Standards
International Radio Broadcaster (Non-English), 1001
United States Information Agency
Bureau of Broadcasting
Associated Group Standard
Use the Group Coverage Qualification Standard for Administrative and Management Positions for this series in conjunction with the Individual Occupational Requirements described below.
Individual Occupational Requirements
EDUCATION
Undergraduate and Graduate Education: Major study -- journalism, communications, history, economics, political science, international relations, or other fields related to the position.
OR
EXPERIENCE
General Experience (for GS-5 positions): Experience that required the ability to read English and to speak and understand the appropriate broadcast language. Applicants must be familiar with the American scene, as well as life in the target country.
Specialized Experience (for positions above GS-5): Experience in the use of the broadcast language in radio broadcasting, print, TV, or film journalism. Work must have included writing, editing, and/or voicing broadcast material from English into the broadcast language. Examples of qualifying specialized experience include work as a reporter, editor, or news broadcaster for a recognized news publication, such as a daily newspaper or weekly news magazine; or for a wire service such as AP, UPI, or Reuters; or for a radio or television station. This experience must have provided a comprehensive knowledge of the history, customs, and psychology of the target area people, as well as their political, economic, cultural, and social life.
For positions requiring "hard to fill" languages, experience in speaking and/or writing in the broadcast language in any formal employment or academic environment and the ability to read and understand English may be accepted as specialized experience. Examples of work that may have provided the skills and abilities necessary for successful job performance include translator, college or high school language teacher, translator and adapter of English language material into modern broadcast language, or other experience requiring considerable use of both English and the broadcast language.
TESTING PROVISIONS
The Bureau of Broadcasting requires all applicants (both for competitive appointment and inservice placement) for positions at grades GS-11 and below to take and pass a handwritten or typewritten translation/adaptation test and voice audition as a condition of employment.
