The incumbent serves as a Personnel Security Specialist in the Investigations Branch, Personnel Security Division (PSD), Office of Professional Responsibility and Security Operations (OPRSO). PSD is responsible for the implementation and oversight of ATF's Personnel Security. Since 1998, ATF has held the unique status of maintaining delegated authority, issued by the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) to conduct background investigations.
Duties
The major duties of the Personnel Security Specialist (Investigator) position include, but are not limited to, the following: Applies training and appropriate procedures to review all information obtained in the Security Package for accuracy and completeness. Conducts pre-employment screening and makes interim clearance or temporary eligibility recommendations. Applies training and appropriate procedures to scope all components needed for the background investigation based on the requirements applicable to the investigation type, the Subject's personal history and relationships. Assists in the development of investigation guidelines, procedures and forms based on Federal mandates, DOJ requirements, and Bureau policies; and recommends revisions to pertinent guidelines, procedures and forms when updates occur. Assists with gathering data, running statistical analyses, and preparing documentation to satisfy reporting matrices for the Bureau and other governing agencies. Duties will be developmental in nature when filled below the full performance level.
Salary
Qualifications
To qualify for the Personnel Security Specialist (Investigator) position at the GS-9/11/12, you must meet the following requirements by the closing date of this announcement. Minimum Qualifications To qualify for this position at the GS-09 grade level, candidates must also have at least one year of specialized experience equivalent to the next lower grade level (GS-07) by the closing date of this announcement. Specialized experience is demonstrated experience, which has equipped the applicant with the particular knowledge, skills and abilities to perform successfully the duties of this position. Experience must be in the normal line of progression or must be related to the work of the position advertised and must be reflected in resume. Specialized experience must include all of: Assists in determining if reciprocity criteria were properly applied to the investigation based on previous background investigations conducted and in determining that the type of investigation requested is appropriate for the identified position; AND Assists with conducting pre-employment screening and/or making interim clearance or temporary eligibility recommendations; AND Reviews all information obtained in the Security Package for accuracy and completeness; AND Conducts investigative inquiries. OR Completion of a master's or equivalent graduate degree or at least 2 full years of progressively higher level graduate education leading to such a degree or LL.B. or J.D., if related to the requirements of the position. To qualify for this position at the GS-11 grade level, candidates must also have at least one year of specialized experience equivalent to the next lower grade level (GS-09) by the closing date of this announcement. Specialized experience must include all of: Determines if reciprocity criteria were properly applied to the investigation based on previous background investigations conducted and ensures that the type of investigation requested is appropriate for the identified position; AND Conducts pre-employment screening and makes interim clearance or temporary eligibility recommendations; AND Reviews all information obtained in the Security Package for accuracy and completeness; AND Identifies all components needed to be performed for the background investigation based on the requirements applicable to the investigation type. OR Completion of a Ph.D. or equivalent doctoral degree or at least 3 full years of progressively higher level graduate education leading to such a degree or LL.M., if related to the requirements of the position. To qualify for this position at the GS-12 grade level, candidates must also have at least one year of specialized experience equivalent to the next lower grade level (GS-11) by the closing date of this announcement. Specialized experience must include all of: Determines if reciprocity criteria were properly applied to the investigation based on previous background investigations conducted and ensures that the type of investigation requested is appropriate for the identified position; AND Conducts pre-employment screening and makes interim clearance or temporary eligibility recommendations; AND Reviews all information obtained in the Security Package for accuracy and completeness; AND Conducts background investigations ensuring all components needed are obtained based on the requirements applicable to the investigation type. Your resume must support your responses to the application questionnaire and the qualification requirements. Failure to do so may result in an ineligible rating. See the Required Documents section for important notes about what must be included in your resume. After you submit this application, you will receive an e-mail informing you that a USA Hire assessment is required of you. You will have 48 hours from the closing date of this announcement (03/30/2026) to complete the assessment as this assessment is part of your application.
Education
If you are relying on your education to meet qualification requirements, please see the statements below. Education must be reviewed and certified by an accrediting institution recognized by the U.S. Department of Education, in order for it to be creditable towards your qualifications. Therefore, provide only the attendance and/or degrees from accredited institution. 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 a conventional U.S. education program. It is your responsibility to provide such evidence when applying. For special instructions pertaining to foreign education and a list of organizations that can evaluate foreign education, see the Department of Education website. If you are qualifying on foreign education, you MUST submit proof of creditability of education as evaluated by a credentialing agency. All documentation must be in English or include an English translation.
