Program Specialist

Summary

The Program Specialist position is located within the Office of the Associate Chief of Staff (ACOS) for Medicine Specialty Service at John Cochran Medical Center within VA Saint Louis Health Care System. The primary purpose of the position is to support the ACOS program office and is responsible for the overall management, control, and execution of assigned projects, tasks, program analysis, and office administration for Medicine Service and its subordinate sections.

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Duties

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The Program Specialist position is located within the Office of the Associate Chief of Staff (ACOS) for Medicine Specialty Service at John Cochran Medical Center within VA Saint Louis Health Care System. The primary purpose of the position is to support the ACOS program office and is responsible for the overall management, control, and execution of assigned projects, tasks, program analysis, and office administration for Medicine Service and its subordinate sections. Position serves in a dual analytical and administrative support capacity - functioning as a program analyst responsible for research, regulatory compliance, controlled correspondence, and program/project management support for the ACOS, while also serving as the principal administrative and program support official for the office. The incumbent provides advanced-level administrative, analytical, and confidential assistance to the ACOS, Deputy ACOS, Administrative Officer, and Section Chiefs, combining program analysis with full-scope executive office support functions.

Duties include, but are not limited to :

1. Serves as point of contact for relevant internal committees and external program/network contacts; provides data to assist with short-turnaround projects from the Chief of Staff's office, Congressional inquiries, and other high priority sources; coordinates preparation for and actively participates in VISN Council, committee, and workgroup meetings (MERC, CPRC, Cancer Committee), preparing agendas, recording minutes, and tracking action items.
2. Provides high levels of customer service internal and external to Medicine Service; communicates on behalf of and may represent the ACOS at internal and external meetings; responds to inquiries from subordinate service lines, labor, and management.
3. Maintains basic understanding of Labor-Management relationships including collective bargaining agreements, employee rights, and safety reporting requirements; identifies and schedules appropriate stakeholders for Labor-Management meetings; collaborates with Medicine Service staff, Labor partners, and management as required.
4. Performs research and compiles data from various sources (SEPG, VATAS, VSSC, DSS, manual reports) including equipment procurement lists, staffing reports, budget figures, patient access metrics, workload reports, and compliance data; prepares written products including findings and conclusions to support leadership decision-making and accreditation review preparation.
5. Analyzes, evaluates, and recommends modes of training delivery for Medicine Service staff; serves as SME for training delivery methods; creates curricula, schedules offerings, creates learning evaluations, assigns and records learning, registers participants, and runs/schedules/saves reports; assists leadership in development of program protocols and tracks compliance and acknowledgment across Medicine Service sections.
6. Performs general office work including answering calls, drafting replies, maintaining files, transcribing meeting minutes, identifying action items, and developing automated administrative reports; applies knowledge of database and desktop-publishing capabilities to design data-entry/retrieval structures and enhance presentation of reports.
7. Serves as Contracting Officer's Representative (COR); monitors contractor performance and deliverables, certifies compliance with contract terms, and resolves performance issues in coordination with the Contracting Officer across a portfolio of 14 contracts.
8. Researches and drafts responses to controlled communications including FOIA requests, Privacy Act requests, VA OIG status reports, OIG/GAO briefings, and congressionally mandated reports for ACOS final approval; maintains a current library and database of evidence-based industry best practices relevant to Medicine Service program compliance.

The full performance level of this position is GS-9.

Work Schedule: Full Time, Mon-Fri 7:30 a.m. - 4:00 p.m. Schedule is subject to change based on the needs of the health care system.

Telework: Ad hoc per Agency policy.

Virtual: This is not a virtual position.

Position Description/PD#: Program Specialist/ PD044240

Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not authorized.

Critical Skills Incentive (CSI): Not approved.

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
• To be considered for this position, you must complete all required steps in the process. In addition to the application and questionnaire, this position requires an online assessment. The online assessment measures critical general competencies required to perform the 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
• Physical Requirements: Work involves desk work and may occasionally require extended work hours, along with some walking, standing, bending, and carrying of light items such as papers or books. No special physical demands are required to perform the work. A pre-placement physical examination is not required.
• 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 ( 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.
• Participation in the seasonal influenza vaccination program is a requirement for all Department of Veterans Affairs Health Care Personnel (HCP)

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

Qualifications

To qualify for this position, applicants must meet all requirements by the closing date of this announcement, 09/09/2026.

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-9 position you must have served 52 weeks at the GS-7. 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. If the most recent SF-50 has an effective date within the past year, it may not clearly demonstrate you possess one-year time-in-grade, as required by the announcement. In this instance, you must provide an additional SF-50 that clearly demonstrates one-year time-in-grade. Note: Time-In-Grade requirements also apply to former Federal employees applying for reinstatement as well as current employees applying for Veterans Employment Opportunities Act of 1998 (VEOA) appointment.

