# Specialized Experience Check

Checks whether your actual experience meets the specialized experience statement in a federal announcement and shows you how to frame it on your resume so an HR specialist can see the match. Use it before writing your resume, not after.

## Prompt

## Context
You are helping [APPLICANT NAME], a [BRANCH OF SERVICE] veteran or transitioning service member, analyze the specialized experience requirement in a specific USAJOBS announcement. Specialized experience is the single most common reason federal applications are rated ineligible. HR specialists read resumes literally. If your resume does not explicitly describe the experience using language that maps to the requirement, it does not count, even if you did the work.

Specialized experience statement from the announcement (paste it exactly): [SPECIALIZED EXPERIENCE STATEMENT]

Applicant's work history (each position: title, employer or unit, dates, hours per week, key duties as you would describe them today): [WORK HISTORY]

Grade level applying for: [TARGET GRADE]

## Task
For each element of the specialized experience statement:
1. Quote the element.
2. Identify the closest experience in the applicant's work history.
3. Rate the match: Strong (the resume, as written, clearly supports it), Partial (the experience exists but the resume does not make it explicit), or Gap (no clear experience to draw from).
4. Write a suggested resume bullet that accurately describes the applicant's real experience using language that mirrors the element. Do not invent duties. Only reframe what the applicant actually did.

Close with a readiness summary: overall assessment of whether the work history supports the specialized experience claim, and which elements most need resume attention.

## Standards
- Work only from the duties and dates the applicant provided. Do not invent experience, titles, units, projects, clearance levels, or outcomes not stated.
- Suggested resume bullets must be accurate. Reframing means using federal language for real experience, not describing work the applicant did not perform.
- Hours per week affect whether the experience counts toward time-in-grade requirements. Note if that information is missing for a key position.
- Military experience translates directly. Use civilian-readable language in the suggested bullets, but keep the substance of what the service member actually did.
- If a gap is identified, say so plainly. Do not soften a gap into a partial match to encourage the applicant to apply.
- Do not promise that a strong match guarantees referral. The specialized experience check is the first gate, not the whole evaluation.
- Do not invent experience, GS grades, dates, hours per week, clearance levels, or qualifications the applicant did not state. If a specific named input is missing or ambiguous, ask before drafting.

## Variables

- APPLICANT NAME
- BRANCH OF SERVICE
- SPECIALIZED EXPERIENCE STATEMENT
- WORK HISTORY
- TARGET GRADE

## Input checklist

- [ ] Paste the specialized experience statement exactly as it appears in the announcement. Do not paraphrase it. Every word matters.
- [ ] List your work history with each position's title, organization or unit, start and end month and year, and average hours per week. Missing hours per week weakens the experience calculation.
- [ ] Describe your duties in your own words, including the scope (how many people, how much equipment or budget, how many locations). The AI can only reframe what you provide.
- [ ] Privacy and OPSEC: remove your Social Security number and personal data before pasting any DD-214 or service record, and never paste classified or operationally sensitive details.
- [ ] Paste the real USAJOBS announcement text for the specialized experience statement, not a summary or paraphrase you found elsewhere.

## Verification checklist

- [ ] Read every suggested resume bullet. Confirm it describes only what you actually did. Strike any duty, number, scope, or outcome the AI added that is not true.
- [ ] Check that dates and hours per week on your resume match your actual service record. Federal resume reviewers verify these against documents you submit.
- [ ] For any element rated Partial, ask yourself: can I honestly say I performed this function at that level? If the answer is no, do not use the suggested bullet.
- [ ] For any element rated Gap: do not apply to this position expecting the gap to go unnoticed. Gaps in specialized experience lead to an ineligible determination.
- [ ] Confirm that years of experience add up correctly. If the announcement requires one year at GS-9 equivalent, verify that your matching experience covers 12 months at full time, or the part-time equivalent.
- [ ] Self-rating assessment questionnaire items higher than your resume supports is one of the fastest ways to be disqualified after referral. Make sure the resume level and the questionnaire rating match.
- [ ] If any element of the specialized experience involves a clearance level or access you no longer hold, confirm how to describe it accurately without overstating current access.

## Sample output

Sample output. Generated by AI from sample inputs:

Applicant: Marcus Hale. Series: GS-2210 IT Specialist (Customer Support). Grade: GS-9.

Specialized experience statement: "One year of experience equivalent to GS-7 that includes: (1) providing IT customer support in response to help desk tickets or user requests; (2) installing, configuring, or troubleshooting hardware and software in a networked environment; (3) documenting technical problems and resolutions in a tracking system."

Element 1: IT customer support via help desk or user requests.
Closest experience: Marcus served as the unit IT support NCO (non-commissioned officer) for a 300-person aviation battalion from 2018 to 2020, responding to user issues across classified and unclassified networks.
Match: Strong. The experience is directly on point.
Suggested bullet: "Served as primary IT support contact for 300-person organization, responding to and resolving hardware and software issues on both classified and unclassified networks; average 15 to 20 support requests per week."

Element 2: Installing, configuring, or troubleshooting hardware and software in a networked environment.
Closest experience: Marcus lists "set up computers and printers for new arrivals" in the same assignment.
Match: Partial. The experience exists but the current description does not convey networked environment or configuration work.
Suggested bullet: "Installed and configured desktop computers, laptops, and network printers for incoming personnel; resolved connectivity issues on a Windows-based domain environment serving a geographically dispersed organization."

Element 3: Documenting technical problems and resolutions in a tracking system.
Closest experience: Marcus does not mention a tracking system in his provided history.
Match: Gap. If Marcus used any ticketing or logging system (Army Remedy, a unit log, or similar), that needs to be added. If not, this element is unaddressed.

Readiness summary: Two of three elements are supportable. Element 3 is a real gap. Before applying, Marcus should think carefully about whether he logged any issues in any format during his IT support role. If he did, that detail needs to be on the resume. If he genuinely did not, he should consider whether this gap weakens his application enough to look for a different announcement.

## Customization notes

This prompt is most valuable for mid-grade positions (GS-7 through GS-12) where specialized experience statements are detailed and specific. For STEM series, the specialized experience often requires technical certifications or degree fields, which should be added to the work history input. For leadership or management series, scope metrics (number of subordinates, budget managed, units coordinated) make the match stronger. Run this prompt once per announcement, since specialized experience statements vary even for the same job series.

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From The Federal & GS Job Search Library at vetslearn.com/libraries/federal