VIX-Correctional Treatment Specialist (Specialty Treatment Program Specialist- BRAVE)

This job is open to

The public

U.S. Citizens, Nationals or those who owe allegiance to the U.S.

Clarification from the agency

THIS IS A DELEGATED EXAMINING ANNOUNCEMENT OPEN TO ALL U.S. CITIZENS. • Duty Location: FCC Victorville, CA • NOTE: A 15% RECRUITMENT INCENTIVE WILL BE PAID TO SELECTEE(S) WHO MEETS THE CRITERIA FOR RECRUITMENT BONUSES. UPON COMPLETION OF THE RECRUITMENT SERVICE AGREEMENT, RETENTION INCENTIVES MAY BE INITIATED.

Duties

Functions as a Specialty Treatment Program Specialist within a Bureau of Prisons (BOP) federal correctional facility and the primary responsibilities are to deliver services to inmates in an effort to help them overcome psychological problems.

Provides group and individual counseling to inmates with the psychological problems targeted by the Challenge Program: high security inmates with antisocial attitudes and behaviors, substance abuse, and/or mental illness.

Reads inmate file records to extract information relevant to treatment.

Identifies deficiencies and excesses in inmates' patterns of thought, feeling, and behavior and recommends or devises steps to remediate them.

Learns and applies new assessment and treatment techniques for helping inmates overcome psychological problems and plans aftercare programs for inmates released to halfway houses and community.

Advises the Specialty Program Coordinator or Advance Care Level Psychologist on issues of program content, selection and expulsion of inmates, scheduling of groups, and other issues relevant to the overall operation of the program.

Along with all other correctional institution employees, incumbent is charged with responsibility for maintaining security of the institution. The staffs' correctional responsibilities precede all others required by this position and are performed on a regular and recurring basis.

Requirements

Conditions of Employment

• U.S. Citizenship is Required.
• See Special Conditions of Employment Section.
• Selective Service Requirement: http://www.sss.gov

Interagency Career Transition Assistance Plan (ICTAP) The ICTAP provides eligible displaced Federal competitive service employees with selection priority over other candidates for competitive service vacancies. If your agency has notified you in writing that you are a displaced employee eligible for ICTAP consideration, you may receive selection priority if: 1) this vacancy is within your ICTAP eligibility; 2) you apply under the instructions in this announcement; and 3) you are found well qualified for this vacancy. To be well qualified, you must satisfy all qualification requirements for the vacant position and rate equivalent to the Highly Qualified category using established category rating criteria. You must provide proof of eligibility with your application of ICTAP eligibility or a copy of your separation personnel action form. Additional information about ICTAP eligibility is at: Click Here

The Career Transition Assistance Plan (CTAP) provides eligible surplus and displaced competitive service employees in the Department of Justice with selection priority over other candidates for competitive service vacancies. If your Department of Justice component has notified you in writing that you are a surplus or displaced employee eligible for CTAP consideration, you may receive selection priority if: 1) this vacancy is within your CTAP eligibility; 2) you apply under the instructions in this announcement; and 3) you are found well qualified for this vacancy. To be well qualified, you must satisfy all qualification requirements for the vacant position and rate equivalent to the Highly Qualified category using established category rating criteria. You must provide a copy of your written notification of CTAP eligibility with your application. Additional information about CTAP eligibility is at: Click Here

Qualifications

To be considered for the position, you must meet the following qualification requirements.

Basic Requirements:

A. Degree - that included at least 24 semester hours of course work in the behavioral or social sciences.

OR

B. Combination of education and experience - that included at least 24 semester hours of course work in the behavioral or social sciences, and that provided applicants with knowledge of the behavioral or social sciences equivalent to a 4-year degree as shown in A above.

Evaluation of Education: Courses, such as sociology, correctional administration, criminal justice, government/political science, psychology, social work, counseling, and other related social or behavioral science courses may be used to satisfy the 24-semesterhour requirement.

Evaluation of Experience: Experience must have been gained in (1) casework in a correctional institution or in another criminal justice setting; (2) counseling in any setting, provided it required diagnostic or treatment planning skills to achieve specific social or occupational goals; or (3) work treating persons in need of social rehabilitation.

AND

In addition to meeting the Basic Requirements above, applicants must have:

Education:

GL-09: Two years of progressively higher-level graduate education leading to a master's degree OR master's or equivalent graduate degree.

GS-11: Three years of progressively higher-level graduate education leading to a Ph.D. degree or Ph.D. or equivalent graduate degree.

Graduate Education must have been in corrections or a related field, such as criminal justice, sociology, psychology, counseling, social work, or other course work related to the position.

