Secretary

Summary

This developmental position is located in the Chief of Staff office at Harry S. Truman VA Medical Center. This position serves as the principal clerical and administrative support position in the immediate organizational unit in or for which the persons assisted have responsibility, by carrying out and coordinating all the clerical and day-to-day administrative support activities which are typically required to accomplish the work of the organization.

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Duties

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Duties include, but may not be limited to the following:

The incumbent provides clerical and administrative assistance to the organization. Receives all visitors and telephone calls to superiors. Determines nature of call or business of visitors. If business requires the attention of technical or staff specialists, decides whether the importance of business such as to require personal attention of superiors or if the visitor should be referred to the appropriate division concerned with specific subject. Incumbent is authorized to give out administrative and technical information to callers upon determination of their right to receive it. When calls involve matters on which superiors will require background information, tactfully postpones the conversation, obtains the required information, and presents the information when informing the superiors of the pending call.

Controls activities schedule and reminds managers of appointments. On own initiative and discretion, establishes priorities, sets up, reschedules, or refuses appointments, accepts or declines invitations to meetings, and arranges for representation by a subordinate official when that is desirable. Reviews correspondence and documents prepared for signature of or requiring coordination by managers for conformance with regulations, grammar, format, and special policies of the installation. On own initiative, returns such communications to the originator for correction when not in conformance with known policies or correspondence regulations. Gives advice and instructions to subordinate offices through discussions with author or staff to obtain higher degree of compliance with general installation policies and correspondence regulations.

Obtains information required by management from various sources within the VA, requiring a comprehensive knowledge of the VA's complex organizational structure. Collects such information, presenting in its original form or editing and revising as necessary. While reading incoming correspondence, determines that portion requiring personal attention or policy decision by supervisor. Researches regulations applicable to the subject for presentation in one package along with any previous correspondence on the same subject. Presents information for use by the superior when making speeches or presentations to local community civic and welfare groups. Keeps the superiors informed of important details of the office, visitors, and various events where failure to recognize significant matters might impair the effective operation of the organization. Screens incoming documents from staff members to insure compliance with VA and organizational regulations or for discussion at staff meetings.

Composes correspondence on own initiative, based on a knowledge of superiors views and desires. Typical subjects include administrative matters, letters of acknowledgement, general office and organization policies, acceptance of invitations, and cancellation of conferences. Prepares regular and special records such as but not limited to time/attendance, leave, degree of use of filing space, and amount of material present in the offices. Prepares similar paper work to ease the flow of work through the office and provides superiors with current information in readily accessible form. Takes meeting minutes. Composes letters, endorsements, messages, office instructions, and reports, with responsibility for sentence structure, grammar, and spelling. Writes resumes of conferences and gives copies to participants who are expected to take action as result of conferences. On own initiative, follows up on projects resulting from conferences to insure that schedules are met and reports progress to managers.

Performs other related duties as assigned.

Promotion Potential: The selectee may be promoted to the full performance level without further competition when all regulatory, qualification, and performance requirements are met. Selection at a lower grade level does not guarantee promotion to the full performance level.

Work Schedule: Monday - Friday, 7:30am - 4:00pm

Position Description/PD#: Secretary/ PD097740,098110

Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized

Critical Skills Incentive (CSI): Not Approved

Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized

Requirements

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Conditions of employment

• You must be a U.S. Citizen to apply for this job
• To be considered for this position, you must complete all required steps in the process. In addition to the application and questionnaire, this position requires an online assessment. The online assessment measures critical general competencies required to perform the job.
• All applicants tentatively selected for VA employment in a testing designated position are subject to urinalysis to screen for illegal drug use prior to appointment. Applicants who refuse to be tested will be denied employment with VA.
• Selective Service Registration is required for males born after 12/31/1959
• Physical Requirements: The work required does not inherently include any physical requirements essential for successful job performance that could not otherwise be performed with accommodation or workplace adjustment. A pre-placement physical examination is not required.
• Subject to background/security investigation
• Selected applicants will be required to complete an online onboarding process. Acceptable form(s) of identification will be required to complete pre-employment requirements ( Effective May 7, 2025, driver's licenses or state-issued identification cards that are not REAL ID compliant cannot be utilized as an acceptable form of identification for employment.
• Participation in the seasonal influenza vaccination program is a requirement for all Department of Veterans Affairs Health Care Personnel (HCP)

As a condition of employment for accepting this position, you will be required to serve a 1-year probationary period or 2-year trial period during which we will evaluate your fitness and whether your continued employment advances the public interest. In determining if your employment advances the public interest, we may consider:

• your performance and conduct;
• the needs and interests of the agency;
• whether your continued employment would advance organizational goals of the agency or the Government; and
• whether your continued employment would advance the efficiency of the Federal service.

Upon completion of your probationary period, your employment will be terminated unless you receive certification, in writing, that your continued employment advances the public interest.

Qualifications

To qualify for this position, applicants must meet all requirements by the closing date of this announcement, 09/08/2026.

