Summary

This vacancy is for a GS-2101-12, Merchant Mariner Evaluation Specialist (Deck) located in the Department of Homeland Security, U.S. Coast Guard, NMC MARINER EXAMINATIONS BRANCH in location negotiable after selection.

Duties

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You will serve as a Merchant Mariner Evaluation Specialist (Deck) and be responsible for providing advice and administration on the regulatory provisions and controls for the examinations of the merchant mariner credentialing program with specific emphasis on merchant marine personnel examinations and the development of knowledge-based competency examinations and examination systems.

Being a Coast Guard civilian makes you a valuable member of the Coast Guard team. Typical work assignments include:

• Aids in the development and revision of merchant marine deck examination questions by researching technical publications and regulations to create examination materials that reflect current maritime practices.
• Assists with item analysis by reviewing test item data, providing feedback to training providers based on analysis results, and helping to update test items as directed by senior staff.
• Addresses internal and external inquiries regarding credentialing and examination policies, responding to comments and challenges on exam questions under the guidance of senior staff on complex issues.
• Contributes to the examination creation and maintenance process by assisting with assessment structures, utilization, and disposition to support an effective and economical assessment program.
• Working with senior specialists, helps to reconcile inconsistencies in examination processes, monitors performance metrics, and suggests improvements related to identified trends.

Open Continuous: You may update your application documents and some questions related to your personal information at any time during the announcement open period. Upon application, you may be provided a testing window to complete additional assessments. This testing window may stipulate a completion deadline before the announcement closes. It is your responsibility to complete the additional online assessments within the timeline provided to remain in consideration for this vacancy announcement. Failure to complete the online assessments within the testing window for this announcement will not preclude you from being considered for and completing the online assessments during a testing window on a future announcement.

NOTE: This announcement has an open period until 11/17/2026, with applicant cut-off dates every 30 days. Applications received that meet the eligibility and qualification criteria may be referred for further consideration based on the following cut-off dates: Thursday, September 17, 2026, Monday, October 19, 2026 AND Tuesday, November 17, 2026

Requirements

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Conditions of employment

All qualification requirements must be met by the closing date of the announcement.

Do NOT include the following types of information in your resume:

• Social Security Number (SSN)
• Date of Birth (DOB)
• Photos of yourself (if included on your resume you will not be considered for this position)
• Personal information: such as age, gender, religious affiliation, etc.

Key Requirements:

• Must be a U.S. Citizen.
• Must be registered or exempt from the Selective Service. See www.sss.gov
• A one-year probationary period may be required.
• To ensure the accomplishment of our mission, DHS requires every employee to be reliable and trustworthy. To meet those standards, all selected applicants must undergo and successfully pass a background investigation. This position does not require a clearance.
• This is not a Bargaining Unit position..
• Time-in-Grade requirement must be met by the closing date of the vacancy.
• All Federal employees are required to have Federal salary payments made by direct deposit.

The Office of Personnel management (OPM) must authorize employment offers made to current or former political appointees. If you are currently, or have been within the last 5 years, a political Schedule A, Schedule, C, Non-career SES or Presidential Appointee employee in the Executive Branch, you must disclose this information to the Human Resources Office.

Qualifications

Basic Requirements: This position has a positive Education Requirement in addition to at least one year of Specialized Experience or substitution of education for experience or combination (if applicable) in order to be found minimally qualified. Transcripts must be submitted with your application package. You MUST meet the following requirements:

EDUCATION:

Undergraduate and Graduate Education: Major study accounting, business administration, business or commercial law, commerce, economics, engineering, finance, industrial management, statistics, traffic management, transportation, motor mechanics, or other fields related to the position.

OR

Experience that demonstrated a knowledge of the transportation function(s) of the position to be filled.

AND

To qualify at the GS-12 grade level, your resume must demonstrate at least one (1) full year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the GS-11 grade level in the federal sector. Specialized experience is experience that has equipped you with the ability, skill, and knowledge to successfully perform the duties of this position and is typically in or related to this line of work. Examples of specialized experience include performing the following types of tasks on a regular basis.

• Performing deck officer duties on large, self-propelled vessels, including planning and executing safe navigation, supervising complex on-deck operations, managing vessel stability, and ensuring compliance with safety and security protocols;
• Working as a senior member of a technical team by carrying out operational assignments, contributing to group projects, and sharing expertise with peers or junior personnel; AND
• Preparing written technical documents, such as operational reports or logs, and clearly communicating technical information to team members and supervisors.

