Summary

Organizational Location: This position is with the Department of Homeland Security, within U.S. Customs and Border Protection, Office of Field Operation, Houston Field Office after Office of Field Operations, in Houston, Texas..

This announcement will be open for 5 business days

Additional selections may be made to include other organizational divisions and/or units within the duty location(s) listed above.

Duties

Help

As a Mission Support Specialist, you will perform a variety of administrative, research, and analytical duties, as well as special assignments related to the mission and functions within the Office of Field Operations at U.S. Customs and Border Protection.

This position starts at a salary of $122,749.00 (GS-13, Step 1) to $159,575.00 (GS-13, Step 10)

Duties in the position include:

• Managing the Government Travel Card program, ensuring authorized personnel receive cards, complete required training, and that transactions are audited for authorization and reconciled in accordance with regulations
• Serving as a Contracting Officer's Representative (COR), liaising with Contracting Officers, overseeing contractor performance, and ensuring compliance with contract requirements
• Coordinating and preparing full procurement packages, including conducting market research, creating Independent Government Cost Estimates, and preparing Statements of Work
• Collecting data, analyzing trends and making recommendations to management
• Determining requirements and securing and coordinating the use of training sites, facilities and materials

GS Salary: Visit this link to view the locality pay tables by geographic area. If you do not see your geographic area listed, select the "Rest of United States" pay table. Some positions fall under a special pay rate depending on the series, grade level and location of the position.Please visit this link to view special pay rate charts.

Qualifications

GS-13 Experience: You qualify for the GS-13 grade level if you possess 1 year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the next lower grade level (GS-12), performing duties such as:

• Providing advice, assistance, and guidance to supervisors, managers, and employees on complex and sensitive issues in a variety of mission support functional areas;
• Resolving or advising on complex problems and issues that typically require analyzing troubleshooting a wide range of unusual conditions;
• Evaluating pertinent legislation and new or revised policies or directives;
• Reviewing newly issued regulations or directives to ascertain their impact on program areas.

NOTE: Your resume must explicitly indicate how you meet this requirement, otherwise you will be found ineligible. Please see the "Required Documents" section below for additional resume requirements.

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.

You must:

• Meet all qualification requirements, including education if applicable to this position, subject to verification at any stage of the application process; and
• Meet all applicable Time in Grade requirements (current federal employees must have served 52 weeks at the next lower grade or equivalent grade band in the federal service) by 08/03/2026.

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.

Background Investigation: U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) is a federal law enforcement agency that requires all applicants to undergo a thorough background investigation prior to employment in order to promote the agency's core values of vigilance, service to country, and integrity. During the screening and/or background investigation process, you will be asked questions regarding any felony criminal convictions or current felony charges, the use of illegal drugs (e.g., marijuana, cocaine, heroin, LSD, methamphetamines, ecstasy), and the use of non-prescribed controlled substances including any experimentation, possession, sale, receipt, manufacture, cultivation, production, transfer, shipping, trafficking, or distribution of controlled substances. For additional information on the preemployment process, review the following link: Applicant Resources | CBP Careers

Education

Please see the Qualifications and Required Documents sections for more information if education is applicable to this position.

Additional information

Reasonable Accommodation (RA) Requests: If you believe you have a disability (i.e., physical or mental), covered by the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 as amended that would interfere with completing the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments, you will be granted the opportunity to request a RA in your online application. Requests for RA for the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments and appropriate supporting documentation for RA must be received prior to starting the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments. Decisions on requests for RA are made on a case-by-case basis. If you meet the minimum qualifications of the position, after notification of the adjudication of your request, you will receive an email invitation to complete the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments, based on your adjudication decision. You must complete all assessments within 48 hours of receiving the URL to access the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments, if you received the link after the close of the announcement. To determine if you need a RA, please review the Procedures for Requesting a Reasonable Accommodation for Online Assessments here.

Please view the video "Protecting America 24/7" to learn more about CBP's Office of Field Operations.

Expand Hide additional information

Candidates should be committed to improving the efficiency of the Federal government, passionate about the ideals of our American republic, and committed to upholding the rule of law and the United States Constitution.

Benefits

Help

A career with the U.S. government provides employees with a comprehensive benefits package. As a federal employee, you and your family will have access to a range of benefits that are designed to make your federal career very rewarding. Opens in a new windowLearn more about federal benefits.

Review our benefits

Eligibility for benefits depends on the type of position you hold and whether your position is full-time, part-time or intermittent. Contact the hiring agency for more information on the specific benefits offered.