Vocational Rehabilitation Counselor

The Position

Are you passionate about helping students and youth with disabilities transition from high school to secondary education and adulthood? Join the Bureau of Vocational Rehabilitation Services - Washington District Office as a Vocational Rehabilitation Counselor! As part of the Office of Vocational Rehabilitation, you will help Pennsylvanians with disabilities gain the skills necessary to live and work independently in their communities. This role gives you the chance to support the students we serve by encouraging skill development, providing connections to education and employment opportunities, and building their independence and confidence.

Each day brings opportunities to support someone's journey toward success. If you are interested in experiencing the satisfaction of public service while enjoying professional career growth, we want you to apply!

Description Of Work

This position plays an important part in guiding students and youth with disabilities at Washington County public and private schools through the vocational rehabilitation process. Work focuses on ensuring potential vocational rehabilitation customers are identified, as well as determining and coordinating the delivery of vocational rehabilitation services to customers. As a Vocational Rehabilitation Counselor, you will perform the following duties:

• Intake and Assessment: Develop and maintain referral sources to identify students who may need vocational rehabilitation services, gather and review information, and explain requirements to students and their families
• Expenditure Arrangements: Provide or obtain approval for expenditures, medical, psychological, psychiatric, physical, or other evaluations to help determine each student's potential eligibility and service needs
• Eligibility Evaluation: Analyze each student's circumstances and evaluation results, then apply legal requirements and policy guidelines to determine their eligibility for services
• Plan Development: Collaborate with each customer, utilize your professional judgement, and consult related professionals to develop a mutually agreed upon Individualized Plan for Employment (IPE) including appropriate goals and services
• Case Management: Provide counseling and guidance, work with community and provider agencies to coordinate service delivery, evaluate customer progress, adjust plans to support successful outcomes, and maintain accurate documentation
• Job Placement Assistance: Refer customers to job openings, support soft skill development, and follow up after job placement to determine if their case can be closed

Interested in learning more? Additional details regarding this position can be found in the position description.

Work Schedule and Additional Information:

• Full-time employment
• Work hours are typically 8:00 AM to 4:00 PM, Monday - Friday. Work hours are negotiable - 7.5 hour workday and lunch period is 30 minutes or 60 minutes depending on work hours. AWS (alternate work schedule) may be available.
• Telework: You may have the opportunity to work from home (telework) part-time, after successful completion of the training period. In order to telework, you must have a securely configured high-speed internet connection and work from an approved location inside Pennsylvania. If you are unable to telework, you will have the option to report to the headquarters office in Washington. The ability to telework is subject to change at any time. Additional details may be provided during the interview.
• Note: The headquarters office location may be flexible depending on the selected candidate.
• Salary: Selected candidates who are new to employment with the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania will begin employment at the starting annual salary of $60,538.00 (before taxes).
• You will receive further communication regarding this position via email. Check your email, including spam/junk folders, for these notices.

Required Experience, Training & Eligibility

Qualifications

Minimum Experience and Training Requirements:

• Successful completion of the Vocational Rehabilitation Counselor Intern program or the Vocational Rehabilitation Counselor Trainee program (Commonwealth job title or equivalent Federal Government job title, as determined by the Office of Administration); or
• Possession of an active Certified Rehabilitation Counselor certificate issued by the Commission on Rehabilitation Counselor Certification; or
• Proof of approval to sit for the Commission on Rehabilitation Counselor Certification (CRCC) Certified Rehabilitation Counselor certification examination, provided by the CRCC, and completion of a master's degree; or
• A master's degree in vocational rehabilitation, mental health, special education, social work, human services, psychology, or a closely related field.
• Applicants will be considered to have met the educational requirements once they are within three months of graduating with a qualifying degree.

Other Requirements:

• PA residency requirement is currently waived for this title.
• You must be able to perform essential job functions.

Legal Requirements:

• This position falls under the provisions of the Child Protective Services Law. Under the Law, a conditional offer of employment will require submission and approval of satisfactory criminal history reports including, but not limited to, PA State Police clearance, PA Child Abuse history clearance, and FBI Fingerprint clearance.

Examination Information

• Completing the application, including all supplemental questions, serves as your exam for this position. No additional exam is required at a test center (also referred to as a written exam).
• Your score is based on the detailed information you provide on your application and in response to the supplemental questions.
• Your score is valid for this specific posting only.
• You must provide complete and accurate information or: your score may be lower than deserved. You may be disqualified.
• You may only apply/test once for this posting.
• Your results will be provided via email.