Time-In-Grade Requirement : Applicants who are current Federal employees and have held a GS grade any time in the past 52 weeks must also meet time-in-grade requirements by the closing date of this announcement. For a GS-07 position you must have served 52 weeks at the GS-06. GS-08 position you must have served 52 weeks at the GS-07. The grade may have been in any occupation, but must have been held in the Federal service. An SF-50 that shows your time-in-grade eligibility must be submitted with your application materials. If the most recent SF-50 has an effective date within the past year, it may not clearly demonstrate you possess one-year time-in-grade, as required by the announcement. In this instance, you must provide an additional SF-50 that clearly demonstrates one-year time-in-grade. Note: Time-In-Grade requirements also apply to former Federal employees applying for reinstatement as well as current employees applying for Veterans Employment Opportunities Act of 1998 (VEOA) appointment.

You may qualify based on your experience and/as described below:

• Specialized Experience GS-07: You must have one year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the next lower grade GS-06 in the normal line of progression for the occupation in the organization. Examples of specialized experience would typically include, but are not limited to:
  • Provides clerical and administrative assistance to the organization.
  • Use of computer software programs, such as Microsoft Office (Word, Excel, and Outlook).
  • Reviews correspondence and documents prepared for signature.
  • Assembling/preparing information for a variety of meetings, reports and correspondence at the executive level.
  • Serving as a liaison to convey information.
  • Provides assistance with a variety of problems and inquiries which are received in person, telephonically, or by referral from other secretaries, receptionists or support staff in the organization.
  • Transcription of clinical and administrative materials, compiling summaries of minutes and meetings, and preparing minutes and agendas for distribution.
  • Organizing and maintaining records and files.
  • Managing calendars and schedules.

• Specialized Experience GS-08: You must have one year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the next lower grade GS-07 in the normal line of progression for the occupation in the organization. Examples of specialized experience would typically include, but are not limited to:
  • Provides clerical and administrative assistance to the organization.
  • Use of computer software programs, such as Microsoft Office (Word, Excel, and Outlook).
  • Reviews correspondence and documents prepared for signature.
  • Independently assembles/prepares information for a variety of meetings, reports and correspondence at the executive level.
  • Serving as a liaison to convey information.
  • Resolves problems and inquiries which are received in person, telephonically, or by referral from other secretaries, receptionists or support staff in the organization.
  • Organizing and maintaining records and files.
  • Managing calendars and schedules.
  • Transcription of clinical and administrative materials, compiling summaries of minutes and meetings, and preparing minutes and agendas for distribution.
  • Provides advice, guidance and instructions to subordinate offices regarding installation policies and correspondence requirements to ensure compliance.

For more information on these qualification standards, please visit the United States Office of Personnel Management's website at

Education

There is no educational substitution at this grade level.

Note: Only education or degrees recognized by the U.S. Department of Education from accredited colleges, universities, schools, or institutions may be used to qualify for Federal employment. You can verify your education here: If you are using foreign education to meet qualification requirements, you must send a Certificate of Foreign Equivalency with your transcript in order to receive credit for that education. For further information, visit:

Additional information

Under the Fair Chance to Compete Act, the Department of Veterans Affairs prohibits requesting an applicant's criminal history prior to accepting a tentative job offer. For more information about the Act and the complaint process, visit Human Resources and Administration/Operations, Security, and Preparedness (HRA/OSP) at The Fair Chance Act.

Reasonable Accommodation (RA) Requests: If you believe you have a disability (i.e., physical or mental), covered by the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 as amended that would interfere with completing the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments, you will be granted the opportunity to request a RA in your online application. Requests for RA for the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments and appropriate supporting documentation for RA must be received prior to starting the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments. Decisions on requests for RA are made on a case-by-case basis. If you meet the minimum qualifications of the position, after notification of the adjudication of your request, you will receive an email invitation to complete the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments, based on your adjudication decision. You must complete all assessments within 48 hours of receiving the URL to access the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments if you received the link after the close of the announcement. To determine if you need a RA, please review the Procedures for Requesting a Reasonable Accommodation for Online Assessments.

Receiving Service Credit for Earning Annual (Vacation) Leave : Federal Employees earn annual leave at a rate (4, 6 or 8 hours per pay period) which is based on the number of years they have served as a Federal employee. VA may offer newly-appointed Federal employee's credit for their job-related non-federal experience or active duty uniformed military service. This credited service can be used in determining the rate at which they earn annual leave. Such credit must be requested and approved prior to the appointment date and is not guaranteed.

This job opportunity announcement may be used to fill additional vacancies.

The Interagency Career Transition Assistance Plan (ICTAP) and Career Transition Assistance Plan (CTAP) provide eligible displaced VA competitive service employees with selection priority over other candidates for competitive service vacancies. To be qualified you must submit appropriate documentation (a copy of the agency notice, your most recent performance rating, and your most recent SF-50 noting current position, grade level, and duty location) and be found well-qualified for this vacancy. To be well-qualified: applicants must possess experience that exceeds the minimum qualifications of the position including all selective factors, and who are proficient in most of the required competencies of the job. Information about ICTAP and CTAP eligibility is on OPM's Career Transition Resources website at

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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A career with the U.S. government provides employees with a comprehensive benefits package. As a federal employee, you and your family will have access to a range of benefits that are designed to make your federal career very rewarding. Opens in a new windowLearn more about federal benefits.

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Eligibility for benefits depends on the type of position you hold and whether your position is full-time, part-time or intermittent. Contact the hiring agency for more information on the specific benefits offered.