Vocational Rehabilitation Specialist

Summary The Vocational Rehabilitation Specialist is responsible for assigned duties from the Compensated Work Therapy/Transitional Work Experience/Supportive Employment within TVHS. The employee recruits, interviews, completes assessments, and selects suitable clients with severe mental illnesses for competitive supported employment. Qualifications To qualify for this position, applicants must meet all requirements by the closing date of this announcement (06/22/2026). Time‑In‑Grade Requirement: Applicants who are current Federal employees and have held a GS grade any time in the past 52 weeks must also meet time‑in‑grade requirements by the closing date of this announcement. For a GS‑11 position you must have served 52 weeks at the GS‑9. The grade may have been in any occupation, but must have been held in the Federal service. An SF‑50 that shows your time‑in‑grade eligibility must be submitted with your application materials. If the most recent SF‑50 has an effective date within the past year, it may not clearly demonstrate you possess one‑year time‑in‑grade, as required by the announcement. In this instance you must provide an additional SF‑50 that clearly demonstrates one‑year time‑in‑grade. Note: Time‑In‑Grade requirements also apply to former Federal employees applying for reinstatement as well as current employees applying for Veterans Employment Opportunities Act of 1998 (VEOA) appointment. You may qualify based on your experience and/or education as described below: Individual Occupational Requirements for the Vocational Development Specialist – GS‑1715 occupational series. You must meet one of the following Individual Occupational Requirements below: Education – Undergraduate and Graduate Education: Major study – vocational rehabilitation, vocational or educational counseling, or other fields related to the position. OR Experience – Specialized Experience (for positions above GS‑5); for example, work that required obtaining and applying occupational information for people with disabilities, knowledge of the interrelationships of the involved professional and specialist services, and skill in employing the methodology and techniques of counseling to motivate and encourage individuals served by the program; experience that demonstrated knowledge of the vocational rehabilitation problems characteristic of the disabled, including familiarity with available resources and skill in identifying, evaluating, and making effective use of such resources to serve individuals with disabilities; or of the disadvantaged, including knowledge of adjustment problems of the educationally or culturally disadvantaged, familiarity with available adult education and training resources and ability to recognize problem areas needing special attention; experience in vocational guidance or teaching in a recognized vocational rehabilitation program or school, developmental or supervisory work in programs of vocational rehabilitation or training programs for the disadvantaged, or personnel or employment placement work that provided extensive knowledge of the training and adjustment requirements necessary to place persons having disabilities or social adjustment problems. For the GS‑11 – Vocational Development Specialist you must also meet one of the below requirements: GS‑11: Specialized Experience – Applicants must have one (1) full year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the GS‑09 grade level in the Federal Service; Specialized experience is defined as: Work that required obtaining and applying occupational information for people with disabilities, knowledge of the interrelationships of the involved professional and specialist services, and skill in employing the methodology and techniques of counseling to motivate and encourage individuals served by the program; experience that demonstrated knowledge of the vocational rehabilitation problems characteristic of the disabled, including familiarity with available resources and skill in identifying, evaluating, and making effective use of such resources to serve individuals with disabilities; or of the disadvantaged, including knowledge of adjustment problems of the educationally or culturally disadvantaged, familiarity with available adult education and training resources and ability to recognize problem areas needing special attention; experience in vocational guidance or teaching in a recognized vocational rehabilitation program or school, developmental or supervisory work in programs of vocational rehabilitation or training programs for the disadvantaged, or personnel or employment placement work that provided extensive knowledge of the training and adjustment requirements necessary to place persons having disabilities or social adjustment problems. OR GS‑11: Education – Applicants may substitute education for the required experience. To qualify based on education for this grade level you must have successfully completed a Ph.D. or equivalent doctoral degree – or 3 full years of progressively higher‑level graduate education leading to such a degree – or an LL.M. in a field related to this position (TRANSCRIPT REQUIRED). OR GS‑11: Combination – Applicants may also combine education and experience to qualify at this level. You must have a combination of specialized experience and education beyond graduate level education (in excess of the first two years or 36 semester hours) and specialized experience to meet total experience requirements (TRANSCRIPT REQUIRED). For more information on these qualification standards – please visit the United States Office of Personnel Management's website at Duties Provides vocational rehabilitation services consistent with current theory and methods to include intake assessment, Columbia Suicide Screening, Employment Readiness, and Northern Eastern Program Evaluation. Assesses disabilities and develops a plan to overcome the barriers to employment created by the disability. Communicates with and provides direction for all customers and stakeholders of the program – including patients, staff, and local agencies. Analyzes jobs and modifies duties consistent with ADA concepts. Maintains day‑to‑day contacts with potential employers, placement personnel, or other likely placement resources and negotiates appropriate accommodations for veterans with disabilities. Utilizes community resources and work incentives. Keeps alert for job and small‑business opportunities. Educates patients on implications of return to work on benefits. Recruits, interviews, and selects suitable clients with severe mental health illnesses for employment. Interacts with and maintains a working relationship with other professionals. Provides training and guidance on the implementation of the program. Serves as the local authority in the analysis, development, and implementation of program projects. Contacts and works creatively with community employers – demonstrates a working knowledge of a broad range of occupations and ability to identify client strengths, interests, skills, and needs. Matches clients to jobs and arranges long‑term support to help keep clients employed. Makes difficult treatment decisions – modifies and utilizes the most effective treatment approach to effectively provide rehabilitation services to patients with substance abuse or psychiatric disorders. Develops the Transitional Work Experience – Supported Employment best practice training offered at the CWT/TWE/SE Program. Provides training and guidance on the implementation of the Support Employment initiative to other programs within TVHS. Advises the Program Coordinator of conditions of the Supported Employment Program implementation. Serves as the local authority in the analysis, development, and implementation of Supported Employment projects. Work schedule: 7:30 am–4:00 pm – Monday – Friday. Telework: Ad‑Hoc Virtual – This is not a virtual position. Position Description/PD#: Vocational Rehabilitation Specialist/PD700280 Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not authorized. Critical Skills Incentive (CSI): Not approved. Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not authorized. #J-18808-Ljbffr U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs