Rehabilitation Counselor

Rehabilitation Counselor

Department: Department of Veterans Affairs

Location(s): Perry Point, Maryland

Salary Range: $67339 - $105911 Per Year

Job Summary: The Rehabilitation Counselor serves as a certified rehabilitation provider as a member of the Vocational Rehabilitation Services Compensated Work Therapy (CWT) Program under the Rehabilitation Services Section of the Mental Health Clinical Center, within the Veterans Administration Maryland Health Care System (VAMHCS). Rehabilitation Counselors work with an interdisciplinary team to provide and coordinate a wide range of rehabilitation counseling services to Veterans with disabilities.

Major Duties:

• Duties: Serve as a journey level Rehabilitation Counselor providing personal adjustment counseling, therapeutic rehabilitation interventions, and case coordination services Uses evidence-informed and evidence-based modalities to aid Veterans with severe disabilities, such as physical, psychosocial, psychological, or neurological barriers, integrate successfully into the community. Serve Veterans who have myriad barriers to overcome and achieve competitive employment, educational, and independent living goals. Provide a variety of professional rehabilitation counseling services such as personal adjustment counseling, therapeutic rehabilitation interventions and case coordination services, utilizing evidence-informed and evidence-based modalities and professional counseling practices to aid Veterans with severe disabilities in achieving competitive employment and educational and independent living goals Use effective counseling skills to promote self-awareness, adjustment to disability, enhanced job retention and successful integration to the community Conduct biopsychosocial assessments using medical records, pertinent disability documentation, observation and interviews with Veterans and their support systems to generate personal, vocational, and educational histories. Select, administer, and interpret vocational and other psychometric instruments to evaluate abilities, transferrable skills, functional capacity, labor market analyses, aptitudes, interests, values, preferences, and overall work resilience and synthesize into an interpretive data report. Customize vocational exploration activities to identify self-determined rehabilitation needs and goals. Consult with interdisciplinary teams to enhance coordination of care, ensure medical clearance, and provide for optimal timing of further interventions. Synthesize assessment information to identify barriers to employment and their vocational implications. Determine clinical need for and capacity to benefit from therapeutic and rehabilitation services to include work restoration/resilience treatment, transitional work placement and/or competitive employment, assistive technology, financial benefits counseling and potential benefits protections. Develop patient-centered treatment plans utilizing Specific, Measurable, Agreed upon, Realistic, and Time-based (SMART) goals and provides ongoing assessment of Veteran's progress. Devise solutions to reduce and/or eliminate barriers and meet Veterans' placement needs which may require substantial modification to environmental or functional demands within a work setting. Provide psychoeducational and/or psychotherapeutic groups to facilitate effective job search skills, employer-desired soft skills, work and life skills fostering independence and recovery. Provide job development, customized employment, job carving, job coaching, job accommodation, advocacy, and adaptation services to both Veterans with severe disabilities and to educate and support employers. Use marketing strategies to develop collaborative partnerships/Memorandums of Agreement within the VA and the local business community to enhance employment and/or work opportunities. Establish and maintain as a liaison between the Medical Center and organizations within the community which provide competitive employment opportunities for Veterans. Provide disability education and program-specific training to staff and stakeholders. Communicate appropriately with community health care professionals to provide useful input to other team members and employers concerning the Veteran and the family's psychosocial needs. Provide supervision to graduate level rehabilitation counseling students from an accredited affiliated educational institution, including educational experiences, and in-service education for trainees, rehabilitation staff, and other disciplines. Use rehabilitation counseling theory, medical and psychiatric terminology, and symptomology and signs of suicidal and homicidal ideations to provide effective services Provide professional recommendations and guidance regarding the career development processes and job analysis methodology to determine essential functions Of jobs, worksite modifications and/or alternative vocational goals given the work history and residual functional capacities of individuals with disabilities. Utilize knowledge of the military culture, military transition to civilian occupations, and specific factors and dynamics associated with Veterans, particularly combat Veterans, to advise those who are returning to the community, and community-based work. Work Schedule: Monday-Friday, 8:00am-4:30pm Compressed/Flexible: Not Available Telework: Not Available Virtual: This is not a virtual position. Functional Statement #: 26171F/25505F Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized

