Secretary (OA)

Full Job Description

The incumbent will be assigned to Patient Care Service- Nursing, NJ VA Medical Center, East Orange, providing administrative and support functions to the service.

To qualify for this position, applicants must meet all requirements by the closing date of this announcement, 02/27/2026.

Time-In-Grade Requirement: Applicants who are current Federal employees and have held a GS grade any time in the past 52 weeks must also meet time-in-grade requirements by the closing date of this announcement.

For a GS-05 position you must have served 52 weeks at the GS-04. The grade may have been in any occupation, but must have been held in the Federal service.

An SF-50 that shows your time-in-grade eligibility must be submitted with your application materials.

If the most recent SF-50 has an effective date within the past year, it may not clearly demonstrate you possess one-year time-in-grade, as required by the announcement.

In this instance, you must provide an additional SF-50 that clearly demonstrates one-year time-in-grade.

Note: Time-In-Grade requirements also apply to former Federal employees applying for reinstatement as well as current employees applying for Veterans Employment Opportunities Act of 1998 (VEOA) appointment.

You may qualify based on your experience and/or education as described below: Specialized Experience: You must have one year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the next lower grade GS-04 in the normal line of progression for the occupation in the organization.

Examples of specialized experience would typically include, but are not limited to: receiving visitors and telephone calls to the office; scheduling appointments; coordinating meetings and conferences; preparing correspondence, reports, memoranda, and other forms of written communication; preparing travel arrangements; timekeeping & leave/attendance management and maintaining files.

OR, Education (Transcript Required): Applicants may substitute education for the required experience.

To qualify based on education for this grade level you must have successfully completed (4) years of education above the high school level.

This education must have been obtained in an accredited business, secretarial or technical school, junior college, college or university for which high school graduation or the equivalent is the normal prerequisite.

One year of full-time undergraduate study is defined as 30 semester hours, 45 quarter hours, or the equivalent in a college or university or at least 20 hours of classroom instruction per week for approximately 36 weeks in a business, secretarial or technical school.

OR, Combination (Transcript Required): Applicants may also combine education and experience to qualify at this level.

Combination of successfully completed post high school education and experience may be used to meet total qualification requirements.

Only education in excess of the first 60 semester hours (i.e., beyond the second year) is creditable toward meeting the specialized experience requirement.

Typing Proficiency: This position requires the skills of a qualified typist. In addition to meeting the experience and/or education requirements, you must be able to type at least 40 words per minute.

Preferred Experience: An applicant proficient in using Microsoft Office Suite, familiar with procurement process/budget tracking tools and experience supporting senior leadership, providing administrative support to executive level staff is preferred.

For more information on these qualification standards, please visit the United States Office of Personnel Management's website at https://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/classification-qualifications/general-schedule-qualification-standards/.

Major Duties:

Duties include, but may not be limited to the following: Schedules and reviews the work performed and activities of the office, including reporting and recordkeeping; receives visitors and telephone calls to the office; maintains calendar for appropriate staff; and schedules appointments.

Reviews and directs to appropriate staff incoming correspondence, publications, regulations, etc.; responds to inquiries or directs accordingly; and follows up on action items to ensure timely response.

Performs office automation work; prepares meeting minutes; and utilizes various hardware and software in the performance of duties.

Prepares forms, memorandums, reports, and other correspondence, ensuring proper grammar, spelling, and format; and prepares and maintains current guidelines and manuals pertinent to the department.

Prepares travel arrangements for select staff; and coordinates conferences and meetings, including preparing agendas.

May serve as the backup transcriptionist; maintains files, reports, etc.; and enters data/reports into the computer.

Maintains an adequate stock of office supplies; maintains employee records; and serves as a government purchase card holder.

Work Schedule: Monday-Friday 7:30am-4:00pm Telework: This position may be authorized for AdHoc telework only. Virtual: This is not a virtual position.

Position Description/PD#: Secretary (OA)/PD08544A Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized Critical Skills Incentive (CSI): Not Approved Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized