Contract Specialist (Early Career - Procurement)

Summary

As a Contract Specialist or early-career professional in a similar role, you may contribute to the acquisition of supplies, services, equipment, and other resources agencies need to deliver their missions. Your work may include market research, solicitation support, proposal review, contract documentation, contractor performance tracking, customer support, and acquisition process improvement.

Duties

Representative duties may include:

• Support acquisition and contracting activities across the contracting lifecycle.
• Review requisitions, specifications, purchase descriptions, and related materials for completeness and accuracy.
• Conduct market research to identify potential suppliers and assess their ability to meet requirements.
• Assist with preparing solicitation, award, contract administration, and closeout materials.
• Review proposal information for price, technical capability, and compliance with requirements.
• Support monitoring of contractor performance, deliverables, reports, and related issues.
• Apply federal acquisition rules, policy, and guidance under supervision to support recommendations.
• Use spreadsheets, collaboration platforms, dashboards, automation, or approved AI-enabled tools, where authorized, to support research, drafting, summarization, data organization, reporting, and workflow improvement.
• Review digital or AI-assisted outputs for accuracy, completeness, relevance, and appropriate use before incorporating them into official work.

Requirements

Conditions of employment

This is a pooled hiring action. Specific duty locations are not known at the time of this announcement. Positions may be located anywhere in the United States where federal agencies are located. Duty location will be determined at the time of selection based on the needs of the agency and the interests of the candidate.
Applicants will indicate geographic preferences in the application questionnaire. These preferences may help participating agencies understand candidate location interests and potential future workforce needs, but they do not guarantee consideration, selection, or assignment to any specific location.
After appointment, the employing agency may reassign employees to another federal duty location based on mission needs and applicable law, regulation, and agency policy. Any reassignment decision is made by the employing agency after appointment and is not guaranteed.
Applicants must meet all conditions of employment listed in this announcement and any agency-specific requirements. Depending on the position, these may include:

• U.S. citizenship or nationality.
• Completion of the E-Verify employment verification process.
• Selective Service registration, if applicable.
• Background investigation and suitability determination.
• Security clearance, if required by the hiring agency.
• Drug testing, financial disclosure, or bargaining unit coverage, depending on the position.
  • May require a pre-employment drug test and/or random drug testing during the period of employment.
• Direct deposit of salary payments.
• Current civil service employees selected will be given new appointments to the civil service and subject to a new probationary period; however, benefits, time served, and other Federal entitlements may remain the same.

Qualifications

Who we are looking for
Strong candidates may bring experience through school, internships, work, military service, volunteer service, apprenticeships, community activities, or other relevant settings.
Applicants do not need a linear background or a single type of experience. Relevant experience may be paid or unpaid and may come from academic, community, technical, service, or professional settings.
Strong candidates may demonstrate:

• Clear written and verbal communication.
• Sound judgment, reliability, and attention to detail.
• Comfort learning new systems, tools, and processes.
• Interest in public service and improving how government works.
• Ability to work with data, documents, collaboration tools, and digital systems.
• Responsible use of modern digital tools, including approved AI-enabled tools where appropriate to the role.

Basic requirement
Contract Specialist (1102 series) positions also require one of the following: a 4-year course of study leading to a bachelor's degree with a major in any field; completion of at least 24 semester hours in accounting, business, finance, law, contracts, purchasing, economics, industrial management, marketing, quantitative methods, or organization and management; or Federal employees in Contracting Series (1102) positions will be considered to have met the standard for positions they occupy on January 1, 2000. Transcripts or SF-50s must be submitted; AND
Grade-specific requirements
In addition to the Basic Requirement, applicants must also meet Minimum Qualifications for the grade level(s) for which they are applying.
GS-7
Applicants may qualify at the GS-7 level based on one of the following:

• One year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the GS-5 level that demonstrates at least three of the following:
  1. Reviewing technical or administrative documents to ensure they are complete and accurate.
  2. Applying regulations, procedural manuals, or policy guidance to support recommendations.
  3. Preparing written materials such as reports, summaries, memoranda, correspondence, or instructions, or conducting background research to present information clearly.
  4. Reviewing data for accuracy to identify discrepancies or recommend workflow improvements; OR
• One full year of graduate education in one or a combination of the following fields: accounting, business, finance, law, contracts, purchasing, economics, industrial management, marketing, quantitative methods, or organization and management; OR
• Superior Academic Achievement:A bachelor's degree, AND meet one of the following:
  1. Grade point average of 3.0 or higher (on a 4.0 scale) for all undergraduate coursework or courses completed in the last two years of undergraduate study.
  2. Grade point average of 3.45 or higher (on a 4.0 scale) for all courses in your major field of study, or those courses in your major completed in the last two years of undergraduate study.
  3. Class standing in the upper one-third of your graduating class, college, university, or major subdivision.
  4. Membership in a national honor society (other than freshman honor societies) recognized by the Association of College Honor Societies; OR
• A combination of qualifying education and experience. If you have some qualifying education and some qualifying experience, but don't fully meet either requirement on its own, you may be able to combine them. Only graduate education can be used in this calculation. Experience must be reflected in your resume, and transcripts are required.
  1. Divide your qualifying graduate semester hours by 18. That gives you your education percentage.
  2. Divide your months of qualifying experience by 12. That gives you your experience percentage.
  3. Add the two together. If the total is 100% or more, you qualify.

• One year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the GS-7 level that demonstrates at least three of the following:
  1. Analyzing contract materials, technical specifications, or financial statements to support acquisition-related documentation.
  2. Reviewing contract proposals for pricing, technical capability, or adherence to specifications to inform award decisions.
  3. Preparing reports, summaries, memoranda, correspondence, instructions, or background research to support procurement or operational decisions.
  4. Responding to inquiries to provide business or administrative recommendations; OR
• Two full years of progressively higher-level graduate education, or a master's, LL.B., or J.D. in one or a combination of the following fields: accounting, business, finance, law, contracts, purchasing, economics, industrial management, marketing, quantitative methods, or organization and management; OR
• A combination of qualifying education and experience. If you have some qualifying education and some qualifying experience, but don't fully meet either requirement on its own, you may be able to combine them. Only graduate education in excess of one year (18 semester hours or equivalent) can be used in this calculation. Experience must be reflected in your resume, and transcripts are required.
  1. Divide your qualifying graduate semester hours beyond the first 18 by 18. That gives you your education percentage.
  2. Divide your months of qualifying experience by 12. That gives you your experience percentage.
  3. Add the two together. If the total is 100% or more, you qualify.

• One year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the GS-9 level that demonstrates at least three of the following:
  1. Preparing or reviewing solicitation, award, contract administration, or closeout materials to support acquisition actions.
  2. Analyzing contract proposals, pricing, technical capability, or compliance information to support award or administration decisions.
  3. Conducting market research or supplier analysis to support acquisition planning or recommendations.
  4. Monitoring contractor performance, deliverables, reports, or related issues to recommend next steps; OR
• Three full years of progressively higher-level graduate education leading to a Ph.D. or equivalent doctoral degree, or a Ph.D., LL.M., or equivalent doctoral degree in one or a combination of the following fields: accounting, business, finance, law, contracts, purchasing, economics, industrial management, marketing, quantitative methods, or organization and management; OR
• A combination of qualifying education and experience. If you have some qualifying education and some qualifying experience, but don't fully meet either requirement on its own, you may be able to combine them. Only graduate education in excess of two years (36 semester hours or equivalent) can be used in this calculation. Experience must be reflected in your resume, and transcripts are required.
  1. Divide your qualifying graduate semester hours beyond the first 36 by 18. That gives you your education percentage.
  2. Divide your months of qualifying experience by 12. That gives you your experience percentage.
  3. Add the two together. If the total is 100% or more, you qualify.

Education

If you are claiming education as any part of the Basic Requirement or your Minimum Qualifications for this position: You must submit a copy of your college transcript. An unofficial transcript with the degree title, list of courses, grades earned, completion dates, and quarter and semester hours earned can be used as a substitute for official transcripts at the time of application. If you are selected for a position, official transcripts will be required prior to entering on duty.
(For GS-07) Note about Superior Academic Achievement (SAA): Applicants usually cannot claim credit based on their overall GPA if more than 10 percent of their total credit was based on pass/fail or similar systems, rather than on traditional grading systems. However, if they can document that only their freshman-year courses (25 percent or less of their total credit) were credited on a pass/fail or similar system, they can use their overall GPA to claim SAA. If 10 percent or fewer credits or only freshman-year courses were based on pass/fail or similar systems, such credits can be ignored and the GPA can be computed from the graded courses. Applicants can, however, still claim credit based on their last 2 years if 10 percent or fewer credits were based on pass/fail or similar systems. Applicants who cannot claim credit under the GPA requirements may claim credit for SAA only on the basis of class standing or honor society membership.
Note about Graduate Education: One academic year of graduate education is considered to be the number of credits hours your graduate school has determined to represent one academic year of full-time study. Such study may have been performed on a full-time or part-time basis. If you cannot obtain your graduate school's definition of one year of graduate study, 18 semester hours (or 27 quarter hours) should be considered as satisfying the requirement for one year of full-time graduate study.
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; applicants' resumes and supporting documentation should only reflect education received from schools accredited by such institutions. Applicants can verify accreditation at the following website: https://ope.ed.gov/dapip/#/home.If a relevant course is not clearly qualifying (e.g., special topic, seminar, research, thesis, obscure or misleading course title, etc.), please submit an official course syllabus and/or detailed course description from the university/college for that particular course to ensure you are properly evaluated. Provide all relevant transcripts, not just your most recent one.
Special Instructions for Foreign Education: If you are using education completed in foreign colleges or universities to meet Minimum Qualifications, you must show that the education credentials have been evaluated by a private organization that specializes in interpretation of foreign education programs and such education has been deemed equivalent to that gained in an accredited U.S. education program, or full credit has been given for the courses at a U.S. accredited college or university. Failure to provide such documentation with your application will result in lost consideration. For further information, visit: https://sites.ed.gov/international/recognition-of-foreign-qualifications/.

Additional information

• This announcement is being used to recruit qualified individuals under the Office of Personnel Management's Direct Hire Authority. Therefore, veterans' preference and traditional rating or ranking of applicants do not apply to this public notice.
• Agencies across Federal government may hire from this cross-government announcement.
• Agencies with non-General Schedule (non-GS) pay plans or bands may hire from this announcement when the vacancy they are filling is equivalent to the GS grade(s) advertised. The hiring agency's servicing HR office must verify grade-equivalency alignment with the advertised GS grade(s). Selections from this announcement must be for GS grade(s) (or equivalent pay plan or band) included in the announcement.
• Final duty location and pay will be determined by the hiring agency. The salary range posted in this announcement is an approximation and subject to locality adjustment.
• Promotion potential varies by hiring agency. Some positions may have promotion potential to higher grade levels.
• Recruitment and/or relocation incentives may be available, depending on the hiring agency's policy.
• Current or Former Political Appointees: 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.
• 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 Assessments, you will be granted the opportunity to request a RA in your online application. Requests for RA for the USA Hire Assessments and appropriate supporting documentation for RA must be received prior to starting the USA Hire 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 Assessments, based on your adjudication decision. You must complete all assessments within 48 hours of receiving the URL to access the USA Hire 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.

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.

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.

Review our 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.