Grants Management Specialist
About This Position
NIST is seeking a Grants Management Specialist to provide leadership and accountability to subordinate senior managers and staff who provide financial assistance support to NIST and other Department of Commerce (DOC) Bureaus. This announcement will close at 11:59 p.m. EST on the date the first 100 applications are received or 04/23/2026, whichever comes first.
Qualifications
To qualify, applicants must have one year (52 weeks) of specialized experience equivalent to at least the GS-14 (ZA-IV for NIST). Specialized experience is defined as experience: Leading a Federal financial assistance group, including oversight of grants, cooperative agreements, or other financial assistance programs; Interpreting and implementing Federal financial assistance regulations (e.g., 2 CFR 200, DOC/NIST policies); Directing subordinate supervisors; Managing organizational resources; and Developing or implementing policies, procedures, or organizational strategies for complex, high-dollar assistance portfolios. 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. The qualification requirements in this vacancy announcement are based on the U.S. Office of Personnel Management (OPM) Qualification Standards Handbook. If requesting reconsideration of your qualification determination, please refer to the following site: Section 14: Reconsideration of Qualification Determinations | NIST
Major Duties
This position will serve as a Grants Management Specialist Lead within the Financial Assistance Agreements Management Office (FAAMO) providing leadership and accountability to subordinate senior managers and staff who provide financial assistance support to NIST and other Department of Commerce (DOC) Bureaus. - Provide direction and oversight of the implementation of new Financial Assistance (Grants, Cooperative Agreements, and Other Transaction) Programs funded by NIST and other DOC Bureaus. - Direct the day-to-day operations of the subordinate staff offices, through subordinate supervisors. - Exercise leadership in the formulation and promulgation of Department-wide and NIST policy and regulations governing the Department and NIST financial assistance programs. - Lead organizational development and workforce initiatives, support resource allocations, and manage operations of the assigned operational teams.
Education
Qualifications are based upon meeting specialized experience only. Education cannot be used to qualify for this position.
How You Will Be Evaluated
Please prepare a resume that is no longer than two pages; only the first two pages will be considered during the review process. Ensure your font is 11 points or larger and upload your resume as a .pdf document. This helps ensure your formatting looks exactly the way you intended.
How you will be evaluated: You will be evaluated for this job based on how well you meet the qualifications above. Once the announcement has closed, a review of your resume and supporting documentation will be used to determine whether you meet the eligibility and qualification requirements listed in this announcement. Overstating your qualifications and/or experience in your application materials or application questionnaire may result in your removal from consideration.
Rating: Applications will be assessed on the following competencies: Administration and Management Leadership Planning and Evaluating Technical Competence Structured Resume Review. Subject Matter Experts (SMEs) will review your resume to determine your technical qualifications for this position based on the required specialized experience. SMEs will review ONLY two (2) pages of your resume.
SMEs will not review additional information beyond your resume. Applicants passing the structured resume review will move to the next phase of the assessment process. Referral: Qualified candidates are referred to a selecting official for consideration.
You may be required to participate in a selection interview.
You will be referred depending upon your eligibility (i.e., Merit candidate, veterans preference, etc). Please review the Section 8: Hiring Paths at NIST | NIST on how applicants are review and referred based upon how they wish to be considered for the position. CTAP or ICTAP eligibility: If you are a displaced or surplus Federal employee eligible for the Career Transition Assistance Plan (CTAP) or Interagency Career Transition Assistance Plan (ICTAP), you must be determined eligible and rated as well-qualified to receive special selection priority. "Well Qualified" means that
in addition to meeting the minimum qualification requirements and selective placement factor(s), if applicable, you must receive a score of 85 or higher. Please review the following site regarding required documents to support CTAP or ICTAP eligibility and additional information regarding this authority - Section 8: Hiring Paths at NIST | NIST
Additional Information
This position is covered under NIST's Alternative Personnel Management System (APMS), a pay-for-performance system with excellent HR flexibilities to help NIST recruit and retain top talent. Learn more about the APMS here! We may share your application package with other selecting officials. Additional selections may be made through this vacancy.
Click all links in this vacancy announcement to view additional information or instructions.
You MUST select at least ONE ELIGIBILITY to be considered for this position. All documents submitted for this announcement must be legible to make qualification or eligibility determinations. A probationary period may be required. NIST strives to build a flexible and encouraging work environment to bring out the best in our employees. To help our employees balance responsibilities at home and at work, NIST offers a variety of work-life flexibilities. For more information, please visit our Careers website.
How to Apply
Click 'Apply' and we'll walk you through a multi-step process to attach a resume and any required documents. While working an application, you may review, edit, delete and update information.
You must complete the online application process and submit any required documents by 11:59 p.m. Eastern Standard Time, the closing date of the announcement. Once your application has been submitted, you will receive a confirmation notification by email. The Human Resources Office will evaluate your application to determine your eligibility for the position.
After the evaluation is complete, you will receive another notification regarding the status of your application. Need help applying? If you are experiencing any difficulties with the online application process (anything after you have clicked the 'Apply Online' button), please contact the Agency Contact listed on this announcement between regular business hours (8:00 a.m. - 4:00 p.m.
ET). If you receive any kind of error message, please be ready to provide a screenshot or, at a minimum, the error message text and number. We will provide you with a technical support number for further assistance if necessary.
If you are having trouble with USAJOBS (searching for jobs, account password/profile issues, or Resume Builder), please visit the USAJOBS USAJOBS Help Center - How to... We regret that we are unable to support any issues with USAJOBS, as this service is not maintained by the NIST. If you are experiencing a significant hardship that hinders your ability to apply online, please contact the Agency Contact listed on this announcement prior to the vacancy closing date and during regular business hours to discuss your situation.
Required Documents
The documents required vary based on how you're applying (i.e., as a veteran or disabled veteran, current or former Federal employee, etc.). Please review the Required Documents for this position to find out if there are any documents required with your application. Failure to submit required documents, based upon how you apply, may result in loss of consideration due to an incomplete application package.
A complete application includes: 1) A resume (not to exceed two pages), 2) vacancy question responses regarding technical qualifications, and 3) submission of any required documents. Please note that if you do not provide all required information, as specified in this announcement, or if the documents submitted are illegible you may not be considered for this position (or may not receive the special consideration for which you may be eligible). Resume: All applicants must submit a resume by creating one in USAJOBS or uploading one of their choosing.
Please prepare a resume no longer than 2 pages; only the first 2 pages will be considered during the review process. Ensure your font is 11 points or larger and upload your resume as a .pdf document. This helps ensure your formatting looks exactly the way you intended.?
Cover letters are optional. To receive any credit for relevant experience, please list the month/year and the number of hours worked for experience listed on your resume. We suggest you review the qualification requirements for this position as you may need to customize your resume to ensure that it supports the position qualifications.
Please refer to the Resume Guidance on how to build an effective resume. Reinstatement: If you are a former federal employee (separated from Federal service for at least 1 year) and wish to be non-competitively reinstated for a higher grade or full performance level than which you left federal employment, you MUST provide a copy of your separation SF-50 (the "position occupied" block on the SF-50 should show a "1" and your "tenure" block should show a "1" or "2") AND the last performance appraisal you received from your federal employment which shows at least a fully successful rating.