Vocational Rehabilitation Specialist

The position is a Vocational Rehabilitation Specialist, organizationally aligned to Vocational Rehabilitation Program, Social Work Service Line, Richard L. Roudebush VA Medical Center in Indianapolis, Indiana - a VHA level 1a complexity facility that serves over 67,000 unique patients and has 13 off site community clinics, in addition to the homeless team, the community based extended care programs and a 50 bed Domiciliary.

To qualify for this position, applicants must meet all requirements by the closing date of this announcement, 10/08/2025. 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: 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): Examples of qualifying specialized experience include: 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. Grade Determinations: You must have one year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the next lower grade (GS-09) level in the normal line of progression for the occupation in the organization. Vocational Rehab Specialist, GS-11 Demonstrated Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities. In addition to the experience above, the candidate must demonstrate, in their resume, all of the following Knowledge, Skills and Abilities (KSAs): Knowledge of the principles and theoretical concepts of vocational rehabilitation. The knowledge to successfully complete comprehensive assessment. The ability to select the pertinent techniques for data collection and to identify aspects of successful program operations that can be used for improving similar programs. The ability to utilize a variety of fact-finding techniques. Requires a basic knowledge of the program objectives of local, state, and Federal agencies to ensure that action is appropriate Preferred Experience: Preferred experience working with individuals with serious mental health issues providing job placement assistance and supports. NOTE: Applicants wishing to receive credit for such experience must indicate clearly the nature of their duties and responsibilities in each position and the number of hours a week spent in such employment. You will be rated on the following Competencies for this position: Education and Training Interpersonal Skills Technical Competence Therapy and Counseling Experience refers to paid and unpaid experience, including volunteer work done through National Service programs (e.g., Peace Corps, AmeriCorps) and other organizations (e.g., professional; philanthropic; religions; spiritual; community; student; social). Volunteer work helps build critical competencies, knowledge, and skills and can provide valuable training and experience that translates directly to paid employment. You will receive credit for all qualifying experience, including volunteer experience. Note: A full year of work is considered to be 35-40 hours of work per week. Part-time experience will be credited on the basis of time actually spent in appropriate activities. Applicants wishing to receive credit for such experience must indicate clearly the nature of their duties and responsibilities in each position and the number of hours a week spent in such employment. Physical Requirements: The work is primarily sedentary; however, incumbent should be able to perform prolonged walking and standing necessary to conduct work site visits, employer tours, etc. Incumbent must possess a valid driver's license in order to transport Veterans in government vehicles to interviews, tours, etc. with employers or other community resources. For more information on these qualification standards, please visit the United States Office of Personnel Management's website at https://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/classification-qualifications/general-schedule-qualification-standards/.