Vocational Rehabilitation Counselor

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.

01Basic Requirements

United States Citizenship: Non-citizens may only be appointed when it is not possible to recruit qualified citizens in accordance with VA Policy.

02Education

Successful completion of a master's degree (or higher) in rehabilitation counseling, rehabilitation services, clinical rehabilitation counseling, counseling psychology, mental health counseling, career counseling or social work from an accredited college or university.

Internship or Experience Requirement: The required (1) supervised internship or (2) post-master's degree experience is described as follows: (1) Supervised Internship: The education in paragraph 3a must have included a supervised internship in rehabilitation counseling or case management specialization.

The internship must have been supervised by a professional in vocational rehabilitation or a closely related professional field that typically has oversight for vocational rehabilitation programs OR Experience: One-year post-master's degree experience in direct delivery of professional vocational rehabilitation services to individuals with disabilities.

CREDITING EXPERIENCE Creditable Experience: Creditable experience must have required the use of KSAs associated with current professional vocational rehabilitation counseling practices. Creditable experience can be obtained through employment as a VRC.

This may be demonstrated by providing direct rehabilitation counseling services to individuals with disabilities in the context of a professional counseling relationship, which may include vocational rehabilitation and personal adjustment counseling, case management, assessment, or rehabilitation, training and employment services coordination.

Quality of Experience: Creditable experience must have been obtained postgraduate and be directly related to the duties to be performed to qualify to work as a professional VRC. Qualifying experience must also be equivalent to professional vocational rehabilitation counseling experience at the next lower level. NOTE: If work experience is credited for the basic requirement, that experience cannot also be used for qualifying at the GS-11 or GS-12 levels.

03Grade Determinations

Vocational Rehabilitation Counselor, GS-11 Education or Experience: (a) Education. In addition to meeting the basic requirements, successful completion of 3 full years of progressively higher-level graduate education or a Ph.D. or equivalent doctoral degree in an area described in paragraph 3a. (b) Experience. Completion of one year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the GS-09 grade level.

Specialized experience reflects the management of vocational rehabilitation counseling or case management workload involving persons with a wide variety of disability conditions (e.g., mental health, physical, cognitive, visual/auditory, substance abuse). Reference: For more information on this qualification standard, please visit https://www.va.gov/ohrm/QualificationStandards/. The full performance level of this vacancy is GS-11.

04Physical Requirements

Work involves both sedentary office work, either in VA office, home office if Teleworking, or in Veteran's home, and transporting and accompanying patients for community meetings, skill building, Job Development, or other necessary VHA VR services and duties.

Major Duties: The incumbent serves as a journey level Rehabilitation Counselor providing personal adjustment counseling, therapeutic rehabilitation interventions, and case coordination services. Serves Veterans who have myriad barriers to overcome and achieve competitive employment, educational, and independent living goals.

Conducts biopsychosocial assessments using medical records, pertinent disability documentation, observation, and interviews with Veterans and their support systems to generate personal, vocational, and educational histories. Consults with interdisciplinary teams to enhance coordination of care, ensure medical clearance, and provide for optimal timing of future interventions. Synthesizes assessment information to identify barriers to employment and their vocational implications.

Work Schedule: Monday - Friday; 8:00am - 4:30pm Telework: Ad-hoc Telework - VA supports the use of telework as a way to help attract and retain talented individuals in public service, increase worker productivity, and better prepare the agency to operate during emergencies. This position may be authorized for telework. Telework eligibility will be discussed during the interview process. Virtual: This is not a virtual position. Functional Statement #: 10580F