All qualifications and eligibility requirements must be met by the closing date of the announcement.
Ideal Candidate Statement
The ideal candidate for this position has experience interpreting, while typing and translating, information from dictation; experience interpreting in a legal or professional setting; transcribing from recording devices and has the ability to adapt to daily changes in their work procedures depending on the need.
Minimum Qualifications
To qualify at the GS-07 level
Applicant must have one year of specialized experience equivalent to the GS-05 grade level that has equipped the applicant with the particular knowledge, skills, and abilities to successfully perform the duties of a Language Specialist, at the GS-07 grade level.
Specialized experience includes:
- Experience in translating, transcribing and interpreting or other work requiring the use of English and Spanish; or a combination of work (that required English and Spanish) and training at the Defense Language Institute, Foreign Service Institute, or comparable training.
The following are examples of work in the required language that may have provided the required abilities: translator; transcriber; interpreter; librarian or information specialist required to make abstracts, screen, index, and scan material; intelligence; writer or editor; international organizational work, such as the Peace Corps, World Bank, United Nations, business, or other organizations; or professor, teacher, or instructor work at the high school or college level that required use of the foreign language.
This experience must be fully supported and articulated in your resume to receive consideration. Please do not cut and paste the position description, specialized experience, or assessment questionnaire from this announcement into your resume, as this will not be considered a demonstration of your qualifications for this position.
OR
Education: Must have completed at least one (1) full academic year of graduate level education (18 credit hours) or meet Superior Academic Achievement (S.A.A.) criteria. (
Note: You must attach a copy of your transcripts.)
OR
To qualify at the GS-09 level
Applicant must have one year of specialized experience equivalent to the GS-07 grade level that has equipped the applicant with the particular knowledge, skills, and abilities to successfully perform the duties of a Language Specialist at the GS-09 grade level.
Specialized experience includes:
- Experience in translating/interpreting from English and Spanish and vice versa correspondence, reports, briefings, and conversations; and
- Experience using a wide range of vocabulary in addition to the correct grammar, punctuation, and spelling to produce a more precise translation in English and Spanish and vice versa; and
- Experience transcribing/translating notes taken at informational meetings and various proceedings as well as from audio files; and
- Experience utilizing automated systems such as Outlook, Word and PowerPoint, etc. to produce a wide range of documents.
This experience must be fully supported and articulated in your resume to receive consideration. Please do not cut and paste the position description, specialized experience, or assessment questionnaire from this announcement into your resume, as this will not be considered a demonstration of your qualifications for this position.
OR
Education: Master's or equivalent graduate degree, or two full years of progressively higher-level graduate education leading to such a degree or LL.B. or J.D., if related.
(NOTE: You must submit a copy of official transcripts.)
OR
Combination of Education and Experience: A combination of education and experience may be used to qualify for this position as long as the computed percentage of the requirements is at least 100 percent.
(NOTE: You must submit a copy of official transcripts.)
For more detailed information on these qualification standards, please visit the United States Office of Personnel Management's website here.
NOTE: 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.