Federal

ASSISTANT DIRECTOR

Securities and Exchange Commission ยท Other Agencies and Independent Organizations
๐Ÿ“ Washington, District of Columbia SK-17 $178,500 - $292,300/yr
Posted: Apr 1, 2026 Deadline: Apr 15, 2026 (Closes in 11 days days left)

About This Position

The Division of Examinations is seeking a Supervisory Attorney Adviser in the Technology Controls Program (TCP) and will be located in one of the following locations: Chicago, IL, New York, NY, Philadelphia, PA or Washington, DC. As an Assistant Director, you will join a well-respected team that is responsible for the oversight and technology examinations of self-regulatory organizations as well as for broker-dealers, investment advisers and other SEC registrants.

Qualifications

Applicants are responsible for confirming all required materials are submitted by the closing date of the announcement. Please check the How You Will Be Evaluated and Required Documents sections carefully, as missing documents will render the application incomplete and ineligible for review. Qualifying experience may be obtained in the private or public sector.

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. Qualifying education must have been obtained from an accredited college or university recognized by the U.S. Department of Education. All qualification requirements must be met by the closing date of this announcement. BASIC REQUIREMENT: All applicants must possess the following J.D.

OR

LL.B. degree --AND-- Active membership of the bar in good standing in any state, territory of the United States, the District of Columbia, or the commonwealth of Puerto Rico. (Note: proof of bar membership will be required before entry on duty. MINIMUM QUALIFICATION REQUIREMENT:

In addition to meeting the basic requirement, applicants must also meet the minimum qualification requirement. SK-17: Applicant must have one year of specialized experience equivalent to the GS/SK-14 level. Specialized experience includes: Providing legal advice on issues related to the rules and policies of Federal securities laws and acts relating to self-regulatory exchanges, broker-dealers, or investment advisers; AND Leading a team that is responsible for deploying, supporting, auditing or examining technology solutions employed in the securities markets; AND Serving as an adviser to management concerning systems, networks, and software designs for potential security risks.

ACCOMPLISHMENT RECORD COMPETENCIES: Your Accomplishment Record narratives should address the following competencies. See the How You Will Be Evaluated section below for more information: Information Security and Operational Resiliency- Identifies non-compliance and deficiencies as it relates to an entity's information security and operational resiliency. Data Analysis - Uses data to identify possible securities violations as well as information that contributes to examinations.

Critical Thinking - Considers a variety of factors, general and subject matter-specific, when making decisions and determining next steps in a case. Teamwork and Collaboration - Interacts with internal and external others in a manner that advances examinations and SEC goals and objectives.

Major Duties

The mission of the Division of Examinations is to protect investors, ensure market integrity and support responsible capital formation through risk-focused strategies that: (1) improve compliance; (2) prevent fraud; (3) monitor risk; and (4) inform policy. The results of the Division's examinations are used by the SEC to inform rule-making initiatives, identify and monitor risks, improve industry practices and pursue misconduct. If selected, you will join a well-respected team that is responsible for supporting EXAMS' mission to conduct and coordinate technology focused examinations of Commission registrants.

As a Assistant Director, you will: Provide executive leadership and management of assigned staff and work products by maintaining and exhibiting the knowledge, insight and understanding necessary to perform technology focused exams; Direct staff to perform extensive and extremely complex technology focused examinations, work with other EXAMS' program areas, review reports and recommendations, provide guidance on novel questions and analyze industry trends; Plan and assign work, advise on program goals and objectives, make decisions on work problems and organize and monitor the flow of work to achieve the most effective results within a complex environment; and Represent the agency in high level meetings, conferences and presentations involving a wide range of participants such as regulatory or law enforcement agencies; state, local, national, or international government offices; private industry; and the academic community.

Education

You MUST provide transcripts or other documentation to support your educational claims. Unless otherwise stated: (1) official or unofficial transcripts are acceptable, or (2) you may submit a list with all your courses, grades, semester, year, and credit for the course. If you are qualifying for this position by substituting education or training for experience, you must submit a copy of your unofficial transcripts or equivalent by the closing date of the announcement.

