Project Management Specialist (Higher Education)

The United States Embassy in Hanoi, Vietnam is seeking an eligible and qualified applicant for the position of Project Management Specialist (Higher Education) in its U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID).

1.       VACANCY ANNOUNCEMENT NO.:USAID-2021-07

2.       OPENING DATE: May 24, 2021

3.       CLOSING DATE: June 25, 2021, 17:00 Hanoi time

4.       AREA OF CONSIDERATION:  All Interested candidates/All sources who are Cooperating Country National.

Cooperating country national (CCN) means an individual who is a cooperating country citizen, or a non-cooperating country citizen lawfully admitted for permanent residence in the cooperating country.

5.       POINT OF CONTACT:  

Quyen Hoang, Human Resources Specialist at qhoang@usaid.gov; Tel: +84-24-3850-5000 ; ext. 2763 ; and Loan Nguyen, Human Resources and Travel Assistant at loannguyen@usaid.gov; Tel: +84-24-3850-5000; at ext. 2673. 

6.       POSITION TITLE:Project Management Specialist (Higher Education), 40000671

7.       MARKET VALUE/Salary (per annum): US$ 32,908.00 – US$ 49,380.00 (FSN-11)

Added by attractive allowances, cash and non-cash benefits and incentives in accordance with the U.S. Embassy Vietnam’s Local Compensation Plan.

8.       PERIOD OF PERFORMANCE/Length of the contract/ WORK SCHEDULE:  Definite term - five years / Monday through Friday (40 hours per week).

USAID expects the services under this contract to be continuing in nature for the contractor to perform under a series of sequential contracts, subject to the availability of fund.

9.       PLACE OF PERFORMANCE:  USAID/Vietnam/Ho Chi Minh City/ 8 Floor, Diamond Plaza, 34 Le Duan, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam.

10.    SECURITY LEVEL REQUIRED:  Local Security Certification or Public Trust

11.    BACKGROUND INFORMATION OF THE POSITION

The Project Management Specialist (Higher Education) position is located in the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), Mission Vietnam in Ho Chi Minh City.  The Specialist’s efforts are principally oriented toward project management of the higher education portfolio and higher education program liaison with government officials, development partners, Consulate General staff, and Mission technical offices of Economic Growth & Governance (EG2), Social Sector Development Office (SSDO), Office of Environment and Energy (OEE), and Office of Health.  These responsibilities include: coordinating with USAID/Hanoi Mission offices; liaising with Consulate public affairs, economic, or political sections; establishing relationships with relevant government agencies, private sector, academia, and non-governmental actors; advising and consulting on higher education policies and engagements; serving as Agreement Officer Representative/Contracting Officer Representative (AOR/COR) and/or Alternate AOR/COR; managing and planning the higher education budget; leading project/activity designs; project/activity management, monitoring, and evaluation; performing outreach, reporting, and communications functions; and coordinating high-level USG visits from Hanoi or Washington.

The Specialist manages and monitors a complex higher education portfolio which includes projects to reform the higher education sector to improve institutional governance, reform curriculums, and facilitate industry-university partnerships in the academic fields of liberal arts, medical, and technology & engineering.

12.    MINIMUM REQUIREMENT

Applicants must address each required qualification listed below with specific information supporting each item. Failure to do so may result in a determination that the applicant is not qualified.

Education: Possession of Bachelor or equivalent degree in international affairs, public policy, education, teaching, business administration, or social science is required.

Prior Work Experience: Five years of progressively responsible professional experience in program management positions in the field of higher education, including public/private partnership initiatives and advocacy with international organizations and GVN.

Language Proficiency: Level IV (fluent) Speaking/Reading/Writing in English and Vietnamese is required (this will be tested).

Job Knowledge: The Specialist must have:

• Strong knowledge of the concepts, principles, techniques, and practices in modern education systems, particularly higher education and workforce development, as well as good knowledge of the concepts, principles, techniques, and practices of international development.
• Strong knowledge and understanding of the Government of Vietnam’s higher education priorities, policies, and systems.
• Strong knowledge of the appropriate government, private sector, academia, and non-governmental stakeholders. 
• General knowledge of Vietnamese economic, political, social, and cultural characteristics that affect education and development. 
• Demonstrated potential to acquire knowledge of U.S. Government legislation relating to Development Assistance; USAID programming policies, regulations, procedures, and documentation, and a thorough understanding of the objectives, methodology, and status of the USAID/Vietnam's development objectives.

Skills and Abilities: The Specialist must have:

• Strong skills/abilities in analytical thinking, project management, planning and organization, interpersonal and relationship building, and communications.
• Ability to foster effective working relationships with USG, Ministry of Education and Training, other GVN ministries, agencies and international working partners at all levels, local organizations, and other program partners.
• Excellent interpersonal skills and the ability to work with diverse teams and stakeholders including wide range of development partners, including multilateral and bilateral donors as well as the private sector in a professional setting.
• Ability to follow oral instructions, and organize, prioritize and follow through on all assignments with minimal oversight is required.
• Ability to learn and use efficiently office software such as Microsoft Office, especially creating and maintaining budget spreadsheet, Google Applications and Agency specific software related to the work.
• Self-motivation and strong work ethics.??
• Ability to travel locally and internationally.

