Writing KSAs
by Derrick T. Dortch, M.Ed

For many KSAs stand for something that is evil, dreaded and causes nightmares. They are regarded as one of the most difficult parts of the government application process because they are time consuming, more detailed then resumes and cause you to prove in writing that you meet the qualifications required to fill a vacant position. No matter what you may feel, the government views KSAs as one of the best ways to weed out who is and is not qualified for certain federal positions.

Why are KSAs so Important?
Before we go deeper into what KSAs are, you might want to know why they are so important in the government recruiting and hiring process. In many agencies KSAs, not the resume, SF-171 or the Optional Application for Federal Employment (OF-612) is the primary document used to determine if you are highly qualified, qualified or not qualified for a position. Responses to KSAs that lack thoroughness, detail and clarity can prevent you from being selected as the best qualified candidate and moved forward for interview. The exercise of completing a KSA, if done correctly should provide a clear picture of whether you are or are not qualified for the position and should look into another opportunity.

So what are KSAs?
KSA stands for Knowledge, Skills and Abilities and is defined by the government as the qualities required by applicants to successfully perform a particular job. Within recruiting of potential candidates and the government internal “Merit Promotion” process KSAs provide distinction between highly qualified, qualified and not qualified candidates.

Historically KSAs began with merit principles developed by the federal government stating “recruitment should be from qualified individuals from appropriate sources in an endeavor to achieve a work force from all segments of society, and selection and advancement should be determined solely on the basis of relative ability, knowledge, and skills, after fair and open competition which assures that all receive equal opportunity.”

Candidates applying for General Schedule (GS) government positions must include responses to KSAs along with their resume, SF-171 or the Optional Application for Federal Employment (OF 612). The KSAs are listed on vacancy announcements and require applicants to describe experiences that demonstrate their possession of the respective knowledge, skill and abilities required to complete the job.

Here is the breakdown of each:

KNOWLEDGE
Definition: An organized body of information, usually factual or procedural in nature.

For example, a job listing at HUD (Housing and Urban Development) for a Contract Oversight Specialist indicates the position requires knowledge of grant management policies, procedures and requirements in order to assist Grant Officers in development, preparation, administration and revision of grants and agreements and acquisition documents.

When responding to this KSA the applicant should indicate what education or experience they have had learning about and working with grant management policies and assisting in the development, administration and revision of grants, agreements and other documents.

SKILL
Definition: The proficient manual, verbal, or mental manipulation of data or things.

For example, a Criminal Investigator position for the Defense Intelligence Agency requires skills in planning, organizing, and monitoring investigations on a wide-range of subject matters.

The applicant should indicate in this section what type of planning, organization and monitoring conducted in any investigations they have done. In this example since the skill says “on a wide-range of subject matters” the applicant should also mention all types of investigations they have worked on from white-collar crimes to violent crimes.

ABILITY
Definition: The power or capacity to perform an activity or task.

An example from a Microbiologist position announcement from the USDA (United States Department of Agriculture) requires the ability to initiate, plan, conduct, interpret and publish independent microbiological research.

This applicant should mention the various experiences they have had initiating, planning, conducting, interpreting and publishing this type of research to demonstrate his or her ability.

How do I prepare to complete a KSA?
Before you start working on your KSA it is best to prepare. Since KSAs require a significant amount of information about your knowledge, skills, abilities, experiences and background it wise to follow these steps in preparation.

Develop A Job Diary
A Job Diary is a written (preferably typed) history of all of your work, volunteer, internship, externship, and professional experiences in detail with full descriptions of duties, responsibilities, tasks, successes, accolades, completed projects, etc. Developing a Job Diary is not only helpful for doing KSAs but helpful for any job search whether it is in the public or private setting. Put your experiences in some order whether it is chronological, by type, by career field or something you decide. Completing the Job Diary will give you details and insight into positions that you may have forgotten about. More importantly it will allow you to evaluate your experiences and decide which best fit the KSA.

Review the Vacancy Announcement (Thoroughly)
Take time to review the position description, qualifications and KSAs and through honest self-evaluation determine if you meet the criteria the government is looking for in a candidate. If you meet the qualifications begin to take the KSAs from the announcement and start matching them with your experiences.

Obtain supporting documentation
If your work requires you to do weekly, monthly, yearly status reports or project completion reports make sure you obtain these records to see if there are parts you can use in your KSA to demonstrate your qualifications. Also find any awards, certificates, training and academic records and other documents of achievement that may be used to answer a KSA and demonstrate your qualifications. You may not be able to include the documentation with the application but they provide a good reference point.

