Summary

This position is eligible for the Education Debt Reduction Program (EDRP), a student loan payment reimbursement program. You must meet specific eligibility requirements per VHA policy and submit your EDRP application within 4 months of appointment. Program Approval, award amount (up to $200,000) & eligibility period (one to five years) are determined by the VHA Education Loan Repayment Services program office after review of the EDRP application. Former EDRP participants ineligible to apply.

Duties

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VA Careers - Psychologist: https://youtube.com/embed/77qHlLw9Xck

Total Rewards of a Allied Health Professional

The Behavioral Health Interdisciplinary Program (BHIP) within the Mental Health ICC at Syracuse VA Medical Center is looking for a full time Staff Psychologist to provide outpatient mental health services to Veterans enrolled at the Syracuse VAMC and its Community-Based Outpatient Clinics (CBOCs).

The Outpatient Mental Health/BHIP Therapist provides psychotherapeutic services to individuals, couples, and occasionally groups, with a focus on reducing mental health symptoms, improving self-awareness and self-management, and supporting recovery and well-being for Veterans.

Core Responsibilities:

• Provide evidence-based, recovery-oriented, strength-based, and trauma-informed mental health care, collaborating with Veterans and their identified Caregivers to determine appropriate clinical interventions.
• Conduct comprehensive psychosocial assessments and develop individualized treatment plans with measurable, attainable goals, incorporating Measurement-Based Care tools.
• Apply evidence-based treatments, including Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) and Cognitive Processing Therapy (CPT), and maintain general knowledge of common psychotropic medications and their effects.
• Maintain general understanding of common psychotropic medications and their effects.
• Use appropriate clinical terminology to communicate mental health and medical diagnoses with interdisciplinary teams.
• Complete timely, thorough clinical documentation in the electronic health record and review interdisciplinary notes to ensure coordinated, comprehensive care.
• Perform rapid assessments and develop crisis intervention plans, including determining the need for psychiatric hospitalization or readiness for admission to mental health or substance use residential programs.
• Participate in collaborative clinical discussions and advocate for Veterans' psychosocial and mental health needs, particularly as they relate to treatment engagement and adherence.
• Routinely assess Veterans' mental health status throughout the course of treatment and coordinate with the BHIP care team to support appropriate transitions to the least restrictive level of care while maintaining clinical stability.
• Implement timely and effective discharge or transition plans.
• Maintain a general understanding of available Veteran benefits, services, and specialized programs.
• Demonstrate flexibility by assuming additional responsibilities as needed to support the mission of the organization, the outpatient mental health service line, and the Veterans served.
• Engage in ongoing professional development through self-assessment, supervision, and participation in clinical discussions.

Work Schedule: Monday - Friday 8:00am - 4:30pm

Compressed/Flexible:Not Available

Telework: Not Available

Virtual: This is not a virtual position.

Functional Statement #: 00000

Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized

EDRP Authorized: Former EDRP participants ineligible to apply for incentive.Contact [redacted],, the EDRP Coordinator for questions/assistance. Learn more

Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized

PCS Appraised Value Offer (AVO): Not Authorized

Note: This position may be filled by a Psychologist, Social Worker or Licensed Mental Health Professional (LPMHC).

These three positions are advertised separately on USAJobs.

If you are interested in any position, please apply to the respective job announcement.

This vacancy is a multi-disciplinary announcement.

If you are a Social Worker and are interested in applying, please apply here

If you are a Licensed Professional Mental Heath Counselor and are interested in applying, please apply here

Requirements

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Conditions of employment

• You must be a U.S. Citizen to apply for this job.
• All applicants tentatively selected for VA employment in a testing designated position are subject to urinalysis to screen for illegal drug use prior to appointment. Applicants who refuse to be tested will be denied employment with VA.
• Selective Service Registration is required for males born after 12/31/1959.
• Must be proficient in written and spoken English.
• 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 identification cards that are not REAL ID compliant cannot be utilized as an acceptable form of identification for employment.
• Must pass pre-employment physical examination.
• Participation in the seasonal influenza vaccination program is a requirement for all Department of Veterans Affairs Health Care Personnel (HCP).
• Complete all application requirements detailed in the "Required Documents" section of this announcement.

As a condition of employment for accepting this position, you will be required to serve a 1 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 trial period, your employment will be terminated unless you receive certification, in writing, that your continued employment advances the public interest.

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 Qualifications: The basic requirements for employment as a VHA psychologist are prescribed by Public Law 96-151 codified in 38 U.S.C. a7 7402. To qualify for appointment, all applicants for the position of psychologist in VHA must meet the following:

Basic Requirements:

• United States Citizenship: Must be Citizen of United States. Non-citizens may only be appointed when it is not possible to recruit qualified citizens in accordance with VA Policy, chapter 3, Section A, paragraph 3.g).
• Education: 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,

1. 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:
   
   • The re-specialization program must be completed in an APA or a CPA accredited doctoral program; and,
   • the specialty in which the applicant is retrained must be consistent with the assignment for which the applicant is to be employed.
2. Have a doctoral degree awarded between 1951 and 1978 from a regionally-accredited institution, with a dissertation primarily psychological in nature.

AND,

1. Internship: 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,

1. 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,

1. 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,

1. 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. (NOTE: Once board certified, the employee is required to maintain board certification.)

OR,

1. 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. NOTE: Psychologists who meet the requirements of this revision and who were employed by the Department of Veterans Affairs prior to the implementation of this standard are considered to have fully met the requirements of this qualification standard.

1. Licensure: Holds 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.
2. Physical Requirements: See VA Directive and Handbook 5019.
3. 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.

Grade Requirements: Creditable Experience:

• Quality of Experience: Experience is only creditable if it is post-doctoral experience as a professional psychologist directly related to the duties to be performed. Qualifying experience must also be at a level comparable to or exceeding professional psychology experience at the next lower level.

• Part-time Experience: Part-time experience is creditable according to its relationship to a full- time workweek. For example, a psychologist employed 20 hours per week, or on a half time basis, would receive one full-time workweek of credit for each two weeks of service.

• Post-Doctoral Degree Fellowships: Postdoctoral fellowships or residencies are training programs in an advanced area of clinical practice. Training as a fellow or resident is creditable experience on a year-for-year basis.

GS-11 (Entry Level)Experience. None beyond the basic requirements.

GS-12 (Developmental Level) 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.

AND,

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

Experience: At least 2 years of experience as a professional psychologist, with at least one year equivalent to the GS-12 level

AND,

Demonstrated Knowledge, Skills and Abilities: In addition to the experience above, the candidate must demonstrate 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: VA Handbook 5005/103, Part II Appendix G18.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.

Preferred Experience: Pr