IT Specialist

Summary

Deliver secure and high availability infrastructure solutions supporting VA's mission. Serve as an operational service provider of foundational compute, storage, physical database, and client management components. Implement and sustain technical, management, and operational security controls and supporting processes to protect mission critical networks, systems, and applications throughout the VA enterprise. Apply today!

Duties

Diagnose and resolve customer reported system incidents, problems, and events. Analyze incident data for emerging trends. Comply with organization systems administration standard operating procedures. Maintain baseline system security according to organizational policies. Develop and document systems administration standard operating procedures. Properly document all system security implementation, operations, and maintenance activities and update as necessary. Cyber Security Code 451 - System Administrator responsible for setting up and maintaining a system or specific components of a system in adherence with organizational security policies and procedures. Cyber Security Code 411 - Technical Support responsible for providing technical support to customers who need assistance utilizing client-level hardware and software in accordance with established or approved organizational policies and processes. Cyber Security Code 461 - Systems Security Analysis responsible for developing and analyzing the integration, testing, operations, and maintenance of systems security. 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; 8am-4:30pm Compressed/Flexible: Compressed/flexible schedule available at the manager's discretion Telework: Ad hoc/situational as determined by agency policy Virtual: This is not a virtual position Position Description/PD#: IT Specialist/GS-11 PD10078A and GS-12 PD10077A Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Authorized Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized PCS Appraised Value Offer (AVO): Not Authorized Requirements

You must be a U.S. Citizen to apply for this job To be considered for this position, you must complete all required steps in the process. In addition to the application and questionnaire, this position requires an online assessment. The online assessment measures critical general competencies required to perform the job. Physical Requirements: The work is sedentary, but may involve intermediate periods of walking, bending, stooping, lifting, carrying, moving (up to 50 pounds) computer components and supplies, reaching, puling, and working at a keyboard monitor. Subject to call back outside tour of duty. You may be required to serve a probationary period Subject to background/security investigation Selected applicants will be required to complete an online onboarding process. Acceptable form(s) of identification will be required to complete pre-employment requirements (https://www.uscis.gov/i-9-central/form-i-9-acceptable-documents). Effective May 7, 2025, driver's licenses or state-issued identification cards that are not REAL ID compliant cannot be utilized as an acceptable form of identification for employment. As a condition of employment for accepting this position, you will 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 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. Qualifications

To qualify for this position, applicants must meet all requirements by the closing date of this announcement, 09/14/2026. You may qualify based on your experience and/or education as described below: GS-11 Applicants must have IT-related experience demonstrating each of the four competencies listed below at a proficiency level equivalent to the next lower grade level in federal service You must meet both the Basic Requirement and the Specialized Experience to qualify for this series as described below. Attention to Detail - Is thorough when performing work and conscientious about attending to detail. Customer Service - Works with clients and customers (that is, any individuals who use or receive the services or products that your work unit produces, including the general public, individuals who work in the agency, other agencies, or organizations outside the Government) to assess their needs, provide information or assistance, resolve their problems, or satisfy their expectations; knows about available products and services; is committed to providing quality products and services. Oral Communication - Expresses information (for example, ideas or facts) to individuals or groups effectively, taking into account the audience and nature of the information (for example, technical, sensitive, controversial); makes clear and convincing oral presentations; listens to others, attends to nonverbal cues, and responds appropriately. Problem Solving - Identifies problems; determines accuracy and relevance of information; uses sound judgment to generate and evaluate alternatives, and to make recommendations. AND Selective Placement Factor: Hands-on experience administrating Broadcom VMware and or RedHat OpenShift enterprise environments, including virtual machine provisioning, resource allocation, performance and monitoring and troubleshooting. AND Specialized Experience GS-11: You must have one year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the next lower grade GS-09 in the normal line of progression for the occupation in the organization. Examples of specialized experience would typically include, but are not limited to: assisting with Tier III technical support activities, contributing to the management and implementation of virtual server back end hardware, and gaining experience with virtual storage area networks (vSAN), hypervisor operating systems, and virtualization technologies such as ESXi, HyperConverged systems, Broadcom VMware Enterprise, RedHat OpenShift, and Windows/Unix/Linux environments. Experience may also include participation in obtaining an industry leading professional certification. OR, Education: Applicants may substitute education for the required experience. To qualify based on education for this grade level you must have a Ph.D. or equivalent doctoral degree or 3 full years of progressively higher level graduate education leading to a Ph.D. or equivalent doctoral degree. GS-12 Applicants must have IT-related experience demonstrating each of the four competencies listed below at a proficiency level equivalent to the next lower grade level in federal service You must meet both the Basic Requirement and the Specialized Experience to qualify for this series as described below. Attention to Detail - Is thorough when performing work and conscientious about attending to detail. Customer Service - Works with clients and customers (that is, any individuals who use or receive the services or products that your work unit produces, including the general public, individuals who work in the agency, other agencies, or organizations outside the Government) to assess their needs, provide information or assistance, resolve their problems, or satisfy their expectations; knows about available products and services; is committed to providing quality products and services. Oral Communication - Expresses information (for example, ideas or facts) to individuals or groups effectively, taking into account the audience and nature of the information (for example, technical, sensitive, controversial); makes clear and convincing oral presentations; listens to others, attends to nonverbal cues, and responds appropriately. Problem Solving - Identifies problems; determines accuracy and relevance of information; uses sound judgment to generate and evaluate alternatives, and to make recommendations. AND Selective Placement Factor: Hands-on experience administrating Broadcom VMware and or RedHat OpenShift enterprise environments, including virtual machine provisioning, resource allocation, performance and monitoring and troubleshooting. AND Specialized Experience GS-12: You must have one year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the next lower grade GS-11 in the normal line of progression for the occupation in the organization. Examples of specialized experience would typically include, but are not limited to: having obtained (or being in the process of obtaining) an industry leading professional certification in virtualization; possessing full Tier III technical expertise; and demonstrating a history of independently providing support, management, implementation, and optimization of virtual server back end hardware. Must possess advanced skill with virtual storage area networks (vSAN), server hypervisor operating systems, ESXi, HyperConverged systems, and enterprise virtualization platforms including Broadcom VMware Enterprise, RedHat OpenShift, and Windows/Unix/Linux virtualization. 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/.

