Behavioral Health Senior Clinician - Entry, Assessment, & Referral

Salary : $80,776.80 - $141,359.50 Annually
Location : MERRIFIELD CENTER, 8221 WILLOW OAKS CORPORATE DR., FAIRFAX (HH12), VA
Job Type: FT Salary W BN
Job Number: 26-01466
Department: Community Services Board
Opening Date: 09/26/2026
Closing Date: 10/9/2026 11:59 PM Eastern
Pay Grade: S27
Posting Type: Open to General Public

Job Announcement

This position works as a part of our vibrant Front Door Entry and Assessment team. These senior clinician positions serve both adult and youth populations seeking services for mental health, substance use disorders, and co-occurring disorders, who may also have developmental disabilities, and/or physical illnesses. Works as part of an outpatient assessment team, leading and providing triage and conducting assessments to inform diagnostic impressions, risk assessments, crisis interventions, and referral to services. Works independently as part of a team that completes complex, comprehensive initial assessments to culturally and socio-economically diverse client populations, including a large Latino population, to determine eligibility for CSB services and offer treatment recommendations.

Duties also include outreach contacts to individuals attempting to link with CSB services and collateral contacts with community partners such as probation and parole, court system, and the Department of Family Services, etc... to support assessment completion.

Applicant must be computer literate and familiar with electronic health records. Timely, electronic documentation that meets state local and federal performance contract expectations essential. A strong commitment to program development with an approach of "nothing is impossible" required. Bi-lingual candidates strongly encouraged to apply.

Position may be underfilled as a Behavioral Health Clinician in Residence; the underfill requirements are stated below in the Employment Standards section.

Here are some of the benefits CSB employees enjoy:

• Fairfax County is home to a highly diverse population, with a significant number of residents speaking languages other than English at home - including We encourage candidates who are bilingual in English and another language to apply for this opportunity. A foreign language skills stipend of up to $1600/year (full-time) may be given for qualified bi-lingual employees.
• The CSB provides clinical supervision for employees who are registered as licensed eligible mental health in one of the following areas: Licensed Clinical Social Worker, Licensed Professional Counselor, Licensed Clinical Psychologist, Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist, Licensed Substance Abuse Treatment Practitioner or Clinical Nurse Specialist.
• In addition, to recognize and reinforce the importance of professional development and enhance future recruitment of licensed professionals, if approved, the licensure supervisors will receive a stipend of $1,500 paid out biweekly over a 12-month period whether for one or more Department of Health licensure candidate.
• License/Certification Reimbursement - Reimbursement for job related licenses and/or certifications once per year.
• To find out more about the benefits of working with Fairfax County Government, please visit the

Note: To learn more about careers that make a difference, watch our video ""
Illustrative Duties

(The illustrative duties listed in this specification are representative of the class but are not an all-inclusive list. A complete list of position duties and unique physical requirements can be found in the position description.)

• Performs complex evaluations and makes independent diagnoses using Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders;
• Recommends, monitors, and coordinates clinical care to non-Community Services Board (CSB) clients;
• Consults with professionals on a variety of problems including delivery of needed services for clinically complex cases;
• Provides liaison to community agencies to facilitate communication and service provision for clients requiring multiple services;
• Provides risk assessments for dangerousness to self and others;
• Provides crisis stabilization and crisis management.

Required Knowledge Skills and Abilities

(The knowledge, skills and abilities listed in this specification are representative of the class but are not an all-inclusive list.)

• Extensive knowledge of the principles, theories, and methods of the psychological and social development of the individual;
• Thorough knowledge of intake procedures, social history development, and interviewing techniques;
• Thorough knowledge of major schools of treatment of emotionally and socially disturbed individuals;
• Knowledge of psychiatric, psychological, and/or sociological terminology and concepts;
• Ability to conduct mental health assessments and apply treatment approaches/modalities;
• Ability to formulate diagnoses for clients with acute, chronic, severe mental illness;
• Ability to diagnostically interpret data obtained from psychological test results, social histories, and interviews;
• Ability to develop and maintain effective working relationships with co-workers, public and private sector organizations, community groups, and the general public;
• Ability to communicate effectively, both orally and in writing.

Employment Standards

MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS:
Graduation from an accredited college with a master's degree in social work, psychology, counseling, or nursing; plus, two years of clinical experience.

CERTIFICATES AND LICENSES REQUIRED:

• Possession of a current license to practice in the Commonwealth of Virginia in one of the following:
  • Licensed Clinical Social Worker,
  • Licensed Professional Counselor,
  • Licensed Clinical Psychologist,
  • Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist,
  • Licensed Substance Abuse Treatment Practitioner or
  • Licensed Nurse Practitioner (LNP).

UNDERFILL REQUIREMENTS:
This vacancy may be underfilled at the level of Behavioral Health Clinician in Residence (S26, $76,983.71 - $134,721.60). The employment standards for the Behavioral Health Clinician in Residence are:

• Graduation from an accredited college with a master's degree in social work, psychology, counseling, or nursing; plus two years of clinical experience.
• Ability to register as a licensed eligible mental health professional within 90 days of the appointment and able to qualify for licensure requirement to practice in the Commonwealth of Virginia within 3 years of employment in one of the following: Licensed Clinical Social Worker, Licensed Professional Counselor, Licensed Clinical Psychologist, Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist, Licensed Substance Abuse Treatment Practitioner or Licensed Nurse Practitioner (LNP).

