Summary The Primary Purpose of the Vocational Rehabilitation Specialist is to provide and coordinate a wide range of rehabilitation counseling an case management services to disabled Veterans enrolled in Mental Health. Vocational Rehabilitation Specialist assesses data received from medical and psychological reports develop rehabilitation plans and as appropriate provide rehabilitation services. Responsibilities Duties may include but are not limited to: - Motivate the veteran to pursue rehabilitation services. Assess the feasibility of employment and vocational rehabilitation services for disabled Veteran by using knowledge of the Veteran's physical and mental abilities through interviews, medical reports, test results, progress in vocational and rehabilitation treatment and the job market. - Collaborate with the treatment team and the client in preparing a viable treatment plan which addresses objectives and goals needed to obtain suitable employment, training and/or an experience designed to maintain clinical stability. - Designs a treatment plan to prepare Veterans with mental health problems cope with specific demands of the job and its inherent problems that have interfered with past work experiences. - Provides Veterans with instructions about the interview process, resume writing and job hunting skills to assist them in understanding job seeking and survival skill needed to acquire and keep a job. - Develops and conducts structured courses in resume writing, employment applications, building references, successful interviewing, job searching, work appropriateness skills, social skills acquisition, cultural diversity in the workplace, and career progression outlook. - Provide guidance in the modification of the job, work environment or necessary equipment in order for the Veteran to produce quality work. - Considers the difficulty in employment placement based on their mental and/or physical disability; and, assigns Veteran to training program(s) that's best suited for them. - Assists the client and employer with post-placement follow-ups and on-site visits to assure a successful employment experience and assist in resolving problems encountered on the job. - Confer with prospective employers and customers in developing training/employment job sites in order to provide a realistic work setting for the client. - Determines appropriate project and pay rates, to include when raises are appropriate in order to assure Veterans are fairly paid. - Provide personal adjustment and problem solving counseling to Veterans, thus allowing the treatment to continue on schedule by using effective interviewing skill to determine causes. If the problem is unresolved after counseling, the Veteran is referred to other treatment professionals. - Applies a variety of appropriate counseling techniques to assist clients in receiving, assimilating and acting upon information obtained from medical records, other documentation, tests, and interviews. - Analyzes and synthesizes data concerning the individual, considering such factors as personality structure and dynamics which affect total functioning capacity and may contraindicate finding regarding aptitudes and interests. - Develop specialized services and activities for Veterans exhibiting a wide range of physical and/or neuropsychiatric disabilities (including issues with substance abuse, PTSD and homelessness) and/or deficits, which regularly render traditional rehabilitation interventions ineffective. - Works closely with state and local agencies, employers and training facilities to develop suitable resources to assist a large population of Veterans who are eligible but do not have Chapter 31 rehabilitation entitlements. - Provides services which include coordination of rehabilitation services, documentation of progress and adjustment, and maintenance of case records according to VA regulations, Commissioned on Accreditation of Rehabilitation Facilities (CARF) and JCAHO guidelines. - Reviews Veterans progress to evaluate the effects of training and/or rehabilitative services by speaking with client, other treatment personnel and worksite and annotates case records. - Responsible in gathering, maintaining and reporting statistical data required on a daily, weekly, monthly, quarterly and annual basis. - Written reports and documentation relevant to CHCP will be current and maintained. - Use word processing software to execute several office automation functions such as storing and retrieving electronic documents and files, printing documents, formatting letters, reports and memorandums, and transmitting and receiving emails. Work Schedule: Monday- Friday 8am- 4:30pm Virtual: This is not a virtual position. Position Description/PD#: Vocational Rehabilitation Specialist/PD04317A Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized Critical Skills Incentive (CSI): Not Approved Requirements Conditions of Employment You must be a U.S. Citizen to apply for this job To be considered for this position, you must complete all required steps in the process. In addition to the application and questionnaire, this position requires an online assessment. The online assessment measures critical general competencies required to perform the job. Selective Service Registration is required for males born after 12/31/1959 Physical Requirements: A pre-placement physical examination is required due to driving requirements. Subject to background/security investigation Selected applicants will be required to complete an online onboarding process. Acceptable form(s) of identification will be required to complete pre-employment requirements (https://www.uscis.gov/i-9-central/form-i-9-acceptable-documents). Effective May 7, 2025, driver's licenses or state-issued dentification cards that are not REAL ID compliant cannot be utilized as an acceptable form of identification for employment. Participation in the seasonal influenza vaccination program is a requirement for all Department of Veterans Affairs Health Care Personnel (HCP) As a condition of employment for accepting this position, you will be required to serve a 1-year probationary period or 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 probationary period, your employment will be terminated unless you receive certification, in writing, that your continued employment advances the public interest. Qualifications To qualify for this position, applicants must meet all requirements by the closing date of this announcement, 02/27/2026. Time-In-Grade Requirement: Applicants who are current Federal employees and have held a GS grade any time in the past 52 weeks must also meet time-in-grade requirements by the closing date of this announcement. For a GS-11 position you must have served 52 weeks at the GS-09. The grade may have been in any occupation, but must have been held in the Federal service. An SF-50 that shows your time-in-grade eligibility must be submitted with your application materials. If the most recent SF-50 has an effective date within the past year, it may not clearly demonstrate you possess one-year time-in-grade, as required by the announcement. In this instance, you must provide an additional SF-50 that clearly demonstrates one-year time-in-grade. Note: Time-In-Grade requirements also apply to former Federal employees applying for reinstatement as well as current employees applying for Veterans Employment Opportunities Act of 1998 (VEOA) appointment. Individual Occupational Requirement (IOR). An IOR is a basic requirement that must be met in order to qualify for entry into this job series, and it is something that can't be waived. Education: Undergraduate and Graduate Education: Major study -- vocational rehabilitation, vocational or educational counseling, or other fields related to the position. Experience: Examples of qualifying specialized experience include: 1.) Work that required obtaining and applying occupational information for people with disabilities, knowledge of the interrelationships of the involved professional and specialist services, and skill in employing the methodology and techniques of counseling to motivate and encourage individuals served by the program. 