Supervisory Social Worker

US-Department-of-Veterans-Affair; Roseburg (OR); On-site; USD 90,000 - 120,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

EDRP eligibility

Job summary

The US Department of Veterans Affairs seeks a Supervisory Social Worker (GS-13) to lead a social work service, providing clinical supervision and program management in an outpatient behavioral health setting. The role emphasizes leadership, supervision, and cross-site coordination.

Applicants must hold a CSWE-accredited MSW and be licensed or certified to practice at the master's level. English proficiency is required.

Qualifications

• Education: Master’s degree in Social Work from a CSWE-accredited program.
• Licensure: Must be licensed or certified by a state to independently practice at the MSW level.
• English: Proficient written and spoken English.
• Grandfathering: VA grandfathering provisions may apply per occupation requirements.

Responsibilities

• Provide staff supervision and professional leadership within the social work service.
• Oversee administrative management and performance improvement initiatives.
• Ensure provision of clinical social work services by supervised staff.
• Coordinate work across multiple sites and manage priorities and deadlines.

Skills

Leadership

Communication

Supervision

Policy analysis

Education

Master's degree in Social Work (CSWE accredited)

Licensure/certification in state

Job description

This 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.
• Education: Have a master's degree in social work from a school of social work fully accredited by the Council on Social Work Education (CSWE). Graduates of schools of social work that are in candidacy status do not meet this requirement until the School of Social Work is fully accredited. A doctoral degree in social work may not be substituted for the master's degree in social work. Verification of the degree can be made by going to http://www.cswe.org/Accreditation to verify that the social work degree meets the 4 accreditation standards for a masters of social work.
• Licensure: Persons hired or reassigned to social worker positions in the GS-0185 series in VHA must be licensed or certified by a state to independently practice social work at the master's degree level. Current state requirements may be found by going to http://vaww.va.gov/OHRM/T38Hybrid/.
• Exception: VHA may waive the licensure or certification requirement for persons who are otherwise qualified, pending completion of state prerequisites for licensure/certification examinations. This exception only applies at the GS-9 grade level. For the GS-11 grade level and above, the candidate must be licensed or certified. At the time of appointment, the supervisor, chief social work or social work executive will provide the unlicensed/uncertified social worker with the written requirements for licensure or certification, including the time by which the license or certification must be obtained and the consequences for not becoming licensed or certified by the deadline.
• Different states have different levels of licensure or certification, making it difficult for VHA staff to determine the independent practice level. Each state, Puerto Rico, and the District of Columbia completed surveys identifying the level of licensure or certification allowing independent practice. Copies of the surveys are on file in the VHA Office of Care Management and Social Work Services, and a summary spreadsheet of the levels of licensure or certification is available to social work professional standards board members for purposes of determining whether the social worker's level of licensure or certification meets the VHA qualification standards. All states except California use a series of licensure exams administered by the ASWB. Information can be found at https://www.aswb.org/. The ASWB is the association of boards that regulates social work. ASWB develops and maintains the social work licensing examination used across the country and is a central resource for information on the legal regulation of social work. ASWB offers three examinations. The master's examination is generally used by states for the independent practice level of licensure or certification, while the advanced generalist and the clinical examinations are used for the advanced practice level of licensure or certification. Differences between the master's and the 5 advanced exams demonstrate the expectation that advanced practice social workers will have a more sophisticated knowledge of practice theory and its application.
• Loss of Licensure or Certification. Once licensed or certified, social workers must maintain a full, valid, and unrestricted independent license or certification to remain qualified for employment. Loss of licensure or certification will result in removal from the GS-0185 social worker series and may result in termination of employment.
• Grandfathering Provision. The following is the standard grandfathering policy for all title 38 hybrid qualification standards. Please carefully review the qualification standard to determine the specific education and/or licensure/certification/registration requirements that apply to this occupation.
• English Language Proficiency. Candidates must be proficient in spoken and written English to be appointed as authorized by 38 U.S.C. § 7403(f).

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:

Supervisory Social Worker, GS-13

• Experience/Education. One year of experience equivalent to the GS-12 grade level. Experience must demonstrate possession of advanced practice skills in a specialty area or in administration demonstrating progressively more professional competency and judgment. Candidate may have certification or other post-master's degree training from a nationally recognized professional organization or university that includes a defined curriculum/course of study and internship, or equivalent supervised professional experience.
• Licensure/Certification. Individuals assigned as supervisory social workers must be licensed or certified at the advanced practice level, and must be able to provide supervision for licensure.

Demonstrated Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities:

1. Ability to independently organize work, set priorities, and meet multiple deadlines.
2. Skill in a range of supervisory duties which includes clinical supervision, consultation, negotiation with other departments and quality improvement.
3. Ability to ensure provision of clinical social work services by supervised social workers.
4. Ability to delegate authority, manage priorities, coordinate work, and follow up on pending issues to complete duties in an accurate and timely fashion.
5. Ability to analyze organizational and operational problems, develop and implement solutions that result in efficient operations, and use data effectively to manage workload, quality, performance, and productivity within the service.
6. Ability to provide staff training and development.

Assignment. For all assignments above the full performance level, the higher-level duties must consist of significant scope, complexity (difficulty), and variety and be performed by the incumbent at least 25% of the time. Supervisory social workers at the GS-13 grade level typically supervise professional and non-professional staff. They are responsible for the professional and administrative management of an area in a social work service, in a care/product line, or across multiple sites, (e.g., multi-division facilities and CBOCs). Incumbent may also provide direct clinical services.

Preferred Experience:

Preferred experience includes leadership and supervisory responsibility within an outpatient behavioral health setting, with demonstrated success in program management, interdisciplinary team coordination, and performance improvement initiatives.

Reference:

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