Education

A transcript must be submitted with your application if you are basing all or part of your qualifications on education. Note: Only education or degrees recognized by the U.S. Department of Education from accredited colleges, universities, schools, or institutions may be used to qualify for Federal employment. You can verify your education here: http://ope.ed.gov/accreditation/. If you are using foreign education to meet qualification requirements, you must send a Certificate of Foreign Equivalency with your transcript in order to receive credit for that education. For further information, visit: https://sites.ed.gov/international/recognition-of-foreign-qualifications/. How You Will Be Evaluated

Your qualifications will be evaluated based on your application materials (e.g., resume, supporting documents), your responses on the application questionnaire, and your responses to all assessments required for this position. You will be assessed on the following Competencies for this position: Accountability Attention to Detail Customer Service Decision Making Flexibility Influencing/Negotiating Integrity/Honesty Interpersonal Skills Learning Reading Comprehension Reasoning Self-Management Stress Tolerance Teamwork USA Hire Assessments include a cut score based on the minimum level of required proficiency in these critical general competencies. You must meet or exceed the cut score to be considered. You will not be considered for the position if you score below the cut score or fail to complete the assessment. Your experience must be fully documented on your resume and must include job title, duties, month and year start/end dates AND hours worked per week. 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. IN DESCRIBING YOUR EXPERIENCE, PLEASE BE CLEAR AND SPECIFIC. WE WILL NOT MAKE ASSUMPTIONS REGARDING YOUR EXPERIENCE. Overstating your qualifications and/or experience in your application materials or application questionnaire may result in your removal from consideration. Cheating on the online assessment may also result in your removal from 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; 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. During the application process you may have an option to opt-in to make your resume available to hiring managers in the agency who have similar positions. Opting in does not impact your application for this announcement, nor does it guarantee further consideration for additional positions. Veterans and Transitioning Service Members: Please visit the VA for Vets site for career-search tools for Veterans seeking employment at VA, career development services for our existing Veterans, and coaching and reintegration support for military service members. Other Information

This is not a remote position. OI&T has multiple worksites at various duty locations, and the individual(s) selected may be assigned to any federal government work site. Albany, NY Anaheim, CA Atlanta, GA Aurora, CO Austin, TX Cleveland, OH Davidson, TN Denver, CO Detroit, MI Eatontown, NJ Hines, IL Houston, TX Long Beach, CA Los Angeles, CA Murfreesboro, TN Nashville, TN Orlando, FL Philadelphia, PA Pittsburgh, PA Salt Lake City, UT San Antonio, TX Shepherdstown, WV Tampa, FL Washington, DC Under the Fair Chance to Compete Act, the Department of Veterans Affairs prohibits requesting an applicant's criminal history prior to accepting a tentative job offer. For more information about the Act and the complaint process, visit Human Resources and Administration/Operations, Security, and Preparedness (HRA/OSP) at The Fair Chance Act. This job opportunity announcement may be used to fill additional vacancies. If you are unable to apply online or need an alternate method to submit documents, please reach out to the Agency Contact listed in this Job Opportunity Announcement. The Interagency Career Transition Assistance Plan (ICTAP) and Career Transition Assistance Plan (CTAP) provide eligible displaced VA competitive service employees with selection priority over other candidates for competitive service vacancies. To be qualified you must submit appropriate documentation (a copy of the agency notice, your most recent performance rating, and your most recent SF-50 noting current position, grade level, and duty location) and be found well-qualified for this vacancy. To be well-qualified: applicants must possess experience that exceeds the minimum qualifications of the position including all selective factors, and who are proficient in most of the required competencies of the job. Information about ICTAP and CTAP eligibility is on OPM's Career Transition Resources website at http://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/workforce-restructuring/employee-guide-to-career-transition/.