To be eligible for a recent graduate appointment, ALL of the following requirements must be met: Recent Graduates must have obtained a qualifying associates, bachelors, master's, professional, doctorate, vocational or technical degree or certificate from a qualifying accredited educational institution within the previous 2 years unless military service interfered with a veteran's eligibility to apply during that two year time frame. Veterans meeting the above exclusion may apply within 2 years of discharge or 6 years from the date of receipt of the degree whichever comes first. (Go to http://www.ed.gov/accreditation?src=rn to verify accreditation status). Recent graduates must be United States citizens or owe permanent allegiance to the United States. (Currently, natives of American Samoa, Swains Island and certain inhabitants of the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands are the only groups that owe permanent allegiance to the United States.) You must successfully complete a background investigation to determine your suitability for Federal employment. All recent graduates are required to sign a Pathways Recent Graduate Participant Agreement. Recent Graduates serve a trial period for the entire duration of their excepted service appointment. Qualification requirements as outlined below: Transcript must be submitted to determine eligibility. GS-7: To qualify as a GS-7 Executive Assistant, you must have one year of specialized experience at the GS-5 federal level; or one full year of graduate level education that must demonstrate the knowledge, skills and abilities necessary to do the work; or qualify for superior academic achievement; or a combination of education and experience. Specialized experience is defined as experience which equipped 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. Examples of specialized experience include drafting and preparing routine correspondence; tracking tasks; assisting with scheduling meetings and appointments; communicating effectively; and using a variety of office automation hardware and software. OR Education: one full year of graduate level education that must demonstrate the knowledge, skills, and abilities necessary to do the work. Education at the graduate level must have be in an accredited college or university and must demonstrate the knowledge, skills, and abilities necessary to perform the duties of the position. OR Superior Academic Achievement: Possess a Bachelor's Degree AND possess at least one of the following criteria: class standing in the upper third of the graduating class; an overall GPA of 3.0 OR at least a 3.0 based on courses completed during the final two years of my curriculum; a GPA of at least 3.5 based on the average of required courses completed in my major field OR based on the average of required courses completed during the final two years of my curriculum; OR election to membership in a national scholastic honor society. OR Combining Education and Experience: a combination of specialized experience and education which when combined equal 100% of the requirements. Combinations of successfully completed graduate education and experience may be used to meet total qualification requirements. In order to qualify based on a combination, graduate education must be in excess of 1 full year.