Skip to main content
U.S. flag
Back to results

Foreign Affairs Officer

Department of State
Department of State - Agency Wide
This job announcement has closed

Summary

This position is located in the Bureau of Political Military Affairs, Directorate of Defense Trade Controls, Office of Defense Trade Controls Policy (PM/DDTC/DTCP).

DTCP supports the Department’s strategic goal of achieving peace and security and PM’s goal of enhancing security through improved defense trade controls and responsible provision of arms, including by interpreting and updating the International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR), which implement the Arms Export Control Act (AECA).

Overview

Help
Reviewing applications
Open & closing dates
04/28/2025 to 05/02/2025
Salary
$120,579 to - $156,755 per year
Pay scale & grade
GS 13
Location
1 vacancy in the following location:
Washington, DC
Remote job
No
Telework eligible
Yes—as determined by the agency policy.
Travel Required
Occasional travel - May require domestic and/or international travel.
Relocation expenses reimbursed
No
Appointment type
Permanent - CTAP eligibles only
Work schedule
Full-time
Service
Competitive
Promotion potential
13
Job family (Series)
Supervisory status
No
Security clearance
Top Secret
Drug test
Yes
Position sensitivity and risk
Special-Sensitive (SS)/High Risk
Announcement number
GTM/TSCTAP-2025-0011
Control number
835956200

Duties

Help
  • Advises on the development and implementation of the International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR) specific to the assigned portfolio.
  • Conducts research and analysis to develop and recommend policy solutions pertaining to defense trade issues.
  • Supports the planning and implementation of new policies, regulations, and legislation associated with arms transfers, regional security, confidence building measures, and related political military issues.
  • Prepares briefing materials for senior Department officials to support meetings with foreign officials, U.S. government counterparts, and representatives of non-governmental entities.
  • Liaises with governmental and non-governmental communities to discuss and negotiate issues impacting defense trade policy.

Requirements

Help

Conditions of employment

  • Incumbent will be subject to random drug testing.
  • U.S. Citizenship is required.
  • Must be able to obtain and maintain a Top Secret security clearance.
  • Obtain/maintain eligibility to access Sensitive Compartmented Information
  • 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-12 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 interpreting defense trade controls policies and regulations.
  • Experience implementing export control policies, regulations, or strategies.
  • Experience negotiating in multi-stakeholder groups.

To be considered well-qualified, in addition to meeting minimum qualifications, candidates must demonstrate proficiency in some, but not all of the major aspects of the position.

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.

Additional information

  • For reasonable accommodation at the U.S. Department of State, please contact the Office of Accessibility and Accommodations at (202) 663-3474 or OAA@state.gov. 
  • If eligible, situational telework agreements may be permitted with supervisory approval. 

How you will be evaluated

You will be evaluated for this job based on how well you meet the qualifications above.

Once the application process is complete, a review of your resume will be conducted and compared against your responses to the assessment questions to determine if you are qualified for this job.  Note:  Responses to questions that are not fully supported by the information in your resume may result in adjustments to your rating. 

Applicants who meet the minimum qualification requirements, as described in the “Qualifications” section of this announcement, will be assigned a score between 70 and 100.  The assessment is used to measure the degree in which your background matches the competencies (knowledge, skills, and abilities) required for this position. Your qualifications will be evaluated on the following competencies:

  • Knowledge of current U.S. foreign policy objectives and goals.
  • Knowledge of international export control regimes (e.g., the Wassenaar Arrangement, the Missile Technology Control Regimes, the Chemical Weapons Convention).
  • Ability to advise on issues, principles, and regulations associated with the commercial exports of defense articles, services, and related technical data (e.g., ITAR, Arms Export Control Act).
  • Skill in policy analysis and evaluation.
  • Skill in project management.
  • Ability to establish liaison throughout the foreign policy and intelligence communities.

Agency Career and Interagency Career Transition Assistance Program (CTAP and ICTAP) candidates must be rated "Well Qualified" for the position and earn a score of at least 85 (when applicants are rated in a range of 70 to 100) to receive consideration for selection priority.  Applicants found to be among the top qualified candidates will be referred to the hiring official for further consideration and possible interview. 


You may preview questions for this vacancy.

Your session is about to expire!

Your USAJOBS session will expire due to inactivity in 8 minutes. Any unsaved data will be lost if you allow the session to expire. Click the button below to continue your session.