Lead Contract Specialist

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As a Lead Contract Specialist
, you will serve as a team leader and Contracting Officer providing advice, guidance, workload management, and expertise in one of our two execution divisions. The position reports to the Supervisory Contract Specialist.
The qualifications for this position must be met by 11:59 PM (Eastern Time) on 08/31/2026. Time in Grade does not apply to Delegated Examining Announcements, and any reference to Time in Grade in the questionnaire will not apply to the rating and ranking of applicants. This announcement is issued under the Direct Hire Authority to recruit for positions for which the Department of Homeland Security, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, has a critical hiring need.

All applicants must meet the following basic requirements: (Must be supported in Transcripts from an accredited institution, Resume and/or Applicable Certificate)

• Completion of all mandatory training prescribed by the head of the agency for progression to GS-13 or higher level contracting positions, including at least 4-years experience in contracting or related positions. At least 1 year of that experience must have been specialized experience at or equivalent to work at the next lower level of the position, and must have provided the knowledge, skills, and abilities to perform successfully the work of the position.
  
  and
• A 4-year course of study leading to a bachelor's degree, that included or was supplemented by at least 24 semester hours in any combination of the following fields: accounting, business, finance, law, contracts, purchasing, economics, industrial management, marketing, quantitative methods, or organization and management.
• Exceptions:
  Employees in GS-1102 positions will be considered to have met the standard for positions they occupy on January 1, 2000. This also applies to positions at the same grade in the same agency or other agencies if the specialized experience requirements are met. However, they will have to meet the basic requirements and specialized experience requirements in order to qualify for promotion to a higher grade, unless granted a waiver under Paragraph
  
  D.
• Waiver:
  When filling a specific vacant position, the senior procurement executive of the selecting agency, at his or her discretion, may waive any or all of the requirements of Paragraphs A and B above if the senior procurement executive certifies that the applicant possesses significant potential for advancement to levels of greater responsibility and authority, based on demonstrated analytical and decision making capabilities, job performance, and qualifying experience.
  
  With respect to each waiver granted under this Paragraph D, the senior procurement executive must document for the record the basis of the waiver. If an individual is placed in a position in an agency on the basis of a waiver, the agency may later reassign that individual to another position at the same grade within that agency without additional waiver action.

You must possess a FAC-C (Professional) or equivalent certification at the time of application. Copies of certifications must be submitted with the application to be considered. Certification requirements may be viewed at:  For a FAC-C (Professional) equivalency, please provide one of the following accepted verification documents:
Do you hold a Legacy FAC-C Certification (Levels I, II, or III), Legacy Defense Acquisition Workforce Improvement Act (DAWIA) Contracting Certification (Levels I, II, or III) or a Department of Defense (DOD) Contracting Professional Certification? Waivers will not be accepted. This experience must be documented in your resume. Failure to do so may result in an ineligible rating.

You qualify at the GS-14 level if you possess one (1) year of specialized experience, which is equivalent to at least the GS-13 level in the federal government, that equipped you with the skills needed to successfully perform the duties of the position. You must have experience performing all…