Human Resources Specialist (McCain Fellows)

The John S. McCain Strategic Defense Fellowship Program

The John S. McCain Strategic Defense Fellowship Program is a 1-year Department of War (DoW) development program for recent advanced degree program graduates from across multiple academic disciplines. While these are temporary appointments, Fellows that successfully complete this program are eligible to be considered for conversion into permanent positions if vacancies are available.

Find out more about this Program on our website and LinkedIn page.

Qualifications:

In order to qualify for this position, you must meet the requirements described below.

You may qualify at the GS-12 level, if you fulfill the following qualification requirement:

One year of specialized experience equivalent to the GS-11 grade level in the Federal service (experience may have been gained in the private sector) that demonstrates your ability to:

• 1) Develop and implement recruitment strategies for hard-to-fill positions,
• 2) Advise managers on staffing options, hiring flexibilities, pay setting, promotions, and other compensation-related matters, and
• 3) Use USA Staffing or other HR systems to manage the recruitment process.

You may qualify at the GS-11 level, if you fulfill the following qualification requirement:

One year of specialized experience equivalent to the GS-9 grade level in the Federal service (experience may have been gained in the private sector) that demonstrates your ability to:

• 1) Develop and implement recruitment strategies for hard-to-fill positions and
• 2) Use USA Staffing or other HR systems to manage the recruitment process.

OR

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

OR

Have a combination of specialized experience and education.

You may qualify at the GS-10 level, if you fulfill the following qualification requirement:

Have a master's degree or equivalent graduate degree or 2 years of progressively higher-level graduate education leading to such a degree.

Education must have been completed in a college or university in the U.S. (Note: You must attach a copy of your transcripts for verification)

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). You will receive credit for all qualifying experience, including volunteer experience.

All qualifications and education requirements must be met by the cut-off date for which you applied for and clearly documented in your resume.

Read more about what should I include in my federal resume at https://help.usajobs.gov/faq/application/documents/resume/what-to-include

Education:

THIS FELLOWSHIP PROGRAM HAS AN EDUCATION REQUIREMENT.

To be eligible for this Fellowship Program, you MUST have a graduate degree (or higher) from an accredited college/university in the United States, in any field of study, that was earned no earlier than two (2) years prior to the acceptance into the program; OR will have earned a graduate degree from an accredited college/university in the United States, in any field of study, within six (6) months of acceptance into the program. Acceptance into the program is defined as the Fellow's Entry on Duty (EOD) date. For those who apply before the initial cut off date of 1/5/2026, the projected EOD date is in June 2026.

IF YOU ARE RELYING ON EDUCATION TO MEET THE BASIC REQUIREMENTS FOR THIS POSITION: This position has an education requirement. You MUST provide transcripts to support your educational claims. Education must be accredited by an accrediting institution by the the U.S. Department of Education in order for it to be credited towards qualifications. See Department of Education Accreditation Search to verify school accreditation.

PASS/FAIL COURSES: If more than 10 percent of your undergraduate course work (credit hours) were taken on a pass/fail basis, your claim of superior academic achievement must be based upon class standing or membership in an honor society.

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.

Employment Type:

OTHER