Student Trainee (Administration)

Farm Service Agency; United States; On-site; USD 12,000 - 18,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Paid internship

Job summary

Farm Service Agency in the United States seeks a Student Trainee (Administration) to support division operations. The role involves preparing PowerPoint briefs, drafting documents in Word, and assisting with special projects as needed.

Candidates must meet Pathways eligibility, be enrolled in an accredited program, and satisfy education and workload requirements. Location is negotiable within the Midwest Area; close date is 2026-11-17.

Qualifications

• Be enrolled or accepted for enrollment in an accredited institution.
• Half-time or more course load; Pathways eligibility must be met.
• Education credits may qualify for GS-02 to GS-04 as hours/SIS guidelines.

Responsibilities

• Assembles PowerPoint presentation packages for division briefings.
• Types and prepares documents in Word for division use.
• Assists division members with special projects related to the division.
• Supports routine office/technical work for programs.
• Works with Access and Excel to enter data, create reports, and track activities.

Skills

Microsoft Word

Microsoft Excel

PowerPoint

Data entry

Clerical skills

Education

GS-02: High School diploma or GED

GS-03: 1 full academic year post-secondary

GS-04: 2 full academic years post-secondary

Tools

Microsoft Access

MS Excel

MS Word

PowerPoint

Job description

Student Trainee (Administration) at Farm Service Agency · Department of Agriculture. Grade: 2-4. Applications close 2026-11-17.

Summary

Positions will be filled utilizing the Pathways Student Internship Authority, providing students enrolled in a variety of educational institutions, from high school to graduate level, with paid work opportunities in federal agencies while in school. Locations will be Negotiable within FSA's Midwest Area: Applicants are encouraged to communicate/negotiate location availability during the interview stage. Please see the additional information section for the states within FSA's Midwest Area.

Duties

• Assembles power point presentation packages for use in division briefings.
• Types and prepares documents in Microsoft Word that may be of use to the division.
• May assist division members with a variety of special projects pertinent to the assigned division.
• Assists in performing routine office and technical work to support the administration or operation of the programs of the assigned division. Assists division members with a variety of special projects pertinent to the assigned division.
• Works with Microsoft Access database or Excel spreadsheets to include data entry, editing and creation of reports, and monitoring and tracking of activities and efforts.

Qualifications

In order to qualify, you must meet the eligibility requirements as defined below by the closing date of the announcement. For more information on the qualifications for this position, visit the Office of Personnel Management's General Schedule Qualification Standards. Your application and resume must clearly show that you possess the experience requirements. If education is required or being used to qualify, you must submit a copy of your transcripts. Program Eligibility Requirements Applicant must meet the definition of a student that is: Be enrolled or accepted for enrollment in an accredited technical or vocational school, two-year or four-year college or university, graduate or professional school. You must be taking at least a half-time academic course load leading to a degree or certificate. A certificate program is defined as a post-secondary education, in a qualifying educational institution, equivalent to at least one academic year of full-time study that is part of an accredited college-level, technical, trade, vocational, or business school curriculum. Be planning for or pursuing a certificate or degree in, or related to, the internship opportunity being advertised. Examples of relevant educational fields for this position include but are not limited to: Business, Business Administration, Finance, Economics, Accounting, Human Resources, Information Systems, Public Administration or other business/management/administrative-related disciplines that will allow applicants to qualify for the conversion requirements listed within the vacancy announcement upon graduation. Position Qualifications: Applicants must meet position qualifications requirements as shown below at the time of appointment. The agency must be able to verify that the education was completed successfully before the applicant can be appointed. Below is the education requirement to be qualified for this position: GS-02: Completion of high school or possession of a GED diploma. GS-03: Completion of 1 full academic year of post-high school study. GS:04: Completion of 2 full academic years of post-high school study. One full academic year of undergraduate education is defined as 30 semester hours, 45 quarter hours or the equivalent as defined by the accredited college or university. One full academic year of graduate education is defined as 18 semester hours or the equivalent as defined by the accredited college or university. Conversion Information: Candidates selected from this announcement may be eligible for non-competitive conversion to a permanent position in the competitive service, provided that all terms of the Internship Program are met and there is an available position. Conversion is not mandatory or guaranteed and is at agency discretion. Pathways Interns may convert to a permanent position for which they qualify for (e.g., GS-0301) as outlined in the intern's Pathways agreement. Upon conversion to the competitive service, this position will have a career ladder up to the GS-09 full performance level. To be eligible for conversion, you must satisfactorily complete all Pathways Program requirements: Complete at least 480 hours of work experience prior to graduation; Complete all mandatory training requirements; Meet performance expectations and be recommended for conversion; Meet suitability requirements; and Meet the position's Qualification Requirements of the associated occupational series as outlined in the U.S. Office of Personnel Management, General Schedule Qualifications Standards. See the link below: https://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/classification-qualifications/general-schedule-qualification-standards/#url=0300-ndx 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 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

College Transcript: If qualifying based on education, you must submit a copy of your college transcript with course number and department (i.e., Bio 101, Math 210, etc.), course title, number of credit hours, and grade earned. If a relevant course is not clearly qualifying (e.g., special topic, seminar, research, thesis, obscure or misleading course title, etc.), please submit an official course syllabi and/or detailed course description from the university/college to ensure proper evaluation. Your education must have been successfully obtained from an accredited school, college or university recognized by the U.S. Department of Education to be credited toward qualifications. You may verify accreditation by visiting the U.S. Department of Education Database of Accredited Postsecondary Institutions and Programs website. We will verify your education accordingly. Foreign Education: You must submit verification that education completed in a foreign institution, was recognized by an accreditation body accepted by the U.S. Department of Education. You must include a Certificate of Foreign Equivalency with your transcript. There are private organizations that specialize in this evaluation and a fee is normally associated with this service. For a list of private organizations that evaluate education, visit the National Association of Credential Evaluation Services (NACES) website. Your transcripts must be in English or include an English translation. You may submit an unofficial copy of your transcript at the initial phase of the application process. However, if selected, you will be required to submit official transcripts prior to entering on duty. Please refer to the "How to Apply" section for instructions on submitting transcripts.

Additional requirements

You must be a US Citizen or US National. Males born after 12/31/1959 must be Selective Service registered or exempt. Must be in good academic standing as defined by the agency as: maintaining a minimum GPA of 2.5 or higher. Complete at least 480 hrs of work experience prior to completion of degree. Enrolled at least half-time at a qualifying educational institution. A signed participant agreement is required for employment under Pathways. Subject to satisfactory adjudication of background investigation and/or fingerprint check. If selected, you may be sent instructions on obtaining fingerprints. Please note we are unable to reimburse for any fees incurred. As a condition of employment for accepting this position, you will be required to serve a 2-year trial period depending on your appointment type, unless previous federal service is creditable. During this time your employment will be evaluated, and we may consider: your performance and conduct, the needs and interests of the agency, whether your continued employment would advance organizational goals of the agency or the Government, and whether your continued employment would advance the efficiency of the Federal service. Upon completion of your trial period your employment will be terminated unless you receive certification, in writing, that your continued employment advances the public interest. Direct Deposit: Per Public Law 104-134 all Federal employees are required to have federal payments made by direct deposit to their financial institution. Successfully pass the E-Verify employment verification check. To learn more about E-Verify, including your rights and responsibilities, visit e-verify.gov.