Student Trainee (Accounting) GS-0599-03/04

Duties Start your Accounting career here with us at the U.
S.
Coast Guard’s Finance Center, Chesapeake, VA.
The Finance Center is the world-wide finance and accounting office for the Coast Guard.
We are among the best places to work in the Coast Guard and U.
S.
Government.
The position’s primary purpose is to perform developmental accounting assignments that involve the application of accounting principles, procedures, processes, regulations and reference material fundamental to the technical aspects of governmental accounting.
Being a CG civilian makes you a valuable member of the CG team.
Typical work assignments include: The intern will receive a series of rotating assignments involving different divisions and branches.
Examples of typical assignments are as follows: Examining a variety of financial transactions and reports for completeness, accuracy, and conformance with acceptable standards.
Reviewing and processing invoices for payment.
Performing a variety of assignments involving accounts receivable including billing, dunning, aging, and referral to collection agents.
Performing reconciliation of general ledger control accounts and subsidiary ledgers.
Research discrepancies and make necessary adjustment entries.
Requirements Conditions of Employment U.
S.
Citizenship is required.
Males born after 12/31/1959 must be registered for Selective Service.
Unofficial transcripts are required at the time of application.
Must be at least 16 years of age.
Must be willing to sign a Pathways Agreement.
Students must maintain at least half-time enrollment.
Students must maintain good academic standing.
All qualification requirements must be met by the closing date of the announcement.
There are several parts of the application process that affect the overall evaluation of your application: Resume Responses to on-line core questions; Responses to on-line self-assessment; Supporting documents if requested.
High self assessment in the vacancy questions that is not supported by information in your resume and/or supporting documents may impact you or eliminate you from consideration.
To apply, applicants must: Must be a U.
S.
Citizen All qualification requirements must be met by the closing date of the announcement.
Must meet the requirements of the Pathways Internship Program throughout the duration of your Pathways appointment.
Must sign a Pathways Internship Program Participant Agreement and must maintain good academic standing.
Maintain good academic standing, at least a 2.
5 cumulative GPA on a 4.
0 grading scale.
Must furnish course registration information at the start of each school term; and Must provide verification of academic status (transcript) at the end of each academic term.
Qualifications In order to be eligible for a Pathways Intern Program appointment, you must be a student enrolled or accepted for enrollment as a full or part-time degree (diploma, certificate, etc.
) seeking student in an accredited high school, technical or vocational school, 2-year or 4-year college or university, graduate or professional school.
Selected candidates will be required to submit a copy of their transcripts and a letter of enrollment or acceptance for enrollment prior to appointment.
Any of the following educational institutions or curricula that have been accredited by an accrediting body recognized by the Secretary of the U.
S.
Department of Education: · Technical or vocational school · 2-year or 4-year college or university · Graduate or Professional school (e.
g.
, law school, medical school) A certificate program is post-secondary education, in a qualifying educational institution, equivalent to at least one academic year of full-time study that is part of an accredited college-level, technical, trade, vocational or business school curriculum.
In addition to the eligibility requirement: You qualify for the GS-03 level (starting salary $30,386) if you are a current student (attending an accredited educational institution recognized by the Department of Education) and have completed 1 year of education above high school leading to a bachelor's degree or equivalent degree.
You qualify for the GS-04 level (starting salary $34,109) if you are a current student (attending an accredited educational institution recognized by the Department of Education) and have two years of education above high school or an associate's degree.
The required education must lead to a bachelor's degree with specialization in or directly related to the field of accounting (i.
e.
business administration, finance, or public administration) in which the intern will receive training on the job.
Additionally, to be eligible for a Pathways Internship you must be enrolled in or accepted for enrollment in a degree program or qualified certificate program in a qualifying educational institution on a full or half time basis.
Upon completion of all academic and program requirements, selectees may be non-competitively converted to a term or permanent position in the competitive service.
NOTE: To be eligible for conversion, you must complete 640 hours of work (if you meet all required criteria, up to 320 hours may be waived if: (1) you complete 320 hours of career-related work experience under an Internship Program appointment and have demonstrated high potential by outstanding academic achievement and exceptional job performance; or (2) you complete comparable non-federal internship experience in a field or functional area related to your target position).
