Summary This position serves on the Public Contact Team, located in the Veterans Service Center. Through seasoned knowledge the incumbent provides comprehensive information and assistance to veterans, their dependents and beneficiaries concerning any matter within the scope of VA benefits and related non-VA benefits, to include those cases in which issues require an advanced technical proficiency. The incumbent represents the VA Regional Office by acting as a liaison with local military installations. Responsibilities Schedules and conducts appointments with service member(s) within prescribed time limits to provide an overview of benefits and resources for obtaining VA contact information. Explains benefit programs and entitlement criteria; gathers relevant evidence, and inputs data necessary to properly develop claims, to include the ordering and scheduling of VA examinations. Conducts discharge briefings to large groups or servicemen and women at separation points. Counsels Veterans, their dependents, and their beneficiaries regarding all benefits available through the Department of Veterans Affairs through personal interview, telephone interview, and correspondence. And provides additional information to disabled Veterans about the specially designated employment assistance for service members being separated for medical reasons. Work schedule: Monday through Friday 8:00 to 4:30. Telework: Yes - as determined by agency policy. Virtual: This not a virtual position. Remote: This is not a remote position. Position Description Title/PD#: Military Service Coordinator/39669A. Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized. Financial Disclosure Report: Not Required. 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. Physical Demands: A high level of physical energy is required, as the incumbent will be expected to meet with many people in many different locations in the course of a workday. Work Environment: The incumbent will have an office within the Veterans Service Center. However, it is expected that a major portion of the services provided will be conducted away from the office, in the office of other agencies, and in Non-Traditional setting and in military, reserve and National Guard facilities. The nature of the job requires travel throughout an assigned geographical area away from the work setting. Requirements Conditions of Employment Qualifications To qualify for this position, applicants must meet all requirements by the closing date of this announcement, 10/04/2024. TIME-IN-GRADE REQUIREMENTS Time-in-grade requirements do not apply to applicants that are applying under a non-competitive hiring authority (i.e. VRA, Certain Military Spouses, Schedule A, etc.). Applicants who are current Federal employees or have held a GS position at any time in the past 52 weeks and are NOT applying under a non-competitive hiring authority must meet time-in-grade requirements. These applicants must have held a position at the GS-09 level or higher for at least 52 weeks to be eligible for the Military Service Coordinator GS-0301-11 position. An SF-50 that shows your time-in-grade eligibility must be submitted with your application. Time-in-grade requirements DO apply to ICTAP/CTAP applicants. To support your claim of time-in-grade, you must submit your most recent appointment, promotion, or within-grade step increase SF-50 (not an award or general adjustment SF-50). Some applicants may have to submit more than one SF-50 to demonstrate their eligibility. See the required documents section for more information. Note: Time-In-Grade requirements also apply to current employees applying for Veterans Employment Opportunities Act of 1998 (VEOA) appointments. MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS To qualify for the Military Service Coordinator (GS-0301-11) position, you must have at least one year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the next lower grade (GS-09) in the normal line of progression for the occupation in the organization. Specialized Experience: This experience should demonstrate knowledge of laws administered by the Department of Veterans Affairs and their relationship to other related programs; knowledge of federal laws, regulations and implementation of procedures pertaining to compensation, pension and other benefits; knowledge of federal, State and local laws, assistance services and programs, sufficient to help or direct Veterans to the appropriate resource to resolve problems; knowledge of legal opinions rendered regarding Veterans; ability to interpret laws, guidelines, regulations and precedent opinions; knowledge of electronic data processing systems. Examples of acceptable specialized experience include but are not limited to responsibility for making decisions regarding claims for a state or Federal agency, insurance company, employee compensation board, disability retirement or pension program; obtain the necessary information and completes claims while Veteran and/or family member is present. In certain circumstances, may monitor the claim to eliminate unnecessary delays in receiving needed evidence and to assure the claim is fully developed. OR Education: Applicants may substitute education for the experience required to qualify at the GS-11 level. Applicant will need to possess a Ph.D. or equivalent doctoral degree or 3 full years of progressively higher-level graduate education leading to such a degree or an LL.M., if related. OR Combining Education & Experience: You may combine your education and specialized experience to qualify for this position. If you have some but not all of the graduate education AND specialized experience described above, you may still qualify by combining the amount of creditable education and experience that you do have. To do so, first calculate the percentage of qualifying education you have as a percentage of the education required. Next, calculate the percentage of specialized experience you have as a percentage of the experience required. Then, add the two percentages. The total percentage must equal at least 100% for you to qualify for this position. For example, an applicant who has 9 semester hours of graduate education (i.e., 50% of graduate education required) and 6 months of acceptable specialized experience (i.e., 50% of the experience required) would satisfy the qualification requirements for the position. If you qualify based on a combination of graduate education and specialized experience, you must submit a copy of your official college transcript with your application. 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. Note: A 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. Education A transcript must be submitted with your application if you are basing all or part of your qualifications on education. NOTE: Education must be accredited by an accrediting institution recognized by the U.S. Department of Education in order for it to be credited towards qualifications (particularly positions with a positive education requirement). Therefore, applicants must report only attendance and/or degrees from schools accredited by accrediting institutions recognized by the U.S. Department of Education. Applicants can verify accreditation at the following website: http://www.ed.gov/admins/finaid/accred/index.html. All education claimed by applicants will be verified by the appointing agency accordingly. 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. Additional Information 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. Special Employment Consideration: VA encourages persons with disabilities to apply, including those eligible for hiring under 5 CFR 213.3102(u), Schedule A, Appointment of persons with disabilities [i.e., intellectual disabilities, severe physical disabilities, or psychiatric disabilities], and/or Disabled veterans with a compensable service-connected disability of 30% or more. Contact the Agency Contact for information on how to apply under this appointment authority via the Selective Placement Coordinator. Veterans and Transitioning Service Members: Please visit the VA for Vets site for career-search tools for Veterans seeking employment at VA, career development services for our existing Veterans, and coaching and reintegration support for military service members. 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), https://www.va.gov/EMPLOYEE/docs/The-Fair-Chance-to-Compete-Act.pdf The Interagency Career Transition Assistance Plan (ICTAP) and Career Transition Assistance Plan (CTAP) provide eligible displaced Federal/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 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 http://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/workforce-restructuring/employee-guide-to-career-transition/. For more information on the "Who may apply" eligibility requirements, please refer to the OHRM Status Candidates and Other Candidate Definitions document. 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. If you are unable to apply online or need an alternate method to submit documents, please reach out to the Agency Contact listed in this Job Opportunity Announcement.