Job Description
Summary This position is located in a Department of Veterans Affairs, Regional Office (VARO). The Program Support Specialist will be responsible for administrative and technical work in the Veteran Readiness and Employment (VR&E) Division.
Learn more about this agency Duties Help
Specific duties include:
- The incumbent is responsible for determining VR&E program eligibility, ensuring all necessary information is accurate regarding date of claim, initial rating notification date etc.
- Fiscal responsibilities include authorizing subsistence allowance awards, Veteran supply purchasing, beneficiary travel and contract administration such as processing referral requests, review QA reports, and authorizing contracting invoices.
- Responsible clerical duties such as scheduling counseling appointments, distributing mail, managing VR&E electronic files, maintaining office supplies and responding to a variety of personal, telephone and written inquiries from VR&E participants and staff.
- Organizes work to meet internal controls, deadlines and mandatory timelines for service delivery.
- Responsible for researching, developing responses, and answering inquiries received from the AVA system or similar VA online inquiry system.
- Under the direct supervision and guidance of the VR&E Officer and/or Vocational Rehabilitation Counselor (VRC), assists in providing administrative case management services for disabled veterans and their dependents.
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. The grade progression for this position is GS-7/9.
Work Schedule: Full time, Monday - Friday 8:00 a.m. - 4:30 p.m.
Compressed/Flexible: Not Available
Telework : This position is eligible for situational (ad hoc) telework only. The selectee is required to report to the official duty station each scheduled workday. Telework may be approved only on a case-by-case basis with supervisory approval. Routine or recurring telework is not authorized for this position.
Virtual: This is not a virtual position.
Position Description/PD# : Program Specialist; PD38787A and PD38786A
Relocation/Recruitment Incentives : Not Authorized
Financial Disclosure Report: Not Required
Requirements Help
Conditions of employment As a condition of employment for accepting this position, you will be required to serve a 1-year probationary period 1 during which we will evaluate your fitness and whether your continued employment advances the public interest. In determining if your employment advances the public interest, we may consider:
- your performance and conduct;
- the needs and interests of the Agency;
- whether your continued employment would advance organizational goals of the Agency or the Government; and
- whether your continued employment would advance the efficiency of the Federal service.
Upon completion of your probationary period , your employment will be terminated unless you receive certification, in writing, that your continued employment advances the public interest.
Additional Conditions of Employment are as follows:
- You must be a U.S. Citizen to apply for this job
- Selective Service Registration is required for males born after 12/31/1959
- You may be required to serve a probationary or trial period
- Subject to background/security investigation
- Selected applicants will be required to complete an online onboarding process. Acceptable form(s) of identification will be required to complete pre-employment requirements I-9 Acceptable Documents.
- Effective May 7, 2025, driver's licenses or state-issued identification cards that are not REAL ID compliant cannot be utilized as an acceptable form of identification for employment.
Qualifications To qualify for this position, applicants must meet all requirements by the closing date of this announcement:09/24/2026.
TIME-IN-GRADE REQUIREMENT : As a current Federal, GS employee you must meet time-in-grade requirements by the closing date of this announcement.
- For a GS-07 position you must have served 52 weeks at the GS-05 level.
- For a GS-09 position you must have served 52 weeks at the GS-07 level.
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.
MINIMUM QUALIFICATION REQUIREMENT: You may qualify based on your experience and/or education as described below:
To qualify for the GS-07 Grade Level: Specialized Experience: Applicants must have one year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the next lower grade (GS-5). In addition to the skills for the (GS-05) level, specialized experience at the GS-7 level is defined as responsible for human services or general office administration. Examples include but are not limited to:
- Gather information to provide customer service and make decisions on program eligibility
- Communicate with program participants/customers via phone, in-person, and email regarding program benefits and services
- Organize work to ensure accurate recordkeeping in an electronic system is maintained, distribute mail received from email or an electronic mail delivery system, and schedule appointments
- Use interpersonal skills to work in a collaborative and tactful manner with social service professionals and customers in the delivery of services
OR Education Substitution : Applicants may substitute education for the experience required to qualify at the GS-07 grade level.
