Insurance Specialist

Summary

This announcement is being limited to the first 100 applications received. The announcement will close either on the published closing date at 11:59 p.m. Eastern Standard Time (EST) or on the day when the number of applications reaches 100 at 11:59 p.m. (EST), whichever comes first.

Major duties

Specific duties include: Fields telephone calls pertaining to a wide range of issues. On occasion, these matters involve other Veterans Affairs (VA) and Federal benefits. Researches and interprets regulations governing life insurance policies in order to reply to inquiries from policyholders on the VA administered insurance programs. Responds to inquiries varying in complexity and counsels' callers on topics including but not limited to, dividends, premiums, non-medical and medical underwriting issues, matured endowments, cash surrenders, loans, death claim processing and tax issues relating to the insurance programs. Advises policyholders and beneficiaries in estimated and comparing benefits of the various options that are available relating to conversions, changes of plan, matured endowment, cash surrenders, death award payments and dividend options, etc. Computes reserves, difference in reserve, surrender and loan values, and determines effective date of changes. Prepares detailed statement of account and conducts extensive audits of individual policies. Responds to inquiries in relation to Servicemembers and Veterans Group Life Insurance (SGLI/VGLI) VA Life programs, which are supervised by the Department of Veterans Affairs. Takes all servicing and maintenance actions in responding to requests or inquiries from policyholders or their authorized representatives, including posting premiums, loan and dividend payments and refunds. Performs post entitlement actions, including release of Treasury Form 712 and release of correspondence to claimants, Veterans Service Officers, and attorneys and third parties concerning general inquiries about payment of the proceeds. Processes beneficiary designations requests, release copies of beneficiary designations on file and provide copy of the policy. Promotion Potential: The selectee may be promoted to the full performance level without further competition when all regulatory, qualification, and performance requirements are met. Selection at a lower grade level does not guarantee promotion to the full performance level. The grade progression for this position is GS-7/9. Work Schedule: Full time, Monday through Friday Compressed/Flexible: Available (6:00am - 6:00pm) Virtual: This is a remote position Position Description/PD#: Insurance Specialist; PD03735A Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized Financial Disclosure Report: Not Required

Qualifications

To qualify for this position, applicants must meet all requirements by the closing date of this announcement:10/29/2026. TIME-IN-GRADE REQUIREMENT: As a current/former Federal, GS employee you must meet time-in-grade requirements by the closing date of this announcement. For a GS-07 position you must have served 52 weeks at the GS-05 level. If you are a current VBA employee requesting reassignment or change to lower grade via this vacancy announcement, you must currently hold the GS-07 or higher and the promotion potential of your current position must be at least GS-9. 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. Examples of appropriate SF-50s to include which show TIG requirements have been met include: Within grade increases (WGI) at the highest grade held; or Promotions with an effective date that occurred more than one year from the closing date of the job opportunity announcement; or Most recent appointment. NOTE: Do not submit Award, Data Element, Change in Tenure, or General Adjustment SF-50s, as they do not provide sufficient information and will not be accepted for the purpose of verifying TIG. MINIMUM QUALIFICATION REQUIREMENT: You may qualify based on your experience and/or education as described below: GS-07 Grade Level: Specialized Experience: To qualify, applicants must have one year (52 weeks) of specialized experience equivalent to at least the next lower grade (GS-05) in the normal line of progression for the occupation in the organization. Specialized experience is defined as: Experience that may have been gained in technical assignments that involved the application of laws, rules, regulations or procedures involving a benefit or entitlement program; and Responsibility for examination, investigation or authorization of claims under programs such as life or health insurance, pension plan, disability retirement, income maintenance or other related programs. OR Education Substitution: Applicants may substitute education for the required experience. To qualify based on education you must have: One (1) full year (18 credit hours) of graduate level education in an accredited college or university which demonstrate the knowledge, skills and abilities necessary to do the work. or A bachelor's degree with Superior Academic Achievement. Class standing--Applicants must be in the upper third of the graduating class in the college, university, or major subdivision, such as the College of Liberal Arts or the School of Business Administration, based on completed courses; Grade-point average (G.P.A.)--Applicants must have a grade-point average of: 3.0 or higher out of a possible 4.0 ('B' or better) as recorded on their official transcript, or as computed based on 4 years of education, or as computed based on courses completed during the final 2 years of the curriculum; or 3.5 or higher out of a possible 4.0 ('B+' or better) based on the average of the required courses completed in the major field or the required courses in the major field completed during the final 2 years of the curriculum. Grade-point averages are to be rounded to one decimal place. For example, 2.95 will round to 3.0 and 2.94 will round to 2.9. Election to membership in a national scholastic honor society--Applicants can be considered eligible based on membership in one of the national scholastic honor societies. OR Combination of Specialized Experience and Education: Applicants may also combine education and experience to qualify at the GS-07. To calculate, first identify the percentage of required education you have earned. Then identify the percentage of required experience you possess. Add the two percentages. The total percentage must equal at least 100 percent to qualify at the GS-07. For example, an applicant who has 9 semester hours of graduate level education (i.e. 50% of graduate education required) and 6 months of creditable specialized experience (i.e. 50% of the required experience) would equal 100% of the required experience for the position. Volunteer Experience: 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. Full vs. Part-Time Employment: Full-time employment is considered to be at least 35 hours per week. Part-time experience will be credited on a pro-rated basis; when including part-time employment in your resume you must specify the average hours worked per week. Physical Requirements: The work is mostly sedentary. The employee will be required to talk for long periods of time which occasionally puts a strain on the throat/vocal cords. There are no other special physical demands required to perform the work. Extensive use of a computer and a telephone with a headset is required. Placement Policy: The posting of this announcement does not obligate management to fill a vacancy or vacancies by promotion. The position may be filled by reassignment, change to lower grade, transfer, appointment, or reinstatement. Management may use any one or any combination of these methods to fill the position. For more information on these qualification standards, please visit the United States Office of Personnel Management's website at http://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/classification-qualifications/general-schedule-qualification-standards/.

Requirements

As a condition of employment for accepting this position, you will be required to serve a 1-year probationary period, 1-year trial period, or 2-year trial period during which we will evaluate your fitness and whether your continued employment advances the public interest. In determining if your employment advances the public interest, we may consider: your performance and conduct; the needs and interests of the Agency; whether your continued employment would advance organizational goals of the Agency or the Government; and whether your continued employment would advance the efficiency of the Federal service. Upon completion of your probationary or trial period, your employment will be terminated unless you receive certification, in writing, that your continued employment advances the public interest. Additional Conditions of Employment are as follows: You must be a U.S. Citizen to apply for this job Selective Service Registration is required for males born after 12/31/1959 You may be required to serve a probationary or trial period Subject to background/security investigation Selected applicants will be required to complete an online onboarding process. Acceptable form(s) of identification will be required to complete pre-employment requirements I-9 Acceptable Documents. Effective May 7, 2025, driver's licenses or state-issued identification cards that are not REAL ID compliant cannot be utilized as an acceptable form of identification for employment.