The position is located in the Office of Language Services, Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary for Planning, Resources and Innovation, Bureau of Administration, Department of State. The Office of Language Services provides interpreting, translating, and other language services for the Department and the White House and also provides such services, for other U.S. Government agencies where the services requested have a direct and substantial relationship to the conduct of foreign affairs.
Applicants must meet all the qualification requirements described below by the closing date of this announcement. Applicants must have 1 year of specialized experience equivalent to the GS-12 level in the Federal service which provided you with the particular knowledge, skills and abilities to perform the duties of the position. Qualifying specialized experience must demonstrate the following: Experience in translating, interpreting, or other work requiring the use of English and the other language; or a combination of work (that required English and the other language) and training at the Defense Language Institute, Foreign Service Institute, or comparable training. IN ADDITION, this position requires the following additional specialized experience: Experience interpreting in meetings at the conference level on behalf of senior members of governments, including one-on-ones, bilateral meetings and press events. Experience with the contemporary politics, economy, international relations, and the other country or countries in which French is spoken. Experience managing interpretation projects and using data and analysis as management reporting and decision-making tools. Experience using new technology and tools in support of interpretation and translation programs. THE FOLLOWING SELECTIVE FACTOR IS REQUIRED: Must have experience interpreting French into English and English into French. OR Must have experience interpreting Japanese into English and English into Japanese. The following are examples of work in the required language that may have provided the required abilities: translator; interpreter; librarian or information specialist required to make abstracts, screen, index, and scan material; intelligence; writer or editor; international organizational work, such as the Peace Corps, World Bank, United Nations, business, or other organizations; or professor, teacher, or instructor work at the high school or college level that required use of the foreign language. **ALL APPLICANTS WILL BE TESTED BY THE AGENCY FOR PROFICIENCY ON A PASS/FAIL BASIS PRIOR TO APPOINTMENT.** There is no substitute of education for specialized experience for the GS-13 position
Assigns contract interpreters to public diplomacy and law enforcement programs administered by various bureaus throughout the Department.
Participates in all testing and screening of seminar and escort interpreters in language areas(s) of expertise.
Serves as Contracting Officer’s Representative in the administration of several hundred basic ordering agreements issued to contract interpreters.
Performs consecutive and simultaneous interpreting duties during diplomatic meetings at the highest level of the U.S. government, including interpreting for the President, Vice President, and Secretary of State.
Provides statistics and trends on numbers and types of interpreters assigned, and budgetary information for programs to which interpreters are assigned.