Student Cooperative (PAID) for Investigative Operations Division
About This Position
Are you a college or graduate student majoring in communications or specializing in Social Sciences? The Office of Investigations within the U.S. Postal Service Office of Inspector General has an opportunity for you! We are seeking passionate, driven, and creative students enrolled in college or university programs, to assist us with social media, internal and external communications.
Qualifications
MINIMUM REQUIREMENTS You must meet ALL of the minimum requirements. Students must be currently enrolled half-time in an accredited college or university program, classified or academically ranked by semester hours as a Sophomore, Junior, Senior or Graduate student. (MUST SUBMIT TRANSCRIPTS OFFICIAL OR UNOFFICIAL STATING CURRENT ENROLLMENT STATUS, GPA AND IN GOOD STANDING). Must be in academic good standing as defined by the college or university, earning at least a 2.75 GPA on a 4.0 GPA scale.
Must be currently enrolled in a Journalism, Communications, Public Relations, Marketing, Political Science, International Relations, or related field of study in an undergraduate, current undergraduate seniors advancing to a graduate program, or graduate degree program and not graduating prior to May 2027. (Minimum one year commitment). Must be able to report to work year-round in the USPS OIG Rosslyn, VA office. DESIRABLE QUALIFICATIONS Advanced experience with Microsoft Excel EVALUATION FACTORS Failure to demonstrate that you meet all of the evaluation factor requirements as listed below will result in a score of zero (0); an ineligible status, and you will not be referred for further consideration.
Include your major accomplishments relevant to the evaluation factors in your resume. Demonstrated written and oral communications skills. Experience using Microsoft Office programs, including Word, Excel, and PowerPoint.
Prior experience working in an office environment.
Major Duties
The United States Postal Service Office of Inspector General (USPS OIG) is seeking students enrolled in college/university programs to fill our Student Cooperative position in the Office of Investigations, Investigative Operations Division (IOD), located in Arlington, VA. This opportunity is for those interested in a career in communications. The Student Cooperative Program is available for continuous employment throughout the year, while enrolled in school.
To learn more about the USPS OIG Office of Investigations, visit: Office of Investigations | Office of Inspector General OIG This is a paid student co-op position, located in our Arlington (Rosslyn), VA, Headquarters. Bring your skills and voice to our team! Candidates will be evaluated on the skills that they possess that are directly related to the duties of the position and the experience, education and training that indicate the applicant's ability to acquire the particular knowledge and skills needed to perform the duties of the position.
Only those candidates who meet all qualification and eligibility requirements and who submit the required information by 11:59 PM EST on 04/10/2026 will be considered. The USPS OIG uses a Pay Banding system, which is equivalent to the Federal GS scale. Grade and salary determinations will be made based upon a candidate's education and professional experience.
This position is being advertised at the Administrative Band level. The base salary range for this position is $16.73 - $20.15/hour. Locality Pay is authorized. Sophomore $22.41 per hour includes locality pay Junior/Senior $23.81 per hour includes locality pay Graduate or Law Student $26.99 per hour includes locality pay Please note that the duties and responsibilities associated with this position may vary based upon the area of assignment. We are looking for a high-energy student who is comfortable alternating between working independently and as part of a team.
You will have a passion for crafting good communications - written as well as visual.
Your work will be seen broadly and heard because what we do reaches not only a geographically dispersed OIG staff of about a thousand employees, but also an external audience that includes USPS executives, employees, and their customers, as well as members of the mailing industry. The student co-op will work closely with the Office of Investigations Senior Leaders, special agents, and the Communications Team's writers/editors to provide support in creating communications for both internal and external audiences. The student cooperative performs a wide range of duties to support the Office of Investigations Communications Team, including, but not limited to: Authoring and managing the Office of Investigations communications, including drafting success stories, articles, and other communication materials Gathering information and producing agency-wide publications Conducting research and drafting written reports for management Data Presentation and Investigative Support tasks to include cleaning data sets, conducting preliminary open-source research and assisting other analysts with report preparation Work closely with the Communications Team to produce a monthly Communications outreach report using Google Analytics, and/or other tracking mechanisms If you are a student who is self-motivated, detail-oriented, a fast learner, and passionate about learning new skills, then this job is right for you!
The Student Cooperative Program is also available for continuous employment throughout the year, while enrolled in school.
Education
Education must be accredited by an institution recognized by the U.S. Department of Education. Applicants can verify accreditation here: https://www.ed.gov/laws-and-policy/higher-education-laws-and-policy/college-accreditation. Special Instructions for Candidates with Foreign Education: Education completed outside the United States must be deemed equivalent to that gained in U.S. education programs.
You must submit all necessary documents to a private U.S. credential evaluation service to interpret equivalency of your education against courses given in U.S. accredited colleges and universities. For further information visit: https://sites.ed.gov/international/recognition-of-foreign-qualifications
How You Will Be Evaluated
The Human Resources Office will review your resume and supporting documentation to ensure that you meet the minimum qualifications required for this position.
