Mission Support Specialist (Generalist)

Customs and Border Protection (DOHS); Edinburg (TX); On-site; USD 75,000 - 116,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Health insurance

Dental insurance

Vision insurance

Retirement plan

Flexible work schedules

Job summary

Customs and Border Protection in Edinburg, TX seeks a Mission Support Specialist (Generalist) at the GS-11/12 level to support Border Patrol missions through administrative management, program planning, and personnel actions.

The role includes implementing staffing policies, handling promotions and leave, managing fleet records, and providing high-level customer service to supervisors and external agencies. Travel up to 25% is expected, with a permanent appointment.

Qualifications

• 1 year of specialized experience equivalent to the next lower grade level.
• Developing and delivering project papers, status and staff reports, and correspondence to managers.
• Managing and administering premium pays, overtime, and leave.
• Briefing staff on budget issues and preparing narratives and data reports.
• Overseeing the local fleet card program by ordering cards, performing audits, extracting reports, reporting fraud, and processing override requests.

Responsibilities

• Implementing policies related to sector staffing and position management procedures and other matters affecting USBP administrative programs.
• Initiating timely and accurate personnel-related actions related to promotions, reassignments, transfers, retirements, awards, timecards, and leave.
• Managing inventories, fleet records, and records management and providing training in accordance with local and higher headquarters directives.
• Providing a consistently high level of professional customer service and liaison to supervisors, managers, and executives in USBP and outside agencies and organizations.

Job description

Organizational Location: This position is with the Department of Homeland Security, within U.S. Customs and Border Protection, U.S. Border Patrol, Rio Grande Valley Sector, Mission Readiness Operations, Training, Recruitment & Resiliency Unit, located in Edinburg, TX.

Salary: $74,678 – $116,362 per year

Pay scale & grade: GS 11 – 12

Promotion potential: 12

Work schedule: Full-time

Travel required: 25% or less – You may be expected to travel for this position.

Appointment type: Permanent

Occupations and job series: 0301 Miscellaneous Administration And Program

Supervisory status: No

Federal service type: Competitive Service

Represented by a union: Yes

Drug test: No

Security clearance: Not Required

Financial disclosure required: No

Announcement number: USBP-IMP-13103775-CLC

Control number: 890918500

Open To

Current federal employees of the hiring agency that posted the job announcement.

Current U.S. Customs and Border Protection employees who are currently working in a permanent competitive service position; Career Transition Assistance Plan CBP employees.

Duties

This position uses your experience in various mission support duties that fulfill the goals and objectives of U.S. Border Patrol. Apply for this exciting opportunity to strengthen the Department’s ability to protect the homeland.

This position starts at a salary of $74,678.00 (GS-11, Step 1) to $116,362.00 (GS-12, Step 10).

As a Mission Support Specialist (Generalist), you will carry out a wide variety of mission support, administrative management, and program planning activities.

Typical duties of this assignment include:

• Implementing policies related to sector staffing and position management procedures and other matters affecting USBP administrative programs.
• Initiating timely and accurate personnel-related actions related to promotions, reassignments, transfers, retirements, awards, timecards, and leave.
• Managing inventories, fleet records, and records management and providing training in accordance with local and higher headquarters directives.
• Providing a consistently high level of professional customer service and liaison to supervisors, managers, and executives in USBP and outside agencies and organizations.

GS Salary

Visit this link to view the locality pay tables by geographic area. If you do not see your geographic area listed, select the “Rest of United States” pay table. Some positions fall under a special pay rate depending on the series, grade level and location of the position. Please visit this link to view special pay rate charts.

Conditions of Employment

• You must be a U.S. Citizen to apply for this position
• Males born after 12/31/1959 must be registered with Selective Service
• Primary U.S. residency for at least three of the last five years (additional details below)
• All pre-employment processes will be conducted in English
• You may be required to pass a background investigation
• CBP follows the DHS Drug-Free Workplace Plan for drug testing procedures.
• As an employee of CBP, you will be joining a workforce that is dedicated to accomplishing our mission while maintaining the trust of our Nation by strictly adhering to all government ethics standards. Your conduct will be subject to the ethics rules applicable to all Executive Branch employees, and to CBP employees specifically, as well as the criminal conflict of interest statutes. Once you enter on duty, these rules include obtaining approval for outside employment or business activity, to ensure such employment or business activity is not prohibited and does not interfere or conflict with performance of your official duties. Please review further details via the following link.
• DHS uses E-Verify, an internet-based system, to confirm the eligibility of all newly hired employees to work in the United States. Learn more about E-Verify including your rights and responsibilities.
• Bargaining Unit: This is a bargaining unit covered position, represented under the National Border Patrol Council – NBPC. For local chapter contact information see https://bpunion.org/.