13.    EVALUATION AND SELECTION CRITERIA:

A Technical Evaluation Committee (TEC) will be set up to manage the whole evaluation and selection processes. Applications will be initially screened for eligibility in accordance with the required qualifications mentioned above including education, prior work experiences and language. Eligible candidates will be given an English test. Those candidates who meet the English requirement (Level IV) will be invited for the subject matter expertise test (SME test) and the top performers from the SME test will be called for an interview. The SME test and the interview will be structured around the selection criteria above. Professional reference checks will be conducted once the pool is narrowed down to the top candidate(s).

In summary, the steps in the Candidates rating system are as follows:

• Meet education/experience requirements: Pass/fail
• Language requirements: Pass/ Fail
• Subject Matter Expertise (SME) test: Top scoring candidates from SME test will be invited for interview
• Professional Reference Checks: Pass/Fail

At the final selection round, the TEC may consider the performance from all selection round as a whole package to ensure the best matching profile (relevant education, relevant experience in program management in the field of higher education, public-private partnership initiatives, and advocacy/engagement with international/donor organizations, development sector counterparts, and GVN).

14.    HOW TO APPLY:

All candidates must be able to obtain and hold a Local security or Public trust clearance.

1. Offerors/ Candidates are required to complete and submit a Universal Application for Employment (DS-174) which is available on the Website of the U.S. Embassy & Consulate in Vietnam , Curriculum Vitae and scanned copies of degrees to support the position’s educational requirement.
2. Offers must be received by the closing date and time specified in Section 3 and submitted to the Point of Contact in Section 5.
3. To ensure consideration of offers for the intended position, Applicants must prominently reference the Job Announcement number in the submission.

NOTE: 

Due to the high volume of applications received, we will only contact applicants who are qualified and will be invited for further testing and/or interview. Thank you for your understanding.

15.    BENEFITS AND ALLOWANCES

As a matter of policy, and as appropriate, a CCNPSC is normally authorized the following benefits and allowances in accordance with United States Mission Vietnam ‘s Local Compensation Plan and regulations:

BENEFITS:

• One-month basic salary Tet Bonus
• Contribution to mandatory insurances pursuant to GVN’s law/ regulations including social insurance, health insurance and unemployment insurance.
• Coverage of additional health insurance 90% for incumbent and each eligible family member
• Annual and sick leave according to local labor law
• Mission cash award (semi-annual/ annual) and On-the-Spot award for high performers
• Training opportunities abroad, in-country, on-the-job and online sources (USAID University and Foreign Services Institute).

ALLOWANCES (as applicable):

• Unique Condition Work allowance: 7% of Annual basic salary (upon annual review).
• Miscellaneous Benefits Allowance: US$1,000 per annum for FSN-09 and below and US$3,000 per annum for FSN-10 and above.

16.    ADDITIONAL SELECTION AND APPLICATION CRITERIA:

• The Contracting Officer will consider nepotism/conflict of interest, funds availability and residency status in determining successful candidacy.
• Current employees serving a probationary period are not eligible to apply.
• Current employees identified as an Overall Summary Rating of Needs Improvement or Unsatisfactory on their most recent Performance Evaluation Report are not eligible to apply.
• All candidates for employment with the US Mission must pass a background/security investigation and a medical certification.  Any employment offer with the US Mission is contingent upon a candidate’s ability to secure the necessary certifications.
• All applicants must be a naturalized citizen of the host country or must have the required work permit or documentation that permits the applicant to work legally in the country in order to be eligible for consideration.
• Please clearly indicate in your application, the title of the position you are applying for.  Any application that does not specify the position applied for will NOT be considered.
• Applications received after the closing date and time of the announcement will NOT be considered.
• The application must contain all information necessary to demonstrate that the candidate possesses the education, experience, skills and language abilities required for this position.
• Applicants who fail to meet requirements for the position will be disqualified. 

The U.S. Embassy in Hanoi, Vietnam provides equal opportunity and fair and equitable treatment in employment to all people regardless of to race, color, religion, ethnicity, sex (including pregnancy, sexual orientation, gender identity or transgender status), national origin, age, physical or mental disability, genetic information, marital or parental status, veteran status, membership in an employee organization, political affiliation, involvement in protected EEO activity, or other non-merit factor. The Mission also strives to achieve equal employment opportunity in all personnel operations through continuing diversity enhancement programs.

The EEO complaint procedure is not available to individuals who believe they have been denied equal opportunity based upon marital status or political affiliation.  Individuals with such complaints should avail themselves of the appropriate grievance procedures, remedies for prohibited personnel practices, and/or courts for relief.

• Việc làm tại các tổ chức phi chính phủ - NGO Recruitment

• Website: https://ngorecruitment.org/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ngorecruitment_vn
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ngorecruitment
• Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/VieclamPhichinhphu
• Youtube: http://bit.ly/Youtube_NGORecruitment