Department: Department of the Air Force
Location(s): Lakenheath, United Kingdom
Salary Range: $43106 - $99404 Per Year
Job Summary: The primary purpose of this position is to perform developmental assignments which are designed to provide the employee, who is serving in an advanced trainee capacity, in the application of common contracting methods and contract types, and to assist in the procurement of standard or specialized service; supply; and/or construction items, services, and/or materials primarily through formal advertising, or through limited use of negotiation techniques.
Major Duties:
Qualifications: In order to qualify, you must meet the basic requirements defined in 10 United States Code (USC).This standard implements requirements contained in Title 10, United States Code, Sections 1723 through 1733, as amended by Section 861(b) of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2020 (Public Law 116-92) and implemented on a policy exception basis by Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition and Sustainment memorandum, Exception to 24 Semester Hours Requirement for Contracting Positions, effective and dated August 2, 2020. BASIC REQUIREMENTS: A bachelor's degree from an accredited educational institution authorized to grant baccalaureate degrees. NOTE: You must submit copies of your transcripts. NOTE: The following three exemption to the basic education requirements above apply to DoD civilian employees or Service members who:1. Served as a contracting officer with authority to award or administer in excess of the Simplified Acquisition Threshold (SAT) on or before 30 September 2000; OR 2. Served, on or before 30 September 2000, in a position as either an employee in the GS-1102 series or as a member of the Armed Forces in a similar occupation specialty; OR 3. Are an enlisted member of the Contingency Contracting Force (CCF). This exemption only applies to CCF members in their current or future CCF positions. The Bachelor's degree exemption does not apply to current CCF members seeking New Hire employment within DoD as a 1102. AND Basic Qualification Requirements for Contracting Officer Positions (GS-12): In addition to meeting, the basic educational requirement as well as the requirements in the table above, applicants must have: 1) Have at least two years of experience in contracting positions; and 2) Have completed all contracting courses required for a contracting officer for positions at the level and grade at which the person is serving. Certification at this level is sufficient to meet this standard. SPECIALIZED EXPERIENCE: GS-07: Applicants must have at least one (1) year of specialized experience at the next lower grade GS-05, or equivalent in other pay systems. Examples of specialized experience includes working with working with commonly used contracting methods sufficient to perform procurement functions; working with contract negotiation techniques, and the laws, regulations and precedents governing procurements by this method, to perform developmental assignments; formal advertising sufficient to solicit bids to procure a variety of requirements ranging from standard to specialized supplies, services, or construction. NOTE: You must submit copies of your transcripts. GS-09: Applicants must have at least one (1) year of specialized experience at the next lower grade GS-07, or equivalent in other pay systems. Applicants experience includes working with commonly used contracting methods and contract types sufficient to perform pre-award, post-award, and/or contract price/cost analysis functions. NOTE: You must submit copies of your transcripts. GS-11: Applicants must have at least one (1) year of specialized experience at the next lower grade GS-09, or equivalent in other pay systems. Applicants experience includes working with contracting principles, laws, statutes, Executive Orders, regulations, and procedures applicable to pre-award and post-award duties sufficient to plan and carry out procurement actions and administer contracts for a variety of specialized services, commodities and/or construction using a wide range of contracting methods and contract types. NOTE: You must submit copies of your transcripts. GS-12: Applicants must have at least one (1) year of specialized experience at the next lower grade GS-11, or equivalent in other pay systems. Applicants experience includes working with contracting principles, laws, statutes, Executive Orders, regulations, and procedures applicable to pre-award and post-award duties sufficient to develop strategies, goals, and objectives; study problem areas and implement and/or recommend improved methods and operating procedures. NOTE: You must submit a copy of college transcripts. OR EDUCATION: GS-07: Mandated bachelor's degree AND One full academic year of graduate education or law school or superior academic achievement. NOTE: You must submit copies of your transcripts. GS-09: Mandated bachelor's degree AND Two full academic years of progressively higher level graduate education or masters or equivalent graduate degree or LL.B. or J.D. NOTE: You must submit copies of your transcripts. GS-11: Mandated bachelor's degree AND Three full academic years of progressively higher level graduate education or Ph.D. or equivalent doctoral degree. NOTE: You must submit copies of your transcripts. FEDERAL TIME-IN-GRADE (TIG) REQUIREMENT FOR GENERAL SCHEDULE (GS) POSITIONS-GS-07/09/11/12: Merit promotion applicants must meet applicable time-in-grade requirements to be considered eligible. TIG applies if you are in a current GS position or held a GS position within the previous 52 weeks: NOTE: Applicants applying as VEOA candidates