Supervisory Vocational Rehabilitation Counselor

Veterans Benefits Administration • Indianapolis, IN

4d

About The Position

The Supervisory Vocational Rehabilitation Counselor (SVRC) provides administrative and technical direction and professional leadership to Vocational Rehabilitation Counselors, Vocational Rehabilitation Specialists, and clerical staff in a Regional Office and its out-based locations. The SVRC administers and manages workflow for the Veteran Readiness and Employment (VR&E) Division program and supervises staff at the Regional Office and out-based locations.

The position coordinates with public and private universities, community colleges, and vocational and technical institutes to resolve training issues. It serves as a technical representative in developing, awarding, implementing, and evaluating contracts for counseling, evaluation, case management, employment, and traumatic brain injury services. The SVRC gathers and interprets data on service concerns and recommends appropriate action, while working with division teams to plan and carry out programs, projects, studies, and other mission-supporting work.

The SVRC evaluates subordinate performance, recommends staffing actions and awards, receives employee complaints, approves employee travel, and identifies ways to reduce backlogs and production barriers. The role develops multi-year schedules for in-service and contract work, supervises contract quality reviews, and ensures contracting activity complies with regulatory requirements.

The position requires extensive knowledge of Department of Veterans Affairs laws, regulations, policies, procedures, benefits, and services. As a professional and technical expert, the SVRC advises higher management on education, training, psychology, testing, evaluation, counseling, rehabilitation, job development, and job placement. The role implements counseling, training, and related rehabilitation services under Chapter 31 and other VA rehabilitation, education, and training programs, and assists the VR&E Officer with expertise across rehabilitation activities, including counseling, case management, rehabilitation-plan development, and job development and placement.

Requirements

• Successful completion of a master's degree or higher in rehabilitation counseling, rehabilitation services, clinical rehabilitation counseling, counseling psychology, mental health counseling, career counseling, or social work from an accredited college or university.
• The qualifying education must include a supervised internship in rehabilitation counseling or case management specialization, supervised by a vocational rehabilitation professional or a closely related professional who typically oversees vocational rehabilitation programs; alternatively, one year of post-master's experience delivering professional vocational rehabilitation services directly to individuals with disabilities.
• For the GS-13 grade, one year of specialized experience equivalent to GS-13 or higher, obtained post-graduate and directly related to professional VRC duties.
• Specialized experience must include conducting assessments of veterans' employability; developing vocational goals and objectives in rehabilitation plans; providing case management to veterans pursuing rehabilitation plans; and interpreting VR&E benefits and services for veterans.
• Current Federal GS employees must meet the time-in-grade requirement: 52 weeks at GS-12 for a GS-13 position, subject to the announcement's stated reassignment conditions.
• U.S. citizenship is required.
• Selective Service registration is required for males born after December 31, 1959.
• A supervisory probationary period of one year is required; a probationary or trial period may also be required.
• Applicants are subject to a background/security investigation and must complete online onboarding and acceptable I-9 identification requirements.
• A transcript must be submitted with the application and must show coursework and the date a master's degree was conferred. Foreign education requires a Certificate of Foreign Equivalency with the transcript.
• Part-time experience is credited on a pro-rated basis; applicants claiming it must document duties, responsibilities, and hours worked per week.

Responsibilities

• Provide administrative and technical direction and professional leadership to professional and technical staff in the Regional Office and out-based locations.
• Supervise VR&E staff at out-based locations and within the Regional Office.
• Administer the VR&E Division program and manage its workflow.
• Coordinate with public and private universities, community colleges, and vocational and technical institutes to resolve training issues.
• Represent the division technically in developing, awarding, implementing, and evaluating contracts for counseling, evaluation, case management, employment, and TBI services.
• Gather and interpret data concerning service issues and recommend appropriate action.
• Plan and carry out programs, projects, studies, and other work with division teams.
• Evaluate subordinate performance; recommend staffing actions and awards; receive employee complaints; approve employee travel; and identify ways to reduce backlogs and production barriers.
• Develop multi-year plans for scheduling in-service and contract work.
• Supervise contract quality reviews and ensure contracting activity under division control complies with regulatory requirements.
• Advise higher management as a professional and technical expert in education, training, psychology, testing, evaluation, counseling, rehabilitation, job development, and job placement.
• Implement counseling, training, and related rehabilitation services under Chapter 31 and other VA rehabilitation, educational, and training programs.
• Assist the VR&E Officer with professional and technical expertise in counseling, case management, rehabilitation-plan development, and job development and placement.

Benefits

• Federal employees and their families have access to a comprehensive benefits package; specific benefits depend on position type and should be confirmed with the hiring agency.

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Manager