This position in located at the VA Regional Office (VARO) - VA regional Office (VARO), located in Buffalo, NY., and will be out-based in Fort Drum, NY. The Military Service Coordinator provides specific information and assistance to veterans, their dependents and beneficiaries concerning matters within the scope of VA and non-VA related benefits. The Military Service Coordinator also represents the VA Regional Office by serving as a liaison for local military installations.

Duties

Perform direct veteran benefit counseling to include information on the full range of VA and non-VA benefits to which separating and retiring service members and their beneficiaries. Provide individual counseling on specific VA related information to disabled veterans about specially designated employment assistance for service members being separated for medical reasons. Identify issues by conducting interviews , gathering relevant evidence to properly develop claims. Maintain professional, positive and helpful relationships with customers by exercising tact, diplomacy and cooperation with all VBA partners. Act on behalf of the Director and Veterans Service Center Management (VSCM) as liaison between Regional Offices (RO) and employees of RO's, veterans, and the community. Responsible for arranging and conducting workshops, seminars, and other meetings with a wide variety of service organizations, Congressional staff, and state and local government veterans? offices to address concerns and issues with those benefits. Develop and maintains relationships with veteran's service organizations, community groups, and others whose interest is in helping veterans and their families in order to enhance cooperation with the VA.

Requirements

• You must be a U.S. citizen to apply for this job.
• Selectees are subject to a background/suitability investigation.
• Selective Service registration is required for males born after 12/31/1959.
• A probationary period may be required for employees and supervisors.
• A complete application package; Resume, Transcripts, etc.
• Selected applicants will be required to complete an online onboarding process.

Qualifications

To qualify for this position, applicants must meet all requirements by the closing date of this announcement, 08/23/2023. The Office of Personnel Management's (OPM's) group qualification standards covering white collar occupations in the Federal competitive service can be found: Here Specialized Experience: To qualify at the GS-11: Applicants must have one (1) year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the next lower grade (GS-09) in the federal or other services. Specialized experience is work experience that equipped the applicant with the knowledge, skills and abilities (KSA's) to perform successfully the duties of the position. Specialized experience for this position is defined as: (1) Conducting professional interviews to obtain essential information; (2) Determining eligibility for benefits; (3) Interpreting and applying pertinent laws, regulations, legal opinions, and procedures that affect such decisions, adjudicating or authorizing claims; and (4) Application of lay medical knowledge, to include knowledge of human anatomy and medical terminology sufficient to facilitate sound decisions for the purpose of evaluating disability conditions. OR Applicants may substitute education for experience at grade GS-11. Applicants may substitute Graduate Education to qualify for grade GS-11. Applicants may substitute education for experience with an awarded Ph.D. or equivalent doctoral degree (such as an LL.M.) from an accredited college or university, or three full years (54 semester hours or 81 quarter hours) of progressively higher level graduate education leading to such a doctoral degree. This graduate degree or education must demonstrate the knowledge, skills, and abilities to do the work of this position. If you are claiming to qualify based on your education, your application must include an official or unofficial copy of graduate level transcripts that demonstrate this information. OR Applicants may substitute a combination of graduate education and specialized experience to qualify for grade GS-11. If you have some, but not all, of the graduate education described above AND less than one full year of the specialized experience described above, you may qualify by combining the amount of creditable education and experience that you do have. Only graduate education in excess of the amount required for the next lower grade level may be used to qualify applicants for positions at grade GS-11. To calculate, first identify the education you have earned beyond your first two years of study as a percentage of a total of three years of study. Then identify the number of months of specialized experience you have as a percentage of 12 months. Add the two percentages. The total must equal at least 100 percent in order to be qualifying. For example, an applicant who has 45 semester hours of graduate level education (i.e., 50% of graduate education required beyond the first two years) and who has 6 months of creditable specialized experience (i.e., 50% of the one year of specialized experience required) would meet 100% and thus be qualified for the position. If you are claiming to qualify based on your education, your application must include an official or unofficial copy of graduate level transcripts that demonstrate this information. Note: Experience refers to paid and unpaid experience, including volunteer work done through National Service programs (e.g., Peace Corps, AmeriCorps) and other organizations (e.g., professional; philanthropic; religions; spiritual; community; student; social). Volunteer work helps build critical competencies, knowledge and skills, and can provide valuable training and experience that translates directly to paid employment. You will receive credit for all qualifying experience you document, to include volunteer experience.

Education

An unofficial or official copy of your transcripts must be submitted with your application if you are basing all or part of your qualifications on education.

Note: Only education or degrees recognized by the U.S. Department of Education from accredited colleges, universities, schools, or institutions may be used to qualify for Federal employment. You can verify your education: http://ope.ed.gov/accreditation/

If you are using foreign education to meet qualification requirements, you must send a Certificate of Foreign Equivalency with your transcript in order to receive credit for that education. For further information, visit: https://www2.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ous/international/usnei/us/edlite-visitus-forrecog.html

Contacts

• Address Buffalo Regional Benefits Office 130 S. Elmwood Ave. Buffalo, NY 14202 US
• Name: HRC-Detroit DEU
• Phone: 313-596-7213
• Email: [email protected]