Program Analyst (Open to both U.S. Citizens and Federal Employees) (GS-12/13)

Summary

As a Program Analyst in the Complaints Adjudication and Program Evaluation Division reporting to the Division Director, this role is responsible for providing comprehensive support to stakeholders, conducting long-term strategic planning, performance management, and business process redesign. The role assists in civil rights program evaluation, case tracking, and quality control to ensure regulatory compliance, while supporting the Director on diverse operational and compliance initiatives.

Duties

The Program Analyst: Conducts required data entry activities, and tracks and monitors adjudication activities for the Division to ensure regulatory deadlines are met in accordance with the governing regulations and procedures; specifically, 29 C.F.R. Part 1614, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission Management Directive 110, the Division's FAD contract Statement of Work, and internal processing procedures. Performs data quality control and database administration work to support data accuracy and information quality controls. Supports data quality and integrity initiatives by establishing quality control measurements and reports for the Division. Responsible for the preparation of the Division's recurring reports, and for the Division's external communications, and project management requirements. Serves as a liaison to customers and stakeholders, gaining an understanding of needs at the Division level that will impact the development of programs, systems, data gathering methodologies, and related initiatives. Works with Information Technology, Business Operations, and Compliance staff to ensure data captured within the Department's EEO tracking databases is complete and accurate. Assists with designing, selecting, maintaining, and/or administering various components of these databases. Utilizes knowledge of federal programs and the EEO complaint process, as well as qualitative and quantitative analysis skills, in supporting the development of programs, systems, training and other activities. Coordinates the processing and disposition of EEO complaints ripe for a FAD by the Department. Reviews FADs and assists in ensuring accurate decision making, including proper application of case evidence, current case law, regulations, legal citations, and DOT policies and procedures, as necessary to produce a neutral, thorough, legally sufficient decision on behalf of the Department. The ideal candidate for this position is a highly analytical, collaborative professional who possesses a strong background in federal regulatory compliance, contract administration, and stakeholder management. They have demonstrated experience auditing complex case files, tracking metrics, and evaluating programmatic workflows against strict federal regulations to ensure absolute legal sufficiency and information quality. Additionally, the ideal candidate is an experienced, FAC-C certified (or certifiable) Contracting Officer's Representative (COR) who can expertly manage the technical execution of contract deliverables, author Statements of Work (SOWs), and strictly monitor contractor performance.

Qualifications

To meet the minimum qualifications for this position, you must meet the specialized experience qualifications for the grade at which you are requesting consideration. To qualify for the Grade 12, you must have at least one year of experience equal or equivalent to the GS-11 it must include: Experience reviewing case evidence and administrative decisions regarding Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO) processes to ensure adherence to federal regulatory frameworks, legal citations, and agency policies. Experience serving as a Contracting Officer's Representative (COR) to technically administer, inspect, and evaluate contractor performance against defined Statements of Work (SOW). Experience collaborating with internal and external stakeholders in unstructured settings to negotiate solutions, resolve conflicts, and persuade leadership to implement program audit findings. To qualify for the Grade 13, you must have at least one year of experience equal or equivalent to the GS-12, it must include: Experience designing, implementing, and overseeing data quality control and database administration frameworks to ensure information accuracy across multiple large organizational divisions. Experience conducting legal sufficiency reviews of administrative decisions to ensure accurate application of federal case evidence, case law, statutory regulations, and Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO) agency policies. Experience serving as a primary Contracting Officer's Representative (COR) to regulate, inspect, and provide authoritative technical direction for critical, large-scale service contracts. KNOWLEDGE, SKILLS AND ABILITIES (KSAs): Your qualifications will be evaluated on the basis of your level of knowledge, skills, abilities and/or competencies in the following areas: Legal, Government, and Jurisprudence Compliance Inspection Influencing/Negotiating For all types of consideration, 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. For additional information about applying to Federal positions, please click on the following link: https://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/classification-qualifications/general-schedule-qualification-policies/#url=e4 All applicants must meet all qualification requirements by the closing date of this announcement.

