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International Relations Specialist, GS-131 |
Basic Requirements for all grades, GS-5 and
above
Degree: Major or equivalent, or a combination of courses totaling at least 24 semester hours in international law and international relations, political science, economics, history, sociology, geography, social or cultural anthropology, law, statistics, or in the humanities; or 12 semester hours in one of the above disciplines and 12 semester hours in statistics/quantitative methods
OR
Combination of education and experience: Courses equivalent to a major, or a combination of related courses totaling at least 24 semester hours, in one or more of the social sciences, or in the humanities, as shown in A above, plus appropriate experience or additional education.
The quality of the combination of education and experience must be sufficient to demonstrate that the applicant possesses the knowledge, skills, and abilities required to perform work in the occupation, and is comparable to that normally acquired through the successful completion of a full 4-year course of study with a major in the appropriate field. In addition to courses in the major and related fields, a typical college degree would have included courses that involved analysis, writing, critical thinking, research, etc. These courses would have provided an applicant with skills and abilities sufficient to perform progressively more responsible work in the occupation. Therefore, creditable experience should have demonstrated similarly appropriate skills or abilities needed to perform the work of the occupation.
OR
Equivalent experience: Four years of appropriate experience in one or more of the fields listed above in work associated with international organizations, problems, or other aspects of foreign affairs.
Click here for information on how experience and education may be combined.
Additional Experience and Education Requirements For GS-7 and Above
In addition to meeting the basic entry qualification requirements, applicants must have specialized experience and/or directly related education in the amounts shown in the table below:
| Grade |
Education |
OR Specialized Experience |
|
GS-7 |
1 year of graduate-level education or superior academic achievement |
1 year equivalent to at least GS-5 |
|
GS-9 |
2 years of progressively higher level graduate education leading to a master's degree or master's or equivalent graduate degree |
1 year equivalent to at least GS-7 |
|
GS-11 |
3 years of progressively higher level graduate education leading to a Ph.D. degree or Ph.D. or equivalent doctoral degree For research positions only: Master’s or equivalent degree |
1 year equivalent to at least GS-9 |
| GS-12 and above | For research positions only: Ph.D. or equivalent doctoral degree | 1 year equivalent to at least next lower grade level |
|
GS-13 and above Research positons |
|
1 year equivalent to at least next lower grade level |
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NOTE: Education and experience may be combined for all grade levels for which both education and experience are acceptable. |
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Graduate Education: Completion of graduate level education in the amounts shown in the table, in addition to meeting the basic requirements, is qualifying for positions at grades GS-7 through GS-11 if it provided the knowledge, skills, and abilities necessary to do the work. One year of full-time graduate education is considered to be the number of credit hours that the school attended has determined to represent 1 year of full-time study. If that number cannot be obtained from the school, 18 semester hours should be considered an academic year of graduate study. Part-time graduate education is creditable in accordance with its relationship to a year of full-time study at the school attended.
Specialized Experience: Experience that equipped the applicant with the particular knowledge, skills, and abilities to perform successfully the duties of the position, and that is typically in or related to the work of the position to be filled. To be creditable, specialized experience must have been equivalent to at least the next lower grade level in the normal line of progression for the occupation in the organization.
Evaluation of Experience: Qualifying experience that provided an intimate knowledge of a foreign country or geographic area may have been gained through residence, study, teaching, business or commercial activities, military service, newspaper work, military or civil government activities, missionary or inter-national relief work, or other experience in foreign countries. It may also have been gained through teaching college-level courses in international relations or problems associated with a specific foreign geographic area.
To qualify for positions at grades GS-12 and above on the basis of experience, this experience must have included either (a) responsibility for the direction and coordination of research, analysis, or other professional work in one or more of the fields listed above, or (b) specialized professional work involving a high level of difficulty and responsibility in one or more of these fields.