Click to view the complete details and KSAs for the Behavioral Health Clinician in Residence. Upon completion of an underfill agreement (which will require that the employee meet the employment standards stated above in addition to obtaining competencies and licensures defined by the hiring agency) the employee will be elevated to the level of Behavioral Health Senior Clinician.

Note: A registered licensed eligible mental health professional has been approved by the applicable Virginia health regulatory board as a supervisee in clinical social work or a resident in clinical psychology, professional counseling, substance abuse treatment practice, or marriage and family therapy.
NECESSARY SPECIAL REQUIREMENTS:
The appointee to this position will be required to complete a criminal background check, a Child Protective Services Registry check, and sanction screening to the satisfaction of the employer. A TB screening upon hire and annually thereafter. Requires a National Provider Identifier.

This position is emergency/essential services personnel. (Required to report for duty during inclement weather and/or other emergencies.)

PREFERRED QUALIFICATIONS:

• Experience working with individuals (youth and adults), families, and community members with mental health, substance use and developmental concerns.
• Experience with providing behavioral health services to adults with Mental Health Disorders, Substance Use Disorders (SUD) and/or Co-occurring disorders (COD).
• Experience conducting comprehensive assessments/intakes of adults with a serious mental illness and/or substance use disorder.
• Knowledge of Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM V-TR and ICD-10) and diagnostic intake procedures.
• Knowledge of American Society of Addiction Medicine (ASAM) to inform treatment recommendations.
• Experience with effectively communicating with diverse bilingual/multi-lingual populations.

PHYSICAL REQUIREMENTS:
Work is primarily located in an office-based outpatient setting. Work is generally sedentary in nature. Ability to attend on and off site meetings and trainings, in person and remotely. Communicates effectively orally and in writing and observe, process, and document clinical information and offer clinical interventions. Must be able to access, input, and retrieve computer data. All duties performed with or without reasonable accommodations.

SELECTION PROCEDURE:
Panel Interview and may include a practical exercise.

Merit Positions

Fairfax County is proud to offer employees an attractive and comprehensive benefits program, including the following:

• Medical/Vision/Dental Insurance Coverage
• Group Term Life Insurance
• Long Term Disability
• LiveWell Program
• Flexible Spending Programs
• Paid Leave (annual, sick, parental, volunteer activity, and more!)
• Paid Holidays
• Deferred Compensation
• Employee Assistance Program
• Employees' Child Care Center
• Continuous Learning Opportunities

Please click for a summary of our benefits.

NOTE: Fairfax County Government is a qualifying employer under the Public Service Loan Forgiveness program. For more information about the PSLF program:

For additional details please visit the
Non-Merit Positions

1. Non-Merit Benefit Eligible: scheduled to work a minimum 1,040 hours and no more than a maximum of 1,560 hours in a calendar year.
   • Medical/Vision/Dental Insurance Coverage
   • Flexible Spending Program
   • Deferred Compensation
2. Temporary: scheduled to work a maximum of 900 hours in a calendar year.
   • No benefits

01

What is the highest level of education that you have completed?

• Less than 12th grade
• High school diploma or GED
• Some college
• Associate's degree
• Bachelor's degree
• Master's degree
• Doctorate degree

02

If you answered that you have a degree in the previous question, please indicate your area of study below. If you do not have a degree, please select "not applicable."

• Psychology
• Social work
• Counseling
• Nursing
• Not applicable/None of the above

03

Please indicate which of the following license(s) you possess in the Commonwealth of Virginia. If you are not licensed but eligible for licensure (includes reciprocity) please check that response.

• Licensed Clinical Social Worker
• Licensed Professional Counselor
• Clinical Psychologist
• Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist
• Licensed Nurse Practitioner
• Licensed Substance Abuse Treatment Practitioner
• Ability to register as a licensed eligible mental health professional within 90 days of the appointment and able to qualify for licensure requirement to practice in the Commonwealth of Virginia within 3 years of employment in one of the above areas.
• None of the above

04

How many full-time equivalent years of clinical experience do you have?(Clinical experience means providing direct clinical services. Additional education may not substitute for clinical experience.)

• None
• Less than one year
• One to less than two years
• Two to less than three years
• Three to less than four years
• Four to less than five years
• Five to less than six years
• Six to less than seven years
• Seven to less than eight years
• Eight or more years

05

How many full-time equivalent years of experience have you worked in a setting where you provided comprehensive assessment/intakes of adults/youth with a substance use disorder?

• None
• Less than one year
• One to less than two years
• Two to less than three years
• Three to less than four years
• Four to less than five years
• Five or more years

06

How many full-time equivalent years of experience have you worked in a setting where you provided comprehensive assessment/intakes of adults with a serious mental illness?

• None
• Less than one year
• One to less than two years
• Two to less than three years
• Three to less than four years
• Four to less than five years
• Five or more years

07

In reference to the previous two questions, how many of those years were provided in a community outpatient setting?

• None
• Less than one year
• One to less than two years
• Two to less than three years
• Three to less than four years
• Four to less than five years