Visual Information Specialist

This position is located within VA Altoona Medical Center, Public Affairs office. The incumbent performs graphic design and visual communication planning and development, web design and facility SharePoint administration, and content management along with training and education of end users. This position enhances the medical center mission by optimizing communication with a variety of audiences through many forms of media.Qualifications: To qualify for this position, applicants must meet all requirements by the closing date of this announcement, 01/19/2024.
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-7 position you must have served 52 weeks at the GS-5. For a GS-9 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. Note: Time-In-Grade requirements also apply to former Federal employees applying for reinstatement as well as current employees applying for Veterans Employment Opportunities Act of 1998 (VEOA) appointment.
Individual Occupational Requirements (IOR)
Education: Undergraduate and Graduate Education: Major study: commercial art, fine arts, art history, industrial design, architecture, drafting, interior design, photography, visual communication, or other fields related to the position. Some positions may also require subject-matter knowledge of medicine, science, or technical equipment. OR; Advanced training in a vocational school, technical institute, or art institute above the high school level in one of the fields listed above is creditable as general experience on a month-for-month basis. OR;
Specialized Experience (for positions above GS-5): Experience in the actual type of work for which application is made. Unpaid experience is creditable, provided the work done was of a quality level and demonstrated the ability required for the position. This includes planning the preparation and use of photographs, illustrations, drawings, and other art work, charts, diagrams, dioramas, maps, slides, overlays, and other kinds of visual material for use in communicating information through visual means.
You may qualify based on your experience and/or education as described below:
GS-7

• Specialized Experience: You must have one year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the next lower grade GS-5 in the normal line of progression for the occupation in the organization. Examples of specialized experience would typically include, but are not limited to: Reviews, test and implements new web pages; creates and maintains SharePoint workflows, document libraries or lists; determines visual strategies for sharing information; designs posters, exhibits, brochures, newsletters, resource guides or other illustrations. OR,
• Education: Applicants may substitute education for the required experience. To qualify based on education for this grade level you must have successfully completed 1 full year of graduate level education OR superior academic achievement in the related field of the position to be filled (TRANSCRIPTS REQUIRED). OR,
• Combination: Applicants may also combine education and experience to qualify at this level. Combinations of successfully completed graduate level education (beyond a bachelors degree) and specialized experience, as described above, to meet the total requirements. You must have an combination of specialized experience and education beyond a bachelors degree and specialized experience stated above. Combinations of successfully completed post-baccalaureate education and specialized experience may be used to meet total qualification requirements for the grade levels specified in the table, and may be computed by first determining the applicant's total qualifying experience as a percentage of the experience required for the grade level; then determining the applicant's education as a percentage of the education required for the grade level; and then adding the two percentages. The total percentages must equal at least 100 percent to qualify an applicant for that grade level. (TRANSCRIPTS REQUIRED)

GS-9

• 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: Reviews, test and implements new web pages; creates and maintains SharePoint workflows, document libraries or lists; determines visual strategies for sharing information; designs posters, exhibits, brochures, newsletters, resource guides or other illustrations; independently plans and completes visual communication projects; utilizes advanced JTML and JAVA scripting to implement advanced web features; serves as the internet/intranet expert on committees and workgroups; independently researches and evaluates new methods for web product development.. OR,
• Education: Applicants may substitute education for the required experience. To qualify based on education for this grade level you must have successfully completed a master's degree or equivalent graduate degree or 2 full years of progressively higher level graduate education leading to such a degree or LL.B or J.D., if related to the position to be filled (TRANSCRIPTS REQUIRED). OR,
• Combination: Applicants may also combine education and experience to qualify at this level. Combinations of successfully completed graduate level education (beyond the first year) and specialized experience, as described above, to meet the total requirements. The education portion must include graduate courses that demonstrate the knowledge, skills, and abilities necessary to do to the work of this position (TRANSCRIPTS REQUIRED).

You will be rated on the following Competencies for this position:

• Communication
• Multimedia Technologies
• Web Technology

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: Incumbent will normally perform duties while seated utilizing various computer programs. Assignments involve extended periods of walking, standing, bending, and stooping to execute logistics for special events or to accompany media crews or other special groups. Incumbent must be manually dexterous when operating video or photography equipment or when creating, transporting or assembling exhibits. Visual interpretation of color is essential. Incumbent is also required to regularly pick up loads of 15 pounds such as boxes of VA literature and to push carts of supplies.
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/.Education: A transcript must be submitted with your application if you are basing all or part of your qualifications on education.
Note: Only education or degrees recognized by the U.S. Department of Education from accredited colleges, universities, schools, or institutions may be used to qualify for Federal employment. You can verify your education here: http://ope.ed.gov/accreditation/. If you are using foreign education to meet qualification requirements, you must send a Certificate of Foreign Equivalency with your transcript in order to receive credit for that education. For further information, visit: https://sites.ed.gov/international/recognition-of-foreign-qualifications/.Employment Type: FULL_TIME