The knowledge, skills and abilities (KSA's) necessary for the successful performance of a position are contained on each job vacancy announcement. It is IMPORTANT to know that KSA's are often times referred to on vacancy announcements as:

• Evaluation Factors,
• Rating Factors,
• Quality Ranking Factors,
• Knowledge, Abilities, skills and Other Characteristics, or
• Job Elements.

How important is it to address the KSA's when applying for a job vacancy? Consider this definition of KSA's previously referenced in the "The Federal Personnel Manual":

"The factors that identify the better candidates from a group of persons basically qualified for a position."

The ranking of job candidates is primarily derived from the scores received during the ranking process. The scores are computed based upon the information obtained from the KSA's.

The below definitions, as defined by the U.S. Office of Personnel Management, are provided for your use:

• Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities (KSA's) - The attributes required to perform a job and are generally demonstrated through qualifying service, education, or training.
• Knowledge - Is a body of information applied directly to the performance of a function.
• Skill - Is an observable competence to perform a learned psychomotor act.
• Ability - Is competence to perform an observable behavior or a behavior that results in an observable product.

To assist you in preparing KSA's that will make you competitive in the job application process, we have provided some useful tools to help you prepare your KSA's.

Two worksheets are provide to assist you in developing your KSA's.