Summary

The Pathways Internship Program targets students accepted for enrollment or currently enrolled in a degree-seeking program in an accredited educational institution, on at least a half-time basis. At the successful conclusion of this program, you may be eligible for non-competitive conversion to a Federal career or career-conditional position.

This is a Temporary, Full-Time Intern position as part of the Healthcare and Insurance, Office of the Actuaries, Office of Personnel Management.

Duties

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This is a Student Trainee position. The student will support the functions of the team by helping or supporting projects, performing research, assisting in developing reports, and presenting research findings to senior members of the team. They will actively participate in assignments and projects with higher-graded specialists, who will provide them with guidance and mentorship.

The work assigned will consist of specialized, supervised projects which will challenge the incumbent. Performs miscellaneous basic duties commensurate with the educational level achieved and work with higher graded team members performing portions of projects and studies of larger scope and complexity to develop knowledge and skills.

Reviews the development of community rated reconciliations and proposals of a variety of Health Maintenance Organization Plans (HMO). Identifies and works with personnel from the carriers to understand the rate buildups and make corrections to errors, when necessary. Participates in negotiating the premium buydown amount with the carriers to finalize the rate proposal.

What You May Be Doing:

As a Student Trainee, you will have the opportunity to participate in a variety of tasks and projects. Some of the responsibilities you may undertake include:

Participating in the quality review of SharePoint, OneDrive libraries, and databases.
Assisting with the research and development of procedures, processes, and presentations.
Engaging in customer engagement, business development, and outreach activities.
Presenting findings for projects and assignments.
Participating in team meetings and collaborating with colleagues.
Liaising with other employees to resolve information or project requests.
Compiling and analyzing information to develop reports, proposals, or documents.
Maintaining accurate documentation and records for all assigned projects.
Engaging with peers and team members to obtain knowledge needed to complete projects.
Following all current standards utilized by your team.
Complying with all agency privacy and data security policies and practices.
Leveraging enterprise project management principles and concepts.
Communicating clearly to a wide range of stakeholders through verbal and written means.
Using analytical and problem-solving skills to organize and prioritize projects and tasks.
Supporting the communication of operational dashboards and roadmaps to various levels of leadership and key stakeholders.
Tracking project progress and following up with accountable parties.
Gathering feedback and proposing process improvement recommendations.
Assisting with enhancing and improving work products.
The Skills to be Successful as a Student Trainee:

To excel as a Student Trainee, you should possess the following skills and qualities:
Ability to work smart, driving projects, meeting deadlines, and achieving goals.
Proactive nature and bias for action.
Attention to detail, precision, and ability to handle tasks with high accuracy.
Flexibility, creativity, curiosity, and willingness to take initiative.
Quick and adaptable learner, comfortable with ambiguity and dynamic change.
Ability to inspire trust, build relationships quickly, and earn the confidence and cooperation of business partners.
High standards, integrity, and ethics.

What We're Looking For:

To be considered for the Student Trainee position, you should meet the following criteria:
Currently enrolled in an educational institution.
Strong team player while also demonstrating independent thinking.
Ability to work under deadlines, organize tasks, and multitask effectively.
Robust analytical skill set.
Strong verbal, written, and presentation skills.
Endless curiosity and a penchant for thinking outside the box.
Proficiency with Microsoft Office software products.
Attentive to team needs, providing rapid and high-quality responsiveness to requests.
Excellent interpersonal skills, maintaining rapport with team members and professionalism with others outside of the team.
Excellent oral and written communication skills, demonstrating a professional demeanor and the ability to interact with others with discretion and tact.
Keen attention to detail.
Capable of identifying and completing tasks independently, with a sense of urgency and ownership.
Demonstrated success in maintaining high personal work standards.
Ability to handle sensitive information with discretion and tact.
Highly motivated and self-starter, able to work autonomously and effectively drive forward the work assigned.

If you possess these skills and qualities, we encourage you to apply for this exciting Student Trainee opportunity.

Requirements

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Conditions of employment

Citizenship: Must be a U.S. Citizen or National

Candidates will not be hired based on their race, sex, color, religion, or national origin

Selective Service: Males born after 12-31-59 must be registered for Selective Service.

Age: You must be at least 16 years of age

Background Investigation: Must be suitable for Federal employment as determined by a background investigation.

Availability for Work: Applicants hired on a temporary appointment will work a full-time schedule during the period of May 18, 2026 through August 14, 2026.

