Social Worker (Mental Health Treatment Coordinator)

Qualifications To qualify for this position, applicants must meet all requirements within 30 days of the closing date of this announcement. Basic Requirements: Citizenship Be a citizen of the United States (Non-citizens may be appointed when it is not possible to recruit qualified citizens in accordance with chapter 3, section A, paragraph 3g this part) English Language Proficiency Candidates must be proficient in spoken and written English to be appointed as authorized by 38 U.S.C. § 7403(f) Education Have a master's degree in social work from a school of social work fully accredited by the Council on Social Work Education (CSWE) Graduates of schools of social work that are in candidacy status do not meet this requirement until the School of Social Work is fully accredited A doctoral degree in social work may not be substituted for the master's degree in social work Verification of the degree can be made by going to to verify that the social work degree meets the accreditation standards for a masters of social work (COPY OF TRANSCRIPT WITH CONFERRED DATE REQUIRED) Licensure/Certification Persons hired or reassigned to social worker positions in the GS-0185 series in VHA must be licensed or certified by a state to independently practice social work at the master's degree level Current state requirements may be found by going to (COPY OF LICENSE REQUIRED FOR GS-11) Exception VHA may waive the licensure or certification requirement for persons who are otherwise qualified, pending completion of state prerequisites for licensure/certification examinations This exception only applies at the GS-9 grade level For the GS-11 grade level and above, the candidate must be licensed or certified At the time of appointment, the supervisor, chief social work or social work executive will provide the unlicensed/uncertified social worker with the written requirements for licensure or certification, including the time by which the license or certification must be obtained and the consequences for not becoming licensed or certified by the deadline GRADE DETERMINATIONS: GS-9 Experience, Education, and Licensure None beyond the basic requirements Demonstrated Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities (KSAs) In addition to the experience above, the candidate must demonstrate all of the following KSAs: (a) Ability to work with Veterans and family members from various socioeconomic, cultural, ethnic, educational, and other diversified backgrounds utilizing counseling skills (b) Ability to assess the psychosocial functioning and needs of Veterans and their family members, and to formulate and implement a treatment plan, identifying the Veterans problems, strengths, weaknesses, coping skills, and assistance needed (c) Ability to implement treatment modalities in working with individuals, families, and groups to achieve treatment goals This requires judgment and skill in utilizing supportive, problem solving, or crisis intervention techniques (d) Ability to establish and maintain effective working relationships and communicate with clients, staff, and representatives of community agencies (e) Fundamental knowledge of medical and mental health diagnoses, disabilities, and treatment procedures This includes acute, chronic, and traumatic illnesses/injuries common medications and their effects/side effects and medical terminology GS-11 Experience and Licensure Appointment to the GS-11 grade level requires completion of a minimum of one year of post-MSW experience equivalent to the GS-9 grade level in the field of health care or other social work-related settings, and licensure or certification in a state at the independent practice level OR, Education In addition to meeting basic requirements, a doctoral degree in social work from a school of social work may be substituted for the required one year of professional social work experience in a clinical setting (COPY OF TRANSCRIPT WITH CONFERRED DATE REQUIRED) Demonstrated Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities In addition to the experience above, candidates must demonstrate all of the following KSAs: (a) Knowledge of community resources, how to make appropriate referrals to community and other governmental agencies for services, and ability to coordinate services (b) Skill in independently conducting psychosocial assessments and treatment interventions to a wide variety of individuals from various socio-economic, cultural, ethnic, educational and other diversified backgrounds (c) Knowledge of medical and mental health diagnoses, disabilities and treatment procedures (i.e acute, chronic and traumatic illnesses/injuries, common medications and their effects/side effects, and medical terminology) to formulate a treatment plan (d) Skill in independently implementing different treatment modalities in working with individuals, families, and groups who are experiencing a variety of psychiatric, medical, and social problems to achieve treatment goals (e) Ability to provide consultation services to new social workers, social work graduate students, and other staff about the psychosocial needs of patients and the impact of psychosocial problems on health care and compliance with treatment PREFERRED EXPERIENCE: Experience with care coordination and Veterans REFERENCE: For more information on this qualification standard, please visit The full performance level of this vacancy is GS-11 The actual grade at which an applicant may be selected for this vacancy is in the range of GS-9 to GS-11 PHYSICAL REQUIREMENTS: There are no physical requirements for this occupation per OCHCO Communications email to VA Handbook 5019, updated on 4/17/2026. ]]]]>