Rehabilitation Specialist I

Vocational Rehabilitation Counselor

The Mississippi Department of Rehabilitation Services (MDRS) is a state agency dedicated to helping Mississippians with disabilities live and work independently. MDRS serves through four major programs: Vocational Rehabilitation (VR), Vocational Rehabilitation for the Blind (VRB), Office of Special Disability Programs (OSDP), and Disability Determination Services (DDS). Services also include support through Assistive Technology, the Office of Business Development, and much more. It is the mission of MDRS to provide appropriate and comprehensive services in a timely and effective manner. Programs and services assist individuals with disabilities to gain employment, retain employment, and live independently. MDRS is always looking for qualified and passionate employees to help fulfill its mission.

This position is with the Office of Vocational Rehabilitation and performs a full range of professional vocational rehabilitation assignments and work. Some Vocational Rehabilitation Counselors may serve as a Specialty Counselor for a population with deaf/hearing loss, supported employment, etc. — Examples of work performed are as follows:

• Counseling and guiding individuals with disabilities to assist them in achieving employment outcomes consistent with their strengths, resources, priorities, concerns, abilities, capabilities, interests, and informed choice.
• Analyzes and interprets the pertinent educational, social, medical, psychological, and vocational information of applicants or consumers in order to determine their aspirations, interests, motivations, aptitudes, and scholastic achievements;
• Conducts diagnostic interviews to obtain medical, psychological, educational, social, vocational, and personal information to assist people with disabilities in making appropriate career choices;
• Determines appropriate referrals to other agencies and community partners, including appropriate medical, psychological, and psychiatric services;
• Completes a comprehensive assessment for each applicant and eligible VR consumer, accessing appropriate external resources as necessary;
• Determines the consumer's eligibility, the need for VR Services, and ensures VR Services are appropriate;
• Develops a rehabilitation plan with each consumer that is consistent with the consumer's aptitudes, education levels, physical abilities, and career goals;
• Follow-up and monitoring of a consumer's services to ensure timely provision of services and progress to Individualized Plan of Employment (IPE) completion or employment outcome;
• Independently authorizes and approves expenditures of state/federal funds for individualized goods and services to consumers;
• Prepares case reports to monitor and record the consumer's progress to ensure that goals and objectives are met;
• Participates in job development, job placement programs, and follows up on consumers who have been placed in employment;
• Develops community referral sources for providing services to consumers;
• Establishes the method by which educational, social, medical, psychological, and vocational data is to be obtained from consumers, family, and community programs; works with the community in establishing facilities and programs to assist the individual with a disability.
• Maintains records and prepares reports and correspondence related to work;
• May be assigned as a Vocational Rehabilitation liaison to one or more local schools
• Explores comparable benefits;
• Engages in conflict resolution, preserving good counselor-consumer and/or counselor-provider relationships;
• Reviews and interprets various evaluation results with consumers;
• Complies with the required steps of the consumer appeal process;
• Completes documentation timely and accurately;
• Educates consumers on assignment of their "ticket" under the Ticket to Work Program;
• Establishes and maintains contact with schools (including post-secondary), hospitals, doctors, other agencies, and other referral sources;
• Educates referral sources about Vocational Rehabilitation programs and the referral process;
• Determines the need for post-employment services for consumers on an individualized basis;
• Maintains engagement with consumers throughout their rehabilitation process;
• Oversees the work of staff by making and reviewing work assignments, establishing priorities, coordinating activities, and resolving work-related problems.

What you'll need to be successful:

• Knowledge of counseling techniques, vocational assessment, job placement, interviewing techniques, and community resources.
• Skill in the use of a computer and applicable software.
• Excellent communication, creativity, problem-solving, evaluation of services, and time management skills;
• Ability to be flexible, handle multiple tasks, maintain a professional demeanor, and show empathy;
• A willingness to obtain necessary continuing training/education for Certified Rehabilitation Counselor (CRC) certification maintenance; or if not a CRC certificate holder, a willingness to work toward becoming eligible to sit for the CRC examination.

Preferred Qualifications:

• Typically requires a Bachelor's Degree and 0-2 years of experience.
• Agency Preferred Qualifications: Master's degree in Rehabilitation Counseling or closely related area per federal regulations, and/or Certified Rehabilitation Counselor (CRC) certification. In lieu of a Master's Degree or CRC, a Bachelor's Degree in Rehabilitation Counseling or closely related area per federal regulations, with course content that emphasized rehabilitation, counseling, disability, therapy, health, employment, wellness, or human development, plus one (1) year of experience as demonstrated through paid or unpaid employment in vocational rehabilitation or closely related field.