Visual Information Specialist

Summary

• WHAT IS TAXPAYER SERVICES ?

A description of the business units can be found at:

• Position(s) are to be filled in following area(s):
  • TS - CARE-Customer Assistance, Relationship and Education -40-41

REVIEW THE ADDITIONAL INFORMATION BELOW FOR FURTHER DETAILS

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Duties

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The following are the duties of this position at the full working level. If this vacancy includes more than one grade and you are selected at a lower grade level, you will have the opportunity to learn to perform these duties and receive training to help you grow in this position.

• Consults with and provides assistance to managers, instructors, and functional employees related to the presentation of information through visual media within a host site
• Meets with executives and other professionals to present design concepts and techniques for use in high-level conferences, briefings, hearings, and IRS documents and publications
• Designs and produces original graphic material, develops new concepts, and incorporates current social trends or style standards. Demonstrates how published products in print and other media can be used to optimize quality or enhance communications to multiple market segments and affected stakeholders.
• Researches and determines the appropriate media, including computer hardware and software, for presenting information visually.

Requirements

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Conditions of employment

• Probationary Period - All newly appointed employees to the competitive (or excepted) service are subject to a probationary (or trial) period. During this time, your performance, conduct, and suitability for continued employment will be evaluated. You will not automatically convert to permanent status at the end of the probationary (or trial) period. Your supervisor must affirmatively determine that continued employment is in the best interest of the Federal service. If no certification is made before the probationary (or trial) period ends, your appointment will be terminated. You are encouraged to actively engage with your supervisor, seek feedback, and understand role expectations. Additional guidance and support will be provided during onboarding.
• Probationary Period - A person who is required to go through a probationary period and then is transferred, promoted, demoted, or reassigned before he or she completes such period is required to complete the remainder of the probationary period in the new position.

• Government Credit Card - Obtain and use a Government-issued charge card for business-related travel.

Key Eligibility Requirements:

• U.S Citizenship - Must be a U.S. Citizen or National and provide proof of U.S. Citizenship.
• Selective Service Registration - Males born after December 31, 1959 are required to be registered with the Selective Service System or prove they are exempt from having to do so.
• Personal Identity Verification (PIV) - Must provide 2 forms of identification from the Form I-9. Federal law requires verification of the identity and employment eligibility of all new hires in the U.S. These documents must be unexpired original or certified copies .

ADDITIONAL REQUIREMENTS SHOWN IN QUALIFICATIONS OR ADDTIONAL INFORMATION SECTIONS

Qualifications

Federal experience is not required. Experience may have been gained in the public sector, private sector or through Volunteer Service. One year of experience refers to full-time work; part-timework is considered on a prorated basis. To ensure full credit for your work experience, please indicate dates of employment by month/day/year, and indicate number of hours worked per week, on your resume.

You must meet the following requirements by the closing date of this announcement.

BASIC REQUIREMENTS IOR: Undergraduate and Graduate Education: Major study commercial art, fine arts, art history, industrial design, architecture, drafting, interior design, photography, visual communication, or other fields related to the position. Some positions may also require subject-matter knowledge of medicine, science, or technical equipment. Advanced training in a vocational school, technical institute, or art institute above the high school level in one of the fields listed above is creditable as general experience on a month-for-month basis.

OR

Experience : Experience in the actual type of work for which application is made. Unpaid experience is creditable, provided the work done was of a quality level and demonstrated the ability required for the position. This includes planning the preparation and use of photographs, illustrations, drawings, and other art work, charts, diagrams, dioramas, maps, slides, overlays, and other kinds of visual material for use in communicating information through visual means.

SPECIALIZED EXPERIENCE:

GS-7 Level: You must have one year of specialized experience at a level of difficulty and responsibility equivalent to the GS-5 grade level in the Federal service. Specialized experience for this position includes: Experience in applying graphic design and print/electronic publishing processes using current versions of graphical software applications (in both Macintosh and Windows environments) such as Adobe Creative Suite (specifically InDesign, Photoshop, and Illustrator) to design and produce publications and web based designs; Experience using standard graphic design industry tools (such as color swatch books, photo libraries, image scanners and photocopiers) to develop products; Experience writing business style correspondence, such as writing narrative to explain and defend design proposals and responding to business correspondence inquires. Examples of qualifying work experience include: coordinating numerous design products/projects simultaneously and preparing them for printing (e.g., size of document, bleeds, color space, margins, fold guidelines, export PDF for printing). Independently and/or assisting others with the design, development, and execution of a wide collection of meeting/events/conference materials, exhibits, flyers, folded brochures, posters, websites, digital publications, multiple page publications (e.g., booklet, catalogue), and other campaigns involving multiple products.

