limited to a maximum of five years of service in an overseas assignment. The initial tour of duty for this assignment is 3 (three) years. After the initial tour of duty has been completed, extensions may be granted in one-year increments up to the five-year maximum. Employees who wish to remain on an overseas assignment in excess of the five-year maximum must request a tour extension or renewal before the end of their current assignment. Employees who are approved to extend their overseas assignment beyond the five-year maximum will forfeit the right to return to an office of preference. They will be placed in an appropriate position at a DEA domestic office where a vacancy exists. At the conclusion of an overseas tour, DEA will attempt to return employees to their home location. If such a placement is not possible, employees' office of preference lists will be considered. However, employees are reminded that assignments are determined based on the needs of DEA. Sydney, Australia Resident Office Post (Hardship) Differential* None Post (Cost of Living) Allowance* 30% Danger Pay Allowance: None Home Leave: Allowed after the initial 24 months incident to tour renewal. Housing Allowances: Housing paid for by U.S. Government, Sydnie is a furnished post. Foreign Language: None Rest & Recuperation: 2 Relocation Incentive: No Educational Allowances*: Yes, see below *Post (cost of living) allowance, post (hardship) differential, and danger pay allowance (if applicable to the advertised post) are subject to change. Detailed post (cost of living) allowance information can be found here. Detailed post (hardship) differential information can be found here. Detailed danger pay allowance information can be found here and here. Overseas Transition Preparation: Please contact DEA Family Liaison Officers Kieran Mandato (kieran.g.mandato@dea.gov) or N'Dorah Z. Walker (ndorah.z.walker@dea.gov) for Post Reports that detail living conditions for employees and their families at post. Click here for a Prospective Post Priorities Worksheet that can help you consider what is important to you and your family in the foreign PCS decision-making process. For more information regarding the foreign PCS process, please see the PCS Foreign Assignment Relocation Handbook and the Foreign Orientation Handbook. CONDITIONS OF EMPLOYMENT: Overtime may be required Individual and dependents are required to pass a physical examination given by the State Department (details available here). Requirements Conditions of Employment Qualifications GS-09: Must have one year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the GS-07 Federal grade level in assisting in performing administrative duties in support of an office, to include: researching regulations and other pertinent directives, assisting in maintaining office supplies and property management, answering general inquiries regarding leave and pay; assisting in performing routine tasks in support of the administration of a small, stable budget, such as maintaining accounts; and providing advice and assistant on administrative matters OR A master's or equivalent graduate degree; or 2 full years of progressively higher level graduate education leading to such a degree; or A LL.B. or J.D., if related; OR a combination of graduate level education and specialized experience. GS-11: Must have one year of specialized experience at least equivalent to the GS-9 level that involves providing administrative support related to coordinating and providing guidance in the areas of financial management, procurement and property management, personnel management, and vehicle management; maintaining organization files and reports; and performing other general administrative support functions; OR a Ph.D. or equivalent doctoral degree; or 3 full years of progressively higher level graduate education leading to such a degree; or LL.M., if related; OR a combination of education and specialized experience. 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. 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. 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. It is the responsibility of the applicant to ensure that the appropriate documentation is submitted prior to the closing date of this job opportunity announcement. Your resume serves as the basis for qualification determinations and must highlight your most relevant and significant experience as it relates to this job opportunity announcement. Be clear and specific when describing your work history, human resources cannot make assumptions regarding your experience. Your application will be rated based on your resume. Training Requirements: Selectees for this position must successfully complete five mandatory foreign assignment courses on DEALS: Serving Abroad for Families and Employees (SAFE); Personnel Recovery 1 (PR1); Foreign Orientation Program (FOP); Counter Threat Awareness Training (CTAT), and Promoting International Religious Freedom (PIRF). Selectees must also successfully complete Personnel Recovery Emergency Preparedness (PREP), a two week in-person course conducted by the DEA Office of Training in Stafford, Virginia and West Virginia. Selectee's family members 18 years of age and older are also required to take CTAT, and may have additional training requirements if they intend to work at an embassy abroad. More information regarding training requirements can be found here. Individual and dependents are required to pass a physical examination given by the State Department (details available here). For more information regarding the foreign PCS process, please see the PCS Foreign Assignment Relocation Handbook and the Foreign Orientation Handbook. Education *K-12 Education: Education of dependents through high school is provided by, or paid for by, the U.S. Government as allowable and authorized in accordance with appropriate regulations. The Department of State's (DOS) Regional Education Officers from the Office of Overseas Schools determines a school's adequacy level based upon numerous factors. All questions and concerns regarding adequacy clarification should be directed to the Regional Education Officers from the DOS Office of Overseas Schools at 202-261-8200 or OverseasSchools@state.gov. Do you have a student in your family who benefits from special education services? Please contact DEA Family Liaison Officers, information below, to further discuss your student's needs and the post's ability to adequately serve them. Detailed education allowance regulations can be found here and FAQs can be found here. Note that dependents under the age of 23 enrolled in college are allowed one round trip to overseas locations every 12 months. This position requires specific coursework and/or a degree to meet the basic education requirement. You must submit an official transcript, unofficial transcript, or a list including courses, grades earned, completion dates, and quarter and semester hours earned. Your transcript(s) must clearly demonstrate the course(s) listed in the qualification requirement section. If the transcript(s) does not clearly demonstrate this you must submit a copy of the course description and/or other documentation demonstrating that the courses are equivalent. If you are claiming education as any part of your qualifications for this position, you must submit an official transcript, unofficial transcript, or a list including courses, grades earned, completion dates, and quarter and semester hours earned. Special Instructions for Foreign Education: If you are using education completed in foreign colleges or universities to meet the qualification requirements, you must show that the 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. Failure to provide such documentation with your application will result in lost consideration. For further information, visit: https://sites.ed.gov/international/recognition-of-foreign-qualifications/. Additional Information For reasonable accommodation at the Drug Enforcement Administration, please contact the Human Resources office listed in this announcement. Current or Former Political Appointees: The Office of Personnel Management (OPM) must authorize employment offers made to current or former political appointees. If an applicant is currently, or has been within the last 5 years, a political Schedule A, Schedule C, Non-career SES or Presidential Appointee employee in the Executive Branch, applicants must disclose this information to the Human Resources Office listed in this announcement. Multiple positions may be filled from this announcement. If eligible, applicants to this announcement may be referred to similar positions in any Division/Office listed in this announcement. Telework eligibility and security clearance requirements may vary for such similar positions. Relocation Incentives may be considered and approved if the DEA has determined that the position is likely to be difficult to fill in the absence of an incentive and funding for such an incentive is available. If eligible, telework and/or remote work agreements may be permitted with supervisory approval. Please note that any approved remote work arrangement is subject to the locality pay area of the alternative telework worksite.