2.) Experience that demonstrated knowledge of the vocational rehabilitation problems characteristic of the disabled, including familiarity with available resources and skill in identifying, evaluating, and making effective use of such resources to serve individuals with disabilities; or of the disadvantaged, including knowledge of adjustment problems of the educationally or culturally disadvantaged, familiarity with available adult education and training resources, and ability to recognize problem areas needing special attention. 3.) Experience in vocational guidance or teaching in a recognized vocational rehabilitation program or school, developmental or supervisory work in programs of vocational rehabilitation or training programs for the disadvantaged, or personnel or employment placement work that provided extensive knowledge of the training and adjustment requirements necessary to place persons having disabilities or social adjustment problems. In addition to the individual occupation requirements listed above, you must also have: You may qualify based on your experience and/or education as described below: Specialized Experience: You must have one year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the next lower grade GS-09 in the normal line of progression for the occupation in the organization. Examples of specialized experience would typically include, but are not limited to: 1.) Conducted independent vocational assessments and developed individualized vocational rehabilitation plans for Veterans with mental illness, substance use disorders, physical disabilities, and homelessness. 2.) Provided community-based vocational rehabilitation services, including job development, job search assistance, and employment support for Veterans on an active caseload. 3.) Collaborated with interdisciplinary mental health teams to monitor treatment adherence, evaluate vocational progress, and recommend appropriate vocational interventions. 4.) Completed vocational consults, referrals, and documentation within required timeframes while ensuring compliance with national vocational rehabilitation policies and directives. OR, Education: Applicants may substitute education for the required experience. To qualify based on education for this grade level you must have possess a Ph.D. or equivalent doctoral degree or 3 full years of progressively higher level graduate education leading to such a degree. OR, Combination: Applicants may also combine education and experience to qualify at this level. You must have an combination of specialized experience and education beyond as described above. For more information on these qualification standards, please visit the United States Office of Personnel Management's website at https://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/classification-qualifications/general-schedule-qualification-standards/. Physical Requirements: - Moderate lifting, 15-44 pounds - Use of fingers. - Walking - Standing - Kneeling - Repeated bending - Operation of crane, truck, tractor, or motor vehicle - Eligible for government driver's license Education A transcript must be submitted with your application if you are basing all or part of your qualifications on education. Note: Only education or degrees recognized by the U.S. Department of Education from accredited colleges, universities, schools, or institutions may be used to qualify for Federal employment. You can verify your education here: http://ope.ed.gov/accreditation/. If you are using foreign education to meet qualification requirements, you must send a Certificate of Foreign Equivalency with your transcript in order to receive credit for that education. For further information, visit: https://sites.ed.gov/international/recognition-of-foreign-qualifications/. NOTE: If your school has changed names, or is no longer in existence, you must provide this information in your application. NOTE: If your school was accredited by at the time of graduation but is no longer listed on the website, you must provide documentation of accreditation with your application packet. Additional Information Under the Fair Chance to Compete Act, the Department of Veterans Affairs prohibits requesting an applicant's criminal history prior to accepting a tentative job offer. For more information about the Act and the complaint process, visit Human Resources and Administration/Operations, Security, and Preparedness (HRA/OSP) at The Fair Chance Act. Reasonable Accommodation (RA) Requests: If you believe you have a disability (i.e., physical or mental), covered by the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 as amended that would interfere with completing the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments, you will be granted the opportunity to request a RA in your online application. Requests for RA for the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments and appropriate supporting documentation for RA must be received prior to starting the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments. Decisions on requests for RA are made on a case-by-case basis. If you meet the minimum qualifications of the position, after notification of the adjudication of your request, you will receive an email invitation to complete the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments, based on your adjudication decision. You must complete all assessments within 48 hours of receiving the URL to access the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments if you received the link after the close of the announcement. To determine if you need a RA, please review the Procedures for Requesting a Reasonable Accommodation for Online Assessments. Receiving Service Credit for Earning Annual (Vacation) Leave: Federal Employees earn annual leave at a rate (4, 6 or 8 hours per pay period) which is based on the number of years they have served as a Federal employee. VA may offer newly-appointed Federal employee's credit for their job-related non-federal experience or active duty uniformed military service. This credited service can be used in determining the rate at which they earn annual leave. Such credit must be requested and approved prior to the appointment date and is not guaranteed. This job opportunity announcement may be used to fill additional vacancies. The Interagency Career Transition Assistance Plan (ICTAP) and Career Transition Assistance Plan (CTAP) provide eligible displaced VA competitive service employees with selection priority over other candidates for competitive service vacancies. To be qualified you must submit appropriate documentation (a copy of the agency notice, your most recent performance rating, and your most recent SF-50 noting current position, grade level, and duty location) and be found well-qualified for this vacancy. To be well-qualified: applicants must possess experience that exceeds the minimum qualifications of the position including all selective factors, and who are proficient in most of the required competencies of the job. Information about ICTAP and CTAP eligibility is on OPM's Career Transition Resources website at http://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/workforce-restructuring/employee-guide-to-career-transition/. Placement Policy: The posting of this announcement does not obligate management to fill a vacancy or vacancies by promotion. The position may be filled by reassignment, change to lower grade, transfer, appointment, or reinstatement. Management may use any one or any combination of these methods to fill the position.