Qualifying education must have been obtained from an accredited college or university recognized by the U.S. Department of Education. Internal Applicants: OHR will verify education qualifications for internal applicants using documents in the Electronic Official Personnel Folder (eOPF).

If required transcripts or certificates are not present in your eOPF, you will be required to provide them to OHR. If selected, a start date will not be established until official transcripts are received. FOREIGN EDUCATION: If you are using education completed in foreign colleges or universities to meet the qualification requirements, you must show the education credentials have been evaluated by a private organization that specializes in interpretation of foreign education programs.

For more information, click here.

Applicants may also find the following helpful: National Association of Credential Evaluation Services (NACES) is an association of 19 credential evaluation services with admission standards and an enforced code of good practice. Association of International Credentials Evaluators (AICE) is an association of 10 credential evaluation services with a board of advisors and an enforced code of ethics.

How You Will Be Evaluated

Your resume and application package will be reviewed to determine whether you meet the qualification requirements outlined in this announcement.

Your qualifications will be assessed through a two-step screening process: Minimum Qualifications Resume Review Accomplishment Record Review If you are found minimally qualified through the resume review, a rating panel will review your resume and Accomplishment Record narratives. Accomplishment Record narrative should clearly demonstrate your proficiency in the competencies listed in the Qualifications section. Submitting a Performance Appraisal does not fulfill the requirement for an Accomplishment Record.

Your resume must provide evidence that supports the claims made in your Accomplishment Record narratives; both documents must effectively showcase your qualifications. Each competency narrative should detail one specific, relevant example from your training or experience. Please limit each response to a maximum of 300 words, as any text beyond this limit will not be considered during the evaluation.

You will upload one document with your narrative responses addressing each of the four competencies.

Your responses must be in the below format: Competency Title Position title and dates from your resume that this experience was obtained Describe the situation (i.e., the challenged faced, the problem solved) Describe the specific actions you took State the outcome, results, or long-term impact of your accomplishment Name and email address of someone who can verify this information Basis for Rating: The rating panel will evaluate applicants' accomplishment records and resume, then place them into one of the following categories: Highly Qualified - Meets the minimum qualification requirements and has extensive skills and experience in most of the job related competencies. Well Qualified - Meets the minimum qualification requirements and has a moderate amount of skills and experience in most of the job related competencies. Qualified - Meets the minimum qualification requirements, but may have a limited amount of experience in several of the job related competencies.

Top ranked applicants will be referred to the hiring office for further review and consideration. The hiring office may directly contact recommended candidates for interview(s). When the selection is made, applicants will be sent a referral status notification and a final disposition notification.

To preview the Questionnaire, click https://apply.usastaffing.gov/ViewQuestionnaire/12925210

Additional Information

Supplementary vacancies may be filled

in addition to the number stated in this announcement and may be filled from any division or office within the agency. Salary Ranges: Chicago: $181,088 - $292,300 New York: $190,899 - $292,300 Philadelphia: $178,500 -$292,300 Washington DC: $185,350 - $292,300 SEC COMPENSATION PROGRAM: Total salary (base pay + locality) is dependent upon duty location. The overall salary range listed above is provided for informational purposes; a selectee's initial pay will be established below the maximum rate of the range.

The pay for current SEC employees will be determined according to the procedures specified in the agency's policy. Please click here for a compensation overview IMPORTANT INFORMATION FOR SURPLUS OR DISPLACED FEDERAL EMPLOYEES: Career Transition Assistance Plan (CTAP) is available to individuals who have special priority selection rights under this plan. Individuals must be minimally qualified for this position to receive consideration for special priority selection.

CTAP eligibles will be considered minimally qualified if they meet the minimum requirements for this position. Reasonable Accommodation: If you are an applicant who needs a reasonable accommodation to participate in the SEC application process due to a medical disability, please contact [email protected]. For religious-based accommodations, please contact [email protected] .

Please be sure to submit your request at least 5 business days in advance of the date you need the requested accommodation. Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO) Information for SEC Job Applicants: Federal EEO laws protect all applicants from discrimination on the following bases: race, color, religion, sex, pregnancy, national origin, political affiliation, sexual orientation, marital status, disability, genetic information, age, membership in an employee organization, retaliation, parental status, military service or other non-merit factor. Applicants who believe they have been discriminated against on any EEO basis can seek recourse through the SEC's administrative complaints process.