Get Advice
Talk to someone (friend, family, etc.) who is or has worked for the government and completed KSAs. They may be able to provide you some materials, advice and insight on the process of doing KSAs and getting hired. If they have a copy of their KSAs that helped get them hired, ask can you use them as a point of reference.

Consult the Human Resource Professionals
When completing a government application if you are not sure about something or need help make sure you talk to the government HR professionals. Many times they may have free guides or brochures that can be helpful and some might sit down and review your materials to make sure you are on the right track.

Developing KSAs
After you have followed the preparation steps it is time for you to take the big step and complete KSAs for the position you are applying. In developing your KSAs you need develop a plan of action that involves organizing your thoughts to respond to KSAs. This involves review, brainstorming, matching and evaluating.

Review
First, review the application and each of the KSAs. Read them carefully and develop an understanding of what the agency is looking for and how you should respond to the KSAs. Write or type each KSA separately to think about and answer them independently.

Brainstorm
Now that you know have an idea of what is being looked for, take time to brainstorm about your relevant experiences. Begin to make a draft and jot down titles or experiences in brief that fit the KSAs. As you brainstorm you may see some experiences relating to more than one KSA. It is quite fine if that begins to happen, experience can go under more than one KSA.

Match
Begin taking the KSAs you thought about and match them with your experiences. Go into as much detail as needed to make sure you adequately match the KSA with your experience.

Evaluate
Once you have finished matching in detail make sure you review your responses. Read over each KSA and your response with a critical eye. Put yourself in the mind frame of a human resource person who is evaluating your application. Be especially hard on yourself to make sure that your responses stand up to a strong evaluation. If possible have a friend or family member who can be constructively critical take a look at the application and the KSA responses and have them evaluate each. If you can get a family member, friend of acquaintance who works for the government and has been through the process evaluate your materials that is the best option. Go through this process several times to ensure quality.

The government recommends that you think about five things when developing your KSAs to reinforce the idea of organizing your thoughts when responding. For each KSA ask yourself these five questions as a "checklist" regarding individual tasks you performed.

The Task Factor
One problem that consistently arises is developing KSA responses is that applicants begin to list everything that relates to the particular KSA and it becomes too long. If your responses and the list becomes too long the government uses five types of tasks you can use to narrow your down the list. These types are also used in determining the points given to KSA responses. The more you meet the types the more points you receive. While doing your KSAs remember to use the most critical and powerful experiences to get your qualifications across to the HR evaluator and when possible use these five tasks to represent your experience. The tasks and examples are from the Department of Justice, Bureau of Prisons Human Resource Management Division KSA Handbook.

LEADERSHIP
Use tasks that demonstrate your leadership, organization, or management skills. For example, applicants should discuss their role on committees/taskforces; discuss how they planned activities and events; or discuss their responsibilities in managing groups of individuals in various settings (i.e., office, classroom, organization/club, correctional environment).

FUNCTIONING IN A STRESSFUL ENVIRONMENT
Use tasks that demonstrate your ability to effectively deal with stress related events/activities. For example, applicants could discuss their responsibility for inmate work details, describe their counseling experience, or discuss how they dealt with critical deadlines.

COMPLEXITY AND/OR CREATIVITY
Use tasks that demonstrate complexity or creativity. For example, applicants could describe how they designed programs for personal computers, prepared papers on technical subjects, or used formulas to derive solutions.

PERTINENCE TO THE POSITION
Frequently, applicants apply for positions outside their own discipline. However, applicants who have experience directly related to the position and include this in their responses, will usually be awarded the higher points.

MAJOR IMPACT OR SIGNIFICANT OUTCOME
Use tasks where your actions had an impact on others or the work environment. For example, applicants could discuss procedures they developed for their office that streamlined operations; discuss how they negotiated a contract that resulted in a favorable outcome; or describe how their input on a project made a significant impact on the organization.

Applicants who respond to KSAs by showing a relationship to any of the above areas are more likely to receive more points for their responses. Place yourself in the panel member's seat and think about what you would look for if making the selection.
How should KSAs be written?

KSAs should be written in resume style using the following style and format:

The only difference in writing KSA style rather than resume is that the KSA is more detailed and has fewer restrictions when it comes to length.

When writing KSAs remember to:

Then you will be well on your way to writing great KSAs.