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: Hold a master's or doctoral degree in: Clinical Mental Health Counseling
• Clinical Rehabilitation Counseling
• Clinical Mental Health Counseling and Clinical Rehabilitation Counseling
• or a related field, from a program accredited by the Council on Accreditation of Counseling and Related Educational Programs (CACREP)
• Examples of related mental health counseling field include, but are not limited to, Addiction Counseling
• Community Counseling
• Gerontology Counseling
• Marital, Couple, and Family Counseling
• A doctoral degree in mental health counseling may not be substituted for the master's degree in mental health counseling
• (TRANSCRIPT MUST BE PROVIDED WITH APPLICATION) Licensure: Persons hired or reassigned to LPMHC positions in the GS-0183 series in VHA must hold a full, current, and unrestricted license to independently practice as a Licensed Professional Mental Health Counselor, which includes diagnosis and treatment
• English Language Proficiency: LPMHCs must be proficient in spoken and written English in accordance with VA Handbook 5005, Part II, chapter 3, section A, paragraph 3.j
• 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).Grade Determinations: GS-11: Experience, Education, and Licensure
• In addition to the basic requirements, candidates must have at least one year of post-master's or post- doctoral degree mental health counseling experience (VA or non-VA experience) and must be licensed to practice at the independent practice level and demonstrate the KSAs in subparagraph (c) below
• LPMHCs may provide clinical supervision over the clinical practice of an unlicensed LPMHC or LPMHC trainee
• Some state licenses do not license an individual to provide clinical supervision to trainees or unlicensed LPMHCs
• Please refer to specific state licensing laws regarding the requirements for providing clinical supervision
• Assignments
• This is the full performance grade level for LPMHCs
• At this level they are licensed to independently practice professional counseling and to provide mental health services within the knowledge, theory, and training foundations of professional counseling
• Demonstrated Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities
• In addition to meeting the KSAs for the GS-9 grade level, the candidate must demonstrate all of the KSAs below: Ability to make professional evaluations, decisions, and recommendation for treatment planning and implementation
• Advanced knowledge and mastery of the fundamentals of the counseling process which includes defining patient/family problems and maintaining an effective counseling relationship
• Ability to provide subject matter consultation to colleagues and trainees on the counseling process within various specialty areas, build on the foundation of competence through regular meetings and discussions to explain assignments, review progress of cases and confer about the counseling perspectives and orientation
• Ability to provide complex crisis intervention and stabilization to patients who are in psychological distress
• Requires independent judgment and skill
• Ability to establish goals/treatment through a collaborative process with the patient utilizing advanced counseling skills, including evidenced- based practices, screening, and psychosocial assessment
• Ability to use a wide variety of individual, group, or familial counseling interventions
• demonstrates sensitivity to diversity and possesses multicultural counseling skills
• Ability to fully utilize the current DSM in making diagnoses and formulation of treatment goals and application of appropriate clinical intervention using professional counseling practices
• Ability to develop and facilitate psychotherapy and psycho- education groups that include life skills, family support, and community integration
• This may include evidence based psychotherapy Preferred Experience: Trained in utilizing evidence based practice
• Minimum 2 years therapy experience
• 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.