Qualifications

Experience: You qualify for the GS-11 grade level if you possess 1 year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the next lower grade level, performing duties such as:

• Creating and submitting personnel-related actions for promotions, reassignments, transfers, retirements, and awards in a timely matter.
• Developing and delivering project papers, status and staff reports, and correspondence to managers to foster understanding and acceptance of findings and recommendations.
• Managing and administering premium pays, overtime, and leave entitlements.
• Briefing staff on various budget issues and preparing narratives and data reports.
• Overseeing the local fleet card program by ordering cards, performing audits, extracting reports, reporting fraud, and processing override requests.

Experience: You qualify for the GS-12 grade level if you possess 1 year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the next lower grade level, performing duties such as:

• Performing tasks associated with creating requisitions and purchase orders to ensure budget approval.
• Calculating projections to ensure adequate funding has been allocated to cover all budgetary expenses.
• Serving as the local contract technical representative for services and acquisition contracts to include the development, coordination, and execution of pre-award and post-award contracts.
• Providing guidance on interpretation and implementation of new and revised legislation, policies, regulations and procedures.
• Developing and recommending solutions to a range of complex interrelated problems that result in overall improvement in services and processes.

NOTE: Your resume must explicitly indicate how you meet this requirement, otherwise you will be found ineligible. Please see the “Required Documents” section below for additional resume requirements.

Education Substitution

GS-11 : A Ph.D. or an equivalent doctoral degree, three full years of progressively higher-level graduate education leading to such a degree or an LL.M. degree from an accredited college or university may substitute for experience required at this level. Such education must demonstrate the knowledge, skills, and abilities necessary to do the work of the position. Check with your school to determine how many credit hours comprise two years of graduate education. If that information is not available, use 54 semester or 81 quarter hours.

Combining Education and Experience: GS-11: To combine your education and experience, you must convert each to a percentage, and then add the percentages. The combined total of your percentage of education and experience must equal at least 100% to qualify. Only graduate education in excess of the amount required for the next lower grade level may be used to qualify applicants for positions at grade GS-11 . If your education is currently described in quarter hours, convert the quarter hours into semester hours by multiplying the quarter hours by the fraction 2/3. To calculate your percentage of graduate education, divide the number of graduate semester hours by 18. To determine your percentage of qualifying experience, you must divide your total number of months of qualifying experience by the required number of months of experience. Add your percentages of education and experience.

GS-12: There is no education substitution for this GS-level.

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.

You must:

• Meet all qualification requirements, including education if applicable to this position, subject to verification at any stage of the application process; and
• Meet all applicable Time in Grade requirements (current federal employees must have served 52 weeks at the next lower grade or equivalent grade band in the federal service) by 11/09/2026.

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.

Background Investigation

U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) is a federal law enforcement agency that requires all applicants to undergo a thorough background investigation prior to employment in order to promote the agency’s core values of vigilance, service to country, and integrity. During the screening and/or background investigation process, you will be asked questions regarding any felony criminal convictions or current felony charges, the use of illegal drugs (e.g., marijuana, cocaine, heroin, LSD, methamphetamines, ecstasy), and the use of non-prescribed controlled substances including any experimentation, possession, sale, receipt, manufacture, cultivation, production, transfer, shipping, trafficking, or distribution of controlled substances. For additional information on the preemployment process, review the following link: Applicant Resources | CBP Careers

Residency

There is a residency requirement for all applicants not currently employed by CBP. Individuals are required to have physically resided in the United States or its protectorates (as declared under international law) for at least three of the last five years. If you do not meet the residency requirement and you have been physically located in a foreign location for more than two of the last five years, you may request an exception to determine if you are eligible for a residency waiver by meeting one or more of the following conditions:

• Working for the U.S. Government as a federal civilian or as a member of the military
• A dependent who was authorized to accompany a federal civilian or member of the military who was working for the U.S. government
• Participation in a study abroad program sponsored by a U.S. affiliated college or university
• Working as a contractor, intern, consultant or volunteer supporting the U.S. government

Probationary Period

All employees new to the federal government must serve a one year probationary period during the first year of his/her initial permanent federal appointment to determine fitness for continued employment. Current and former federal employees may be required to serve or complete a probationary period.

