Program Specialist

U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs; Mather (CA); On-site; USD 60,000 - 85,000; Full time

Job summary

The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs is seeking an Administrative Specialist to support the Office of Research and Development. The role manages personnel actions, procurement, IT access, and departmental compliance to ensure policy-aligned operations across VA research programs.

Responsibilities include preparing reports, maintaining records, and supporting onboarding, training, and timekeeping. The candidate should have strong analytical skills, attention to detail, and the ability to

Qualifications

• Resume limited to 2 pages detailing relevant experience and competencies.
• Demonstrate time-in-grade requirements or equivalent education as described.
• For GS-07, 52 weeks at GS-05 in federal service required; SF-50 with time-in-grade eligibility submitted.

Responsibilities

• Manages procurement and purchasing actions, including micro-purchases and vendor coordination.
• Experience with timekeeping, payroll accuracy in VATAS or related systems.
• Administers IT access, account provisioning, and security-related tasks.
• Supports records management, retention schedules, and VA records policy compliance.
• Assists with onboarding, training, and travel procedures/authorizations.

Skills

Analytical skills

Attention to detail

Time management

Education

Master's degree or equivalent graduate degree

LL.B. or J.D. (related field)

Tools

VistA procurement

VATAS

CTRAP/Concur travel

ADPAC systems

VA travel systems

Job description

Summary

This position provides administrative support to the Office of Research and Development. The incumbent manages personnel actions - procurement - IT access - and departmental compliance. Prepares reports - maintains records - and supports onboarding - training - and timekeeping to ensure accurate - efficient - and policy-aligned operations across research programs within the department. This role requires strong analytical skills - attention to detail - and the ability to manage multiple workflows.

This position provides administrative support to the Office of Research and Development. The incumbent manages personnel actions - procurement - IT access - and departmental compliance. Prepares reports - maintains records - and supports onboarding - training - and timekeeping to ensure accurate - efficient - and policy-aligned operations across research programs within the department. This role requires strong analytical skills - attention to detail - and the ability to manage multiple workflows.

Qualifications

To qualify for this position - applicants must meet all requirements by the closing date of this announcement - 10/07/2026. 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. Resume - limited to 2-pages - detailing specialized experience and competencies as they relate to this position. For each position in your resume - you must list the start and end dates and a clear description of duties. If the position was Federal - you must also indicate the grade level. For the GS-07 position you must have served 52 weeks at the GS-05. 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. You may qualify based on your experience and/or education as described below for the GS-07 Program Specialist - position. Examples of one year Specialized Experience include: 1) Performs analytical and evaluative administrative work by collecting - reviewing - and interpreting research program data to produce accurate reports - documentation - and workflow improvements. 2) Executes procurement and budget support functions - including purchase card operations - micro-purchases - vendor coordination - VistA transactions - assists with inventory discrepancies and tracking - and maintains audit-ready financial documentation. Processes - documents and reconciles purchase card transactions while ensuring compliance with federal acquisition and agency requirements. 3) Administers IT access - account provisioning - ADPAC actions - system permissions - onboarding/offboarding setup - and troubleshooting for research users across VA systems and platforms. 4) Executed timekeeping responsibilities such as posting exceptions - validating tours of duty - and supporting supervisors in maintaining payroll accuracy in VATAS or comparable systems. OR Education: Applicants may substitute education for the required experience. To qualify based on education for this grade level you must have one full academic year of graduate-level education - with courses that demonstrate the knowledge - skills - and abilities necessary to do the work. (TRANSCRIPTS REQUIRED) OR Combination: Applicants may also combine education and experience to qualify at this level. You must have a combination of specialized experience and graduate level education beyond the first year (18 semester hours) to be creditable. To determine if you met these requirements - total your qualifying experience as a percentage of the experience required for the grade level; then determine your education as a percentage of the education required for the grade level; then add the two percentages. The total percentage must equal at least 100 percent to qualify. For the GS-09 position you must have served 52 weeks at the GS-07. 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. You may qualify based on your experience and/or education as described below: For the Program Specialist - GS-09 position - and that is typically in or related to the work of the position to be filled. To be creditable - this specialized experience must be equivalent to the grade GS-07 level in Federal service to qualify at the grade GS-09. Examples of qualifying one year Specialized Experience include: 1) Performs analytical and evaluative administrative work by collecting - reviewing - and interpreting research program data to produce accurate reports - documentation - and workflow improvements. 2) Experience serving as a Purchase Card Holder for micro-purchases; creating procurement packages; reconciling transactions; verifying invoices; conducting VistA procurement - purchase orders - assisting with inventory tracking and maintaining required financial documentation ensuring adherence to federal acquisition and agency guidelines. 3) Experience serving as an Automated Data Processing Application Coordinator (ADPAC): creating/managing user accounts and permissions; provisioning equipment and logical/physical access; liaising with OI&T to resolve access issues and ensure security compliance. 4) Experience preparing and processing travel authorizations and vouchers in CTRAP/Concur; building complete travel itineraries (air/ground/hotel) in accordance with VA travel policy; monitoring travel status. OR Education: Applicants may substitute education for the required experience. To qualify based on education for this grade level you must have master's or equivalent graduate degree or 2 full years of progressively higher level graduate education leading to such a degree or LL.B. or J.D. - if related one full academic year of graduate-level education - with courses that demonstrate the knowledge - skills - and abilities necessary to do the work. (TRANSCRIPTS REQUIRED) OR Combination: Applicants may also combine education and experience to qualify at this level. You must have a combination of specialized experience and graduate level education beyond the first year (18 semester hours) to be creditable. To determine if you met these requirements - total your qualifying experience as a percentage of the experience required for the grade level; then determine your education as a percentage of the education required for the grade level; then add the two percentages. The total percentage must equal at least 100 percent to qualify. 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 will be rated on the following Competencies for this position: Attention to Detail Customer Service Decision Making Flexibility Integrity/Honesty Interpersonal Skills Learning Reading Comprehension Reasoning Self-Management Stress Tolerance Teamwork 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. 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. 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/.

Duties

• Major Duties: Manages procurement and purchasing actions - performing micro-purchases - reconciling transactions - resolving vendor issues - completing VistA procurement steps - and maintaining audit-ready documentation
• Supports timekeeping functions by posting exceptions - validating tours of duty - resolving discrepancies - developing local SOPs - and ensuring payroll accuracy in VATAS or related systems
• Provides administrative assistance for travel procedures-preparing authorizations and vouchers - troubleshooting issues - and guiding staff through VA travel systems
• Administers IT and ADPAC-related access - account provisioning - permission management - problem resolution - and record management
• Supports records management by maintaining retention schedules - organizing shared-drive filing systems - and ensuring compliance with VA records policies
• 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 (8:00am- 4:30pm) Compressed/Flexible: Not Available Telework: This position may be authorized for telework
• Telework eligibility will be discussed during the interview process - which will be Ad Hoc only
• Virtual: This position may be authorized for Virtual Work
• Virtual Work eligibility is for current VA employees that are already subject to the return to the in-person work mandate in their current position
• Definition of Virtual Work: Employee works outside of original hiring duty station at a VA-owned or leased space
• Return to Office (RTO): RTO mandates are in effect and selectees will be required to report to in-person work unless they are approved for an exception or an exemption
• Any approval for an RTO exception - exemption - or extension will happen after a tentative job offer - but before a final job offer
• Position Description/PD#: Program Specialist/PD97992A and PD97993A Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized Critical Skills Incentive (CSI): Not Approved Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized