Public Affairs Specialist

The Office of Public Affairs (PAO) guides and coordinates the federal law enforcement public information programs of certain Department of Justice organizations, including legal divisions, Bureaus, and U.S. Attorneys' Offices. PAO provides a large variety of important and critical information having nationwide and international impacts concerning the activities of various bureaus, divisions, boards, services, and field offices.

As the federal agency whose mission is to ensure the fair and impartial administration of justice for all Americans, the Department of Justice is committed to fostering a diverse and inclusive work environment. To build and retain a workforce that reflects the diverse experiences and perspectives of the American people, we welcome applicants from the many communities, identities, races, ethnicities, backgrounds, abilities, religions, and cultures of the United States who share our commitment to public service.

• Serves as a national on-the-record spokesperson and Senior Communications Advisor for the Criminal Division, responsible for administering or performing work to establish, maintain, and manage communications planning and evaluation, media relations, and information dissemination.
• Develops strategic communications plans for highly complex federal law enforcement matters which include messaging, engagement opportunities, assets needed, key locations, and description of the audiences which the plans seek to educate and inform.
• Writes, edits, plans, designs, conducts, and evaluates press releases, statements, and publication and communication programs for the Department.
• Plans, designs, and oversees Department-wide policies, programs, and procedures governing information dissemination functions for significant and controversial agency decisions or actions that directly affect the Department and its components.
• Establishes and maintains working relationships with representatives of the news media, associations, special interest groups, and other relevant organizations.
• Provides advice and consultation on public affairs topics and the evaluation of public affairs programs.

• $163,964 - $191,900/year

• You must be a United States Citizen or National.
• You must successfully pass a security/background investigation and a drug screening.
• You must be a current permanent Department of Justice employee with competitive status or a CTAP/RPL eligible candidate.
• You must meet all applicable time-in-grade requirements by the closing of this announcement.
• Additional selections may be made from this announcement, at any time, if openings occur in other offices serviced by Justice Management Division, HR Operations.
• Financial Disclosure: If selected, you may be required to disclose financial information in accordance with DOJ and Federal ethics guidelines.

To qualify for the position of Public Affairs Specialist, (GS-1035-15), you must meet the basic qualification requirements listed below AND possess the required specialized experience specific to this series and grade.

If you are a current Department of Justice employee on a permanent appointment in the competitive service, you will need to demonstrate 1-year (52-weeks) at the next lower grade level, to meet the time-in-grade requirements for this occupational series and grade.

Specialized Experience: For the GS-15, you must have one year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the GS-14 grade level in the Federal Service. Specialized experience is defined as: Serving as a national on-the-record spokesperson providing responses to inquiries involving controversial or sensitive issues; Conducting press events with news media; Providing agency level advisement on public affairs matters; AND Determining the most advantageous avenues for disseminating information.

You MUST meet all qualification requirements, including Time-in-Grade, by the closing date of this announcement, 10/15/2024. YOUR RESUME MUST support your responses to the online questionnaire and the qualification requirements. Failure to do so may result in an ineligible rating.

There is no substitution of education for the required specialized experience at this grade level.

This vacancy is open to current DOJ employees and CTAP eligibles. See below for more information:

• CURRENT DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE EMPLOYEES: Employees who currently work for the Department of Justice, or any of its components (i.e. FBI, DEA, ATF, USTP, JMD, etc.) on a permanent appointment in the competitive service. Contractor employees and those on Excepted Service appointments are not eligible.
• CTAP ELIGIBLES: For more information visit: USAJOBS Career Transition Programs.
• REASONABLE ACCOMODATION STATEMENT: Our policy can be found at:
• DOJ EEO STATEMENT: The U.S. Department of Justice fosters an inclusive and diverse workforce, find our EEO statement online at:
• SELECTIVE SERVICE: If you were born male, on or after December 31, 1959, you must certify that you have registered with the Selective Service System, or are exempt from having to do so under the Selective Service Law. Additional information is found at:

This position is excluded from the bargaining unit.

Documentation requirements may vary from applicant to applicant based on your eligibility claims.

It is your responsibility to carefully review the list of document descriptions below, to see which documents are required for your application.

ALL APPLICANTS : You must submit a detailed resume containing the following pieces of information for each job entry listed in your employment history:

• Contact Information: Name, address, phone number, and email.
• Official position title.
• Employer name and contact information.
• Start and end dates (including month and year ).
• A detailed list of duties & accomplishments.
• Your grade/step achieved.
• The number of hours worked per week (or indicate full-time ).

If you are a current DOJ 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.
• Submit a copy of your most recent performance evaluation or appraisal, signed, showing your final rating. If a performance appraisal is not available submit a statement explaining why one is not available.

If you are a displaced former DOJ employee claiming eligibility under CTAP:

• You must submit your separation notice or RIF letter.
• 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.

See USAJOBS' Career Transition Programs for more information.

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 10/15/2024 to receive consideration.

• Click "Apply Online" to get started.
• If you're not logged in to your USAJOBS account, you will need to login. If you don't have an account, please create one.
• You will be prompted to select one of your stored (or uploaded) resumes, and any supporting documents you have uploaded to USAJOBS. If you have not uploaded these documents, you can do so later before submitting your application.
• After acknowledging you have reviewed your application package, you will be asked to submit your demographic information (if you have provided this in your profile). Submission is optional and anonymous.
• You'll be asked to confirm your choices and certify the accuracy of your information before you're able to continue to the Application Manager system. Until you see the blue border and DOJ logo, you are still on USAJOBS. You'll see a folder animation just before you leave USAJOBS.
• Once you reach DOJ's Application Manager system, you'll be asked to verify the information you transmitted from USAJOBS. You will then respond to the application assessment questionnaires and indicate your eligibility options.
• After responding to the questionnaires, you will have the opportunity to attach the documents you brought over from USAJOBS *OR* upload documents directly from your computer or device.
• If you opt to upload a document directly, click the "Upload" button and select the document on your device, then wait for the upload to finish. Repeat as needed. Documents must be less than 3 MB each and should be in a compatible file format.
• Once all your documents are uploaded, you must assign the uploads to the appropriate document category. You may attach more than one document to each category. Click the drop-down menu for a document category, and select one of the available options in the menu. The document will be listed under this category. You can click the drop-down again to add other documents, as needed. You can have up to 15 document assignments.
• Once you've uploaded and assigned all your documents to an appropriate document type, you can proceed to the final verification step, and click Submit.
• If you have correctly submitted your application, you will receive an automated e-mail notification within 30-60 minutes. Be sure to review the announcement fully to make sure that your application contains everything that is required.

If you need help with the application process, please see the USAJOBS Help Site (for everything on the USAJOBS-side), or the Application Manager Help Site (for everything on the DOJ-side).

Regrettably, the Department of Justice cannot assist you with USAJOBS account issues. If you contact us for assistance and the problem is related to your USAJOBS account, we will have to direct you to USAJOBS to remedy the issue.

REASONABLE ACCOMMODATIONS:
If you are unable to apply online due to a disability or overseas deployment, you must request an alternative application, which is available from the Human Resources Office. Please contact Kana Hyman at or 202-340-6360 to discuss your situation. Accommodations are reviewed on a case-by-case basis.

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. Learn 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.