Duties

Summary

The Military Service Coordinator (MSC) explains benefit programs and entitlement criteria, analyzes claims materials, identifies issues, gathers evidence, conducts interviews, adjudicates claims, and inputs data necessary to generate the award and notification letter to the Veteran describing the decision and reason for it.
Learn more about this agency

Responsibilities

• Performs direct individual benefit counseling to include information on the full range of VA and non-VA benefits to which separating and retiring service members may be entitled.
• Performs liaison activities with the Military Units, Community Partner, and Service Organization Staff.
• Provides the Supervisor and the VARO with detailed reports of program activities at these facilities.
• Coordinates with the Supervisor regarding program objectives and methods used to attain same utilizing various VA and DOD reporting programs.
• Conducts comprehensive discharge briefings to large groups of servicemen and women and their spouses at separation points, utilizing a wide range of briefing techniques and communication skills, including motivational counseling on the full range of benefits available to veterans.
• Provides additional information to disabled Veterans about the specially designated employment assistance for service members being separated for medical reasons.
• Aids with all types of VA claims to those service members participating in the program, including compensation claims.
• Obtains retirement data from facility sources such as the DEERS program.
• Orders appropriate medical examinations from the contract exam provider after thoroughly reviewing STRSs, including the discharge examination done by the installation medical facility staff.
• Coordinates examinations with contract exam providers and DoD staff.
• May also be required to represent the VARO at functions in the area surrounding the installation, such as service organization meetings and Outreach events, and other duties as necessary, to complete the overall mission of the Integrated Disability Evaluation System (IDES) program and the VARO.
• Performs other duties as assigned.

Promotion Potential: None, this position is at the full-performance level.
Work Schedule: 8:00 am to 4:30 pm
Compressed/Flexible Schedule: May be available
Telework: Available in accordance with agency policy
Virtual: This is not a virtual position
Position Description/ PD# Military Service Coordinator PD# 39116A
Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not authorized
Financial Disclosure Report: Not required

Travel Required

Not required

Supervisory status
No

Promotion Potential
11

Requirements

Conditions 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
• You may be required to serve a probationary period
• Subject to background/security investigation
• Selected applicants will be required to complete an online onboarding process

Qualifications

To qualify for this position, applicants must meet all requirements by the closing date of this announcement, 10/27/2021.

• 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-11 position you must have served 52 weeks at the GS-09 grade-level. 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. You must provide a copy of your most recent SF-50 that indicates proof of status, and shows Time in Grade (for example, you were a career or career-conditional employee) and identifies your position title, series, grade, step, salary, tenure, and type of service (Competitive or Excepted). 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 announcement. In this instance, you must also submit your most recent promotion or within-grade increase in addition to your recent SF-50. This may also require you to submit more than one SF-50 to support your eligibility. If you previously held a higher grade, you must also submit any SF-50 showing that grade. DO NOT submit Award SF-50's and/or General Adjustment SF-50's as they cannot be used to prove 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. Time-In-Grade requirements do not apply to those who have not held a federal position before and/or are seeking employment via non-competitive hiring authorities.

AND

Specialized Experience: You must have 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 consists of demonstrated experience interpreting regulations and applying laws to explain, evaluate, and recommend determinations of eligibility to claimant requests for services and benefits. Examples of specialized experience would typically include, but are not limited to: the ability to request relevant medical or administrative evidence to make eligibility determinations; experience in analyzing medical evidence, benefits, and/or legal evidence to identify and recognize required actions for claim development; and experience in explaining program benefit entitlements and requirements.

OR,

• Education: Applicants may substitute education for the required experience. To qualify based on education for this grade level you must have completed a Ph.D. or equivalent doctoral degree; or three (3) full years of progressively higher level graduate education leading to such a degree; or an LL.M., if related. I will submit copies of my official transcripts for verification of my education.

OR,

• Combination: Applicants may also combine education and experience to qualify at this level. You must have an combination of specialized experience and education beyond a Master's degree.

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.

Physical Requirements: The work is both physically and mentally demanding. Orientation briefings can require speaking for lengthy periods and being in front of a large group of people for 3-4 hours in a day, usually standing.

For more information on these qualification standards, please visit the United States Office of Personnel Management's website at http://://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/classification-qualifications/general-schedule-qualification-standards/ .