You will no longer be considered for this position if you: Receive a zero (0) rating on any evaluation factor Fail to attach all required documentation Submit a resume that exceeds the two-page limit If your application materials indicate that you are not minimally-qualified for this position If you fail to qualify on the interview Only the top-rated candidates will be referred to a review official or the selecting official for further consideration. Top-rated applicants may be required to participate in an interview.
Your rating may be further adjusted or rated as ineligible by the review official or the selecting official based on your interview performance. Once all applicant scores are finalized, the selecting official will make a final decision.
NOTE: If you receive a zero (0) rating on any evaluation factor or on the interview, you will be considered NOT MINIMALLY QUALIFIED for the position and rated ineligible. Applicants for this position may be interviewed one or more times as part of the hiring process. During interviews, applicants may not use any AI tool or virtual assistant (such as ChatGPT) to help them answer questions, except for accessibility tools used as part of a reasonable accommodation. Applicants who fail to follow these rules will be disqualified from the hiring process.
Additional Information
Student Cooperatives are not eligible for USPS OIG Employee Benefits. This agency provides Reasonable Accommodations to applicants with disabilities. If you require accommodations for any part of the application and/or hiring process, please send an email to [email protected]. The decision on granting an accommodation request will be made on a case by case basis.
How to Apply
To apply for this position, you must complete the online application and submit the documentation specified in the Required Documents section. IMPORTANT UPDATE: Your resume must not exceed two (2) pages.
You will no longer be considered for this announcement if your resume exceeds the two-page limit.
The complete application package must be submitted by 11:59 PM (EST) on the closing date, 04/10/2026, to receive consideration. To begin, click Apply Online to access an online application.
Follow the prompts to select your USAJOBS resume and/or other supporting documents.
You will need to be logged into your USAJOBS account or you may need to create a new account.
You will be taken to an online application.
Complete the online application, verify the required documentation, and submit the application.
You will receive an email notification when your application has been received for the announcement. To verify the status of your application, log into your USAJOBS account, https://my.usajobs.gov/Account/Login, select the Application Status link and then select the More Information link for this position. The Application Status page will display the status of your application, the documentation received and processed, and your responses submitted to the online application.
Your uploaded documents may take several hours to clear the virus scan process. You are strongly urged to read and print the entire vacancy announcement.
Required Documents
You must submit all required documents by 11:59 PM EST on the closing date of this announcement, Vacancy Announcement EX-26-58A-12922815-PC, by closing date 04/10/2026.
- RESUME - IMPORTANT UPDATE: Your resume must not exceed two (2) pages.
You will no longer be considered for this announcement if your resume exceeds the two-page limit. It is essential that your resume and supporting documentation provide sufficient information to substantiate your qualifications for the announced position (categorize as "Resume"). Additional guidance on writing a federal resume can be found at: USAJOBS Help Center - How do I write a resume for a federal job?
Make sure your page margins are 0.5 inches. The recommended font styles are Sans-Serif, Calibri, Helvetica, Arial, Verdana, Open Sans, Source Sans Pro, Roboto or Noto Sans. Consider using 14-point size font for titles and 10-point for the main text in your resume.
Your resume must be 5MB or less. We recommend saving and uploading your resume as a PDF to maintain formatting and number of pages. 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.
2.
COMPLETE OCCUPATIONAL QUESTIONNAIRE.
Click the "Apply Online" button and follow the prompts to complete the Occupational Questionnaire. (Required: You must click on "Submit My Answers" button at the end of the Questionnaire to complete this process) 3. TRANSCRIPTS from an accredited college or university. The information presented in the transcript must be verifiable and should contain the name of the institution, applicant's name, list of completed courses, semester hours, GPA, date and type of Bachelor's Degree issued.
Education completed outside the United States must be deemed equivalent to that gained in conventional/accredited U.S. education programs to be acceptable for Federal employment. Attach document verifying that it has been deemed equivalent. For further information visit: http://www2.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ous/international/usnei/us/edlite-visitus-forrecog.html. (Required: Upload and save as "Transcript" document.) 4.
UPLOAD SUPPORTING DOCUMENTS which may include: Certificates or Licenses, if applicable. Upload and save as "Certificates or Licenses" document. Veterans Preference Documentation. If you are claiming veterans' preference you must submit the Member 4 copy of your DD-214 Certificate of Release or Discharge from Active Duty, and/or other proof of veterans' preference eligibility including your VA letter, form SF-15 (www.opm.gov/forms) and all required documents related to your SF-15 claim.
Veterans can request the Member 4 copy of their DD-214 at http://www.archives.gov/veterans/military-service-records, and can download a copy of their VA letter from https://www.ebenefits.va.gov/ebenefits-portal/ebenefits.portal. (If applicable to you, you are required to upload each veterans' preference document and categorize as "DD-214" or "SF-15" or "Other Veterans Document") Reasonable Accommodation Documentation. If you are requesting a reasonable accommodation to the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments, submit documentation to support your request, including the Reasonable Accommodation Request Form found at http://help.usastaffing.gov/Apply/index.php?title=Reasonable_Accommodations_for_USA_Hire . SF-50 if you are or have been a Federal employee to demonstrate tenure and competitive/excepted service for eligibility purposes. (If applicable to you, you are Required to upload each applicable SF-50 and categorize as a "SF-50" document.)