Federal
Personnel Security Specialist
National Nuclear Security Administration ยท Department of Energy
About This Position
This position is part of the Deputy Administrator for Naval Reactors, Department of Energy. National Nuclear Security Administration Demonstration Project: This position is covered by the National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) Demonstration Project. The NQ-02 pay band is equivalent to the GS-09 to GS-12 grade levels. For more information on the NNSA Demonstration Project and Pay Band/Salary Tables, review. http://www.energy.gov/nnsa/nnsas-demo-pay-system-compared-general-schedule,
Qualifications
SPECIALIZED EXPERIENCE REQUIREMENTS: A qualified candidate's online application and resume must demonstrate at least one year of specialized experience equivalent to the next lower grade level (GS-7) in the Federal service. Specialized experience for this position is defined as meeting the following: Demonstrated knowledge of personnel clearance policies and procedures, personnel security interviewing techniques and practices sufficient to grant various types of clearances or make sound recommendations when questionable or derogatory information exists. OR Master's degree or equivalent graduate degree in a related field. (OR) 2 full years of progressively higher level graduate education leading to such a degree in a related field. (OR) LL.B. or J.D., if related. (OR) A combination of education and specialized experience. (Only graduate education in excess of the amount required for the next lower grade level may be used to qualify applicants for positions at the GS-9 level.) Additional qualification information can be found from the following Office of Personnel Management website: IOR: Professional and Scientific Positions: https://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/classification-qualifications/general-schedule-qualification-standards/#url=GS-PROF Experience refers to paid and unpaid experience, including volunteer work done through National Service programs (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. Limit your resume to no more than two (2) pages. If more than two pages are submitted, only the first two pages will be reviewed to determine your eligibility and qualifications. Your full resume will be made available to the hiring manager if you are referred. Time-in-Grade: Current career or career-conditional GS employees of the Federal government, or former career or career-conditional GS employees, who have a break in service of less than one year, are required to meet the time-in-grade restriction of one year of Federal experience at the next lower grade, with few exceptions outlined in 5 CFR 300.603(b). Note: Time-In-Grade requirements also apply to current career or career-conditional federal employees applying for a Veterans Employment Opportunities Act of 1998 (VEOA) appointment. Please ensure EACH work history includes ALL of the following information: Job Title (include series and grade if Federal Job) Duties (be specific in describing your duties, we cannot make assumptions regarding your experience) Employer's name and address Supervisor name and phone number Start and end dates including month, day and year (e.g. June 18 2007 to April 05 2008) Start and end dates for each grade/pay level if you've held a federal position. Full-time or part-time status (include hours worked per week) Salary You must meet all qualifications and eligibility requirements by the closing date of this announcement.
Major Duties
As a Personnel Security Specialist, you will: Evaluate cases, make determinations as to whether information is clear or if derogatory information exists. Obtain and evaluate personnel security information through written correspondence and making recommendations for further action. Grant access authorizations in cases involving no or non-substantially derogatory information. Thoroughly evaluate cases involving substantially derogatory information. Obtain evaluations from expert consultants and develop recommendations for supervisor concurrence. Develop Administrative Review actions and correspondence, achieve senior staff concurrences, distribute, and support subsequent actions through conclusion. Ensure compliance with regulations and policies, recognize areas of noncompliance and take appropriate corrective action.
Education
EDUCATION REQUIREMENTS: There is no educational individual occupational (IOR) requirement for this position. If you are substituting education for experience, Education must be obtained from an accredited institution recognized by the U.S. Department of Education, and you MUST provide supporting documentation (transcripts). For this position, Education may be substituted for experience as follows: Master's degree or equivalent graduate degree in a related field. (OR) 2 full years of progressively higher level graduate education leading to such a degree in a related field. (OR) LL.B. or J.D., if related. (OR) A combination of education and specialized experience. (Only graduate education in excess of the amount required for the next lower grade level may be used to qualify applicants for positions at the GS-9 level.) Foreign education must be reviewed by an organization recognized by the U.S. Department of Education. For special instructions pertaining to foreign education and a list of organizations that can evaluate foreign education, see the Department of Education website.