To be timely, an individual must enter the EEO process within 45 days from when they know (or should have known) of the alleged discrimination.

Click here for additional information. The Fair Chance Act prohibits specific inquiries concerning an applicant's criminal or credit background unless the hiring agency has made a conditional offer of employment to the applicant. An applicant may submit a complaint, or any other information, to the agency within 30 calendar days of the date of alleged non-compliance by contacting the Legal and Policy Office in the Office of Human Resources at [email protected].

How to Apply

To apply for this position, you must complete the online application and submit the documentation specified in the Required Documents. A complete application package must be submitted by 11:59 PM (EST) on the closing date of the announcement to receive consideration. No additional documentation will be accepted after the closing date of the announcement. To begin, click Apply to access the online application.

You will need to be logged into your USAJOBS account to apply. If you do not have a USAJOBS account, you will need to create one before beginning the application.

Follow the prompts to select your resume and/or other supporting documents to be included with your application package.

You will have the opportunity to upload additional documents to include in your application before it is submitted.

Your uploaded documents may take several hours to clear the virus scan process.

After acknowledging you have reviewed your application package, complete the Include Personal Information section as you deem appropriate and click to continue with the application process.

You will be taken to the online application which you must complete in order to apply for the position.

Complete the online application, verify the required documentation is included with your application package, and submit the application. To verify the status of your application, log into your USAJOBS account (https://my.usajobs.gov/Account/Login), all of your applications will appear on the Welcome screen. The Application Status will appear along with the date your application was last updated. For information on what each Application Status means, visit: https://www.usajobs.gov/Help/how-to/application/status/.

Required Documents

You must provide a complete Application Package, which includes: Required: Your responses to the Occupational Questionnaire. Required: Resume - Resumes should include relevant work experience, with specific employment dates, that demonstrates qualifications for the specialized experience and competencies as outlined above. If your resume does not reflect demonstrated evidence of these qualifications, you may not receive consideration for the position.

Resumes that exceed two pages will be deemed ineligible and receive no further consideration. For resume writing tips, visit USAJOBS and the SEC careers page. Required: Accomplishment Record - The Accomplishment Record is a set of narrative responses that demonstrate your proficiency in the competencies listed.

These narratives support your resume by providing specific examples from your training or experience. For each competency, you must provide a 300 word or less written narrative (text only) describing one example of competency-related experience. Text beyond this limit will not be considered.

This document must be uploaded to the application under Accomplishment Record. An accomplishment record submitted outside the USA Staffing system will not be accepted. Failure to provide the Accomplishment Record in the correct format will result in an ineligible rating.

SEC EMPLOYEES: OHR will verify your competitive service eligibility via the SEC's personnel database.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the salary for the ASSISTANT DIRECTOR position at Securities and Exchange Commission?
The salary range for this position is $178,500 - $292,300/yr. This is a SK-17 position on the General Schedule pay scale. Actual pay may vary based on locality adjustments.
Where is the ASSISTANT DIRECTOR job located?
This position is located in Washington, District of Columbia. This is an on-site position.
What qualifications do I need?
Applicants are responsible for confirming all required materials are submitted by the closing date of the announcement. Please check the How You Will Be Evaluated and Required Documents sections carefully, as missing documents will render the application incomplete and ineligible for review. Qualifying experience may be obtained in the private o...
How do I apply for this position?
Apply through USAJobs.gov by clicking the 'Apply on USAJobs' button. You'll need a USAJobs account, a federal-style resume, and supporting documents. The deadline is Apr 15, 2026.
Is a security clearance required?
No security clearance is required for this position.
What does SK-17 mean?
SK-17 refers to the General Schedule grade level. Higher grades require more experience and offer higher pay. Visit our GS Pay Scale page for full salary tables by grade and locality.
What benefits do federal employees receive?
Federal employees receive comprehensive benefits including health insurance (FEHB), retirement through FERS, Thrift Savings Plan (TSP) with government matching, paid annual and sick leave, paid parental leave, life insurance, and student loan repayment programs.