Summary The Vocational Rehabilitation Specialist Position is located within the Vocational Rehabilitation Program under the Mental Health and Behavioral Sciences Service at the Chalmers P. Wylie VA Medical Center in Columbus, Ohio. This position requires knowledge, insight, and skills for evaluating and placing individuals with disabilities in supported and competitive employment. Responsibilities THIS IS NOT A VIRTUAL POSITION, YOU MUST LIVE WITHIN OR BE WILLING TO RELOCATE WITHIN A COMMUTABLE DISTANCE OF THE DUTY LOCATION Major duties include but are not limited to the following: Identifying a broad spectrum of medical, psychological, and neurological problems and their impact on vocational functioning and psychosocial needs. Developing and updating a multidisciplinary treatment plan. Facilitating individual and group job counseling to people with disabilities and other employment challenges. Counseling and guiding employees through difficult transitions or rough spots of adjusting to the new position. Documenting treatment objectives and progression through identified goals and objectives. Providing ongoing support with problem solving, developing interpersonal work relationships, maintaining work performance and quality, and life management activities. Determining areas of vocational interests, training needs, and career development for clients to reach success in obtaining suitable employment. Planning and arranging for the client to study or train for job placements. Creating job plans for patients/clients to help them achieve their employment goals. Serving as liaison between the patient and the employment agency. Observing the client at the placement site and obtaining feedback on performance from the placement site supervisor. Ensuring the program participant is aware of employer expectations and has the skills and support to meet those expectations. Helping the employer understand the nature of the client's limitations while maintaining a positive impression of the client's capability to succeed. Negotiating any work site accommodations that may be needed. Connecting the participant with appropriate resources to facilitate ongoing employment in a community setting. Networking with community employers, agencies, and businesses to develop professional relationships to place participants in suitable community employment. Considering and responding appropriately to the needs, feelings, and capabilities of others and adjusting approaches to suit different people and situations. Understanding the roles and functions of interdisciplinary team members. Performing other related duties as assigned. Work Schedule: Monday - Friday, 8:00am - 4:30pm Recruitment & Relocation Incentives: Not authorized Critical Skills Incentive (CSI): Not authorized Telework: This position may be authorized for telework. Telework eligibility will be discussed during the interview process. 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: The physical demands of this position are moderate. Although some of the physical work is sedentary, there will be significant (40-60% of the time) local travel for support, networking, and job development purposes. 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) - See "Required Documents" below for details. As a condition of employment for accepting this position, you will be required to serve a 1-year probationary 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, your employment will be terminated unless you receive certification, in writing, that your continued employment advances the public interest. Qualifications IN ORDER TO QUALIFY FOR THIS POSITION AT THE GS-11 LEVEL YOU MUST MEET THE FOLLOWING CRITERIA: DRIVER'S LICENSE REQUIREMENT: This position requires a current, valid state-issued driver's license. NOTE: We cannot accept photographs, therefore; please do not submit a copy of your license with your application package. If an interview is requested, you may be required to provide a copy of your current, valid, and unrestricted state-issued driver's license. IN ADDITION TO MEETING THE DRIIVER'S LICENCE REQUIREMENT, TO QUALIFY FOR THIS POSITION AT THE GS-11 GRADE LEVEL, YOU MUST MEET ONE OF THE FOLLOWING CRITERIA: INDIVIDUAL OCCUPATIONAL REQUIREMENTS & SPECIALIZED EXPERIENCE GS-11: You must have at least one (1) full year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the next lower grade level (GS-9) in the Federal Service that has given you the particular knowledge, skills and abilities required to successfully perform the duties of a Vocational Rehabilitation Specialist and that is typically in or related to the work of the position to be filled. Specialized experience includes: 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. 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. 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. NOTE: Experience must be fully documented on your resume and must include job title, duties, month and year start/end dates AND hours worked per week. A full year of work is considered to be 35-40 hours of work per week. ~OR~ SUBSTITUTION OF EDUCATION FOR EXPERIENCE GS-11: You must have successfully completed a Ph.D., equivalent doctoral degree, 3 full years of progressively higher-level graduate education leading to such a degree, or an LL.M. with a major study in vocational rehabilitation, vocational or educational counseling, or other fields related to the position. Education must have been obtained from an accredited college or university. NOTE: Transcripts (unofficial or official) must be submitted with your application materials. Education cannot be credited without documentation. ~OR~ COMBINATION OF EXPERIENCE AND EDUCATION GS-11: You must have equivalent combinations of successfully completed graduate level education (beyond the second year) and specialized experience, as described above, which may be used to meet total experience requirements for this grade level. The education must have been obtained in an accredited college or university. NOTE: Experience must be fully documented on your resume and must include job title, duties, month and year start/end dates AND hours worked per week. A full year of work is considered to be 35-40 hours of work per week. Transcripts (unofficial or official) must be submitted with your application materials. Education cannot be credited without documentation. 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/. Education IMPORTANT: 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/. Additional Information 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. Selected applicants may qualify for credit toward annual leave accrual, based on prior work experience or military service experience. 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. 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. The Interagency Career Transition Assistance Plan (ICTAP) and Career Transition Assistance Plan (CTAP) provide eligible displaced Federal competitive service employees with selection priority over other candidates for competitive service vacancies. To be qualified you must submit appropriate documentation and be found well-qualified (have a final rating of 80 or more before any Veterans preference points) for this vacancy. 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/. Note: Per "Executive Order 14251: Exclusions from Federal Labor-Management Relations Programs", this position is no longer eligible for bargaining unit participation.
