Secretary (OA)

Full Job Description

The incumbent is assigned to the Office of the Assistant Director for Ralph H. Johnson VA Medical Center in Charleston, SC.

The Incumbent will report to and perform secretarial duties for the Assistant Director.

To qualify for this position, applicants must meet all requirements by the closing date of this announcement, 04/13/2026.

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 8 position you must have served 52 weeks at the GS 7. 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.

TYPING PROFICIENCY REQUIREMENT: Applicants must meet the Typing Proficiency of 40 words per minute typing speed.

Applicants may meet this requirement by presenting a certificate of proficiency from a school or other organization authorized to issue such certificates or by self-certifying their proficiency.

You may qualify based on your experience as described below: Specialized Experience: You must have one year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the next lower grade GS 7 in the normal line of progression for the occupation in the organization.

Examples of specialized experience would typically include, but are not limited to: taking meeting minutes and transcribing dictation; 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; utilizing office automation software and maintaining files.

(RESUME MUST SUPPORT THE EXPERIENCE CLAIMED. WE CANNOT ASSUME EXPERIENCE, SO BE CLEAR AND THOROUGH IN DESCRIBING EXPERIENCE AND INCLUDE START/END DATES; HOURS WORKED PER WEEK.

Federal position MUST include series/grade/step.) You will be rated on the following Competencies for this position: Accountability Attention to Detail Customer Service Decision Making Flexibility Integrity/Honesty Interpersonal Skills Learning Reading Comprehension Reasoning Self-Management Stress Tolerance Teamwork Experience refers to paid and unpaid experience, including volunteer work done through National Service programs (e.g., Peace Corps, AmeriCorps) and other organizations (e.g., professional; philanthropic; religions; spiritual; community; student; social).

Volunteer work helps build critical competencies, knowledge, and skills and can provide valuable training and experience that translates directly to paid employment.

You will receive credit for all qualifying experience, including volunteer experience. Note: A full year of work is considered to be 35-40 hours of work per week.

Part-time experience will be credited on the basis of time actually spent in appropriate activities.

Applicants wishing to receive credit for such experience must indicate clearly the nature of their duties and responsibilities in each position and the number of hours a week spent in such employment.

Physical Requirements: The work places no special physical demands on the employee. The work includes some walking, standing, bending, and carrying of light items such as paper and books.

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:

Major duties include but are not limited to: Receives visitors and telephone calls to the office of the Assistant Director; Maintains the appointment calendar for the Assistant Director and is responsible for ensuring all commitments of Assistant Director are accurate.

Ensures Assistant Director is ready for meetings; Performs secretarial duties for the Assistant Director to include typing taking and transcribing dictated material; compiling and preparing replies, committee minutes, and posting calendars.

Follows up on action items to ensure timely response; Reviews all incoming correspondence for the Assistant Director to determine accuracy of format, grammar and policy and returns material for revisions prior to presentation.

Establishes/maintains filing system for the assistant director. Ensuring timely retrieval as requested. Prepares travel arrangements, to include hotel and car rental reservations.

Prepares all personnel actions to include access submissions. Notifies supervisory personnel when performance appraisals are due for and ensures Human Resources receives proper submissions.

Receives and listens to patient concerns or from individuals on behalf of patients. Prepares reports of contact as necessary.

Serves as timekeeper for the assistant director and assumes responsibility for that element of the position to include ensuring following timekeeping procedures.

Serve as back up for other secretary's during their absence to maintain usual business. Orders and maintains office supplies and equipment; and Performs other related duties as assigned.

Work Schedule: Monday-Friday, 8:00am-4:30pm (position not suitable for Telework or compressed tour unless otherwise approved according to facility policy) Virtual: This is not a virtual position.

Position Description/PD#: Secretary (OA)/PD076500 Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized Financial Disclosure Report: Not required