National Service Experience (i.
e.
, volunteer experience): 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 Office of Personnel management (OPM) must authorize employment offers made to current or former political appointees.
If you are currently, or have been within the last 5 years, a political Schedule A, Schedule, C, Non-career SES or Presidential Appointee employee in the Executive Branch, you must disclose this information to the Human Resources Office.
Education This position does have a positive education requirement.
If you are including education on your resume, report only attendance and/or degrees from schools accredited by accrediting institutions recognized by the U.
S.
Department of Education.
See Required Documents section for detail.
FOREIGN EDUCATION: Education completed in foreign colleges or universities may be used to meet Federal qualification requirements if you can show that your foreign education is comparable to education received in accredited educational institutions in the United States.
It is your responsibility to provide such evidence with your application.
See Recognition of Foreign Qualifications click here Additional information Applying to this announcement certifies that you give permission for DHS to share your application with others in DHS for similar positions.
Applicants will be required to complete questions contained on the Declaration for Federal Employment (OF-306) at the time a tentative job offer is made.
At the time of appointment, selectees will be required to update the OF-306.
Certain responses on the form could pose a problem with suitability for employment determinations.
If you are selected for this position, you will be subject to a determination of your suitability for Federal employment.
All selectees are subject to an appropriate investigation as a condition of placement into this position.
Certain investigation levels may automatically require a credit check after initial job qualifications have been met.
For those positions that do not automatically require a credit check, it may later be required if the initial investigation surfaces a potential issue.
Visit: OPM Mythbuster DHS uses E-Verify, an Internet-based system, to confirm the eligibility of all newly hired employees to work in the United States.
Learn more about your rights and responsibilities at click here Recruitment incentives may be authorized.
Moving expenses will not be paid.
Must sign a service agreement.
Interns may be considered for noncompetitive conversion to a term or a permanent appointment within 120 days of completion of educational program requirements.
Must sign a program participant agreement and mobility agreement.
All Federal employees are required to have Federal salary payments made by direct deposit.
Persons with disabilities possess a wealth of unique talents, experiences, and competencies that can be invaluable to the DHS mission.
If you are a person with a disability, you may not have to compete with the public for federal jobs.
To determine your eligibility and to understand the documentation that would be required with your application, click on the links above and contact the Servicing Human Resources Office listed at the bottom of this announcement.
More than 1 selection may be made from this announcement if additional identical vacancies in the same title, series, grade, and unit occur within 90 days from the date the certificate was issued.
If you need a reasonable accommodation for the application and hiring process, please contact 202-795-6261.
Decisions on granting reasonable accommodation will be made on a case-by-case basis.
Visit Reasonable Accommodation Benefits 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.
DHS offers competitive salaries and an attractive benefits package, including: health, dental, vision, life, and long-term care insurance; retirement plan; Thrift Savings Plan [similar to a 401(K)]; Flexible Spending Account; Employee Assistance Program; personal leave days; and paid federal holidays.
Other benefits may include: flexible work schedules; telework; tuition reimbursement; transportation subsidies; uniform allowance; health and wellness programs; and fitness centers.
DHS is committed to employee development and offers a variety of employee training and development opportunities.
For more information, go to the DHS Careers website and select “Benefits”.
Disabled veteran leave will be available to any Federal employee hired on or after November 5, 2016, who is a veteran with a service-connected disability rating of 30 percent or more.
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.
Student interns are not eligible for most federal employee benefits and are not tenured career federal employees with application status preference for other federal job posting.
Interns accrue paid annual leave and sick leave.
If converted, participants will begin to receive normal federal employee benefits.
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.
How You Will Be Evaluated You will be evaluated for this job based on how well you meet the qualifications above.
We will review your résumé and supporting documentation to ensure you meet the basic qualification requirements.
If you meet the minimum qualifications, your experience, education and training will be rated using the on-line assessment to place you in one of three categories.
The necessary Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities to perform this job are: Knowledge of accounting terminology, processes and documents relating to accounts payable/ receivable subsidiary ledgers.
Knowledge and understanding of accounting techniques and procedures sufficient to understand account relationships within an extensive account structure.
If you meet the minimum qualifications, you will be placed in one of the following categories: 1.
Best-Qualified: Applicants possessing experience that substantially exceeds the minimum qualifications of the position and demonstrate high proficiency in all of the critical competencies, including all Selective Placement Factors (SPF) and appropriate Quality Ranking Factors (QRF) as determined by the job analysis.
2.
Well-Qualified: Applicants possessing experience that exceeds the minimum qualifications of the position and demonstrates acceptable proficiency in all of the critical competencies, including all SPFs and appropriate QRFs as determined by the job analysis.
3.
Qualified: Applicants possessing experience that meets the minimum qualifications of the position and demonstrate basic proficiency in most of the critical competencies, including all SPFs and appropriate QRFs as determined by the job analysis.
If you are best qualified, you may be referred to the hiring manager for consideration and may be called for an interview.
Your resume and responses to the self-assessment questions are an integral part of the process for determining your qualifications for the position.
Therefore, you must support your responses to the self-assessment questions by providing examples of past and present experience in your resume.
You may preview questions for this vacancy.
Benefits 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.
DHS offers competitive salaries and an attractive benefits package, including: health, dental, vision, life, and long-term care insurance; retirement plan; Thrift Savings Plan [similar to a 401(K)]; Flexible Spending Account; Employee Assistance Program; personal leave days; and paid federal holidays.
Other benefits may include: flexible work schedules; telework; tuition reimbursement; transportation subsidies; uniform allowance; health and wellness programs; and fitness centers.
DHS is committed to employee development and offers a variety of employee training and development opportunities.
For more information, go to the DHS Careers website and select “Benefits”.
Disabled veteran leave will be available to any Federal employee hired on or after November 5, 2016, who is a veteran with a service-connected disability rating of 30 percent or more.
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.
Student interns are not eligible for most federal employee benefits and are not tenured career federal employees with application status preference for other federal job posting.
Interns accrue paid annual leave and sick leave.
If converted, participants will begin to receive normal federal employee benefits.
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.
Required Documents As a new or existing federal employee, you and your family may have access to a range of benefits.
Your benefits depend on the type of position you have - whether you're a permanent, part-time, temporary or an intermittent employee.
You may be eligible for the following benefits, however, check with your agency to make sure you're eligible under their policies.
To apply, applicants must: Be a U.
S.
Citizen.
OPM must authorize employment offers for former or current Political Appointees.
If you are currently, or have been within the last 5 years, a political Schedule A, Schedule C or Non-Career SES employee in the Executive Branch, you must disclose this information.
Submit proof of your former or current status, such as your SF-50.
Please see here.
All documentation as outlined above must be received by the closing date of the announcement.
If you are unable to submit your documents electronically, you may fax or mail the documents.
A fax cover sheet will be provided to you from the system with fax number and instructions.
Required documents will also be accepted by mail and must be received by the closing date of the announcement.
The mailing address is COMMANDANT (CG-122), ATTN OFFICE OF CIVILIAN WORKFORCE MANAGEMENT (JOBS), US COAST GUARD, 2703 MARTIN LUTHER KING JR AVE SE STOP 7912, WASHINGTON, DC 20593-7912.
If you are relying on your education to meet qualification requirements: Education must be accredited by an accrediting institution recognized by the U.
S.
Department of Education in order for it to be credited towards qualifications.
Therefore, provide only the attendance and/or degrees from schools accredited by accrediting institutions recognized by the U.
S.
Department of Education.
Failure to provide all of the required information as stated in this vacancy announcement may result in an ineligible rating or may affect the overall rating.
How to Apply Applications (resume and job specific questions) for this vacancy must be received on-line by 11:59 p.
m ET on the closing date of the announcement.
There are several parts of the application process that affect the overall evaluation of your application: Resume Responses to on-line core questions; Responses to on-line self-assessment; Supporting documents if requested.