Education

A transcript must be submitted with your application if you are basing all or part of your qualifications on education.

Note: Only education or degrees recognized by the U.S. Department of Education from accredited colleges, universities, schools, or institutions may be used to qualify for Federal employment. You can verify your education here: http://ope.ed.gov/accreditation/ . 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. For further information, visit: http://www.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ous/international/usnei/us/edlite-visitus-forrecog.html .

Additional information

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.

Receiving Service Credit or Earning Annual (Vacation) Leave: Federal Employees earn annual leave at a rate (4, 6 or 8 hours per pay period) which is based on the number of years they have served as a Federal employee. VA may offer newly-appointed Federal employee's credit for their job-related non-federal experience or active duty uniformed military service. This credited service can be used in determining the rate at which they earn annual leave. Such credit must be requested and approved prior to the appointment date and is not guaranteed.

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.

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/ .

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.

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.

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.

For more information on the "Who may apply" eligibility requirements, please refer to the OHRM Status Candidates and Other Candidate Definitions document.

If you are unable to apply online view the following link for information regarding an Alternate Application .

How You Will Be Evaluated

You will be evaluated for this job based on how well you meet the qualifications above.

KNOWLEDGE, SKILLS, AND ABILITIES. IN DESCRIBING YOUR EXPERIENCE, PLEASE BE CLEAR AND SPECIFIC. WE WILL NOT MAKE ASSUMPTIONS REGARDING YOUR EXPERIENCE.

• Ability to interpret and apply established guidelines, regulations, and procedures to determine claimant eligibility for services and benefits.
• Knowledge of automated systems and applications.
• Ability to manage priorities.
• Ability to communicate verbally to external and internal stakeholders in both individual and group settings.
• Ability to communicate in writing to external and internal stakeholders.

Narrative responses are not required at this time. If you are referred for consideration, you may be asked to submit additional job related information, which may include, but not limited to; responses to the knowledge, skills and abilities; completion of a work sample, and/or contact for an interview. Your resume and/or supporting documentation will be verified. Please follow all instructions carefully. Errors or omissions may affect your rating or consideration for employment.

Background checks and security clearance

Security clearance
Other

Drug test required
No

Position sensitivity and risk
Non-sensitive (NS)/Low Risk

Trust determination process
Suitability/Fitness

Required Documents

To apply for this position, you must provide a complete Application Package which includes:

• Resume

Current VBA Employees : If you are seeking a reassignment/change to lower grade, you must submit a copy of your most recent SF-50 (non-award) AND the SF-50 placing you into your current position.

The following documents are accepted, and may be required if applicable to your eligibility and/or qualifications for this position. Please use this checklist to make sure you have included other documents required for your application, such as a copy of your transcript (if using education to qualify), SF-50's (current/former Federal employees), documentation to support Veterans Preference claims, or ICTAP/CTAP documentation (for displaced Federal employees). You will not be contacted for additional information.

• DD-214/ Statement of Service
• Disability Letter (Schedule A)
• Disability Letter (VA)
• Additional SF-50 (If needed for establishing Time-in-Grade)
• Resume
• Separation Notice (RIF)
• SF-50/ Notification of Personnel Action
• Transcript

Veterans' Preference: When applying for Federal Jobs, eligible Veterans should claim preference for 5pt (TP), 10pt (CP/CPS/XP), or for Sole Survivor Preference (SSP) in the questionnaire. You must provide a legible copy of your DD214(s) which shows dates and character of service (honorable, general, etc.). If you are currently serving on active duty and expect to be released or discharged within 120 days you must submit documentation related to your active duty service which reflects the dates of service, character of service (honorable, general, etc.), and dates of impending separation. Additionally, disabled veterans and others eligible for 10-point preference (such as widows or mothers of eligible Veterans) must also submit an SF-15 "Application for 10 Point Veteran Preference" with required proof as stated on the form. Documentation is required to award preference. For more information on Veterans' Preference, please visit http://www.fedshirevets.gov/job/vetpref/index.aspx .

If you are relying on your education to meet qualification requirements:

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. Therefore, provide only the attendance and/or degrees from schools accredited by accrediting institutions recognized by the U.S. Department of Education .

Failure to provide all of the required information as stated in this vacancy announcement may result in an ineligible rating or may affect the overall rating.