You may qualify based on your experience and/or education as described below:

• Specialized Experience: You must have one year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the next lower grade GS-7 in the normal line of progression for the occupation in the organization. Examples of specialized experience would typically include, but are not limited to: program office operations and support including providing data to assist with projects of varying complexity, serving as Contracting Officer's Representative (COR) monitoring contractor performance and deliverables, performing Interagency Program and Project Support (IPPS) invoice certification, serving as timekeeper ensuring accurate and timely processing of timekeeping and personnel actions, serving as an Automated Data Processing Application Coordination (ADPAC) assisting with system access management. Specialized experience also includes program analysis and regulatory/privacy compliance, including conducting analyses and developing strategies for service initiatives, serving as Subject Matter Expert (SME) for service training delivery methods, researching and drafting correspondence to controlled communication, providing high levels of customer service, and providing clerical, administrative and analytical support. OR,
• Education: Applicants may substitute education for the required experience. To qualify based on education for this grade level you must have a Master's or equivalent graduate degree, or 2 full years of progressively higher level graduate education leading to such a degree, or LL.B. or J.D., if related. One year of full-time graduate education is considered to be the number of credit hours that the school attended has determined to represent 1 year of full-time study. If that information cannot be obtained from the school, 18 semester hours should be considered as satisfying the 1 year of full-time study requirement. Education at the graduate level must be from an accredited college or university. Such education must demonstrate the knowledge, skills, and abilities necessary to do the work. OR,
• Combination: Applicants may also combine education and experience to qualify at this level. You must have an combination of specialized experience and education to include a Master's or equivalent graduate degree, or 2 full years of progressively higher level graduate education leading to such a degree, or LL.B. or J.D., if related. One year of full-time graduate education is considered to be the number of credit hours that the school attended has determined to represent 1 year of full-time study. If that information cannot be obtained from the school, 18 semester hours should be considered as satisfying the 1 year of full-time study requirement. Education at the graduate level must be from an accredited college or university. Such education must demonstrate the knowledge, skills, and abilities necessary to do the work. .

For more information on these qualification standards, please visit the United States Office of Personnel Management's website at

Education

A transcript must be submitted with your application if you are basing all or part of your qualifications on education.

Note: Only education or degrees recognized by the U.S. Department of Education from accredited colleges, universities, schools, or institutions may be used to qualify for Federal employment. You can verify your education here: If you are using foreign education to meet qualification requirements, you must send a Certificate of Foreign Equivalency with your transcript in order to receive credit for that education. For further information, visit:

Additional information

Under the Fair Chance to Compete Act, the Department of Veterans Affairs prohibits requesting an applicant's criminal history prior to accepting a tentative job offer. For more information about the Act and the complaint process, visit Human Resources and Administration/Operations, Security, and Preparedness (HRA/OSP) at The Fair Chance Act.

Reasonable Accommodation (RA) Requests: If you believe you have a disability (i.e., physical or mental), covered by the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 as amended that would interfere with completing the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments, you will be granted the opportunity to request a RA in your online application. Requests for RA for the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments and appropriate supporting documentation for RA must be received prior to starting the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments. Decisions on requests for RA are made on a case-by-case basis. If you meet the minimum qualifications of the position, after notification of the adjudication of your request, you will receive an email invitation to complete the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments, based on your adjudication decision. You must complete all assessments within 48 hours of receiving the URL to access the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments if you received the link after the close of the announcement. To determine if you need a RA, please review the Procedures for Requesting a Reasonable Accommodation for Online Assessments.

Receiving Service Credit for Earning Annual (Vacation) Leave : Federal Employees earn annual leave at a rate (4, 6 or 8 hours per pay period) which is based on the number of years they have served as a Federal employee. VA may offer newly-appointed Federal employee's credit for their job-related non-federal experience or active duty uniformed military service. This credited service can be used in determining the rate at which they earn annual leave. Such credit must be requested and approved prior to the appointment date and is not guaranteed.

This job opportunity announcement may be used to fill additional vacancies.

The Interagency Career Transition Assistance Plan (ICTAP) and Career Transition Assistance Plan (CTAP) provide eligible displaced VA competitive service employees with selection priority over other candidates for competitive service vacancies. To be qualified you must submit appropriate documentation (a copy of the agency notice, your most recent performance rating, and your most recent SF-50 noting current position, grade level, and duty location) and be found well-qualified for this vacancy. To be well-qualified: applicants must possess experience that exceeds the minimum qualifications of the position including all selective factors, and who are proficient in most of the required competencies of the job. Information about ICTAP and CTAP eligibility is on OPM's Career Transition Resources website at

Candidates should be committed to improving the efficiency of the Federal government, passionate about the ideals of our American republic, and committed to upholding the rule of law and the United States Constitution.

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