Summary The Dental Laboratory Technician directly collaborates and provides expert consultation to staff Oral Surgeon, Prosthodontist or General Dentists to design and fabricate complex dental or dental biocompatible implants appliances. This position is in the Surgical Service Line/Dental Services located at the Pittsburgh VAMC in Pittsburgh, PA. 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: Performs fabrication of fixed prostheses, whether tooth or implant borne. Performs fabrication of multi-unit full arch implant bars, utilizing either lost wax of CAD technology ensuring passive fit and minimal strain/stress to the implants. Performs fabrication of implant casts utilizing soft tissue moulage to replicate soft tissue structures. Performs fabrication of maxillofacial prostheses including post-surgical obturators and speech appliances. Performs fabrication of sleep apnea appliances. Performs fabrication of single CAD-CAM crowns. Designs and milling of complex multi-unit CAD-CAM restorations utilizing multiple ceramics including feldspathic and lithium di-silicate restorations. Performs chairside or lab side instruction and demonstration to staff on laboratory materials and techniques. This includes three-dimensional model demonstration when necessary. Scanning of complex multi-unit restorations for CAD-CAM milling. Performs fabrication of prosthesis including precision attachments such as intra-coronal attachments for conventional crown and bridge as well as precision attachments within implant bars and implant fixed prostheses. Performs other related duties as assigned. Work Schedule: Monday - Friday, 8:00am - 4:30pm Recruitment & Relocation Incentives: Not authorized Critical Skills Incentive (CSI): Not authorized Requirements Conditions of Employment You must be a U.S. Citizen to apply for this job Selective Service Registration is required for males born after 12/31/1959 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 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 AT THE GS-8 GRADE LEVEL, YOU MUST MEET THE FOLLOWING CRITERIA: ENGLISH LANGUAGE PROFICIENCY: In accordance with 38 U.S.C. 7402(d), No person shall serve in direct patient care positions unless they are proficient in basic written and spoken English. You must be proficient in basic written and spoken English in order to meet the requirements of this position. ~AND~ MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS GS-8: You must possess one year of specialized experience that equipped you with the knowledge, skills, and abilities to successfully perform the duties of this position, and that is typically in or related to the position. To be creditable, specialized experience must have been equivalent to at least the GS-7 grade level in Federal service. Specialized experience includes: use of dental laboratory material such as impression materials, plasters, stones, hydrocolloids, waxes, metals, acrylics, porcelain, and similar materials; use of laboratory equipment such as hand tools, dental lathes, engines, and hand pieces, furnaces, casting machines, presses, flasks, and related equipment; use of precision instruments such as articulators, surveyors, and microanalyzers; construction of dental prosthetic appliances. 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~ You must possess one and a half years (1 1/2) of graduate level education with course work or an internship that is directly related to the work of this position. One year of full-time graduate education is the number of credit hours that the school attended has determined to represent one year of full-time study. If that information cannot be obtained from the school, 18 semester hours should be considered as satisfying the one year of full-time study requirement. This education must have been obtained in an accredited college or university. NOTE: Transcripts (unofficial or official) must be submitted with your application materials. Education cannot be credited without documentation. ~OR~ You must possess equivalent combinations of successfully completed graduate level education (beyond the first year) and specialized experience, as described above, may be used to meet total experience requirements. The education portion must include courses directly related to the work of this position. 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. You will be rated on the following Competencies as part of the assessment questionnaire for this position: Customer Service (Clerical/Technical) Self-Management Technical Competence Work Practices IMPORTANT: A full year of work is considered to be 35-40 hours of work per week. All experience listed on your resume must include the month and year start/end dates. Part-time experience will be credited on the basis of time actually spent in appropriate activities. Applicants wishing to receive credit for such experience must indicate clearly the nature of their duties and responsibilities in each position and the number of hours a week spent in such employment. Experience refers to paid and unpaid experience, including volunteer work done through National Service programs (e.g., Peace Corps, AmeriCorps) and other organizations (e.g., professional; philanthropic; religious; spiritual; community; student; social). Volunteer work helps build critical competencies, knowledge, and skills and can provide valuable training and experience that translates directly to paid employment. You will receive credit for all qualifying experience, including volunteer experience. Physical Requirements: Long periods of standing, sitting and bending are required and a high level of fine motor skills. It is necessary to climb onto counters in order to replenish plaster bins. The ability to lift plaster boxes weighing 30 pounds from the floor to the counter to the plaster bins is required. 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: Recognition of Foreign Qualifications | International Affairs Office (ed.gov). Additional Information Note: Per "Executive Order 14251: Exclusions from Federal Labor-Management Relations Programs", this position is no longer eligible for bargaining unit participation. This job opportunity announcement may be used to fill additional vacancies. If you are unable to apply online or need an alternate method to submit documents, please reach out to the Agency Contact listed in this Job Opportunity Announcement. 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.
