Systems Accountant

Full Job Description

This position is located at the Financial Services Center within the Chief Accounting Office (CAO), Integrated Financial and Acquisitions Management System (iFAMS) service.

These duties involve planning, designing, analyzing, documenting, testing, implementing, integrating, maintaining, or modifying computer systems or software.

The accountant develops or maintains application programs software or operating systems software.

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-13 position you must have served 52 weeks at the GS-12. For a GS-13 position you must have served 52 weeks at the GS-12.

The grade may have been in any occupation, but must have been held in the Federal service. 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.

See the Required Document section below for more information regarding the SF-50s needed to verify time-in-grade. AND You may qualify based on your education/experience as described below.

A transcript must be submitted with your application if you are basing all or part of your qualifications on education.

Transcripts must show the applicant's name and name of the college, university, school, or institution to determine accreditation.

If basing qualifications on a degree earned, then transcripts must show the date the degree was conferred.

Individual Occupational Requirements:This position includes an Individual Occupation Requirement.

Individual Occupational Requirements are requirements that must be met, in addition to the specialized experience and/or education requirement.

Applicants who do not meet it are ineligible for further consideration. Evidence of the Individual Occupational Requirement must be reflected in your application materials (resume/transcript).

The Individual Occupational Requirements for this position are: Degree: accounting; or a degree in a related field such as business administration, finance, or public administration that included or was supplemented by 24 semester hours in accounting.

The 24 hours may include up to 6 hours of credit in business law. (The term "accounting" means "accounting and/or auditing" in this standard.

Similarly, "accountant" should be interpreted, generally, as "accountant and/or auditor.") OR Combination of education and experience: at least 4 years of experience in accounting, or an equivalent combination of accounting experience, college-level education, and training that provided professional accounting knowledge.

The applicant's background must also include one of the following: Twenty-four semester hours in accounting or auditing courses of appropriate type and quality.

This can include up to 6 hours of business law; A certificate as Certified Public Accountant or a Certified Internal Auditor, obtained through written examination; or Completion of the requirements for a degree that included substantial course work in accounting or auditing, e.g., 15 semester hours, but that does not fully satisfy the 24-semester-hour requirement of paragraph A, provided that (a) the applicant has successfully worked at the full-performance level in accounting, auditing, or a related field, e.g., valuation engineering or financial institution examining; (b) a panel of at least two higher level professional accountants or auditors has determined that the applicant has demonstrated a good knowledge of accounting and of related and underlying fields that equals in breadth, depth, currency, and level of advancement that which is normally associated with successful completion of the 4-year course of study described in paragraph A; and (c) except for literal nonconformance to the requirement of 24 semester hours in accounting, the applicant's education, training, and experience fully meet the specified requirements.

AND Specialized Experience: You must have one year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the next lower grade GS-12 in the normal line of progression for the occupation in the organization.

Specialized experience is defined as experience performing financial and accounting analysis; participating in planning and/or development of accounting and financial systems improvements; developing accounting procedures and resolving accounting system problems.

This experience MUST be evident in your resume to receive consideration.

You will be rated on the following Competencies for this position: Principles of Accounting Financial Analysis Compliance Communication 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 is principally sedentary. May require walking and standing in conjunction with travel and meetings and conferences away from the office.

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

The Career Transition Assistance Plan (CTAP) provide eligible displaced VA competitive service employees with selection priority over other candidates for competitive service vacancies.

To be qualified for this vacancy, you must submit appropriate documentation (a copy of the agency notice, your most recent performance rating, and your most recent SF-50 noting current position, grade level, and duty location), Individual Occupation Requirements and meet the well-qualified criteria below: Demonstrated expertise in planning and implementing improvements to accounting and financial systems, ensuring compliance and operational efficiency.

Proven ability to analyze, interpret, and apply accounting principles and standards to complex financial transactions and reporting requirements.

Provides complete supporting documentation, including transcripts and/or certifications, verifying education, training, and professional credentials as required.

Advanced proficiency in financial systems and accounting software, including troubleshooting and implementing system enhancements.

Strong analytical and problem-solving skills, with the ability to identify discrepancies, evaluate data, and develop effective solutions.

Excellent communication and collaboration skills, capable of conveying complex financial information Information about ICTAP and CTAP eligibility is on OPM's Career Transition Resources website at http://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/workforce-restructuring/employee-guide-to-career-transition/.

Local Commuting Area: The local commuting area for this position is defined as a radius of 50 miles from Summerville, SC.

This includes all locations that fall within a 50-mile driving distance from VA Medical Center, 9237 University Blvd, North Charleston, SC 29406. Major Duties:

Major Duties: Performs in-depth financial and accounting analyses and testing, and reports on new system applications, and various automated accounting and financial applications used by the Financial Services Center (FSC).

Actively facilitates and participates in planning, development, installation and maintenance of VA's accounting and other financial systems in compliance with VA's policies and procedures, Treasury regulations, and OMB directives.

Develops applications programs for a variety of software applications in support of the work of the agency.

The work includes the preparation of programming specifications such as inputs, outputs, flow diagrams, decision logic tables, and linkages with other applications systems; developing block diagrams and program coding; and testing, validating, and documenting programs.

Develops accounting procedures and resolves technical problems in executing a computerized, integrated accounting system.

Provides expert analysis and advice in the design, adaptation, or installation of automated accounting systems.

Work Schedule: Mon- Fri 8:00am - 4:30pm Compressed/Flexible: Available with supervisory approval. Telework: Ad hoc telework (situational telework) available as determined by the agency policy.

Virtual: This is not a virtual position. Position Description/PD#: PD15292A Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized Financial Disclosure Report: Not required