Vocational Rehabilitation Counselor

• Duties

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Duties

Summary

Vocational Rehabilitation Counselors (VRCs) in the Veterans Benefits Administration (VBA) provide and coordinate a wide range of rehabilitation counseling and case management services to disabled Veterans and other eligible individuals. The primary emphasis of the Chapter 31 Vocational Rehabilitation Program is on achieving an employment outcome for the Veteran.

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Responsibilities

• Provides counseling services to severely disabled Veterans with complicated rehabilitation plans such as those calling for homebound and self-employment services.

• Provides individual and group counseling sessions to provide information and assistance with the Chapter 31 program.

• Conducts comprehensive initial evaluations to determine the existence of a vocational impairment and whether this impairment constitutes an employment handicap, the severity of the employment handicap, the feasibility for achieving a vocational goal, entitlement to Chapter 31 rehabilitation benefits, and the need for independent living services.

• Assists the Veteran in exploring and identifying rehabilitation needs, goals, and objectives.

• Provides case management services including coordination of all rehabilitation services, employment services, documentation of progress and adjustment and maintenance of case records according to VA regulations.

• Works closely with other services within VA and other public and private agencies to ensure the Veteran receives the full range of services necessary to achieve vocational rehabilitation.

• Provides comprehensive employment and post-employment services which include assessing employability and assisting in the development of an employment assistance plan. The incumbent will have knowledge of the requirements and needs of the local labor market.

Promotion Potential: The selectee may be promoted to the full performance level without further competition when all regulatory, qualification, and performance requirements are met. Selection at a lower grade level does not guarantee promotion to the full performance level. The grade progression for this position is: GS-09/11/12.

Work Schedule: Full time, Monday through Friday

Compressed/Flexible Schedule: Available

Telework: Available

Virtual: This is not a virtual position

Position Description Title/PD#: Vocational Rehabilitation Counselor; 37503A, 37502A, 37501A

Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized

Financial Disclosure Report: Required

Travel Required

Occasional travel - You may be expected to travel for this position. As needed

Supervisory status

No

Promotion Potential

12

• Job family (Series)

0101 Social Science

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• Requirements

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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

• You may be required to serve a probationary period

• Subject to background/security investigation

Qualifications

To qualify for this position, applicants must meet all requirements by the closing date of this announcement: 12/09/2020

1.TIME-IN-GRADE REQUIREMENT: Applicants who are current Federal employees and have held a GS grade any time in the past 52 weeks must also meet time-in-grade requirements by the closing date of this announcement.

• For a GS-09 position you must have served 52 weeks at the GS-07 level.

• For a GS-11 position you must have served 52 weeks at the GS-09 level.

• For a GS-12 position you must have served 52 weeks at the GS-11 level.

The grade may have been in any occupation, but must have been held in the Federal service. An SF-50 that shows your time-in-grade eligibility must be submitted with your application materials.

2.EDUCATION REQUIREMENT: To be eligible for this position, you must have one of the following degrees. Your application MUST include a transcript (not diploma) stating the degree has been conferred or that you have graduated.

• A master's degree in rehabilitation counseling; OR
• A master's degree in counseling psychology (or related field) supplemented by at least 30 semester hours of course work in a majority of the following areas (coursework MUST have an emphasis on vocational rehabilitation counseling): foundations of rehabilitation counseling, human growth and development, counseling theories and techniques, vocational assessment, career development, job placement, case management, and medical/psycho-social aspects of disability.

3.INTERNSHIP REQUIREMENT: Your degree must have included either an internship or experience as described below. The experience or internship/practicum must have been supervised by a professional in vocational rehabilitation or a closely related professional field that typically has oversight for vocational rehabilitation programs.

• An internship in rehabilitation counseling; OR
• One year post-masters degree experience in direct delivery of vocational rehabilitation services to adults with disabilities in rehabilitation programs (other than those in correctional facilities).

4.MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS REQUIREMENTS: In addition to the time-in-grade and education requirements, you must also meet the following grade-specific qualification requirements. NON-QUALIFYING EXPERIENCE: Vocational rehabilitation experience obtained prior to completion of the requirements for the master's degree is not qualifying. If one year of work experience is substituted for an internship, that year cannot also be used for qualifying at the GS-11/GS-12 levels.

GS-09 Grade Level: There are no additional qualification requirements at this grade level.

GS-11 Grade Level:

• Specialized Experience: Specialized experience is defined as post-master's degree, professional vocational rehabilitation counseling work in delivery to adults with disabilities equivalent to the GS-9 level. OR
• Education Substitution: Successful completion of 3 full years of progressively higher level graduate education or have a Ph.D. or equivalent doctoral degree in rehabilitation counseling or counseling psychology.

GS-12 Grade Level: Specialized experience is defined as post-master's degree, professional vocational rehabilitation counseling work in delivery to adults with disabilities. Cases must have involved determining entitlement ranges from simple to complex. This experience must be equivalent to the GS-11 level.

Combining Education & Experience: If you do not fully meet the length of experience and education described for a specific grade level (e.g. have six months of experience and some coursework but not a degree), the two can be combined to total 100% of the requirement. Click here for more information.

Volunteer Experience: 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; religions; 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.

Full vs. Part-Time Employment: Full-time employment is considered to be at least 35 hours per week. Part-time experience will be credited on a pro-rated basis; when including part-time employment in your resume you must specify the average hours worked per week.

Physical Requirements:This position is primarily sedentary with some walking, standing, bending, and/or carrying lightweight items.

Education

A transcript must be submitted with your application. It must include your coursework and date of conferral of a Masters degree in vocational rehabilitation (or related) field.

Education must be accredited by an accrediting institution recognized by the U.S. Department of Education to be credited towards qualifications. Provide only the attendance and/or degrees from schools accredited by accrediting institutions recognized by the U.S. Department of Education.

All education claimed by applicants will be verified upon appointment. If you are using foreign education to meet qualification requirements, you must send a Certificate of Foreign Equivalency with your transcript to receive credit.