Qualifications

In order to qualify for this position, you must meet the requirement below within 30 calendar days of the closing date listed on the announcement.

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: Hold a master's or doctoral degree in: Clinical Mental Health Counseling
• Clinical Rehabilitation Counseling
• Clinical Mental Health Counseling and Clinical Rehabilitation Counseling
• or a related field, from a program accredited by the Council on Accreditation of Counseling and Related Educational Programs (CACREP)
• Examples of related mental health counseling fields include, but are not limited to Addiction Counseling
• Community Counseling
• Gerontology Counseling
• Marital, Couple, and Family Counseling
• CACREP defines the date when graduates are considered to have graduated from a CACREP accredited program
• Additional information may be obtained from http://www.cacrep.org/directory/
• NOTE: Traditional Rehabilitation counseling programs that are accredited by CACREP do not meet the LPMHC qualification standards as Traditional Rehabilitation counseling differs from Clinical Rehabilitation counseling
• Licensure: Persons hired or reassigned to LPMHC positions in the GS-0183 series in VHA must hold a full, current, and unrestricted license to independently practice as a Licensed Professional Mental Health Counselor, which includes diagnosis and treatment
• English Language Proficiency: LPMHCs must be proficient in spoken and written English in accordance with VA Handbook 5005, Part II, chapter 3, section A, paragraph 3.j
• 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, candidates must have at least one year of progressively complex experience equivalent to the GS-11 grade level
• Experience must demonstrate possession of advanced practice skills, judgment, and competency
• Assignments
• At this level, LPMHCs administratively supervise their licensed staff and/or graduates and are considered LPMHC subject matter experts and may serve as the discipline lead
• LPMHCs may provide treatment to patients
• They direct the development and implementation of services and treatment to patients through the administrative supervision, mentoring, and oversight of assigned clinical staff
• Their experience must demonstrate practice skills in a specialty area or in administration demonstrating progressively more professional competency and judgment
• 10 Demonstrated Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities
• In addition to meeting the KSAs for the GS-11 grade level, the candidate must demonstrate all of the KSAs below: 1
• Ability to administratively supervise other providers and conduct meetings
• 2
• Ability to maintain a professional environment by following organizational policies, guidelines and safety standards
• 3
• Ability to establish and clearly communicate guidelines and performance expectations for staff 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-12
• Physical Requirements: This position is primarily sedentary in nature
• It requires English language proficiency in accordance with Public Law 102-585, and the ability to effectively communicate in verbal and written formats
• This position requires travel to multiple facility locations to carry out assigned duties.