Counselor Jobs

About The Position

Requirements

• Hold a master's or doctoral degree in Clinical Mental Health Counseling, Clinical Rehabilitation Counseling, a combined qualifying field, or a related field from a CACREP-accredited program, subject to the stated qualification provisions.
• Hold a full, current, and unrestricted license to independently practice as a Licensed Professional Mental Health Counselor, including diagnosis and treatment; the announcement also specifies licensure to provide clinical supervision for the senior grade.
• Have at least one year of progressively complex LPMHC experience equivalent to GS-11.
• Have five years of post-licensed experience demonstrating advanced practice skills, judgment, progressive professional competency, and expertise.
• Demonstrate advanced knowledge of specialized treatment theories and modalities for complex mental illness, differential diagnosis, and treatment prioritization.
• Demonstrate advanced skill in specialized interventions and modalities, including individual, group, and/or family counseling or psychotherapy and psychosocial or case-management interventions.
• Demonstrate ability to coordinate specialized psychosocial services and programs and design system changes based on data.
• Demonstrate ability to provide subject-matter consultation to colleagues and trainees and render professional opinions based on experience and expertise.
• Demonstrate ability to teach, mentor staff and trainees, and provide supervision for licensure or specialty certifications.
• Demonstrate written and oral communication skills with leadership, staff, and community stakeholders about policies, procedures, practice guidelines, and professional practice issues.
• Be a U.S. citizen, except where the stated VA policy permits appointment of non-citizens when qualified citizens cannot be recruited.
• Be proficient in written and spoken English.
• Meet applicable background and security investigation requirements and complete the online onboarding and application requirements.
• Comply with the VA seasonal influenza vaccination requirement for health care personnel.
• Serve a one- or two-year trial period, subject to the stated evaluation and certification requirements.
• Meet applicable education-recognition requirements; foreign education used to qualify must be accompanied by a Certificate of Foreign Equivalency.
• For males born after December 31, 1959, meet Selective Service registration requirements.

Nice To Haves

• A minimum of two years of experience providing psychotherapy in a clinical setting.

Responsibilities

• Conduct comprehensive biopsychosocial assessments, diagnostic evaluations, and clinical assessments for Veterans with complex mental health and substance use disorders.
• Provide specialized, evidence-based individual and group psychotherapy, including cognitive behavioral therapy, motivational interviewing, relapse prevention, and trauma-informed interventions.
• Develop, implement, and evaluate individualized treatment and psychosocial rehabilitation plans based on Veterans’ clinical needs and recovery goals.
• Conduct suicide and violence risk assessments, develop safety plans, and provide crisis intervention, de-escalation, and clinical triage in the residential treatment environment.
• Collaborate with interdisciplinary team members, including psychiatry, nursing, peer specialists, and rehabilitation staff, to coordinate recovery-oriented care.
• Provide clinical consultation and guidance to interdisciplinary staff on complex cases, evidence-based treatments, and therapeutic interventions.
• Coordinate discharge planning, aftercare services, relapse-prevention strategies, and community reintegration efforts.
• Participate in developing, implementing, and evaluating residential treatment programming, therapeutic curricula, and quality improvement initiatives.
• Maintain timely and accurate clinical documentation and comply with VA policies, professional standards, and accreditation requirements.
• Teach, mentor, and provide clinical supervision to staff, trainees, or unlicensed LPMHCs, as applicable to the senior grade requirements.

Benefits

• Comprehensive federal employee benefits package available to the employee and family, subject to position eligibility.
• Potential credit toward annual leave accrual for prior federal work or military service, subject to request and approval before appointment and not guaranteed.