Qualifications: Applicants pending the completion of educational or certification/licensure requirements may be referred and tentatively selected but may not be hired until all requirements are met. 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: A master's degree in rehabilitation counseling or clinical rehabilitation counseling from a rehabilitation counseling program accredited by the Council for Accreditation of Counseling and Related Educational Programs (CACREP). If degree was granted prior to July 1, 2017, the program must be accredited by the Council on Rehabilitation Education. OR A master's degree in counseling or clinical rehabilitation counseling from a college or university accredited by a national or regional accrediting body accredited by Council for Higher Education Accreditation (CHEA). OR A master's or doctoral degree in a related field of study with course content that emphasized rehabilitation, counseling, disability, therapy, health, employment, wellness, or human development from a college or university accredited by a national or regional accrediting body accredited by CHEA. OR Foreign graduates with a degree acceptable by the Commission on Rehabilitation Counselor Certification (CRCC). Certification: Current, full and unrestricted certification as a certified rehabilitation counselor (CRC) from the CRCC to practice vocational rehabilitation counseling. English Language Proficiency: Candidates must be proficient in spoken and written English to be appointed as authorized by 38 U.S.C. § 7403(f). 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). Grandfathering Provision: All individuals employed as RCs within VHA on the effective date of this qualification standard are considered to have met all qualification requirements for the title, series, and grade held including positive education and certification. For employees who do not meet all the basic requirements required in this standard, but who met the qualifications applicable to the position at the time they were appointed to it, the following provisions apply: They may be reassigned, promoted up to and including the journeyman level (full performance level), or changed to lower grade within the occupation, but may not be promoted beyond the journeyman level or placed in supervisory or managerial positions. If a RC who was retained under this provision leaves the occupation, the employee will lose protected status and must meet the full VA qualification standard requirements in effect at the time of reentry to the occupation. RCs initially grandfathered into this occupation, who subsequently obtain additional education and/or licensure/certification/registration that meet all the basic requirements of this qualification standard, must maintain the required credentials as a condition of employment in the occupation. RCs who are appointed on a temporary basis prior to the effective date of the qualification standard may not have their temporary appointment extended or be reappointed, on a temporary or permanent basis, until they fully meet the basic requirements of the standard. Grade Determinations: Rehabilitation Counselor, GS-09 Experience. None beyond the basic requirements. Demonstrated Knowledge, Skills and Abilities (KSAs). In addition to meeting the experience or educational requirements for this grade level, the candidate must demonstrate all of the following KSAs: Knowledge of human development and behavior, medical, psychosocial, and vocational aspects of disability and differential influences of environmental factors to assist persons with disabilities in determining suitable vocational goals. Knowledge of history, philosophy and disability rights legislation in the field of rehabilitation to apply in the practice of rehabilitation counseling. Ability to synthesize assessment and diagnosis information in conjunction with labor market trends and community/educational resources to develop an effective individual service delivery plan. Knowledge of caseload management strategies to maximize an individual's independent functioning from assessment through provision of post-employment services. Ability to employ person-centered job development strategies to facilitate successful job placement. Knowledge of assessment tools and methods, functional capacity evaluations and specific vocational preparation to evaluate transferrable skills, residual capacities and needs for accommodations and assistive technology. Rehabilitation Counselor, GS-11 Experience: Completion of one year of professional experience equivalent to the next lower grade level directly related to the position being filled. OR Education: A doctoral degree in rehabilitation counselor education or related field(e.g. rehabilitation psychology) from a CACREP accredited institution or from an institution accredited by a national or regional accrediting body accredited by CHEA. Demonstrated Knowledge, Skills and Abilities: In addition to the experience above, the candidate must demonstrate all of the following KSAs: Knowledge of physical and psychological disabilities, appropriate accommodations and assistive technology principles to mitigate and reduce or eliminate barriers to integrate into the community. Knowledge of counseling theory, medical and psychiatric terminology and signs and symptomology of suicidal and homicidal ideations, to communicate appropriately with community health care professionals to provide useful input to other team members and employers in relation to the Veteran and/or his/her family's psychosocial needs and to recommend and help implement suitable treatment plans. Ability to use evidence-based and evidence informed vocational and professional counseling practices to include individual placement and support (IPS), customized employment and supported employment models and motivational interviewing skills to promote self-awareness, adjustment to disability, enhanced job retention and successful integration to the community. Knowledge of career development processes and job analysis methodology to determine essential functions of jobs, worksite modifications and/or alternative vocational goals given the work history and residual functional capacities of individuals with disabilities. Ability to administer and interpret a wide variety of assessment methods including transferrable skills and labor market analyses to evaluate for individual interests, aptitudes and abilities and to identify suitable vocational goals for the development of an effective individual service delivery plan. Knowledge of marketing strategies to develop collaborative partnerships/Memorandums of Agreement within VA and local business community to enhance employment and/or work opportunities. Knowledge of military lifestyle, specific factors, and dynamics associated with Veterans, particularly combat Veterans, to assist those who are returning to community and community based-work. Preferred Experience: Experience providing services with adult populations Experience working with behavioral health populations Experience working with populations diagnosed with serious mental illnesses Experience developing patient-centered treatment plans utilizing SMART goals and providing ongoing assessment of individuals progress Experience in rehabilitation counseling 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-11. The actual grade at which an applicant may be selected for this vacancy is in the range of GS-09 to GS-11.

How to Apply: All applicants are encouraged to apply online. To apply for this position, you must complete the full questionnaire and submit the documentation specified in the Required Documents section below. The complete application package must be submitted by 11:59 PM (ET) on 12/19/2025 to receive consideration. To preview the questionnaire click https://apply.usastaffing.gov/ViewQuestionnaire/12846377. To begin, click Apply Online to create a USAJOBS account or log in to your existing account. Follow the prompts to select your USA JOBS resume and/or other supporting documents and complete the occupational questionnaire. Click Submit My Answers to submit your application package. NOTE: It is your responsibility to ensure your responses and appropriate documentation is submitted prior to the closing date.

Application Deadline: 2025-12-19