Peer Specialist

The Peer Specialist functions as an interdisciplinary team member assisting physicians and other professional/non-professional personnel in a rehabilitation treatment program. Peer specialists perform a variety of therapeutic and supportive tasks that include assisting Veterans in articulating their goals for recovery and personal wellness learning and practicing new skills helping them monitor their progress assisting them in their treatment modeling effective coping techniques and self-help strategies based on the peer specialists own recovery experience and supporting them in advocating for themselves to obtain effective services. This position will serve as a community-based peer specialist within the local VA facility catchment area. The working environment may include providing peer support services in places such as Veterans homes prisons jails treatment courts shelters tent encampments street outreach etc.
Duties include but not limited to the following:

• Participates in the service training consultation and other professional activities of VA health care services and functions as a fully vested member of the multidisciplinary team.
• Uses personal recovery experiences to model coping techniques and recovery tolls to coach Veterans to relevant skills need for self-management of their health condition(s) and pursuit of their personal wellness.
• Observes behaviors that might indicate difficulty adapting or responding to treatment (e.g. missed assessment appointments failure to attend or maintain abstinence risk to self or others disruptive behavior) completes appropriate documentation and reports concerns to the treatment team in a timely manner.
• Uses ongoing individual and group meetings to teach Veterans how to identify and combat negative self-talk and overcome fears by providing a forum that allows Veteran to share their experiences.
• As necessary handles crisis interventions for Veterans and addresses other emergent situations without the benefit of specific instructions.
• Informs Veterans about VA and community supports and resources including how to effectively utilize them in the recovery and wellness process.
• Maintains a working knowledge of current trends and developments in holistic approaches in wellness and recovery by reading books journals and other relevant materials.
• Position requires operation of a motor vehicle or access to public transportation to perform assigned duties.
• Accompanies Veterans to appointments as needed whether medical housing or other treatment plan goal appointments either through agency vehicle or public transportation.
• Assists Veterans to identify resources and problem solve how to overcome barriers so that the Veterans can independently address transportation and other personal needs.
• Subsequent background checks may be required if treating Veterans in an institutional setting
• Performs other related duties as assigned.

Conditions of employment

• You must be a U.S. Citizen to apply for this job
• You must have a full current and unrestricted peer specialist certification to meet this qualification requirement for employment in VHA as a peer specialist.
• You must be a Veteran (See Statutory Requirements below)
• Selective Service Registration is required for males born after 12/31/1959
• 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 ( Effective May 7 2025 drivers licenses or state-issued dentification cards that are not REAL ID compliant cannot be utilized as an acceptable form of identification for employment.
• Participation in the seasonal influenza vaccination program is a requirement for all Department of Veterans Affairs Health Care Personnel (HCP).

• 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.

Qualifications

To qualify for this position applicants must meet all requirements by the closing date of this announcement 02/06/2026.

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-6 position you must have served 52 weeks at the GS-5. For a GS-07 position you must have served 52 weeks at the GS-06. For a GS-08 position you must have served 52 weeks at the GS-07. For a GS-09 position you must have served 52 weeks at the GS-08. 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 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.

BASIC REQUIREMENTS FOR PEER SPECIALISTS

a. Statutory Requirements. Section 405 of Public Law 110-387 as codified in 38 U.S.C. 7402(b)(13) established that to be eligible to receive appointment to a Peer Specialist position a person must:

(1) be a veteran who has recovered or is recovering from a mental health condition; and
(2) be certified by (SEE EDUCATION SECTION)-
(a) a not-for-profit entity engaged in peer specialist training as having met such criteria as the Secretary shall establish for a peer specialist position; or
(b) a State as having satisfied relevant State requirements for a peer specialist position.

b. Length of Experience in Recovery: must have at least 1 year of recovery from a mental health condition (mental illness and/or substance use disorder). Successful recovery is exemplified by one who manages symptoms of illness and pursues a healthy lifestyle; lives independently; is employed or volunteers significant time approximating at least a part-time employment schedule; has meaningful relationships with family members and friends; and is socially involved in the community through clubs hobby groups church civic organizations or Veteran organizations in which the individual provides a service to others.