How You Will Be Evaluated
Once the application process is complete, the first two pages of your resume and supporting documentation will be used to determine whether you meet the job qualifications. Structured Resume Review: After it has been determined that you meet the minimum qualifications, Subject matter experts (SMEs) will review the first two pages of your resume to determine your technical qualifications for this position based on the required competencies. Additional documentation (e.g., cover letter, links embedded in your resume) may not be considered. Once the announcement closes, we will conduct a review of your application package to verify your eligibility and qualifications. If you are found qualified, your application will move forward to additional phases of the review process. The competencies for the Personnel Security Specialist are: Attention to Detail Communication Personnel Security Problem Solving All qualified applicants will be referred to the hiring manager for consideration. Career Transition Assistance Programs: To receive selection priority for this position, you must: 1) meet the eligibility criteria; and 2) be rated "well-qualified". If your resume is incomplete or does not support the responses you provided in your online questionnaire, or if you fail to submit all required documentation before the vacancy closes, you may be rated 'ineligible', 'not qualified'. You must meet all qualifications and eligibility requirements by the closing date (02/12/2026) of this announcement. Shared Certificates: The Department of Energy shares lists of applicants among its internal Departmental Elements and organizations. You may be referred for consideration to other DOE Hiring Managers throughout the Department for more than one position based on this application. By applying to this announcement, you understand your application materials may be shared with multiple Hiring Mangers throughout DOE. If additional positions are filled from this announcement conditions of employment may differ. You will be notified if you are referred for additional positions. To preview the Assessment Questionnaire, click https://apply.usastaffing.gov/ViewQuestionnaire/12877231.
Additional Information
This job opportunity announcement may be used to fill additional similar vacancies across DOE. As needed, additional positions may be filled using this announcement. In accordance with Executive Order 14170, applicants are encouraged to respond to the four short, free-response, essay questions in the questionnaire. Answers to these questions are not scored or rated. Your answers will be reviewed by the hiring manager and agency leadership if you are referred for selection consideration. If you believe that you are eligible for the Interagency Career Transition Assistance Program (ICTAP), please visit the OPM ICTAP/CTAP website for more information. In order to be considered under the ICTAP program, your application must score within the pre-established "well qualified" category as stated in the Qualifications section. Employees or applicants may request Reasonable Accommodation (RA) for assistance, when applying or competing for a job or performing a job due to their medical condition or to exercise their religious beliefs. If you need reasonable accommodation in the application or selection process, please contact the Staffing Specialist listed on this vacancy announcement. 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 to the agency within 30 calendar days of the date of alleged noncompliance by completing the Fair Chance Act Intake Form and submitting it to the Administrative Investigations Program at [email protected]. EEO Policy: Click HERE. Reasonable Accommodation Policy: Click HERE. Veterans Information: Click HERE. Selective Service Registration: Click HERE. Candidates should be committed to improving the efficiency of the Federal government, passionate about the ideals of our American republic, and committed to upholding the rule of law and the United States Constitution.
How to Apply
Please read the entire announcement and all the instructions before you begin an application. To apply for this position, you must complete the initial online application, to include submission of the required documentation specified in the Required Documents section. A complete application package must be submitted by 11:59 PM (EST) on the announcement closing date to receive consideration. The application process is as follows: You must have a login.gov account to sign into USAJOBS: https://www.usajobs.gov/Help/how-to/account/. To begin the application process in USAJOBS, click the Apply Online button. Answer the questions presented in the application and attach all required and supporting documentation. You must click the Submit Application button prior to 11:59 pm (ET) on the announcement closing date. Resume Requirements Your two (2) page RESUME showing all relevant work experience (paid and unpaid) including: duties performed; full name and address of the each employer; start and end dates (month/day/year); work schedule (part-time, full-time, number of hours if intermittent); salary; and any completed education and training (program title, subject area, number of hours completed, and completion date). If you submit a resume longer than two (2) pages, you will be ineligible for further consideration. Resumes must be legible so they can be reviewed for eligibility, minimum qualifications and other position requirements listed in the job announcement. Your resume must be 5MB or less. We recommend saving and uploading your resume as a PDF to maintain formatting and number of pages. We also accept GIF, JPG, JPEG, PNG, RTF, TXT, PDF, ODT or Word (DOC or DOCX). We do not accept PDF portfolio files. We recommend using a sans-serif font size like Lato, if available. Other widely available options are Calibri, Helvetica, Arial, Verdana, Open San Source Sans Pro, Roboto or Noro Sans. Make your page margins 0.5 inches. Consider using 14-point size font for titles and 10-point for the main text in your resume. The resume builder can help you create a resume using these recommendations and uses the information in your USAJOBS profile to help you get started. See "Guidance for Applicants on 2-Page Resume" and visit the USAJOBS Help Center for more information. You may update your application, including supporting documentation, at any time during the announcement open period by returning to your USAJOBS account, select Update Application: https://my.usajobs.gov/Account/Login. This option will no longer be available once the announcement has closed. To verify the status of your application, during and after the announcement open period, log into your USAJOBS account; 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/. If you need help with login.gov or USAJOBS (e.g., account access, Resume Builder) visit the USAJOBS Help Center: https://www.usajobs.gov/Help/ If you experience difficulty applying on USAJOBS, after clicking the Apply Online button, or you are experiencing a significant hardship hindering your ability to apply online, the Agency Contact listed in the announcement can assist you during normal business hours. If you receive any system error messages, take screenshots if possible, to aid technical support.
