KEY REQUIREMENTS



• U.S. Citizenship
• Enrollment and good standing in an accredited graduate degree program
• Applicant must return to school in Fall or graduate during internship
• Completion of a satisfactory background investigation
• See "Additional Information" for other Conditions of Employment
• Selective Service registration if you are a male born after Dec. 31, 1959

• Research (assist with developing project's scope, research questions, and data collection methods)
• Data gathering and analysis (assist with summarizing facts, interpreting data, understanding data limitations, and utilizing data to determine patterns, trends, or irregularities in program activities, policies, and procedures)
• Program evaluation/Organizational analysis (understanding and describing units structures, missions, goals, and processes)
• Collaboration (working in a diverse team-based environment through effective communication and information sharing)
• Presenting information orally (contributing to the effective delivery of information through oral briefings, the use of visuals and graphics, and other appropriate means)
• Writing (recording information from meetings with appropriate project stakeholders, writing results, synthesizing information gathered during research, and drafting segments of reports).
  
  

To qualify for the GS-7 level, you must have completed either between 18 and 35 semester hours or 27 and 53 quarter hours of graduate level work at the start of the internship.

To qualify for the GS-9 level, you must have completed 36 or more semester hours or 54 or more quarter hours of graduate level work at the start of the internship. All requirements must be complete at the start of the internship.

Please ensure that you select the appropriate grade level based on the number of hours you will have completed at the start of the summer internship. If you select grade 9 and your transcript does not document your having completed at least the minimum number of required hours for a grade 9, you will not be considered for an intern position with us (not even at the grade 7 level).

HOW YOU WILL BE EVALUATED:

After you submit your application, we will review it to determine whether you have submitted all of the required documents (resume, transcript, and essay) and meet the key requirements and basic qualifications. It is important to have a well written, thoughtful essay that is supported by your resume. Please do not use statements such as "see resume" and "N/A", as they do not allow for a thorough review of your application. Veterans Preference does apply to this announcement. For more information regarding veterans preference please visit http://www.opm.gov/veterans/ 
To preview questions please click here.

Individuals selected will be eligible to receive transit benefits and will earn both annual and sick leave during the course of the internship.

OTHER INFORMATION:

Travel and relocation expenses related to this hiring process will not be paid.

Please carefully follow all instructions under the How to Apply tab to ensure you are considered for the position.

You are required to apply online for this announcement. We are unable to accept mailed or emailed documents. You must complete the entire application process, including submission of all documents BEFORE this announcement closes. To do so, complete the following steps.

Step 1: Click on the "APPLY ONLINE" button on the right side of this announcement. Follow USAJOBS' instructions to access your account and submit your resume. If you are not registered with USAJOBS, click on the "create your account now!" button to obtain access and electronically build your resume. You will not be able to begin the actual job application without first having a resume built (not uploaded) in the USAJOBS system.  Resumes that are uploaded into USAJOBS will not successfully transmit into GAO's application system.

Step 2: Once you submit your resume, you will be redirected to the Career Connector website to complete the application process. If this is your first time in Career Connector, you will be asked to answer questions related to your eligibility for Federal employment. You will be able to update this information and save it to our account for future announcements.

Step 3: Once you have completed the eligibility questions, you will be taken directly to the vacancy application questions. Answer all questions honestly and thoroughly. Click on "Submit" after you have completed your application. Once you have submitted your application, you can check your status online through your Career Connector or MY USAJOBS account.

Step 4: Career Connector offers three options that will electronically attach your documentation to your online application once you finish answering the questions in the job announcement.

(1) You may select a document that you have already uploaded to USAJOBS for a previous announcement.

(2) You may electronically upload a document directly from your computer to your application.  Be certain to review your complete application for confirmation the document uploaded and click on "Finished" to be returned to USAJOBS.

(3) You may follow the "Faxing Supporting Documentation" instructions within the online application, which will provide the necessary cover sheets for each of your documents so that they will be correctly submitted. The fax number will be available on the cover sheet.

Please note that each cover sheet and corresponding document must be faxed separately.  Be certain to review your complete fax transmittal confirmation to ensure that all pages have been received.

IMPORTANT NOTE:  If you have multiple documents of the same kind, e.g. 2 graduate transcripts from different schools or 2 SF-50s, etc., be sure that they are all in the same file on your computer or in your USAJOBS profile before uploading them.  If you try uploading them individually, only the last one sent will be visible in our system.  Likewise, if sending them by fax, be sure and include both of them behind the respective fax cover sheet and send them as one fax.  If you send them individually with the same cover sheet, each one will overwrite the other.  Finally, if you upload a document, e.g. your undergraduate transcript, do not also fax that same document (or fax another undergraduate transcript), because whichever one you send last will be the only one that is visible in our system.  If you have any questions about this information, please contact the person on this announcement BEFORE the closing date.

Your complete online application and any required supplemental documentation (e.g., DD-214, SF-50, etc.) must be received by 11:59 p.m. Eastern Time (ET) on the closing date of the announcement. It is your responsibility to ensure that all documents are received on time and that the materials are readable. Failure to do so will result in your application being excluded from consideration for this announcement.

If you are experiencing any technical difficulty with the online process, you MUST CONTACT THE POINT OF CONTACT FOR THIS ANNOUNCEMENT BEFORE 5 PM ON THE CLOSING DATE. For all technical issues please contact CareerConnectorHelp@do.treas.gov.  Requests for extensions will not be granted.

GAO provides reasonable accommodations to applicants and employees (and interns) with disabilities.  To request an accommodation, please email ReasonableAccommodations@gao.gov or call Tammy Stenzel, Disability Program Manager, on (202)-512-3139.

REQUIRED DOCUMENTS:

You must submit your college or university graduate transcript (official or unofficial) that supports the number of hours completed. If you are a first-year student and do not yet have a transcript, you may submit a class schedule from the college or university's registration system or Registrar's Office instead. If you are submitting a transcript from a non-US educational institution, applicants must submit all necessary documents to a private U.S. organization that specializes in interpretation of foreign educational credentials, commonly called a credential evaluation service. For additional information please visit http://www.opm.gov/qualifications/policy/ApplicationOfStds-04.asp

Current or former federal employees, must submit the most recent Notification of Personnel Action (SF-50). If you are a current federal employee, you must also submit a copy of your most recent performance appraisal.

Veterans must submit adequate proof of active service in the Armed Forces (i.e., Member 4 copy of the DD- 214), which indicates Character of Service. To claim 10-point veterans' preference, you must also submit an SF-15 and a letter from the Department of Veterans Affairs verifying your disability and preference for hiring.

Disabled applicants claiming Schedule A eligibility must submit proof of disability and a certification of job readiness.

AGENCY CONTACT INFO:

WHAT TO EXPECT NEXT:

If you do not meet the key requirements or basic qualifications or fail to submit all required application materials, your application will not be considered and we will notify you in writing. If you do meet the key requirements and basic qualifications and submit all required application materials, a technical review panel will review your essay and resume. Your essay is a very important part of the application, so please be as complete and thorough as you can. After the technical review panel completes its work, you will be notified of the results. 

Applicants who are determined to be "best-qualified" will be contacted for an interview in late January 2013.  Applicants who are not "best-qualified" will be notified by email.