OR

Experience:

GL-09 and GS-11: You must have at least one year of specialized experience equivalent in difficulty and complexity to the next lower grade level in federal service. To be creditable, this experience must have equipped the applicant with the particular qualifications to successfully perform the duties of the position and must typically be in or related to the position to be filled.

Some examples of this qualifying experience are:

GL-09:

• Experience in developing and providing multi-session presentations or lectures to groups, case presentation or participation in professional mental health and or clinical discussions.
• Experience providing or co-facilitating group and individual counseling to inmates with the psychological problems targeted by the specialty program.
• Experience in reviewing inmate file records to extract information relevant to prepare treatment plans (i.e. could include case management, and or synthesis of file information).
• Experience in writing reports or providing mental health/substance abuse screenings relevant to inmates' histories of psychological problems and their progress in treatment.

GS-11:

• Experience providing group and individual counseling to inmates with the psychological problems targeted by the specialty program.
• Experience in applying new assessment and treatment techniques for helping inmates overcome psychological problems.
• Experience in administering questionnaires and conducting interviews to obtain information about inmates to identify techniques for helping inmates overcome psychological problems.
• Experience in developing and writing individualized clinical documentations (i.e. treatment plans and progress notes).
• Knowledge of facts, concepts and theories of human behavior and disorders/behavior problems.

OR

Combination of Education and Experience:

GL-09 and GS-11: Combination of successfully completed graduate level education and specialized experience. This experience must have equipped you with the qualifications to perform the major duties of this position as described above.

AND

Selective Placement Factor:

NOTE: The Challenge Program targets high security inmates with antisocial behaviors, substance abuse, and/or mental illness.

GL-09 and GS-11: Applicants applying for this position MUST also possess one of the following Selective Placement Factors. In the event you do not meet one of the Selective Factors, you will be found ineligible.

GL-09:

• 12 semester hours of undergraduate course work specific to antisocial behaviors, substance abuse and/or mental illness.

OR

• 12 months of professional experience in counseling antisocial behaviors, substance abuse and/or mental illness.

GS-11:

• 15 semester hours of graduate course work specific to antisocial behaviors, substance abuse and/or mental illness.

OR

• 18 months of professional experience in counseling antisocial behaviors, substance abuse and/or mental illness.

NOTE: All applicants MUST electronically upload legible transcripts as verification of educational requirement or clearly address this professional experience in their resume to be found qualified.

If applicable, credit will be given for paid and unpaid experience. To receive proper credit, you must show the actual time (such as number of hours worked per week) spent in the activities.

**Your eligibility for consideration will be based on your responses to the questions in the application. **

Education

See Qualifications Section for education requirements, if applicable.

ONLY if education is a requirement/substitution for specialized experience, applicant MUST upload legible transcripts as verification of educational requirement. Transcripts MUST be uploaded and electronically linked from USAJOBS at the time you apply and MUST include identifying information to include School Name, Student Name, Degree and Date Awarded (if applicable). All academic degrees and coursework must be completed at a college or university that has obtained accreditation or pre-accreditation status from an accrediting body recognized by the U.S. Department of Education. For a list of schools that meet these criteria, Click Here.

Foreign Education: For information regarding foreign education requirements, please see Foreign Diploma and Credit Recognition at the U.S. Department of Education website: Recognition of Foreign Qualifications.

If you are selected for this position and qualified based on education (i.e. basic education requirement and/or substitution of education), you will be required to provide an OFFICIAL transcript prior to your first day on duty.

Additional information

This position IS included in the bargaining unit.

In accordance with 5 U.S.C. 3307, a maximum entry age of 36 has been established for initial appointment to a position in a Bureau of Prisons institution. If you are above the maximum entry age and have prior federal law enforcement coverage, you MUST submit an SF-50 to verify prior coverage. 

Qualified Preference Eligible Veterans may be exempt from meeting the maximum age. Please refer to the Required Documents Section for the appropriate documentation to submit to validate veteran eligibility.

Special Conditions of Employment Section:

Appointment is subject to satisfactory completion of a pre-employment and panel interview, urinalysis, physical, and background investigation.

All applicants are subject to and must satisfactorily pass all screening requirements in relation to National Crime Information Center (NCIC) and credit check.

All applicants not currently working in an institution will be required to complete a qualification inquiry regarding convictions of misdemeanor crimes of domestic violence in order to be authorized to carry a firearm.

The Core Value Assessment (CVA) is an in-person assessment that must be facilitated at a Bureau of Prisons Human Resource Servicing office. On the day of the scheduled interview, a CVA will be administered. The applicant assessment must be completed within a 70-minute time period and a passing score of 68 must be obtained. Further employment consideration will not be extended if the applicant fails to complete the examination or fails to achieve a passing score. Note: The Core Value Assessment will not be administered to current BOP employees.