OR

Superior Academic Achievement - A Bachelors degree, with one of the following: A GPA of 3.0 or higher on a 4.0 scale for all completed undergraduate courses or those completed in the last 2 years of study, or a GPA of 3.5 or higher on a 4.0 scale for all courses in the major field of study or those courses in the major completed in the last 2 years of study, or rank in the upper one third of the class in the college, university, or major subdivision, or membership in a national scholastic honor society recognized by the Association of College Honor Societies. Note: Grade point averages should be rounded to one decimal point. For example, 2.95 is rounded to 3.0, and 2.94 is rounded to 2.9. If more than 10 percent of your undergraduate course work (credit hours) was taken on a pass/fail or similar basis, your claim must be based on class standing or membership in an Honor Society.

OR

At least one (1) academic year of graduate education in a major field of study such as visual communication, commercial art, fine arts, art history, industrial design, architecture, drafting, interior design, photography, or other fields related to the position.

OR

A combination of qualifying education and experience equivalent to that described above.

Specialized experience for GS-9, GS-11 and GS-12 continued in Education and Additional Information Sections

AND

You must also meet the following requirement(s):

• PERFORMANCE RATING: Current federal employees must have at least a fully successful or equivalent performance rating to receive consideration.
• TIME AFTER COMPETITIVE APPOINTMENT (TACA): By the closing date (or if this is an open continuous announcement, by the cut-off date) specified in this job announcement, current civilian employees must have completed at least 90 days of federal civilian service since their latest non-temporary appointment from a competitive referral certificate, known as time after competitive appointment. For this requirement, a competitive appointment is one where you applied to and were appointed from an announcement open to "All US Citizens"
• TIME IN GRADE (TIG): Federal employees must meet time-in-grade requirements. For positions above the GS-05,applicants must meet applicable time-in-grade requirements to be considered eligible. One year (52 weeks) at the next lower grade level is required to meet the time-in-grade requirements for the grade you are applying for. For positions at the GS-05, you cannot advance to the GS-05 if you have held a GS-02 in the past 52 weeks. There is no TIG restriction for GS-02, 03, or 04 positions.

• MINIMUM AGE REQUIREMENT: Minimum age for federal employment is 18 years old, or at least 16 years old and have:
  • Graduated from high school or been awarded a certificate equivalent to graduating from high school; or
  • Completed a formal vocational training program; or
  • Received a statement from school authorities agreeing with your preference for employment rather than continuing your education.

For more information on qualifications please refer to OPM's Qualifications Standards .

Education

A college or university degree generally must be from an accredited (or pre-accredited) college or university recognized by the U.S. Department of Education. For a list of schools which meet these criteria, please refer to Department of Education Accreditation page.

FOREIGN EDUCATION: Education completed in foreign colleges or universities may be used to meet the requirements. You must show proof the education credentials have been deemed to be at least equivalent to that gained in conventional U.S. education program. It is your responsibility to provide such evidence when applying. Click here (Section 3, Explanation of Terms) or here for Foreign Education Credentialing instructions.

We recommend choosing an evaluator from a member organization of one of the following national associations of credential evaluation services: National Association of Credential Evaluation Services (NACES) or Association of International Credentials Evaluators (AICE).

SPECIALIZED EXPERIENCE:

GS-9 Level: You must have one year of specialized experience at a level of difficulty and responsibility equivalent to the GS-7 grade level in the Federal service. Specialized experience for this position includes: Experience applying graphic design and print/electronic publishing processes using current versions of graphical software applications (in both Macintosh and Windows environments) such as Adobe Creative Suite (specifically InDesign, Photoshop, and Illustrator) to design and produce publications and web based designs; Experience with using standard graphic design industry tools (such as color swatch books, photo libraries, image scanners and photocopiers) to develop products; Experience writing business style correspondence, such as writing narrative to explain and defend design proposals/formal presentations, developing design briefs and responding to business correspondence inquires.Examples of qualifying work experience include: coordinating numerous design products/projects simultaneously, analyzing design projects for content and feasibility and making appropriate recommendations to customers regarding size of document, styles, color pallets, format, images, typography, to effectively design, development and execution of a wide collection of meeting/events/conference materials, exhibits, flyers, folded brochures, posters, websites, digital publications, multiple page print publications (e.g., booklet, catalogue), and other campaigns involving multiple products.

