This Foreign Affairs Officer position is located in the Office of Central Asian Affairs, Bureau of South and Central Asian Affairs (SCA/CEN). The incumbent reports directly to the Office Director and provides policy guidance to the Assistant Secretary and Deputy Assistant Secretary for South and Central Asia. 

Duties

Serves as the agency’s technical and policy lead on the formulation and implementation of U.S. multilateral policy toward Kazakhstan, the Kyrgyz Republic, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan. The incumbent is the U.S. Government’s preeminent expert on the C5+1, the United States’ signature multilateral platform for engaging with the five Central Asian states (the C5+) The incumbent is responsible for independently developing strategic vision, analysis, and recommendations for SCA and other senior State Department officials by authoring policy memoranda, position papers, roadmaps, and other materials as needed. The incumbent leads regular coordination among U.S. embassies and the interagency to maintain expert and authoritative understanding of U.S. foreign policy toward Central Asia and a constantly evolving operating environment and geopolitical context. The incumbent mentors junior officers, fellows, and interns, including by sharing policy-making process expertise with team members, providing administrative guidance, and modeling continued excellence in written products.

Requirements

• U.S. Citizenship is required.
• Incumbent will be subject to random drug testing.
• Must be able to obtain and maintain a Top Secret security clearance.
• Statement of Employment & Financial Interest required prior to appointment.

Qualifications

Applicants must meet all the required qualification requirements described below by the closing date of this announcement. If you are qualifying based on education OR if there are mandatory education requirements listed below, you MUST submit a copy of your college transcript with your application.  NOTE: Applicants must meet time-in-grade and time after competitive appointment requirements, by the closing date of this announcement. Time-In-Grade Requirements: Federal applicants must have served 52 weeks at the next lower grade to satisfy time-in-grade restrictions, per 5CFR 300, Subpart F. Applicants must have the required experience or education as described below and meet any selective factors, when specified. BASIC REQUIREMENTS: Have a bachelor's or graduate degree from an accredited college or university in international law, international relations, political science, economics, history, sociology, geography, social or cultural anthropology, law, statistics, or in the humanities; OR Have a bachelor's or graduate degree from an accredited college or university that included a combination of courses, with at least 24 semester hours in international law and international relations, political science, economics, history, sociology, geography, social or cultural anthropology, law, statistics, or in the humanities; OR Have 12 semester hours in one of the above disciplines and 12 semester hours in statistics / quantitative methods. OR Have a combination of education and experience where your coursework was equivalent to a major, or a combination of related courses totaling at least 24 semester hours, (as shown above), PLUS appropriate relevant experience OR additional education. OR Have completed at least 4 years of appropriate experience in one OR more of the fields listed above in work associated with international organizations, problems, or other aspects of foreign affairs. (NOTE: qualifying work experience may have been gained through residence, study, teaching, business or commercial activities, military service, newspaper work, military or civil government activities, missionary or international relief work, or other experience in foreign countries.) Note: If you are qualifying based on education, you MUST submit transcripts as verification of educational requirement by the closing date of this announcement. If you fail to provide requested information, or the information you submit is insufficient to verify your eligibility, you WILL lose consideration for this position. IN ADDITION to the basic requirements, this position requires one year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the GS-14 level in the Federal service which provided the applicant with the particular knowledge, skills and abilities to perform the duties of the position. Qualifying specialized experience must demonstrate the following: Experience formulating foreign affairs policy, drafting and editing briefing and information memos, including on controversial and sensitive subjects. Experience conducting analysis and developing recommendations on foreign affairs policy, including in multilateral contexts.  Experience coordinating interagency policy and recommendations.

Education

See the qualifications section of this vacancy announcement for education requirements.

Education completed in foreign colleges or universities may be used to meet the education requirements if you can show that the foreign education is comparable to that received in an accredited educational institution in the United States. It is your responsibility to provide such evidence when applying. For a list of accredited organizations recognized as specializing in interpretation of foreign education credentials, visit: www.naces.org/members.php.

Contacts

• Address U.S. Department of State 1999 Dyess Ave. (Charleston Reg. Ctr.) Charleston, South Carolina 29405 United States
• Name: Candice D. Hanna
• Phone: 000-000-0000
• Email: [email protected]