Successful completion of the "Introduction to Correctional Techniques", three-week training course at Glynco, Georgia is required. 

Additional selections may be made if vacancies occur within the life of the certificate.

NOTE: A 15% RECRUITMENT INCENTIVE WILL BE PAID TO SELECTEE(S) WHO MEETS THE CRITERIA FOR RECRUITMENT BONUSES. UPON COMPLETION OF THE RECRUITMENT SERVICE AGREEMENT, RETENTION INCENTIVES MAY BE INITIATED.

As the federal agency whose mission is to ensure the fair and impartial administration of justice for all Americans, the Department of Justice is committed to fostering a diverse and inclusive work environment. To build and retain a workforce that reflects the diverse experiences and perspectives of the American people, we welcome applicants from the many communities, identities, races, ethnicities, backgrounds, abilities, religions, and cultures of the United States who share our commitment to public service.

Benefits

A career with the U.S. government provides employees with a comprehensive benefits package. As a federal employee, you and your family will have access to a range of benefits that are designed to make your federal career very rewarding. Opens in a new windowLearn more about federal benefits.

Eligibility for benefits depends on the type of position you hold and whether your position is full-time, part-time or intermittent. Contact the hiring agency for more information on the specific benefits offered.

How You Will Be Evaluated

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

Your application will be evaluated and rated under DOJ's Category Rating and Selection Procedures. Based upon your self-reported responses to the assessment questions during the application process, your application will be placed into one of three categories: Best Qualified, Highly Qualified, or Qualified. Applications will be reviewed from the top quality category. Your resume and supporting documentation will be used to determine whether you meet the job qualifications listed in this announcement. If you are found qualified for this job, your resume and supporting documentation will be compared to the responses you provided on the online assessment questionnaire.

NOTE: Candidates within the top quality category and who are eligible for veterans preference will receive selection priority over non-veteran preference eligibles.

If you are entitled to veterans preference, you should indicate the type of veterans preference you are claiming on your resume. Although veterans preference points are not assigned under the category rating procedures described under "How You Will Be Evaluated", veterans preference eligibles are listed ahead of non-veterans within each category for which they are qualified.

In addition, qualified veterans with a compensable service-connected disability of 10% or more are placed at the top of the highest qualified category as defined by category rating procedures.

Experience that would not normally be part of the Federal employee's position is creditable when documented by satisfactory evidence (e.g., a memorandum from the manager, Human Resource Manager, SF-52, etc.) that includes specific timeframes (MM/YYYY) format and number of hours performing duties.

What Competencies/Knowledge, Skills and Abilities are Required for this Position?

The following Competencies/Knowledge, Skills and Abilities (KSA's) are required:

GL-09 and GS-11:

• Therapy and Counseling.
• Psychology.
• Written Communication.
• Oral Communication.

You may preview questions for this vacancy.

Required Documents

• Veterans' Preference Documentation:  Veterans MUST provide a DD-214 demonstrating that they have been discharged or released from active duty under honorable conditions (i.e., the individual must have received either an honorable or general discharge).
• If you are on active duty and expect to be discharged or released from active duty service within 120 days, you may submit a Certificate of Release or Discharge from Active Duty from the appropriate Branch Personnel Office containing the following information: (1) the military service dates including the expected discharge or release date; (2) and the character of service (must be an honorable or general discharge); and (3) any qualifying service/campaign/expeditionary medals.
• SF-15: If you are a disabled veteran, a Purple Heart recipient, widow/widower of a veteran, the spouse of a disabled veteran or the parent of a disabled or deceased veteran, submit a completed Standard Form (SF) 15, "Application for 10-Point Veteran Preference"; all other required documentation identified on the SF-15, in addition to the veteran's DD-214 described above.  A Department of Veterans Affairs letter must contain: the Veteran’s Name and Combined Service-Connected Evaluation. For a copy of the most current SF-15, Click Here.
• Failure to submit all required documents at the time of application will result in the loss of claimed preference eligibility.
• Resume: showing relevant experience (cover letter optional).
• In order to receive credit for experience contained in an application, your employment history must be documented in month/year format (MM/YYYY), reflecting starting date and ending date and include the number of hours worked per week.  Failure to follow this format may result in disqualification.
• College transcript: which includes the School Name, Student Name, Degree and Date Awarded (if applicable). (Note:  If you are selected for this position, official transcript(s) will be required prior to your first day).
• SF-50: for proof of prior LEO coverage, if applicable.

Failure to provide these documents could possibly result in removal from consideration for this vacancy.  If uploading documentation, do not identify/save your documents utilizing a special character such as %, #, @, etc.  Documentation should be identified/saved as VA Letter, DD214, or Transcripts.

We cannot be held responsible for incompatible software, delays in mail service, applicant application errors, etc.