Required Documents
It is your responsibility to carefully review the list of required documents below & submit the necessary documentation based on your eligibility. Resume - All Applicants: You must submit a resume (a two page or less resume is required) containing the following pieces of information for each job entry listed in your employment history. Showing relative permanent and volunteer work experience, education, & training, your resume serves as the basis for qualification determinations. Official position title, Employer name and contact information, Start and end dates (including month and year), Indicate full-time or number of hours worked per week if part-time, Your Pay Plan/Series/Grade for all federal positions, and A list of duties performed and accomplishments. If you are a current or former Federal employee: You must submit your most recent SF-50 (Notification of Personnel Action) or equivalent agency form. Do not submit an award SF-50, these do not contain sufficient information about your appointment. Your SF-50 should list the full position title, series, grade and step, organization, duty location, service computation date, effective date, and your service type and tenure status. Multiple SF-50's may need to be uploaded to show 1 year at the next lower grade level. College Transcripts: If you are using education to qualify for this position, or education is required, you must submit a transcript, which may be unofficial, as long as it contains a full listing of courses, credit earned, grade and grade-point-average, subject area, degree(s) earned, and dates of award. Note: If you are selected for this position, official transcripts will be required prior to your first day. Your transcript must come from a nationally accredited educational institution recognized by the Department of Education. If submitting a foreign transcript, you must have the transcript reviewed by an approved foreign education review organization recognized by the Department of Education. Please do not submit electronic transcripts with documentation security protection, these may prevent our application system from accepting and processing the document. If you are a displaced Federal employee claiming eligibility under CTAP or ICTAP: You must submit your separation notice or agency RIF letter from your agency OR if you have not yet been separated, you can provide the letter of intent to separate you from the agency because of reduction-in-force. Submit a copy of your most recent performance appraisal and SF-50 showing current/former position, grade, promotion potential, and duty location OR 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. Veterans' preference documentation (Member Copy 4 of DD-214, Revised October 2013 SF-15 https://www.opm.gov/forms/pdf_fill/sf15.pdf and VA letter, if applicable. NOTE: The revised October 2013 SF-15 is the latest copy and all others are not usable. Schedule A documentation, if applicable. Note:DOJ welcomes and encourages applications from persons with disabilities. Qualified applicants with disabilities may be eligible for special hire, non-competitive appointment under Schedule A eligibility. Please visit http://www.usajobs.gov/Help/working-in-government/unique-hiring-paths/individuals-with-disabilities or contact the Selective Placement Program Coordinator at 202-648-7454. Military Spouses (if applicable) - You MUST submit verification of the marriage to the service member (i.e., a marriage license or other legal documentation verifying marriage) AND: (1) a copy of your spouse's active military orders; OR (2) verification of your spouse's 100% service-connected disability (VA Letter and/or DD-214); OR (3) verification of the service member's death while on active duty (DD-1300/Death Certificate). You are not eligible if you were not married to the veteran at the time of death or have since remarried. Interchange Agreement with Other Merit Systems Eligible: Documentation of eligibility as listed in each individual interchange agreement. Other noncompetitive or special appointing authorities (e.g., Peace Corps, VISTA, Public Land Corp, Military Spouse, VRA, 30% Disabled Veterans, Certain Former Overseas Employees, Foreign Service, etc.) must provide substantiating documentation as required. Any other supporting documentation required for verification as described in the announcement. Prior to selection, the candidate may be required to provide an original copy of any supporting/validating documentation as well as other documentation to verify eligibility. All required materials must be uploaded using the supporting documentation instructions described in the announcement. Failure to provide the required documentation by the closing of this announcement will result in elimination of further consideration for this position.
How to Apply
To apply for this position, you must complete the online application questionnaire and submit your supporting documentation. Your complete application package must be submitted by 11:59 PM (EST) on 03/30/2026 to receive consideration. The application process is as follows: Click Apply to access the online application. You will need to be logged into your USAJOBS account to apply. If you do not have a USAJOBS account, you will need to create one before beginning the application. Follow the prompts to select your resume and/or other supporting documents to be included with your application package. You will have the opportunity to upload additional documents to include in your application before it is submitted. Your uploaded documents may take several hours to clear the virus scan process. After acknowledging you have reviewed your application package, complete the Include Personal Information section as you deem appropriate and click to continue with the application process. You will be taken to the online application which you must complete in order to apply for the position. Complete the online application, verify the required documentation is included with your application package, and submit the application. After submitting an online application, you will be notified whether or not you are required to take additional online assessments through the USA Hire Competency Based Assessment system. This message will be delivered to you via email notification. The email may be routed to your "Spam" or "Junk" folder. If you are asked to take the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments, you will be presented with a unique URL to access the USA Hire system. Access to USA Hire is granted through your USAJOBS login credentials. Be sure to review all instructions prior to beginning your USA Hire Assessments. Click here for Computer System Requirements (https://help.usastaffing.gov/Apply/index.php?title=USA_Hire_System_Requirements) Note, set aside at least 3 hours to take these assessments; however, most applicants complete the assessments in less time. If you need to stop the assessments and continue at a later time, you can re-use the URL sent to you via email and also found on the Additional Application Information page that can be located in the application record in your USAJOBS account. To update your application, including supporting documentation, at any time during the announcement open period return to your USAJOBS account. There you will find a record of your application, the application status, and an option to Edit My Application. This option will no longer be available once the announcement is closed. To verify the status of your application both during and after the announcement open period, log into your USAJOBS account. Your applications will appear on the Welcome page. Navigate to the job application and click Track this application to view your application status. The link will take you to the hiring agency application system, which has the most up-to-date status of your application. The Application Status will appear along with the date your application was last updated. For information on what each Application Status means click here. NEED HELP?If you need help with USAJOBs or the application process, please see the USAJOBS Help or Application Manager Online Help websites which includes information on managing your account, creating an application, uploading documents, etc.