Required Documents
To apply for this position, you MUST provide a complete application package which includes: Your two (2) page RESUME showing all relevant work experience (paid and unpaid) including: duties performed; full name and address of the each employer; start and end dates (month/day/year); work schedule (part-time, full-time, number of hours if intermittent); salary; and any completed education and training (program title, subject area, number of hours completed, and completion date). If you submit a resume longer than two (2) pages, only the first 2 pages will be reviewed. Resumes must be legible so they can be reviewed for eligibility, minimum qualifications and other position requirements listed in the job announcement. Your resume must be 5MB or less. We recommend saving and uploading your resume as a PDF to maintain formatting and number of pages. We also accept GIF, JPG, JPEG, PNG, RTF, TXT, PDF, ODT or Word (DOC or DOCX). We do not accept PDF portfolio files. We recommend using a sans-serif font size like Lato, if available. Other widely available options are Calibri, Helvetica, Arial, Verdana, Open San Source Sans Pro, Roboto or Noro Sans. Make your page margins 0.5 inches. Consider using 14-point size font for titles and 10-point for the main text in your resume. The resume builder can help you create a resume using these recommendations and uses the information in your USAJOBS profile to help you get started. See "Guidance for Applicants on 2-Page Resume" and visit the USAJOBS Help Center for more information. Submit one or more of the following to support your eligibility(s) to apply to this job announcement: Current and former Federal employees: Most recent NON-AWARD SF-50 (Standard Form 50 - Notice of Personnel Action). To properly verify status eligibility, your SF-50 must show the following. If you do not submit an appropriate SF-50, we cannot verify your status eligibility. Full position title; appointment type; occupational series; pay plan, grade, and step; tenure code; and service computation date (SCD). If your current position SF50 does not indicate you have competitive service status or does not reflect the pay plan and grade of the highest position you have held in the competitive service, in addition to your current SF50, you must provide your previous SF-50s that provide the proof of competitive status and highest grade held on a permanent basis. If you do not submit an appropriate SF-50, we cannot verify your status eligibility. Veterans: DD-214 Member Copy 4 showing type of discharge/character of service; current active duty members- certification of expected discharge or release from active duty under honorable conditions dated within 120 days; SF-15 Form and related documentation; VA letter. For more information visit the USAJOBS Help Center & OPM CHCOC website for VOW information. Individuals with Disabilities: Schedule A letter from a physician, local, state or federal rehabilitation office citing your eligibility under 5 CFR 213.3102 (u). For more information visit the USAJOBS Help Center. Certain Military Spouses: Permanent Change of Station (PCS) orders authorizing you to accompany the Military member to the new duty permanent station; OR verification of the member's 100% disability (VA Letter); and/or verification of the member's death while on active duty (DD-1300 and Death Certificate) AND verification of the marriage to the service member (i.e., a marriage license or other legal documentation verifying marriage). For more information visit the USAJOBS Help Center. Other non-competitive or special appointing authorities: provide documentation which supports your eligibility. Career Transition Assistance Program/Interagency Career Transition Assistance Program documentation, if applicable (e.g., Certification of Expected Separation, Reduction-In-Force Separation Notice, or Notice of Proposed Removal; SF-50 that documents the RIF separation action; and most recent performance appraisal.) For more information see the OPM Guide to Career Transition. For more information about what to include in your resume, please view this USAJOBS Resume Tutorial video on YouTube. Naval Reactors will accept a resume in the format of your choice (as an attached document or as a USAJOBS Resume Builder format). You will be notified at the time you click 'Apply Online' which type of resume is acceptable. It is important that you are complete and thorough in your resume. If any of the above information is not included in your resume, we may not be able to fully credit you for your experience. Failure to submit any of the above mentioned required documents may result in loss of consideration due to an incomplete application package. It is your responsibility to ensure all required documents have been submitted. Do not provide photos or list a Social Security Number or date of birth on any attachment.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the salary for the Personnel Security Specialist position at National Nuclear Security Administration?
The salary range for this position is $70,623 - $133,142/yr. This is a NQ-2 position on the General Schedule pay scale. Actual pay may vary based on locality adjustments.
Where is the Personnel Security Specialist job located?
This position is located in Washington, District of Columbia. This is an on-site position.
What qualifications do I need?
SPECIALIZED EXPERIENCE REQUIREMENTS: A qualified candidate's online application and resume must demonstrate at least one year of specialized experience equivalent to the next lower grade level (GS-7) in the Federal service. Specialized experience for this position is defined as meeting the following: Demonstrated knowledge of personnel clearance...
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 Feb 12, 2026.
Is a security clearance required?
Yes, a Q Access Authorization clearance is required.
What does NQ-2 mean?
NQ-2 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.