Job Summary

This position that will serves as the Psychology Technician under the Mental Health and Behavioral Science Service. The position is located at the Aleda E. Lutz VA Medical Center in Saginaw, Michigan. The Psychology Technician provides support for psychological testing for research studies, to include evaluating research participants through various psychological and neuropsychological techniques.

Job Description

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. EDUCATION REQUIREMENT: Completion of a bachelor's degree or higher from an accredited college or university with a major in an appropriate social or biological science, which included or was supplemented by 12 semester hours in psychology. NOTE: You must submit copies of transcripts at the time of application. Education will not be credited without documentation. Please ensure that your transcripts show that a degree was conferred. Display copies of degrees or course listings do not provide the information needed. ~ AND ~ In addition to the above requirement, in order to meet the minimum qualifications for this position at the GS- 9 level you must have: Experience: Two years of technical work under the direction of a professional psychologist. At least 6 months of this experience must be comparable in difficulty and responsibility to the next lower grade in the Federal service (GS-8), or 1 year comparable to the second lower grade (GS-7). Technical duties include experience with one or more of the following: (1) Assisting in research as in systematic collection of psychology research data, recording and collecting data, preparing tabular or graphic presentation of data, in accordance with a predetermined research plan; (2) Assisting counseling psychologists in contacting potential employers for the purpose of making vocational placement, providing follow-up consultation, administering and scoring of interest, achievement and aptitude tests, securing work history and other relevant vocational information; (3) Assisting neuropsychologists in administering and scoring of selected tests of neuropsychology battery in accordance with clearly defined procedures; or (4) Assisting psychologists in completing behavior rating scales or in conducting behavior modification. NOTE: Experience under the direction of a professional psychologist is required and MUST be documented on your resume. 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. ~OR~ Education: Two (2) full years of graduate study in psychology in an accredited college or university may be substituted for 2 years of experience and meets in full the requirements at the GS-9 level. Transcripts must be submitted at the time of application. PHYSICAL DEMANDS: The incumbent must be able to move expeditiously from place to place in the medical center. Patients must regularly be assisted and supported when they are brought for examination. Equipment, weighing up to 50 pounds, may need to be moved. BLS training is required. The incumbent must be able to sit and attend intensively to Veteran behavior over a several hours period. Finally, the position may involve prolonged exposures to persons with primary or secondary viral and other infections. WORK ENVIRONMENT: Work is accomplished in an office setting within an outpatient mental health clinic. The normal risks and requirements of an office in a predominantly outpatient psychiatric facility are inherent. The incumbent works with specialized equipment, tools, or computer hardware and software. They are expected to observe normal safety precautions, with special attention to electrical biohazards from equipment. The incumbent must also attend to Veteran health status and condition during the assessment interviews and anticipate problems in Veteran response. In the performance of official duties, the incumbent has regular access to printed and electronic files containing sensitive data. Incumbent maintains the confidentiality of all information and records where knowledge has been received or accessed either directly or indirectly. For more information on these qualification standards, please visit the United States Office of Personnel Management's website at https://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/classification-qualifications/general-schedule-qualification-standards/.