Career Center

Summary

This position is eligible for the Education Debt Reduction Program (EDRP) - a student loan payment reimbursement program. You must meet specific individual eligibility requirements in accordance with VHA policy and submit your EDRP application within four months of appointment. Program Approval - award amount (up to $200 -000) and eligibility period (one to five years) are determined by the VHA Education Loan Repayment Services program office after complete review of the EDRP application.

Qualifications

Applicants pending the completion of educational or certification/licensure requirements may be referred and tentatively selected but may not be hired until all requirements are met.

Basic Requirements:

• United States Citizenship: Non-citizens may only be appointed when it is not possible to recruit qualified citizens in accordance with VA Policy
• Education-By the time of hire - the applicant must: (1) Have a doctoral degree in psychology from a graduate program in psychology accredited by the American Psychological Association (APA) - the Psychological Clinical Science Accreditation System (PCSAS) - or the Canadian Psychological Association (CPA) at the time the program was completed
• The specialty area of the degree must be consistent with the assignment for which the applicant is to be employed
• OR (2) Have a doctoral degree in any area of psychology and - in addition - successfully complete a re-specialization program (including documentation of an approved internship completed as part of the re-specialization program) meeting both of the following conditions: (a) The re-specialization program must be completed in an APA or a CPA accredited doctoral program
• and -(b) the specialty in which the applicant is retrained must be consistent with the assignment for which the applicant is to be employed
• OR (3) Have a doctoral degree awarded between 1951 and 1978 from a regionally-accredited institution - with a dissertation primarily psychological in nature
• Internships-By the time of hire - the applicant must: (a) Have successfully completed a professional psychology internship training program that was accredited by APA or CPA at the time the program was completed and that is consistent with the assignment for which the applicant is to be employed
• OR (b) New VHA psychology internship programs that are in the process of applying for APA accreditation are acceptable in fulfillment of the internship requirement - provided that such programs were sanctioned by the VHA Central Office Program Director for Psychology and the VHA Office of Academic Affiliations at the time that the individual was an intern
• OR (c) VHA facilities that offered full-time - one-year pre-doctoral internships prior to PL 96-151 (pre-1979) are considered to be acceptable in fulfillment of the internship requirement
• OR (d) Applicants who completed an internship that was not accredited by APA or CPA at the time the program was completed may be considered eligible for hire only if they are currently board certified by the American Board of Professional Psychology in a specialty area that is consistent with the assignment for which the applicant is to be employed
• OR (e) Applicants who have a doctoral degree awarded between 1951 and 1978 from a regionally-accredited institution with a dissertation primarily psychological in nature may fulfill this internship requirement by having the equivalent of a one-year supervised internship experience in a site specifically acceptable to the candidate's doctoral program
• If the internship experience is not noted on the applicant's official transcript - the applicant must provide a statement from the doctoral program verifying that the equivalent of a one-year supervised internship experience was completed in a site acceptable to the doctoral program
• Licensure-At the GS 13 level - the applicant must hold a full - current - and unrestricted license to practice psychology at the doctoral level in a State - Territory - or Commonwealth of the United States - or the District of Columbia
• English Language Proficiency-Psychologists must be proficient in spoken and written English in accordance with VA Handbook 5005 - Part II - Chapter 3 - section A - paragraph 3j
• May qualify based on being covered by the Grandfathering Provision as described in the VA Qualification Standard for this occupation (only applicable to current VHA employees who are in this occupation)
• Grade Determinations: GS-11Staff Psychologist (Entry Level) (a) Experience
• None beyond the basic requirements
• GS-12 Staff Psychologist (Developmental Level) (a)Experience
• At least one year of experience as a professional psychologist equivalent to the next lower grade level (GS-11)
• Psychologists who are not licensed must practice under the supervision of a licensed psychologist but with less intense supervision than at the GS-11 grade level
• (b) Demonstrated Knowledge - Skills - and Abilities
• In addition to the experience above - the candidate must demonstrate all of the following KSAs: 1
• Knowledge of and ability to apply a wide range of professional psychological treatments or assessment methods to a variety of patient populations
• 2
• Ability to design and implement effective treatment strategies
• 3
• Ability to incorporate new clinical procedures
• 4
• Ability to conduct research activities - such as designing and implementing clinical research projects (staff psychologists with specified research job duties)
• 5
• Ability to perform basic research tasks of scholarship and research execution within the context of an established research team - including research participant relations - research documentation - data acquisition - maintenance - and collaboration
• GS-13 Staff Psychologist (Full Performance Level) (a) Experience
• At least two years of experience as a professional psychologist - with at least one year equivalent to the GS-12 grade level (b) Demonstrated Knowledge - Skills - and Abilities
• In addition to the experience above - the candidate must demonstrate all of the following KSAs: 1
• Knowledge of - and ability to apply - professional psychological treatments to the full range of patient populations
• 2
• Ability to provide professional advice and consultation in areas related to professional psychology and behavioral health
• 3
• Knowledge of clinical research literature
• References: For more information on this qualification standard - please visit https://www.va.gov/ohrm/QualificationStandards/
• Preferred Experience Previous Experience Preferred
• The full performance level of this vacancy is GS-13
• The actual grade at which an applicant may be selected for this vacancy is in the range of GS-11 to GS-13
• Physical Requirements: You will be asked to participate in a pre-employment examination or evaluation as part of the pre-employment process for this position
• Questions about physical demands or environmental factors may be addressed at the time of evaluation or examination.