NOTE: You MUST provide your MEMBER 4 copy DD-214 and Peer Specialist Certification with your application package.

ENGLISH LANGUAGE PROFICIENCY:
In accordance with 38 U.S.C. 7402(d) No person shall serve in direct patient care positions unless they are proficient in basic written and spoken English. You must be proficient in basic written and spoken English in order to meet the requirements of this position.

MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS:

GS-6: One year of specialized experience at the next lower graded level which involved post-personal mental health recovery experience as a mentor providing counseling to support peers in mental health and/or addiction recovery a recovery advocate directly involved with consumers of mental health services a psychiatric therapy aide or equivalent work involving in-person communication to support others in mental health recovery. Your work has been closely monitored including having work checked in progress and reviewing completed work for accuracy adequacy and adherence to instructions or procedures.

GS-7: One year of specialized experience at the next lower graded level which involved post-personal mental health recovery experience as a mentor providing counseling to support peers in mental health and/or addiction recovery a recovery advocate directly involved with consumers of mental health services a psychiatric therapy aide or equivalent work involving in-person communication to support others in mental health recovery. At this level routine work has been completed with minimal supervisory oversight and review however close supervision will have been provided for complex and unusual tasks.

GS-8: One year of specialized experience at the next lower graded level which involved post-personal mental health recovery experience as a mentor providing counseling to support peers in mental health and/or addiction recovery a recovery advocate directly involved with consumers of mental health services a psychiatric therapy aide or equivalent work involving in-person communication to support others in mental health recovery. At this level you have the ability to work with general instructions for the performance of routine duties and detailed instructions and/or training in performance of the non-routine functions and special assignments. Non-routine/novel work will have been reviewed by spot checking and after completion to evaluate the adequacy of methods procedures results ability to solve new and changing problems etc.

GS-9: One year of specialized experience at the next lower graded level which involved post-personal mental health recovery experience as a mentor providing counseling to support peers in mental health and/or addiction recovery a recovery advocate directly involved with consumers of mental health services a psychiatric therapy aide or equivalent work involving in-person communication to support others in mental health recovery. At this level work will have been performed with considerable independence and you are responsible for making recommendations to the interdisciplinary treatment team that can be relied on for soundness of judgment and maturity of insight on problem situations.

-OR-

EDUCATION SUBSTITUTION: (Transcripts are required with your application package) CAN ONLY BE SUBSTITUTED IF CERTIFICATION QUALIFIES (UNDER EDUCATION SECTION)

GS-6: Successful completion Six (6) months of graduate education or a 1-year post-bachelors degree internship meets the requirements for GS-6. Only education that is directly related to the work of the position is creditable.

GS-7: Successful completion One (1) full year of graduate education meets the requirements for GS-7. Only education that is directly related to the work of the position is creditable.

GS-8: Successful completion One and one/half (1 ½) years of graduate education meets the requirements for GS-8. Only education that is directly related to the work of the position is creditable.

GS-9: Successful completion Two (2) full years of graduate education or a masters degree meets the requirements for GS-9. Only education that is directly related to the work of the position is creditable.

NOTE: One (1) 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 and Work Environment: The work is primarily sedentary. Typically the employee sits to do the work. There may be some walking standing bending carrying of light items (such as books papers) and accessing transportation. The work may require occasional use of Department of Veterans Affairs approved behavioral management techniques with Veterans who present a danger to self or others. Veterans demonstrate varying levels of wellness recovery and symptoms. This position must be equipped to be flexible and accept that work areas are often noisy irregular unpredictable and stressful. Work is performed in a wide range of settings including the Medical Center group or family homes community-based outpatient settings community organizations or in transport vehicles (public or government).