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Summary This position is located in the Bureau of Global Talent Management, Office of Retirement (GTM/RET). This Office administers the Foreign Service retirement system for 18,000 annuitants and 15,000 active duty participants from the Department of State and all foreign affairs agencies in the U.S. Government. GTM/RET also helps the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) administer the Civil Service retirement system for Department of State employees. Responsibilities At the GS-11 level, the incumbent performs essentially the same duties as outlined below however, the scope and complexity of assignments are of less responsibility and independence and receives closer than normal supervision than the GS-12 level. Serves as the client Bureaus' primary point of contact and source of information on benefits, responding to and advising on complex benefits questions; provides information necessary to help employees obtain maximum gains from available benefits. Administers and adjudicates the Foreign Service Retirement System. Provides the initial processing for Civil Service cases, which will be sent to OPM for final adjudication. Provides training and retirement advisory services to senior managers. Troubleshoots problems associated with employee pay resulting from changes in employment status, grade level, duty station, TSP contributions, Federal and State tax withholding, health/life insurance plans and other matters that affect employee pay. Maintains liaisons with the Department's central human resources and financial systems on matters relating to human resource strategy, human resource development and technical processing of related actions. Requirements Conditions of Employment 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. GS-11 Applicants applying for the GS-11 grade level must meet one of the following requirements: A. Have at least 1 full year of specialized experience equivalent to the GS-09 level in the Federal service which provided you with the particular knowledge, skills and abilities to perform the duties of the position. Qualifying specialized experience must demonstrate the following: Experience interpreting and applying federal retirement laws and regulations. Experience troubleshooting problems associated with employee pay resulting from changes in employment status, TSP contributions, health or life insurance plans and other matters that affect employee pay. Experience applying the rules and regulations pertaining to the Federal Employee Retirement Coverage Corrections Act (FERCCA) to cases involving coverage determination errors. OR B. Have a Ph.D. or equivalent doctoral degree OR 3 full years of progressively higher level graduate education leading to such a degree, or LL.M. from an accredited college or university. OR C. Have a combination of graduate level education and specialized experience (as described above), which is equivalent to the GS-09 level in the Federal Service. This experience and education together meets 100% of the qualification requirements for this position. Combination of Experience and Education: When an applicant has less than one year of specialized experience as described in the announcement, he or she may combine successfully completed graduate-level education with experience to meet the total qualification requirements. Generally, 18 graduate semester hours is equivalent to 1 full-time year of graduate study (your school and department determine what constitutes 1 full time year of graduate study). The percentage of specialized work experience and the percentage of graduate study must total at least 100%. Note: All applicants WILL BE required to submit transcripts as verification of educational requirement. If you fail to provide requested information, or the information you submit is insufficient to verify your eligibility, you may lose consideration for this position. GS-12 Applicants applying for the GS-12 must have 1 year of specialized experience equivalent to the GS-11 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 resolving broad programmatic issues that significantly impact government-wide retirement program administration. Experience interpreting and applying federal retirement laws and regulations; answering retirement-related questions from employees and annuitants; and processing applications for prior service credit. Experience demonstrating an understanding of the following benefit programs: FEHB, FEGLI, Office of Workers' Compensation Programs (OWCP), TSP, Social Security, Medicare, FSA and the Immediate Benefit Plan (IBP). There is no substitute of education for specialized experience for the GS-12 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, telework and/or remote work agreements may be permitted with supervisory approval. Please note that any approved remote work arrangement is subject to the locality pay area of the alternative telework worksite. Multiple positions may be filled from this announcement. If eligible, applicants to this announcement may be referred to other similar positions in other Bureaus/Offices in the Department for up to 240 days. Telework eligibility and security clearance requirements may vary for such similar positions. Must be available for occasional overtime; approximately 10%.