NOTE: All experience statements (i.e., duties, specialized experience, or related applicable assessment) copied from this announcement and pasted into your resume will not be considered as a demonstration of your qualifications for this position.

NOTE: Education cannot be substituted for experience at this grade level.

Selective Placement Factor(s) must be met in order to receive further consideration. You will be given the opportunity to address these when you apply on-line.

SELECTIVE PLACEMENT FACTOR: Applicant must hold or have held a U.S. Merchant Mariner credential in the grade of 2nd Mate Any Gross Tons or higher or Master 1600 tons any waters or higher or military equivalent DWO 1600 GRT or higher.

National Service Experience (i.e., volunteer experience): 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, religious, 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.

Education

This position does have a positive education requirement. If you are including education on your resume, report only attendance and/or degrees from schools accredited by accrediting institutions recognized by the U.S. Department of Education. See Required Documents section for detail.

Are you qualifying based on education? Submit a copy of your college transcript (unofficial is acceptable) from an accredited institution. Once selected & prior to appointment, applicants must provide an official college transcript. Education completed in foreign colleges or universities may be used to meet Federal qualification requirements if you can show that your foreign education is comparable to education received in accredited educational institutions in the U.S. (see FOREIGN EDUCATION below).

College Transcript: If this position requires specific educational course work to qualify, or you are qualifying based in whole or part on education, you are required to provide all unofficial transcripts (undergraduate, graduate, etc.) by the closing date of this announcement or you will be disqualified from further consideration. Transcripts should be legible and detailed, showing course number and department (i.e., bio 101, math 210, etc.), course title, number of credit hours, and grade earned. If course content cannot be easily identified from the title of the course as listed on your transcript, you must submit an official course description from the college/university that reflects the content at the time the course was taken.

FOREIGN EDUCATION: Education completed in foreign colleges or universities may be used to meet Federal qualification requirements if you can show that the foreign education is comparable to education received in accredited educational institutions in the United States. To receive this credit, you must submit evidence of equivalency as provided by a credentialling evaluation service. It is your responsibility to provide such evidence with your application. See Recognition of Foreign Qualifications click here

Only experience and education obtained by the closing date of this announcement will be considered.

Student Loan - Selectee(s) for this position who are newly appointed to a permanent or term position may be eligible for student loan repayment up to $10,000 (pre-tax) for one calendar year. More than one loan may be repaid if the combined repayments do not exceed $10,000. Receipt of this incentive will require a three-year service agreement.

Additional information

Due Weight

Due weight will be given to performance appraisals and incentive awards in merit promotion selection decisions in accordance with 5 CFR 335.103(b)(3).

Fair Chance Act

The Fair Chance to Compete for Jobs Act prohibits the Department of Homeland Security and its Components from requesting an applicant's criminal history record before that individual receives a conditional offer of employment. In accordance with 5 U.S. Code a7 9202(c) and 5 C.F.R a7 920.201 certain positions are exempt from the provisions of the Fair Chance to Compete Act. Applicants who believe they have been subjected to a violation of the Fair Chance to Compete for Jobs Act, may submit a written complaint to [redacted].

Suitability Statement

If you receive a conditional offer of employment for this position, you will be required to complete an Optional Form 306, Declaration for Federal Employment, and to sign and certify the accuracy of all information in your application, prior to entry on duty. False statements on any part of the application may result in withdrawal of offer of employment, dismissal after beginning work, fine, or imprisonment.

Shared Certificates Statement

Applying to this announcement certifies that you give permission for DHS to share your application with others in DHS for similar positions.

Special Employment Consideration

The Department of Homeland Security encourages persons with disabilities to apply, to include persons with intellectual, severe physical or psychiatric disabilities, as defined by 5 CFR [redacted](u), and or Disabled Veterans with a compensable service-connected disability of 30 percent or more as defined by 5 CFR 315.707. Veterans, Peace Corps, VISTA volunteers, and persons with disabilities possess a wealth of unique talents, experiences, and competencies that can be invaluable to the DHS mission. If you are a member of one of these groups, you may not have to compete with the public for federal jobs. To determine your eligibility for non-competitive appointment and to understand the required documentation, click on the links above or contact the servicing Human Resources Office listed at the bottom of this announcement.

Moving expenses will be paid in accordance with appropriate regulations.

If you are unable to apply online, please contact [redacted]. Decisions on granting reasonable accommodation will be made on a case-by-case basis. Visit Reasonable Accommodation

More than 1 selection may be made from this announcement if additional iden