Staff Psychologist- PCMHI

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

Job summary

U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs seeks a licensed psychologist with a doctoral degree in psychology from an APA/PCSAS/CPA-accredited program to join its clinical team.

The role requires successful completion of an APA or CPA accredited internship and current licensure in good standing. Experience with professional psychological treatments and research activities is expected, with potential for advancement within the GS-11 to GS-13 levels.

Qualifications

• Must have doctoral degree in psychology from APA/PCSAS/CPA-accredited program.
• Licensure as a psychologist in the United States (full, current, unrestricted).
• Professional psychology internship accredited by APA or CPA at the time of completion.
• May qualify under Grandfathering provision for current VA employees.

Skills

Professional psychology KSAs

Clinical treatment methods

Research design

Education

Doctoral degree in psychology (APA/PCSAS/CPA)

Job description

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

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: Must be proficient in spoken and written English
• Education: 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 are specialization program meeting both of the following conditions:
    • a) specialization program must be completed in an APA or a CPA accredited doctoral program; and
    • b) 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.***See Education below
• 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.
  • Exception: Non-licensed applicants who otherwise meet the eligibility requirements may be given a temporary appointment as a "graduate psychologist" at the GS-11 or GS-12 grade under the authority of 38 U.S.C. 7405 (c)(2)(B) 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.
• Internship: 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.

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

Experience: In additional to meeting the basic requirements as stated above:

• GS-11 Level: no additional experience beyond the basic requirement.
• GS-12 Level: at least 1 full year of experience as a professional psychologist equivalent to the GS-11 level
  • Demonstrated Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities. In addition to the experience above, the candidate must demonstrate all of the following KSAs:
    • Knowledge of and ability to apply a wide range of professional psychological treatments or assessment methods to a variety of patient populations.
    • Ability to design and implement effective treatment strategies.
    • Ability to incorporate new clinical procedures.
    • Ability to conduct research activities, such as designing and implementing clinical research projects (staff psychologists with specified research job duties).
    • Ability to perform basic research tasks of scholarship and research execution within the context of an established research team, including research participant relations, research documentation, data acquisition, maintenance and collaboration.
• GS-13 Level: At least two years of experience as a professional psychologist, with at least one year equivalent to the GS-12 grade level. 1) active professional practice that was paid/non-paid employment and/or 2) a full, current and unrestricted license.
  • Demonstrated Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities. In addition to the experience above, the candidate must demonstrate all of the following KSAs:
    • 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.

**Experience is only creditable if it is post-doctoral experience as a professional psychologist directly related to the duties to be performed.

Reference

For more information on this qualification standard, please visit https://www.va.gov/ohrm/QualificationStandards/.

The full performance level of this vacancy is GS13. The actual grade at which an applicant may be selected for this vacancy is in the range of GS11 to GS13.

Promotion Potential

The selectee may be promoted to the full performance level without further competition when all regulatory, qualification, and performance requirements are met. Selection at a lower grade level does not guarantee promotion to the full performance level.

Physical Requirements

The physical demands of the position involve standard office requirements such as using the telephone, retrieving files, writing reports, data entry and maintenance of computer databases, etc. Work is typically performed sitting at a desk and using a computer. This position may require occasional travel. The position requires periods of walking, standing, sitting and bending.