The Veterans Health Administration (VHA) Office of Research and Development is seeking a full-time Program Specialist for the Research and Development Service at the VA Medical Center in White River Junction, Vermont.

Duties

The primary responsibilities of the Program Specialist for Research & Development (R&D) service are to manage the budget activities of the service and to plan, develop, implement, and maintain a service level program of education and competency activities. In addition to budget development and management, the incumbent is responsible for contracted services and sharing agreements in collaboration with AMM&S; intergovernmental personnel act mobility program; inter-agency agreements; inventory control; and oversight of procurement activities for this very active program. The incumbent works closely with the Administrative Officer, R&D to operationalize new policies, programs and directives from VHA headquarters, and also participates in personnel management activities for R&D. Typical duties include, but are not limited to: Prepares estimates for projected operating budgets Oversees procurement and contracting for research service Manages obligations to ensure laws and regulations are followed Tracks and reports all inventory Operates orientation program for all research employees Provides educational opportunities for staff compliance, identifying priorities Prepares and reviews training budget Initiates personnel actions and monitors personnel agreements This is a bargaining unit position. Promotion Potential: The selectee may be promoted to the full performance level without further competition when all regulatory, qualification, and performance requirements are met. Selection at a lower grade level does not guarantee promotion to the full performance level. Work Schedule: 8:00am to 4:30pm, Monday through Friday Telework: VA supports the use of telework as a way to help attract and retain talented individuals in public service, increase worker productivity, and better prepare the agency to operate during emergencies. This position may be authorized for telework. Telework eligibility will be discussed during the interview process. Virtual: This is not a virtual position. Position Description/PD#: Program Specialist/PD00501A, PD03203A, and PD03229A Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not authorized Critical Skills Incentive (CSI): Not approved Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not authorized Financial Disclosure Report: Not required

Requirements

Qualifications

To qualify for this position, applicants must meet all requirements by the closing date of this announcement, 07/24/2024. Time-In-Grade Requirement: Applicants who are current Federal employees and have held a GS grade any time in the past 52 weeks must also meet time-in-grade requirements by the closing date of this announcement. For a GS-7 position you must have served 52 weeks at the GS-5. The grade may have been in any occupation, but must have been held in the Federal service. An SF-50 that shows your time-in-grade eligibility must be submitted with your application materials. If the most recent SF-50 has an effective date within the past year, it may not clearly demonstrate you possess one-year time-in-grade, as required by the announcement. In this instance, you must provide an additional SF-50 that clearly demonstrates one-year time-in-grade. Note: Time-In-Grade requirements also apply to former Federal employees applying for reinstatement as well as current employees applying for Veterans Employment Opportunities Act of 1998 (VEOA) appointment. You may qualify based on your experience and/or education as described below: GS-7: Specialized Experience. To qualify for this position at the GS-7 grade level, you must have one year of Specialized Experience equivalent to the GS-5 grade level. Examples of qualifying specialized experience include, but are not limited to: entering, tracking, and maintaining records of requests for personnel action and supplies/services/equipment; orienting new employees to department policies and procedures; assisting in the preparation of budget requests. OR, Education. 1 full year of graduate level education, or superior academic achievement (top 3rd of graduating class, GPA of 3.0 or higher, or election to membership in a national scholastic honor society (TRANSCRIPTS and/or evidence of class rank or membership required). OR, Combination. Equivalent combinations of education and experience are qualifying for all grade levels for which both education and experience are acceptable. GS-9: Specialized Experience. To qualify for this position at the GS-9 grade level, you must have one year of Specialized Experience equivalent to the GS-7 grade level. Examples of qualifying specialized experience include, but are not limited to: assisting with budget formulation and execution following specific instructions and procedural guidelines; maintaining records related to employee education and disseminates information regarding available and/or required training to employees; assists with a variety of personnel management tasks for both paid employees and those on without compensation (WOC) or Interagency Personnel Agreement (IPA) appointments. Collaborates across VA, non-profit corporation, and affiliate grants management offices to understand investigators' funding portfolios across sources. OR, Education. A master's or equivalent graduate degree, or 2 full years of progressively higher level graduate education leading to such a degree, or LL.B. or J.D. related to the work of this position (TRANSCRIPTS REQUIRED) OR, Combination. Equivalent combinations of education and experience are qualifying for all grade levels for which both education and experience are acceptable. GS-11: Specialized Experience. To qualify for this position at the GS-11 grade level, you must have one year of Specialized Experience equivalent to the GS-9 grade level. Examples of qualifying specialized experience include, but are not limited to: performing operational program budget execution duties including audits on control and use of funds throughout the year; assuring that obligations incurred and resulting expenditures of funds are in accordance with pertinent laws and regulations; conducting surveys of training needs to identify and determine training priorities within the program; developing and/or revising procedures, courses, training guides and plans, and seeking alternative training sources; directing the personnel management program for the service including development and writing of position descriptions, initiating personnel actions, and monitoring IPA s, WOCs and other contractual agreements for services; working with clinical service chiefs on an annual basis to ensure research labor mapping is reflective of clinicians' research funding levels. OR, Education. A Ph.D. or equivalent doctoral degree, or 3 full years of progressively higher level graduate education leading to such a degree, or LL.M. related to the work of this position (TRANSCRIPTS REQUIRED) OR, Combination. Equivalent combinations of education and experience are qualifying for all grade levels for which both education and experience are acceptable. You will be rated on the following Competencies for this position: Administration and Management Education and Training Contracting/Procurement Financial Management Knowledge Management 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, including volunteer experience. Note: A full year of work is considered to be 35-40 hours of work per week. Part-time experience will be credited on the basis of time actually spent in appropriate activities. Applicants wishing to receive credit for such experience must indicate clearly the nature of their duties and responsibilities in each position and the number of hours a week spent in such employment. Physical Requirements: The work is primarily sedentary, although some slight physical effort may be required. For more information on these qualification standards, please visit the United States Office of Personnel Management's website at https://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/classification-qualifications/general-schedule-qualification-standards/.

Education

A transcript 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 here: 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://sites.ed.gov/international/recognition-of-foreign-qualifications/.

Contacts

• Address White River Junction ORD VISN 1 215 North Main St. White River Junction, VT 05009 US
• Name: VHA National Recruitment Center
• Phone: (844)456-5208
• Email: [email protected]