OR

Master's or equivalent graduate degree in a related field of study such as visual communication, commercial art, fine arts, art history, industrial design, architecture, drafting, interior design, photography, or other fields related to the position.

OR

Two (2) full academic years of progressively higher level graduate education in a related field of study such as visual communication, commercial art, fine arts, art history, industrial design, architecture, drafting, interior design, photography, or other fields related to the position.

OR

LL.B. or J.D., if related.

OR

A combination of qualifying graduate education and experience equivalent to that described above.

SPECIALIZED EXPERIENCE:

GS-11 Level: You must have one year of specialized experience at a level of difficulty and responsibility equivalent to the GS-9 grade level in the Federal service. Specialized experience for this position includes: Experience in applying graphic design and print/electronic publishing processes using current versions of graphical software applications (in both Macintosh and Windows environments) such as Adobe Creative Suite (specifically InDesign, Photoshop, and Illustrator) to apply design standards elements, such as, logos, typography, photographs, images, colors, and typefaces onto the designs of electronic and print products; Experience with using standard graphic design industry tools (such as color swatch books, photo libraries, image scanners and photocopiers) to develop products; Experience writing business style correspondence, such as writing narrative to explain and defend design proposals/formal presentations, developing design briefs and responding to business correspondence inquires. Examples of qualifying work experience include: designing graphic design products independently (or by art directing projects with co-workers and/or third party design services), reviewing project design briefs and analyzes design project requirements to establish direction, define clear goals, solve problems, mitigate risks and using graphic design industry standard equipment and tools, such as color swatch books, photo libraries, image scanners, photocopiers, style sheets to set up text formatting, and master pages for recurring graphical elements to design and produce a wide range of products, such as form designs, publications, presentations, and exhibits.

OR

PH.D. or equivalent doctoral degree in a related field of study such as visual communication, commercial art, fine arts, art history, industrial design, architecture, drafting, interior design, photography, or other fields related to the position.

OR

Three (3) full academic years of progressively higher level graduate education leading to a doctoral degree in a related field of study such as visual communication, commercial art, fine arts, art history, industrial design, architecture, drafting, interior design, photography, or other fields related to the position.

OR

LL.M., if related

OR

A combination of qualifying graduate education and experience equivalent to that described above.

Additional information

SPECIALIZED EXPERIENCE:

GS-12 Level: You must have one year of specialized experience at a level of difficulty and responsibility equivalent to the GS-11 grade level in the Federal service. Specialized experience for this position includes: Experience in applying expert knowledge of graphic design and print/electronic publishing processes proficiently using current versions of graphical software applications (in both Macintosh and Windows environments) such as Adobe Creative Suite (specifically InDesign, Photoshop, and Illustrator) using master pages and style sheets and other software resources to apply design standards elements, including logotype, way-finding system, fonts, and color onto the designs of electronic and print products; Experience with using standard graphic design industry tools (such as color swatch books, photo libraries, image scanners and photocopiers) to develop products; Experience writing business style correspondence, such as writing narrative to explain and defend design proposals/formal presentations, business reports, operation reviews, vendor correspondence, statements of work, developing design briefs and responding to business correspondence inquires; Experience overseeing and defining project design, technical and production specifications, developing original concepts by extracting information from a design brief to provide original design solutions, design configurations and product development while taking into account demographics, target audience needs, quality, equality, security, and ethics. Examples of qualifying work experience include: experience in leading strategic design processes, including planning, coordinating, leading creative brainstorming meetings and preparing/presenting formal design presentations to upper management and/or executives. Designing, developing, and managing the execution of a wide collection of design products/projects simultaneously (in English and other languages), such as meetings/events/conference materials, social media elements, tradeshow exhibits, forms, brochures, posters, websites, single and multiple page print and digital publications, promotional displays, packaging, and signage systems for a diversified nationwide audience.

Additional Information:

• Consider each location carefully when applying. If you are selected for a location, that location will become your official post of duty.
• In the event that a building is closed due to rent management, new hires may be placed in a local commuting location.
• Additional jobs may be filled from this announcement or any other source to fill these vacancies.
• Alternative work schedule, staggered work hours may be available.
• Salary: General Schedule (GS) Locality Pay tables may be found under Salaries & Wages.

• Cost-of-Living Allowances (COLA): Puerto Rico includes COLA. See COLA Rates 2026.
• Formal Development Plan - If this position is covered by a formal development plan, pay retention will be offered where applicable based on law and regulation.

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.

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