Psychologist

US-Department-of-Veterans-Affair; Home Corner (IN); On-site; USD 90,000 - 130,000; Full time

Job summary

US Department of Veterans Affairs is seeking a Staff Psychologist at GS-13 level in Indiana. Requires a doctoral degree in psychology from a APA/PCSAS/CPA accredited program, successful APA/CPA accredited internship, and full licensure to practice psychology in the U.S. English proficiency is required.

EDRP program participation may apply. Experience at the GS-13 level with two years of professional psychology practice is preferred.

Qualifications

• Knowledge of, and ability to apply, professional psychological treatments to the full range of patient populations.
• Ability to provide professional advice and consultation in areas related to professional psychology and behavioral health.
• Knowledge of clinical research literature.
• Doctoral degree in psychology from APA/PCSAS/CPA accredited program, or equivalent with retraining where applicable.
• Internship training program accredited by APA or CPA at the time of completion, or eligibility via modern pathways.

Responsibilities

• Provide psychological assessment and intervention across diverse patient populations.
• Consult and advise clinical teams on treatment plans and behavioral health strategies.
• Maintain licensure and adhere to professional standards and VA policies.

Skills

Professional treatments

Consultation skills

Clinical research literature

Education

APA/PCSAS/CPA doctorate

Re-specialization program (APA/CPA)

Older doctorate with psychological dissertation (1951-1978)

Job description

This position is eligible for the Education Debt Reduction Program (EDRP), a student loan payment reimbursement program. You must meet specific eligibility requirements per VHA policy and submit your EDRP application within four months of appointment. Program Approval, award amount (up to $200,000) & eligibility period (one to five years) are determined by the VHA Education Loan Repayment Services program office after review of the EDRP application. Former EDRP participants ineligible to apply. 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.

Basic Requirements

• United States Citizenship: Non-citizens may only be appointed when it is not possible to recruit qualified citizens in accordance with VA Policy.
• English Language Proficiency: Psychologists must be proficient in spoken and written English in accordance with VA Handbook 5005, Part II, Chapter 3, section A, paragraph 3j.
• Education Requirement:
  • You must have a doctoral degree in psychology from a graduate program in psychology accredited by the American Psychological Association (APA), the Psychological Clinical Science Accreditation System (PCSAS), or the Canadian Psychological Association (CPA) at the time the program was completed. The specialty area of the degree must be consistent with the assignment for which the applicant is to be employed. OR,
  • Have a doctoral degree in any area of psychology and, in addition, successfully completed a re-specialization program meeting both of the following conditions:
    • a) the re-specialization program must be completed in an APA or a CPA accredited doctoral program; and
    • b) the specialty in which you were retrained is consistent with the assignment you are am applying for; OR,
  • Have a doctoral degree awarded between 1951 and 1978 from a regionally-accredited institution, with a dissertation primarily psychological in nature.
• Internship Requirement:
  • You must have successfully completed a professional psychology internship training program that was accredited by APA or CPA at the time the program was completed and that is consistent with the assignment for which the applicant is to be employed; OR,
  • New VHA psychology internship programs that are in the process of applying for APA accreditation are acceptable in fulfillment of the internship requirement, provided that such programs were sanctioned by the VHA Central Office Program Director for Psychology and the VHA Office of Academic Affiliations at the time that the individual was an intern; OR,
  • VHA facilities that offered full-time, one-year pre-doctoral internships prior to PL 96-151 (pre-1979) are considered to be acceptable in fulfillment of the internship requirement; OR,
  • Applicants who completed an internship that was not accredited by APA or CPA at the time the program was completed may be considered eligible for hire only if they are currently board certified by the American Board of Professional Psychology in a specialty area that is consistent with the assignment for which the applicant is to be employed. (NOTE: Once board certified, the employee is required to maintain board certification).
  • NOTE: Applicants who have a doctoral degree awarded between 1951 and 1978 from a regionally-accredited institution with a dissertation primarily psychological in nature may fulfill this internship requirement by having the equivalent of a one-year supervised internship experience in a site specifically acceptable to the candidate's doctoral program. If the internship experience is not noted on the applicant's official transcript, the applicant must provide a statement from the doctoral program verifying that the equivalent of a one-year supervised internship experience was completed in a site acceptable to the doctoral program.
• Licensure: Candidates must hold a full, current, and unrestricted license to practice psychology at the doctoral level in a State, Territory or Commonwealth of the United States, or the District of Columbia.
  • NOTE: At the GS-11 and GS-12 levels non-licensed applicants who otherwise meet the eligibility requirements may be given a temporary appointment as a "graduate psychologist" for a period not to exceed two years from the date of employment on the condition that such a psychologist provide care only under the supervision of a psychologist who is licensed. Failure to obtain licensure during that period is justification for termination of the temporary appointment.

May qualify based on being covered by the Grandfathering Provision as described in the VA Qualification Standard for this occupation (only applicable to current VHA employees who are in this occupation and meet the criteria).

Grade Determinations

In addition to the basic requirements for employment, the following criteria must be met when determining the grade of candidates:

Staff Psychologist, GS-13 (Full Performance, Level) Experience: At least two years of experience as a professional psychologist, with at least one year equivalent to the GS-12 grade level.

Demonstrated Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities

1. Knowledge of, and ability to apply, professional psychological treatments to the full range of patient populations.
2. Ability to provide professional advice and consultation in areas related to professional psychology and behavioral health.
3. Knowledge of clinical research literature.

Preferred Experience: Experience providing care for individuals with Severe Mental Illness.

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-13.

Physical Requirements

See VA Directive and Handbook 5019.