Agency Career Transition Assistance Program (CTAP) Eligibles

If you have never worked for the federal government, you are not CTAP eligible. View information about CTAP eligibility on OPM’s Career Transition Resources website. You must submit the supporting documents listed under the Required Documents section of this announcement. To be considered well qualified under CTAP, you must be rated at a minimum score of 85 for this position.

Benefits

• Health insurance
• Dental insurance
• Vision insurance
• Life insurance
• Long-term care insurance
• Retirement plan
• Thrift Savings Plan (similar to a 401(k))
• Flexible Spending Account
• Employee Assistance Program
• Personal leave days
• Paid federal holidays
• Flexible work schedules
• Tuition reimbursement
• Transportation subsidies
• Uniform allowance
• Health and wellness programs
• Fitness centers

Equal Employment Opportunity

This agency is an equal opportunity employer. We welcome applications from individuals of all backgrounds and experiences. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment, regardless of race, color, religion, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity, age, disability, veteran status, or any other protected characteristic.

Required Documents

• Your resume: A resume describing your job-related qualifications is required and will be used for the purpose of reviewing your qualifications and determining what training, if any, would be required when placed. A resume in English is required. It must contain your full legal name, address, phone number, complete work history including a detailed description of your duties, the dates you performed those duties (MM/DD/YY), your hours worked per week, job title, as well as series, grade, and salary (if applicable). For additional required items, see the link. *Note- It is recommended that you upload your resume as a PDF instead of a Word document to ensure document quality. Ensure that your uploaded resume is not a password protected document, to include Office 365 passwords. Your resume must only be two pages or less and uploaded under the document type – Resume.
• Your responses to the job questionnaire: https://apply.usastaffing.gov/ViewQuestionnaire/13103775
• Your responses to the USA Hire Competency Based Assessment
• Are you a current or former federal employee?All current and former federal employees must submit the most recent copy of their SF‑50 (Notification of Personnel Action) showing competitive status and other required documents.
• Are you qualifying based on education?Submit a copy of your college transcript (unofficial is acceptable at this time; however, official copies will be required prior to entrance on duty) or a list of coursework with hours completed provided from the institution. Do not submit transcripts as a ++PDF Portfolio++.
• Are you claiming special priority selection rights under the Agency Career Transition Assistance Program (CTAP)?Submit a separation notice; a copy of your most recent performance rating; certification that you cannot be placed after injury compensation has been terminated; OPM notification that your disability annuity has been terminated; or a Military Department of National Guard Bureau notification that you are retired under 5 U.S.C. 8337h or 8456.
• Are you a current or former political Schedule A, Schedule C, non‑career SES, or Presidential Appointee employee? Submit the necessary SF‑50s and supporting statement.
• 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.
• You may be asked to provide a copy of your recent performance appraisal and/or incentive awards.
• Due weight will be given to performance appraisals and incentive awards in merit promotion selection decisions in accordance with 5 CFR 335.103(b)(3).

Agency Contact Information

CBP Hiring Center

Phone: [phone]

Email: [e-mail]

Address: United States Border Patrol, Washington, DC 20229, US

Next Steps

The open period for this job opportunity announcement may be extended to allow for a sufficient applicant pool.

Applicants will be evaluated for this job based on how well they meet the qualifications above. All application materials, written, assessment results, and supporting documents will be reviewed in accordance with federal guidelines. The review process may include interviews and additional selection criteria administered by the hiring manager. Applicants will be notified by email after each step is completed. The agency estimates that a tentative job offer will be made within 60 days after the close of the announcement. The selected candidate may be required to complete a background investigation and sign the required forms before appointment.