Requirements

CONDITIONS OF EMPLOYMENT: As a condition of employment for accepting this position, you may be required to serve a 1-year probationary period during which we will evaluate your fitness and whether your continued employment advances the public interest. In determining if your employment advances the public interest, we may consider: your performance and conduct; the needs and interests of the agency; whether your continued employment would advance the 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 probationary period, your employment will be terminated unless you receive certification, in writing, that your continued employment advances the public interest. SELECTIVE SERVICE: Males born after 12/31/1959 must be registered for the Selective Service. GOVERNMENT TRAVEL CARD: This position involves travel. A government contractor-issued travel card will be issued and must be retained for official business only. BACKGROUND INVESTIGATION: A background security investigation is required for all selected individuals. Appointment will be subject to the applicant's successful completion of the security investigation and favorable adjudication. Failure to meet these requirements will be grounds for termination. PROBATIONARY PERIOD: You must complete a one-year probationary period (unless already completed). TIME-IN-GRADE: Federal applicants must have served 52 weeks at the next lower grade in the competitive or excepted service in the executive branch to satisfy time-in-grade restrictions contained in 5 CFR 300, Subpart F. See other information for additional instructions. DEU REQUIREMENTS: Applicants selected under delegated examining procedures may be required to successfully complete a one-year probationary period (unless already completed).

Key requirements

You must be a U.S. Citizen or U.S National. You must meet specialized experience to qualify. Required documents must be submitted by the closing date. Submit application and resume online by 11:59 PM EST on the closing date.

How you will be evaluated

DESCRIBING YOUR EXPERIENCE: Please be clear and specific when describing your experience, as HR evaluates applications strictly on the facts provided and will not make assumptions. To receive full credit, your narrative responses must be written in paragraph format and explicitly match your resume. Begin each response by listing the exact position title, organization, employment dates (MM/YYYY–MM/YYYY), full- or part-time status, average weekly hours, and federal series/grade (if applicable). Within the body of the paragraph, clearly describe your specific duties, actions taken, tools used, and measurable outcomes. HR will cross-check these details against your resume; if your resume does not fully support every claim and timeframe, the experience will not be considered for credit, which may result in an ineligible determination. Eligible Federal employees also seeking consideration for non-competitive reassignment for this position must indicate interest and must have competitive status on a SF-50, meet minimum qualifications, served at the same grade or higher, or held or exceeded the promotion potential of this position. All applicants: Your application will be reviewed in two phases to determine how you move forward in the hiring process. Phase I: Your resume will be reviewed to determine your technical qualifications for this position based on the required specialized experience. ONLY two (2) pages of your resume will be reviewed. Additional information beyond your resume (e.g., cover letter, links embedded in your resume) will not be reviewed. Applicants passing “Phase I” will move on to the “Phase II” of the assessment process where your application will be reviewed and rated based on the KSAs/Competencies listed in the vacancy announcement by a Subject Matter Expert (SME). You may preview questions for this vacancy.

How to apply

To be considered, you must submit all required resume details and applicable documents no later than 11:59 (EST) on the closing date of the announcement. Note: Uploading documents to USAJobs does not automatically attach them to this application. You must review and verify that all files are successfully transferred to our system before final submission. Late or incomplete applications will be disqualified. To begin, click the "Apply Online" button on the job announcement posting. Follow the directions to register, submit all required documents and complete the assessment questionnaire. You may review your saved application(s) at https://help.usajobs.gov/ If you are having difficulty applying online, please contact the DOT Automated Staffing Office via email at: Transjobs@dot.gov

Other information

The Fair Chance to Compete for Jobs Act prohibits the Department of Transportation and its Operating Administrations from requesting an applicant's criminal history record before that individual receives a conditional offer of employment. In accordance with 5 U.S. Code § 9202(c) and 5 C.F.R § 920.201 certain positions are exempt from the provisions of the Fair Chance to Compete Act. Applicants who believe they have been subjected to a violation of the Fair Chance to Compete for Jobs Act, may submit a written complaint to the Department of Transportation by email at, FairChanceAct@dot.gov. To learn more, please visit our page at: The Fair Chance to Compete Act | US Department of Transportation CURRENT OR FORMER FEDERAL APPLICANTS: Submit SF-50 documentation proving your highest competitive grade, federal eligibility, and 52-week time-in-grade requirement. To pass HR validation, it's recommended to combine and upload these into a single PDF: Start Date: The SF-50 showing when you were originally appointed or promoted to the qualifying grade. End Date: An SF-50 dated at least 52 weeks later (e.g., a Within-Grade Increase, promotion, or subsequent action) to prove a sequential 52-week period. Warning on Incomplete Documentation: Do not submit an award or current-year annual pay adjustment SF-50 by itself. These do not prove your original entry date or grade. If your documents fail to conclusively prove a full 52-week history, you will be rated Ineligible. This announcement may be used to fill additional positions if similar vacancies occur within 90 days of the issue date of the referral certificate.