- Education substitution of 1 full year of graduate level education; OR
- Superior Academic Achievement (SAA). SAA is based on a GPA of 3.0 or higher out of a possible 4.0; class standing in the upper third of graduating class; or election to membership in a national scholastic honor society
To qualify for the GS-09 Grade Level: Specialized Experience: Applicants must have one year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the next lower grade (GS-7). In addition to the skills for the GS-7 level, specialized experience at the GS-9 level must document experience in the following:
- Experience working with Veteran Readiness and Employment programs;
- Experience working with fiscal, contracting or monetary benefits and procedures;
- Experience using case management software and providing administrative support in a benefit delivery office.
OR Education Substitution : Applicants may substitute education for the experience required to qualify at the GS-09 grade level.
- Education substation of a Master's or equivalent graduate degree; or
- Two (2) full years of progressively higher-level graduate education leading to such a degree; or
- LLB. or J.D., if related
Combining Education & Experience: If you do not fully meet the length of experience and education described for a specific grade level (e.g. have six months of experience and some coursework but not a degree), the two can be combined to total 100% of the requirement. Click here for more information.
Volunteer Experience: 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.
Full vs. Part-Time Employment: Full-time employment is considered to be at least 35 hours per week. Part-time experience will be credited on a pro-rated basis; when including part-time employment in your resume you must specify the average hours worked per week.
Physical Requirements: The work normally involves mental rather than physical exertion. The work is mostly sedentary; however, there may be some walking, standing, and carrying of light items.
For more information on these qualification standards, please visit the United States Office of Personnel Management's website at
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: 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:
You may submit unofficial transcripts when applying. However, if you are selected for the position, you will be required to provide an official transcript or a statement from the institution (e.g., from the registrar, dean, or other appropriate official) or equivalent documentation prior to the start date.
Additional information 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.
The
Career Transition Assistance Plan (CTAP) provide eligible displaced VA competitive service employees with selection priority over other candidates for competitive service vacancies. To be qualified you must submit appropriate documentation (a copy of the agency notice, your most recent performance rating, and your most recent SF-50 noting your current position, grade level, and duty location) and be found well-qualified (have a final rating of 85 or more) for this vacancy. Information about ICTAP and CTAP eligibility is on OPM's Career Transition Resources website at
Placement Policy: The posting of this announcement does not obligate management to fill a vacancy or vacancies by promotion. The position may be filled by reassignment, change to lower grade, transfer, appointment, or reinstatement. Management may use any one or any combination of these methods to fill the position.
It is the policy of the VA to not deny employment to those that have faced financial hardships or periods of unemployment.
This job opportunity announcement may be used to fill additional vacancies.
Under the Fair Chance to Compete Act, the Department of Veterans Affairs prohibits requesting an applicant's criminal history prior to accepting a tentative job offer (TJO). Please visit the Human Resources and Administration/Operations, Security, and Preparedness (HRA/OSP),
Reasonable Accommodation (RA) Requests: If you believe you have a disability (i.e., physical or mental), covered by the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 as amended that would interfere with completing the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments, you will be granted the opportunity to request a RA in your online application. Requests for RA for the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments and appropriate supporting documentation for RA must be received prior to starting the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments. Decisions on requests for RA are made on a case-by-case basis. If you meet the minimum qualifications of the position, after notification of the adjudication of your request, you will receive an email invitation to complete the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments, based on your adjudication decision. You must complete all assessments within 48 hours of receiving the URL to access the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments if you received the link after the close of the announcement.
To determine if you need a RA, please review: Procedures for Requesting a Reasonable Accommodation for Online Assessments. (
For more information on the "Who may apply" eligibility requirements, please refer to the OHRM Status Candidates and Other Candidate Definitions document.
Candidates should be committed to improving the efficiency of the Federal government, passionate about the ideals of our American republic, and committed to upholding the rule of law and the United States Constitution.
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Job Tags
Full time, Contract work, Part time, Second job, Work at office, Remote work, Trial period, Relocation package, Monday to Friday, Flexible hours