High self assessment in the vacancy questions that is not supported by information in your resume and/or supporting documents may impact you or eliminate you from consideration.
Complete applications for this vacancy must be received on-line by 11:59 p.
m ET on the closing date of the announcement.
To begin your online application, click the Apply Online button and follow the prompts to register or sign in to USAJOBS, take the online questionnaire and submit the required documents to provide proof of qualifications.
If you are claiming veterans’ preference, you will be required to submit proof.
See Required Documents section for more detail regarding a complete application package.
High self assessment in the vacancy questions that is not supported by information in your resume and/or supporting documents may impact you or eliminate you from consideration.
If applying on-line poses a hardship to you, the Help Desk listed on the announcement will provide assistance to ensure that applications are submitted on-line by the closing date.
You must contact the Help Desk prior to the closing date of this announcement to receive assistance.
Hours of operation: Monday through Friday, 7:00 a.
m.
to 7:00 p.
m.
ET, excluding Federal holidays.
Agency contact information USCG Applicant Support Phone 866-656-6830 Fax 000-000-0000 Email mgshelp@monster.
com Address United States Coast Guard USCG Applicant Support 2703 Martin Luther King Jr.
Ave SE STOP 7120 Washington, District of Columbia 20593 United States Next steps Once the announcement is closed, we will conduct an evaluation of your application and qualifications to determine your ranking.
The most qualified applicants will be referred to the hiring manager for further consideration.
To check the status of your application, log on to your USAJOBS account, click on "Track this Application".
For more information on applying for federal employment click here.
Any offers of employment made pursuant to this announcement will be consistent with all applicable authorities, including Presidential Memoranda, Executive Orders, interpretive U.
S.
Office of Management and Budget (OMB) and U.
S.
Office of Personnel Management (OPM) guidance, and Office of Management and Budget plans and policies concerning hiring.
These authorities are subject to change.
Applying to this announcement certifies that you give permission for DHS to share your application with others in DHS for similar positions.
Fair and Transparent The Federal hiring process is set up to be fair and transparent.
Please read the following guidance.
Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO) Policy Reasonable accommodation policy Financial suitability Selective Service New employee probationary period Signature and false statements Privacy Act Social security number request Required Documents To apply, applicants must: Be a U.
S.
Citizen.
OPM must authorize employment offers for former or current Political Appointees.
If you are currently, or have been within the last 5 years, a political Schedule A, Schedule C or Non-Career SES employee in the Executive Branch, you must disclose this information.
Submit proof of your former or current status, such as your SF-50.
Please see here.
All documentation as outlined above must be received by the closing date of the announcement.
If you are unable to submit your documents electronically, you may fax or mail the documents.
A fax cover sheet will be provided to you from the system with fax number and instructions.
Required documents will also be accepted by mail and must be received by the closing date of the announcement.
The mailing address is COMMANDANT (CG-122), ATTN OFFICE OF CIVILIAN WORKFORCE MANAGEMENT (JOBS), US COAST GUARD, 2703 MARTIN LUTHER KING JR AVE SE STOP 7912, WASHINGTON, DC 20593-7912.
If you are relying on your education to meet qualification requirements: Education must be accredited by an accrediting institution recognized by the U.
S.
Department of Education in order for it to be credited towards qualifications.
Therefore, provide only the attendance and/or degrees from schools accredited by accrediting institutions recognized by the U.
S.
Department of Education.
Failure to provide all of the required information as stated in this vacancy announcement may result in an ineligible rating or may affect the overall rating.
Help This job is open to The public U.
S.
Citizens, Nationals or those who owe allegiance to the U.
S.
Students Current students enrolled in accredited educational institutions from high school to graduate level.
Includes internships, pathways and other student programs.
Clarification from the agency U.
S.
Citizens, Current Interns or Enrolled Students Student Pathways Program Subject position(s) will be filled through the Student Pathways Internship Program https://www.
opm.
gov/policy-data-oversight/hiring-information/students-recent-graduates/#intern