Student Status: Applicants must have at least 1 academic semester (Fall 2026) remaining in their studies before they complete their current degree requirements.

Graduation Status: Applicants that graduate prior to December 2026 will not be considered for this position unless you have been accepted into a follow-on degree or certificate program and provide verification of future enrollment status prior to start date.

Pathways Agreement: If selected, you will be required to sign a Pathways Agreement which specifies the conditions of your employment as we've indicated in this job announcement. You must continue to meet the Pathways Program requirements throughout the duration of your appointment. To verify that you do, we will require proof of your continued enrollment and good standing each semester or grading period throughout your internship. Failure to do so will result in termination of your internship and employment.

Trial Period: Selectee must complete a trial period while on the Pathways internship appointment.

Bargaining Unit:

This position is eligible for inclusion in the bargaining unit. The union that represents employees in this position is the American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE) Local 32.

Qualifications

For the GS-04 Grade Level: You must be enrolled in a bachelor's degree program that includes courses in actuarial science, mathematics, relevant statistics, economics, or insurance expecting to total at least 24 semester hours by graduation. This course work must include a minimum of 12 semester hours of mathematics that includes differential and integral calculus and one or more courses in mathematics for which these calculus courses are prerequisites.

An academic year of undergraduate education is defined as 30 semester hours, 45 quarter hours, or the equivalent in an accredited college or university.

An academic year of graduate education is based on normal course loads for a full year of study in the graduate program. If that information cannot be obtained from the school, 18 semester hours or 27 quarter hours is considered as satisfying the 1 year of full-time study requirement.

To meet the Intern Eligibility requirements, you must be a student accepted for enrollment or enrolled and seeking a degree (diploma, certificate, etc.) in a qualifying educational institution, on a full or half-time basis (as defined by the institution in which you are enrolled).

Certificate programs must be at least one-year duration of full-time academic study in post-secondary education.

Accepted for Enrollment: If you have been accepted for enrollment in an institution or career or technical education program, but have not yet begun coursework, you must submit an Acceptance Letter from the institution and your most recent academic transcript from your previous program.

NOTE: You will NOT be considered under Pathways unless you provide supporting information from your school. Documentation may be provided in letter format from your academic advisor, school counselor, admission office, etc. to prove enrollment OR it may be provided in the form of several official documents from your school such as a copy of your official transcripts and a copy of your class schedule for next semester. Copies of documents from your school website are acceptable if they contain all relevant information as listed above. Letters from advisors or other school officials must be on school letterhead. Official transcripts will be required prior to final offer of employment.

Education

This position has a basic education requirement listed under the Qualifications section of this announcement.

Additional information

We understand that not everyone will demonstrate proficiency in all of the duties listed in this job posting. At OPM, we strive to raise the bar! We encourage all to apply if you feel your skills and life experiences are transferable to some of the duties listed in this vacancy.

What Do We Offer?

Upon graduation and completion of the student internship program requirements you MAY BE non-competitively converted, without a break in service, to a term (time-limited), career, or career conditional (permanent) appointment in the federal government, to a position up with a full performance level up to the GS-14. Grade level upon conversion will be determined by management and neither conversion nor promotion is guaranteed.

Interns must meet the qualification requirements for the position to which promoted or converted.

This appointment allows for conversion to a permanent appointment. Conversion Eligibility Information Requirements

Extensions: If hired on a temporary appointment, it may be extended without further competition based on the need of the organization for the work to continue and provided the individual continues to meet the eligibility requirements.

If you are unable to apply online and would like to request information about the Alternate Application process, please use the contact information at the bottom of this announcement.

This job opportunity announcement may be used to fill additional similar vacancies across OPM.

Relocation expenses will not be paid.

For more information on the Pathways Program, please visit: Pathways Program Fact Sheets

As a condition of employment for accepting this position, you will be required to serve a 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 trial period your employment will be terminated unless you receive certification, in writing, that your continued employment advances the public interest.

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Candidates should be committed to improving the efficiency of the Federal government, passionate about the ideals of our American republic, and committed to upholding the rule of law and the United States Constitution.

Benefits

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A career with the U.S. government provides employees with a comprehensive benefits package. As a federal employee, you and your family will have access to a range of benefits that are designed to make your federal career very rewarding. Opens in a new windowLearn more about federal benefits.

Review our benefits

Eligibility for benefits depends on the type of position you hold and whether your position is full-time, part-time or intermittent. Contact the hiring agency for more information on the specific benefits offered.

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