who are current GS civil service employees or are prior GS civil service employees within the past 52 weeks must also meet time-in-grade requirements. GS-07: One year at the GS-05 level is required to meet the time-in-grade requirements for the GS-07 level. GS-09: One year at the GS-07 level is required to meet the time-in-grade requirements for the GS-09 level. GS-11: One year at the GS-09 level is required to meet the time-in-grade requirements for the GS-11 level. GS-12: One year at the GS-11 level is required to meet the time-in-grade requirements for the GS-12 level. KNOWLEDGE, SKILLS AND ABILITIES (KSAs): Your qualifications will be evaluated on the basis of your level of knowledge, skills, abilities and/or competencies in the following areas: GS-07: 1. Knowledge of commonly used contracting methods sufficient to perform procurement functions when the contract actions are well defined and well precedented. 2. Knowledge of contract negotiation techniques, and the laws, regulations and precedents governing procurements by this method, to perform developmental assignments; and of business practices and market conditions as they relate to program and technical requirements sufficient to evaluate bid responsiveness, contractor responsibility, and contractor performance. 3. Knowledge of report writing techniques to present factual information clearly, write procurement memoranda, and draft simple contract provisions and supporting documentation. 4. Skill in solving practical problems relating to supplies, services, and/or construction matters as they relate to the development of specifications or to contract administration involving product quality. 5. Skill in dealing with others in a work relationship to present information orally and to accomplish a given purpose. 6. Ability to communicate effectively, both orally and in writing; and plan, organize work, and meet deadlines. GS-09: 1. Professional knowledge of commonly used contracting methods and contract types for contract actions that are well-defined and well-precedented. 2. Knowledge of directly applicable Federal contracting laws, regulations, policies, and procedures. 3. Knowledge of business practices and market conditions as they relate to program and technical requirements to assist customers in developing requirements and to evaluate proposal responsiveness, contractor responsibility, and contractor performance. 4. Ability to perform basic price/cost analysis sufficient to compare prices on recurring types of procurements. 5. Ability to plan, organize work, and meet deadlines. 6. Ability to communicate effectively, both orally and in writing; present factual information; clearly write procurement memoranda; and draft simple contract provisions and supporting documents. KNOWLEDGE, SKILLS AND ABILITIES (KSAs) CONTINUED UNDER EDUCATION:
How to Apply: The complete Application Package must be submitted by 11:59 PM (EST) on 03/23/2026 To preview the Application Questionnaire, please click the following link: https://apply.usastaffing.gov/ViewQuestionnaire/12912593 To begin the process, click the Apply Online button to create an account or log in to your existing USAJOBS account. Follow the prompts to complete the application questionnaire. Please ensure you click the Submit My Application button at the end of the process. To apply for this position, you must provide a complete Application Package which includes: 1. Your Resume. If you submit more than one resume, only the most recent will be reviewed. The "most recent" is considered the resume with the latest timestamp. Resumes may not exceed two pages. The two-page resume ensures the most relevant experience is reviewed and considered, which is a common practice in both the public and private sectors. Resumes exceeding two pages will be removed from consideration. Additional information on how to complete or update your resume may be located here. For qualification determination your resume must contain hours worked per week and dates of employment (i.e., month/year to month/year or month/year to present). If your resume does not contain this information, your application may be marked as insufficient, and you will not receive consideration for this position. If you are a current Federal employee or previous Federal employee, provide your pay plan, series and grade, i.e. GS-0301-09. Current Federal Civilian Employees may list any relevant performance related rating (given within the last three years) and/or incentive awards in your resume. Do NOT include photographs, inappropriate material, inappropriate content, nor personal information such as age, gender, religion, social security number, etc., on your resume. If the resume you submit contains such information you will not be considered for this vacancy. Your name, first and last, MUST be included on your resume. 2. A complete Application Questionnaire 3. Additional Required Documents (see Required Documents section). Ensure all submitted documents contain your full name. 4. Help recruiters find you. Make your resume and profile searchable, which means recruiters may contact you about possible jobs. Additional information may be located here. PLEASE NOTE: It is the applicant's responsibility to verify that information entered and/or uploaded, (i.e., resume) is received, accurate, and submitted by the closing date. You may verify your documents have been processed with your application package successfully. You can access your USAJOBS account to do so by clicking here. Uploaded documents may take up to one hour to clear the virus scan. Human Resources WILL NOT modify or change any answers submitted by an applicant.
Application Deadline: 2026-03-23