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.

Duties

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***This is an OPEN CONTINUOUS ANNOUNCEMENT and will remain open until September 30, 2026. Eligible applicants will be referred at established intervals or as additional vacancies arise, and referrals will continue until all positions have been filled. ***

Total Rewards of a Allied Health Professional

The Staff Psychologist for the Outpatient Substance Use Program provides comprehensive diagnostic and therapeutic services for a diverse patient population with complex medical and psychological needs. The primary duties for this role will be the evaluation and treatment of substance misuse disorders for Veterans, including both individual and group modalities. The Staff Psychologist ensures timely and coordinated psychological services for all referred patients and reports directly to the ACOS, Behavioral Health Service Line, or designee.

Duties:

• Diagnose mental disorders. conduct psychological and/or neuropsychological assessments.
• Treats mental disorders through a variety of modalities. and provide adjunctive interventions for treatment of medical disorders. Delivers patient care through Clinical Video Telecommunications (CVT) when appropriate.
• Complies with the mandatory training requirements for the outpatient scheduling process.
• Assess and treat the full spectrum of mental health illness as assigned.
• Assessment and therapy skills, including training in Evidenced Based Therapies. Provide screening, psychological and neuropsychological testing and psycho-diagnostic evaluation for Veterans and active duty with a variety of mental health issues which may affect their ability to function competently.
• Consults with other health care providers and treatment teams regarding overall program planning and implementation. As a member of the treatment team, participates in the decisions regarding treatment philosophy and operational procedures.
• Applies psychosocial theory, research and practice as integrative tools for determining an appropriate psychological treatment program for assigned patients.
• Provides the knowledge, flexibility, and clinical maturity to adapt to and develop comprehensive psychological services in the area of the Healthcare System to which they are assigned.
• Possesses the knowledge of and exceptional ability in the use of a broad range of psychodiagnostics techniques and instruments. Psychodiagnostics services provided usually involve patients with difficult clinical, personal and vocational problems.
• Ensures a well-balanced, diversified and comprehensive program in order to maximize contributions by Psychology Section staff and trainees as assigned.
• Pain Management Clinic will provide pain management health services to Veterans. Functions as a key member of the multidisciplinary pain management team and ensure continuity of care for Veterans receiving treatment for pain management.
• If assigned workload in the Blind Rehabilitation Center (BRC), the Clinical Psychologists may have a critical role in the care of blind Veterans. Make a unique contribution to the successful rehabilitation of blind Veterans and may be a full member of the Bond Rehabilitation
• Works collaboratively with other disciplines and supervisors.

Work Schedule: Monday-Friday; 8:00am - 4:30pm (subject to change based on the need of the agency)

Recruitment/Relocation Incentive (Sign-on Bonus): Authorized for highly qualified applicants.

Permanent Change of Station (Relocation Assistance): Not Authorized

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

Pay: Competitive salary and regular salary increases. When setting pay, a higher step rate of the appropriate grade may be determined after consideration of higher or unique qualifications or special needs of the VA (Above Minimum Rate of the Grade).

Paid Time Off: 37-50 days of annual paid time offer per year (13-26 days of annual leave, 13 days of sick leave, 11 paid Federal holidays per year)

Selected applicants may qualify for credit toward annual leave accrual, based on prior [work experience] or military service experience.

Parental Leave: After 12 months of employment, up to 12 weeks of paid parental leave in connection with the birth, adoption, or foster care placement of a child.

Child Care Subsidy: After 60 days of employment, full time employees with a total family income below $144,000 may be eligible for a childcare subsidy up to 25% of total eligible childcare costs for eligible children up to the monthly maximum of $416.66.

Retirement: Traditional federal pension (5 years vesting) and federal 401K with up to 5% in contributions by VA

Insurance: Federal health/vision/dental/term life/long-term care (many federal insurance programs can be carried into retirement)

Telework: Available

Virtual: This is not a virtual position.

Functional Statement #: 02135, 02136, 02137

Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized

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 evaluation.
• 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 Requirements:

United States Citizenship: Non-citizens may only be appointed when it is not possible to recruit qualified citizens in accordance with VA Policy.

English Language Proficiency: Per VA Handbook 5005, Part II, Chapter 3, Section A, Paragraph 3j: No person will be appointed under authority of 38 U.S.C., chapter 73 or 74, to serve in a direct patient-care capacity in VHA who is not proficient in written and spoken English.

Education: You must 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,

Have a doctoral degree in any area of psychology and, in addition, successfully completed a respecialization program meeting both of the following conditions: a) the respecialization program must be completed in an APA or a CPA accredited doctoral program; and b) the specialty in which you were retrained is consistent with the assignment you are am applying for;

OR,

Have a doctoral degree awarded between 1951 and 1978 from a regionally-accredited institution, with a dissertation primarily psychological in nature.

Internship- You must 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,

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,

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,

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,

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.

Licensure: Candidates 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. Exception: Non-licensed applicants who otherwise meet the eligibility requirements may be given a temporary appointment as a "graduate psychologist" at the GS-11 or GS-12 grade under the authority of 38 U.S.C. 7405 (c)(2)(B) for a period not to exceed two years from the date of employment on the condition that such a psychologist provide care only under the supervision of a psychologist who is licensed. Failure to obtain licensure during that period is justification for termination of the temporary appointment.

Grade Determinations: In addition to the basic requirements for employment, the following criteria must be met when determining the grade of candidates:

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

Staff Psychologist, 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.

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.

Staff Psychologist, GS-13 (Full Performance, Level)

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

Demonstrated Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities. In addition to the experience above, the candidate must demonstrate all of the following KSAs:

1. Knowle