Duties

• Incumbent is a Clinical Neuropsychologist assigned to the Mental Health Service Line and works under the direction of the Chief Psychologist
• The clinical psychology program is designed to assist in patient care through psychodiagnostic testing and interviewing - individual and group psychotherapy - training - research - consultation - and other services typically provided by a clinical psychologist in a Department of Veterans Affairs Health Care System
• Assessment and Evaluation
• Administers - scores - and interprets psychological assessment techniques
• Obtains and evaluates personal - educational - and vocational histories - reviews records of other services for pertinent data - and prepares evaluative reports
• Incumbent interviews and evaluates patients in order to analyze historical and dynamic factors pertaining to their illness with special concern for factors relating to diagnostic - prognostic - and treatment variables
• Works with patients who present particularly difficult diagnostic - prognostic - or treatment problems
• Individual Psychotherapy
• May plan - conduct - record - evaluate - and report on individual psychotherapy sessions
• Individual psychotherapy refers to the professional process whereby the psychologist assists the patient in working through problems and formulating plans and ideas as distinct from those activities principally concerned with evaluating his potential and past history of training and experience
• Specifically - incumbent assists patients by evaluating their assets and liabilities and in their attempts to understand themselves - to achieve better interpersonal relationships - and to adapt themselves more effectively to their environments
• Group Psychotherapy
• May plan - conduct - record - evaluate and report on group psychotherapy sessions - as well as facilitate patient education meetings and therapy programs in addition to the professional processes outlined above in paragraph 2
• May conduct family therapy sessions
• Consultation
• May consult with other psychologists - consultants - professional staff - medical center management - or individuals and organizations in the community - usually relating to the status of or plans for patients - problems or procedures related to the operations of the Mental Health Partners Outpatient Clinic and occasionally to problems referred by other services
• Research
• May review professional literature for research planning - hypothesis development - instrumentation - data - analysis - and scientific reports
• May conduct research that is local - fact-finding - or basic and developmental
• May also conduct research that involves direct or indirect service to patients or to the medical center
• Training
• May plan and personally participate in station-wide training programs and in the training of psychologist and other personnel
• May serve on the Psychology Training Committee
• Receives training from staff psychologists and other professional personnel including supervision - in-service training - and station workshops and seminars
• Specific Functions for the Neuropsychologist: Program Development: The neuropsychologist is credentialed and privileged as a licensed independent practitioner with specialized training and expertise in neuropsychology and psychology assessment procedures
• They will develop and implement an integrated program to offer neuropsychological and psychological assessment services to veterans
• Program Services: The neuropsychological/psychological assessment program may include the following elements 1
• Neuropsychological evaluation and psychological assessment
• 2
• Competency evaluations and decisional capacity evaluations
• 3
• Coordination of evaluations to inpatients and outpatients
• 4
• Consultation to VA service providers/services regarding the cognitive functioning and psychological status of veterans
• 5
• Education to patients - family members - and significant others
• 6
• Training and/or clinical oversight of psychology interns - psychology practicum students - and unlicensed graduate psychologists
• 7
• Supervision of psychology technicians
• 8
• Managing the acquisition and maintenance of test materials
• 9
• Performing Compensation & Pension evaluations
• 10
• Provide individual - family - or group psychotherapy/counseling in conjunction with multidisciplinary treatment and discharge planning
• intervention will be determined by patient needs - utilizing a variety of accepted treatment techniques
• Work Schedule: Monday-Friday 8am-4:30pm Evenings and weekends maybe required Recruitment Incentive (Sign-on Bonus): May be authorized for highly qualified applicants
• Permanent Change of Station (Relocation Assistance): Not Authorized EDRP Authorized: Former EDRP participants ineligible to apply for incentive
• Contact VHAVISN23EDRP@va.gov - the EDRP Coordinator for questions/assistance
• Learn more Telework: Not Available Virtual: This is not a virtual position
• Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized