Staff Psychologist (PCMHI)

Summary

This position is eligible for the Education Debt Reduction Program (EDRP) - a student loan payment reimbursement program. You must meet specific individual eligibility requirements in accordance with VHA policy and submit your EDRP application within four months of appointment. Program Approval - award amount (up to $200 -000) and eligibility period (one to five years) are determined by the VHA Education Loan Repayment Services program office after complete review of the EDRP application.

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:

• United States Citizenship: Non-citizens may only be appointed when it is not possible to recruit qualified citizens in accordance with VA Policy
• Education: Have a doctoral degree in psychology from a graduate program in psychology accredited by the American Psychological Association (APA) - the 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 completed as part of the re- specialization program) meeting both of the following conditions: (a) The re-specialization program must be completed in an APA or a CPA accredited doctoral program
• and - (b) the specialty in which the applicant is retrained must be consistent with the assignment for which the applicant is to be employed
• OR Have a doctoral degree awarded between 1951 and 1978 from a regionally-accredited institution - with a dissertation primarily psychological in nature
• Internships: Have successfully completed a professional psychology internship training program that was accredited by APA or CPA at the time the program was completed and that is consistent with the assignment for which the applicant is to be employed
• OR New VHA psychology internship programs that are in the process of applying for APA accreditation are acceptable in fulfillment of the internship requirement - provided that such programs were sanctioned by the VHA Central Office Program Director for Psychology and the VHA Office of Academic Affiliations at the time that the individual was an intern
• OR VHA facilities that offered full-time - one-year pre-doctoral internships prior to PL 96- 151 (pre- 1979) are considered to be acceptable in fulfillment of the internship requirement
• OR Applicants who completed an internship that was not accredited by APA or CPA at the time the program was completed may be considered eligible for hire only if they are currently board certified by the American Board of Professional Psychology in a specialty area that is consistent with the assignment for which the applicant is to be employed
• OR Applicants who have a doctoral degree awarded between 1951 and 1978 from a regionally- accredited institution with a dissertation primarily psychological in nature may fulfill this internship requirement by having the equivalent of a one-year supervised internship experience in a site specifically acceptable to the candidate's doctoral program
• If the internship experience is not noted on the applicant's official transcript - the applicant must provide a statement from the doctoral program verifying that the equivalent of a one year supervised internship experience was completed in a site acceptable to the doctoral program
• Licensure: Hold 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 to Licensure
• 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 the authority of 38 U.S.C. § 7405 [(c)(2)(B)] for a period not to exceed two years from the date of employment on the condition that such a psychologist provide care only under the supervision of a psychologist who is licensed
• Failure to obtain licensure during that period is justification for termination of the temporary appointment
• May qualify based on being covered by the Grandfathering Provision as described in the VA Qualification Standard for this occupation (only applicable to current VHA employees who are in this occupation and meet the criteria)
• Grade Determinations: Staff Psychologist - GS-11 (Entry Level): Experience
• None beyond the basic requirements
• Staff Psychologist - 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
• In addition to the experience above - the candidate must demonstrate all of the following 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 (staff psychologists with specified research job duties)
• Ability to perform basic research tasks of scholarship and research execution within the context of an established research team - including research participant relations - research documentation - data acquisition - maintenance - and collaboration
• Staff Psychologist - 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 grade level
• Demonstrated Knowledge - Skills - and Abilities
• In addition to the experience above - the candidate must demonstrate all of the following 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
• May qualify based on being covered by the Grandfathering Provision as described in the VA Qualification Standard for this occupation (only applicable to current VHA employees who are in this occupation and meet the criteria)
• Preferred Experience: Training and/or experience in a health psychology
• Physical Requirements: You will be asked to participate in a pre-employment evaluation as part of the pre-employment process for this position
• Questions about physical demands or environmental factors may be addressed at the time of evaluation or examination
• 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 for this vacancy is in the range of GS-11 to GS-13.

Duties

• Open period has been extended to 7/07/2026
• Applicants who applied by the original close date will receive first consideration
• *** Recruitment or Relocation incentive may be authorized for eligible - highly qualified candidates! *** The staff psychologist is assigned to the Primary Care Mental Health Integration (PCMHI) program within the Mental Heath service line with responsibility for providing direct clinical services
• Evidence-based psychotherapies provided by this psychologist may include CBT - CBT-Chronic Pain - CBT-Insomnia - Motivational Interviewing - Problem Solving Training - and others
• Major duties include but are not limited to: Provides a full range of diagnostic and evaluation services appropriate to the primary care setting - especially in the areas of general psychological evaluation of emotional and behavioral problems and suicide assessment
• Provides a full range of psychological interventions consistent with training and expertise - with special emphasis on brief and evidenced-based interventions found to be effective in primary care settings
• Develops - implements - and documents the psychotherapeutic treatment plan for an assigned caseload of patients - including prompt completion of clinical reminders
• Facilitates patient and family education appropriate to the primary care setting and the specific presenting mental or behavioral health issues
• Provides consultation services to support PCP decision-making - building on PCP interventions and improving PCP-patient working relationships
• Total Rewards of a Allied Health Professional Work Schedule: Monday - Friday - 8am - 4:30pm Recruitment Incentive (Sign-on Bonus): A recruitment/relocation incentive of up to 15% may be authorized
• EDRP Authorized: Former EDRP participants ineligible to apply for incentive
• Contact - the EDRP Coordinator for questions/assistance
• Learn more Pay: Competitive salary and regular salary increases Paid Time Off: 37-50 days of annual paid time offer per year (13-26 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 401K 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) Telework: Not Authorized Virtual: This is not a virtual position
• Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized

The Veterans Health Administration (VHA) is the largest integrated health care system in the United States, providing care at 1,321 health care facilities, including 172 VA Medical Centers and 1,138 outpatient sites of care of varying complexity (VHA outpatient clinics) to over 9 million Veterans enrolled in the VA health care program. VHA Medical Centers provide a wide range of services including traditional hospital-based services such as surgery, critical care, mental health, orthopedics, pharmacy, radiology and physical therapy. In addition, most of our medical centers offer additional medical and surgical specialty services including audiology & speech pathology, dermatology, dental, geriatrics, neurology, oncology, podiatry, prosthetics, urology, and vision care. Some medical centers also offer advanced services such as organ transplants and plastic surgery.