The following requirements are prescribed by the Office of Personnel Management and used to determine minimum qualifications.

Individual Occupational Requirements

Basic Requirements:

This standard allows eligibility through meeting either the requirements specified in the section titled Education or the requirements specified in the section titled Experience.

Education: All academic degrees and coursework must be from accredited or pre-accredited institutions

Undergraduate or Graduate Education: Degree in computer science, engineering, information science, information systems management, mathematics, operations research, statistics, or technology management or degree that provided a minimum of 24 semester hours in one or more of the fields identified above and required the development or adaptation of applications, systems or networks.

Requirements
Level Education

GS-5 (or equivalent)

bachelor's degree

GS-7 (or equivalent)

1 full year of graduate level education
or
superior academic achievement

GS-9 (or equivalent)

master's degree or equivalent graduate degree
or
2 full years of progressively higher level graduate education leading to a master's degree or equivalent graduate degree

GS-11 (or equivalent)

Ph.D. or equivalent doctoral degree
or
3 full years of progressively higher level graduate education leading to a Ph.D. or equivalent doctoral degree

or

Experience

Experience must be IT related; the experience may be demonstrated by paid or unpaid experience and/or completion of specific, intensive training (for example, IT certification), as appropriate

GS-5 through GS-15 (or equivalent): For all positions individuals must have IT-related experience demonstrating each of the four competencies listed below. The employing agency is responsible for identifying the specific level of proficiency required for each competency at each grade level based on the requirements of the position being filled.

  1. Attention to Detail-Is thorough when performing work and conscientious about attending to detail
  2. Customer Service - Works with clients and customers (that is, any individuals who use or receive the services or products that your work unit produces, including the general public, individuals who work in the agency, other agencies, or organizations outside the Government) to assess their needs, provide information or assistance, resolve their problems, or satisfy their expectations; knows about available products and services; is committed to providing quality products and services.
  3. Oral Communication - Expresses information (for example, ideas or facts) to individuals or groups effectively, taking into account the audience and nature of the information (for example, technical, sensitive, controversial); makes clear and convincing oral presentations; listens to others, attends to nonverbal cues, and responds appropriately.
  4. Problem Solving - Identifies problems; determines accuracy and relevance of information; uses sound judgment to generate and evaluate alternatives, and to make recommendations.

and

Specialized Experience for GS-7 (or equivalent) and Above: Positions at GS-7 (or equivalent) and above require one year of specialized experience at the next lower GS-grade (or equivalent). Specialized experience is experience that has equipped the applicant with the particular competencies/knowledge, skills, and abilities to successfully perform the duties of the position and is typically in or related to the work of the position to be filled. Such experience is typically gained in the IT field or through the performance of work where the primary concern is IT. The employing agency is responsible for defining the specialized experience based on the requirements of the position being filled.

For more information on qualifying education and experience, please visit the Individual Occupational Requirements.

This page was last updated on October 28, 2021