Program Specialist

US-Department-of-Veterans-Affair; Chicago (IL); On-site; USD 52,000 - 64,000; Full time

Job summary

Jesse Brown VA Medical Center in Chicago, IL seeks a Program Specialist (GS-9) to provide oversight, support, evaluation, and tailored training for HAS programs. Qualifications include specialized experience or education as described, with time-in-grade considerations for current federal employees.

The position emphasizes analytical reviews, data scheduling, and coordinating with the Education Department to develop training materials and aids.

Qualifications

• Experience applying analytical and evaluative techniques.
• Experience scheduling procedures, audits, and reports.
• Ability to develop and evaluate training materials and coordinate with the Education Department.

Skills

Analytical skills

Issue resolution

Scheduling

Reports

Training material development

Education

Masters or equivalent graduate degree

Tools

Computer-based medical systems

Job description

This position of Program Specialist is located at the Jesse Brown VA Medical Center, Chicago, IL. The VHA Facility and is organizationally aligned under the Health Administration Service (HAS) Line. The primary purpose of this position is to provide oversight, support, evaluation and tailored training as it relates to all programs in HAS. To qualify for this position, applicants must meet all requirements by the closing date of this announcement, 08/25/2026.

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-9 position you must have served 52 weeks at the GS-7. 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:

• Specialized Experience: You must have one year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the next lower grade GS-7 in the normal line of progression for the occupation in the organization. Examples of specialized experience would typically include, but are not limited to: Skills in applying analytical and evaluative techniques; Skills in finding resolution of issues or problems; Skills in scheduling procedures and audits and workloads; Skills in scheduling directives and provision related to computer-based medical systems to perform systematic reviews of information and data; Skill in running specialized reports; Skill in developing and modify and evaluate training presentations, plans, instructions, materials and aids, and ability to coordinated with the facility Education Department or other facility subject matters. Evidence of specialized experience must be supported by detailed documentation of duties performed in positions held. Please provide such documentation on resume.

OR

• Education: Applicants may substitute education for the required experience. To qualify based on education for this grade level you must have a masters or equivalent graduate degree, or successful completion of two (2) years of progressively higher-level graduate education leading to such a degree, or LL.B or J.D., if related, obtained in an accredited college or university, may be substituted to qualify for the grade 9, Program Specialist position. Such education must demonstrate the knowledge, skills, and abilities necessary to do the work of the position and been obtained at an accredited college or university. One year of full-time graduate education is considered to be the number of credit hours that the school attended has determined to represent one (1) year of full-time study. If that number cannot be obtained from the school, 18 semester hours will be considered an academic year of graduate study. Part-time graduate education is creditable in accordance with its relationship to a year of full-time study at the school attended. NOTE: TRANSCRIPTS REQUIRED.

OR

• Combination: Applicants may also combine education and experience to qualify at this level. You must have an combination of specialized experience and education beyond .
• Physical Requirements: Work is mainly sedentary with little need for physical exertion. The environment involves everyday risks and normal safety precautions inherent in an office setting. The work environment is fast-paced and requires meeting numerous deadlines.

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/.