Staff Psychologist - Community Living Center

Summary This position is eligible for the Education Debt Reduction Program (EDRP) — a student loan payment reimbursement program. You must meet specific eligibility requirements per VHA policy and submit your EDRP application within four months of appointment. Program approval—amount (up to $200,000) and eligibility period (one to five years)—are determined by the VHA Education Loan Repayment Services program office after review of the EDRP application. Former EDRP participants are ineligible to apply. 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 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 3.g). Education: Have a doctoral degree in psychology from a graduate program accredited by the American Psychological Association (APA) – 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 complete a re‑specialization program (including documentation of an approved internship) meeting both of the following conditions: the re‑specialization program is completed in an APA or CPA accredited doctoral program and the specialty is consistent with the assignment. OR – Have a doctoral degree awarded between 1951 and 1978 from a regionally accredited institution with a dissertation primarily psychological in nature. Internship: Have successfully completed a professional psychology internship training program that was accredited by APA or CPA at the time of completion and is consistent with the assignment. OR – New VHA psychology internship programs that are in the process of applying for APA accreditation are acceptable if sanctioned by the VHA Central Office Program Director for Psychology and the VHA Office of Academic Affiliations at the time of internship. OR – VHA facilities that offered full‑time, one‑year pre‑doctoral internships prior to PL 96‑151 (pre‑1979) are acceptable. OR – Applicants who completed an internship not accredited by APA or CPA may be considered eligible only if they are currently board certified by the American Board of Professional Psychology in a specialty area consistent with the assignment. OR – Applicants with a doctoral degree awarded between 1951 and 1978 may fulfill the internship requirement by having an equivalent 1‑year supervised internship experience acceptable to the doctoral program. If the internship experience is not noted on the official transcript, the applicant must provide a statement from the doctoral program verifying the experience. NOTE: Psychologists who meet the requirements of this revision and were employed by the Department of Veterans Affairs prior to implementation of this standard are considered to have fully met the requirements. Licensure: Holds 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 38 U.S.C. § 7405 (c)(2)(B) жfor a period not to exceed two years from the date of employment on the condition that such a psychologist provide care under the supervision of a licensed psychologist. Failure to obtain licensure during that period is justification for termination of the temporary appointment. An MOU is required for this exception to be approved; loss of credential results in removal from the occupation. Physical requirements: In accordance with VA Directive and Handbook 5019. English language proficiency: Must be proficient in spoken and written English in accordance with VA Handbook 5005 – Part II – Chapter 3 – section A – paragraph 3j. May qualify based on being covered by the Grandfathering Provision described in the VA Qualification Standard for this occupation (only for current VHA employees in this occupation who meet the criteria). Grade determinations – Creditable experience: Experience is creditable only if it is post‑doctoral experience as a professional psychologist directly related to duties. Qualifying experience must be at a level comparable to or exceeding professional psychology experience at the next lower level. Part‑time experience is creditable relative to a full‑time workweek. Post‑doctoral degree fellowships or residencies are training programs in an advanced area of clinical practice; training as a fellow or resident is creditable experience on a year‑for‑year basis. GS‑11 (entry level): Experience – None beyond the basic requirements. 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 (KSAs): Knowledge of and ability to apply a wide range of professional psychological treatments or assessment methods to a variety of patient populations; ability to design and implement effective treatment strategies; ability to incorporate new clinical procedures; ability to conduct research activities such as designing and implementing clinical research projects; ability to perform basic research tasks of scholarship and research execution within the context of an established research team. 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 level. Demonstrated KSAs – Knowledge of and ability to apply professional psychological treatments to the full range of patient populations; ability to provide professional advice and consultation in areas related to professional psychology and behavioral health; knowledge of clinical research literature. Additional requirements: Valid driver’s license. Reference: For more information on this qualification standard, please visit The full performance level of this vacancy is GS‑13. The actual grade at which an applicant may be selected is in the range of GS‑11 to GS‑13. Duties VA Careers – Psychologist: Total Rewards of a Allied Health Professional 1 Involvement with training and/or clinical supervision as needed. Staff psychologists at this level diagnose mental disorders, conduct psychological and/or neuropsychological assessments, treat mental disorders through a variety of modalities, provide adjunctive interventions for treatment of medical disorders, and may conduct research. As an outpatient provider for the Community Living Center, the incumbent provides neuropsychological and psychological evaluations, psychological services, and consults with peers, medical center staff, the polytrauma team, geriatric mental health team, and/or others as appropriate. The incumbent will diagnose mental disorders, conduct psychological and/or neuropsychological assessments, may provide treatment for mental disorders through a variety of modalities, and may provide adjunctive interventions for improvement of medical disorders for residents of the Community Living Centers. The incumbent consults with medical center staff on a wide variety of patient care issues as warranted. As with all clinical psychologists, the incumbent is expected to be available for involvement with training and/or clinical supervision as needed. Work schedule: Full time – Monday to Friday, 8:00 am to 4:30 pm. Recruitment incentive (sign‑on bonus): Not authorized; EDRP authorized: Former EDRP participants ineligible to apply for incentive. Contact: View email address on click.appcast.io – the EDRP Coordinator 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 to 50 days of annual paid time offer per year (13 to 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 401(k) 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). Virtual – This is not a virtual position. Permanent change of station (PCS): Not authorized. #J-18808-Ljbffr