Social Worker-Behavioral Health Interdisciplinary Program (BHIP)

The BHIP Social Worker interviews Veterans and their family members/significant others to establish facts about the Veterans situation presenting problems and their causes and the impact of such problems on the Veterans functioning and health as part of a comprehensive psychosocial assessment. Interprets and explains VAs treatment and benefit programs. Duties and responsibilities include but are not limited to:

• The incumbent reviews all data subjective and objective and makes a clinical assessment identifying needs and strengths.
• Effectively uses professional skill objectivity and insight.
• Uses advanced clinical training insight and experience to interpret data and to identify viable treatment options.
• Assesses high risk factors acuity and need for services.
• The incumbent has the ability to serve Veterans who tend to have frequent and severe crises lack family or an adequate community support network be poor at self-monitoring and frequently fail to comply with instructions and treatment or have significant deficits in coping skills and require continuing professional psychosocial support.
• The incumbent provides referral to VA medical and mental health treatment and to other VA services including VA benefits as well as community-based social services and other non-VA entitlement programs.

Work Schedule: Monday through Friday 08:00am - 04:30pm
Telework: Ad-hoc/Situational-Occasional Non-routine
Virtual: This is not a virtual position
Functional Statement #: 81610F 82509F
EDRP Authorized: Former EDRP participants ineligible to apply for incentive.Contact the EDRP Coordinator for questions/assistance. Learn more

VA Careers - Social Work: of employment

• You must be a U.S. Citizen to apply for this job.
• Selective Service Registration is required for males born after 12/31/1959.
• Must be proficient in written and spoken English.
• 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 identification 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).
• Complete all application requirements detailed in the Required Documents section of this announcement.

As a condition of employment for accepting this position you will be required to serve a 1 or 2-year trial period during which we will evaluate your fitness and whether your continued employment advances the public 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 trial period your employment will be terminated unless you receive certification in writing that your continued employment advances the public interest.

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.
• English Language Proficiency: Candidates must be proficient in spoken and written English to be appointed as authorized by 38 U.S.C. 7403(f).
• Education: Have a masters degree in social work from a school of social work fully accredited by the Council on Social Work Education (CSWE). Graduates of schools of social work that are in candidacy status do not meet this requirement until the School of Social Work is fully accredited. A doctoral degree in social work may NOT be substituted for the masters degree in social work. Verification of the degree can be made by going to to verify that the social work degree meets the accreditation standards for a masters of social work.
• Licensure: Persons hired or reassigned to social worker positions in the GS-0185 series in VHA must be licensed or certified by a state to independently practice social work at the masters degree level. Current state requirements may be found by going to VHA may waive the licensure or certification requirement for persons who are otherwise qualified pending completion of state prerequisites for licensure/certification examinations. This exception only applies at the GS-9 grade level. For the GS-11 grade level and above the candidate must be licensed or certified. At the time of appointment the supervisor chief social work or social work executive will provide the unlicensed/uncertified social worker with the written requirements for licensure or certification including the time by which the license or certification must be obtained and the consequences for not becoming licensed or certified by the deadline.
  • For appointments at the GS-9 grade level VHA social workers who are not licensed or certified at the time of appointment must become licensed or certified at the independent masters level within three years of their appointment as a social worker. Most states require two years of post-MSW experience as a prerequisite to taking the licensure/certification exam and VHA gives social workers one additional year to pass the licensure/certification states such as California Washington and others where the prerequisites for licensure exceed two years social workers must become licensed at the independent masters level within one year of meeting the full state prerequisites for licensure.

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: In addition to meeting the basic requirements stated above the following qualifications criteria must be met in determining the appropriate grade assignment of candidates.

GS-09 (Entry Level)

• Experience Education and Licensure: None beyond the basic requirements.

GS-11 (Full-Performance Level)

• Experience and Licensure: Appointment to the GS-11 grade level requires completion of a minimum of one (1) year of post-MSW experience equivalent to the GS-9 grade level in the field of health care or other social work-related settings (VA or non-VA experience) and licensure or certification in a state at the independent practice level.

OR

• Education: In addition to meeting basic requirements a doctoral degree in social work from a school of social work may be substituted for the required one (1) year of professional social work experience in a clinical setting.

While we no longer require essay-style responses to our Knowledges Skills Abilities and Other Characteristics (KSAOs) you must be able to demonstrate that you possess the (below) competencies which are necessary to perform the work of the position. Please ensure your resume/CV/application contains sufficient information to support the level of experience/education/training; otherwise we will not be able to award you credit for the experience/education/training you claim. These are the KSAs for this subject position:

GS-09 (Entry Level)

1. Ability to utilize a Veteran centric approach when providing interventions and counseling for Veterans their family members caregivers and survivors.
2. Ability to assess the psychosocial functioning and needs of Veterans and their family members and to formulate and implement a treatment plan identifying the Veterans problems strengths weaknesses coping skills and assistance needed.
3. Ability to implement treatment modalities in working with individuals families and groups to achieve treatment goals. This requires judgment and skill in utilizing supportive problem solving or crisis intervention techniques.
4. Ability to establish and maintain effective working relationships and communicate with clients staff and representatives of community agencies.
5. Fundamental knowledge of medical and mental health diagnoses disabilities and treatment procedures. This includes acute chronic and traumatic illnesses/injuries; common medications and their effects/side effects; and medical terminology.

GS-11 (Full-Performance Level)

1. Knowledge of community resources how to make appropriate referrals to community and other governmental agencies for services and ability to coordinate services.
2. Skill in independently conducting psychosocial assessments and treatment interventions to a wide variety of individuals from various socio-economic cultural ethnic educational and other diversified backgrounds.
3. Knowledge of medical and mental health diagnoses disabilities and treatment procedures (i.e. acute chronic and traumatic illnesses/injuries common medications and their effects/side effects and medical terminology) to formulate a treatment plan.
4. Skill in independently implementing different treatment modalities in working with individuals families and groups who are experiencing a variety of psychiatric medical and social problems to achieve treatment goals.
5. Ability to provide consultation services to new social workers social work graduate students and other staff about the psychosocial needs of patients and the impact of psychosocial problems on health care and compliance with treatment.

Reference: For more information on this qualification standard please visit Experience: VA BHIP experience and evidence-based psychotherapy.

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.

Physical Requirements: May require standing lifting carrying sitting stooping bending pulling and pushing. May be required to wear personal protective equipment and undergo annual TB screening or testing as conditions of employment.