Videos

***THIS IS NOT A VIRTUAL POSITION, YOU MUST LIVE WITHIN OR BE WILLING TO RELOCATE WITHIN A COMMUTABLE DISTANCE OF THE DUTY LOCATION***

The primary purpose of this position is to conduct the day-to-day business operations of a highly complex, multi-faceted scientific research service supporting both clinician and non-clinician researchers. Duties will include, but may not be limited to the following:

Supervisory:

• Directs, supervises, gives advice, counsel and instruction to a wide range of staff with different skills.
• Oversees the daily operations assuring policies and priorities are being followed.
• Directs personnel management, overseeing varied functions consisting of recruitment, promotions, awards, position classification, performance standards, performance evaluations, training, leave management, and disciplinary actions.
• Interviews candidates, recommends appointments; identifies and provides training needs, and finds ways to improve production or quality of work performance.
• Has familiarity with Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO) policies and regulations.

Research Program Management:

• Interprets, develops, and implements administrative policies and procedures.
• Participates in national policy development, serving as liaison, coordination, staff assistance, and consultant with Research services (Biomedical Laboratory Research; Health Services Research; Clinical Sciences Research; Rehabilitation Research; Cooperative Studies Program, Rural Health, Veterinarian Medical Research; and other administration research elements.)
• Oversees accreditation and compliance activities to allow for human, animal, and biological research, including Association for the Accreditation of Human Research Protection Programs (AAHRPP), Association for the Assessment and Accreditation of Laboratory Animal Care (AAALAC), and Office of Research Oversight (ORD), and other relevant agencies.
• Negotiates, executes, and manages inter-agency agreements.
• Supervises the planning, coordination, and execution of audits of human studies, animal research and biosafety to prevent problems and assure compliance.
• Assures compliance with Institutional Review Board (IRB), the Institutional Animal Use and Care (IACUC), the subcommittee on Research Safety, and Research & Development Committee are duly constituted and comply with regulations.

Budget/Financial Management:

• Provides support, advices, and oversight as the financial manager for the overall fiscal and budgetary integrity. Includes budget formulation, justification, execution of research funds and expenditures, supplies and equipment procurement, and financial management reporting and presentation.
• Reviews grant proposals for funding in collaboration with investigators for personnel costs, supplies, equipment plus specialized and sophisticated scientific/medical equipment, and other incidental expenditures.
• Negotiates with network and collaborates with affiliated medical schools, universities, and outside companies to conduct research. Negotiates per diem and all charges associated with the project, rental of space, use of equipment, supplies, and personnel.

Veterinary Medical Unit (VMU):

• Provides oversight and advises on the development of strategies, recommendations, and implementation of operation plans to meet research mission.
• In collaboration with the VM Officer, responsible for the welfare of animals and the integrity of animal research.
• Maintains a comprehensive disease surveillance program for the research animals housed at VMU and satellite facilities.
• Contributes to the development of Standard Operating Procedures and animal research protocols.

Perform other duties, as necessary.

Work Schedule: Monday-Friday, 8:00am - 4:30pm. The position may requires working weekends and other irregular tours of duty.
Telework (Ad-Hoc): This position may be authorized for telework. Telework eligibility will be discussed during the interview process.

Recruitment & Relocation Incentives: Not authorized
Critical Skills Incentive (CSI): Not Approved

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
• 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 (https://www.uscis.gov/i-9-central/form-i-9-acceptable-documents). Effective May 7, 2025, driver's licenses or state-issued dentification 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)

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

Qualifications

BASIC EDUCATION REQUIREMENT (TRANSCRIPT REQUIRED): Requires a Bachelor's or graduate/higher level degree with a major study in an academic field related to the medical field, health sciences or allied sciences appropriate to the work of the position. This degree must be from an educational program from an accrediting body recognized by the U.S. Department of Education(external link) at the time the degree was obtained.

AND
SPECIALIZED EXPERIENCE: Requires at least one year of specialized experience that equipped the applicant with the particular knowledge, skills, and abilities (KSA's) to perform successfully the duties of the position, and that is typically in or related to the position to be filled. To be creditable, specialized experience must have been equivalent to at least the next lower grade level (GS-13) in the Federal service. Specialized experience includes working within a healthcare national-level research program applying leadership, advice, and expertise related to human subject research and animal research, and includes;

• Assuring compliance with all federal, state and local regulations for safety, chemical safety and hazardous materials, biological hazards, and recombinant DNA research;
• Providing technical direction for the operational procedures and assuring welfare of animals and the integrity of research involving animals;
• Serving as financial manager for the research programs, responsible for overall fiscal and budgetary integrity, reviewing and approving procurement of specialized and sophisticated scientific/medical equipment; and
• Conducting professional work in grants administration, evaluating research grant proposals for funding in collaboration with investigators.

NOTE: Resume must clearly support the required experience, including national-level research programs listed above. We will not make assumption regarding experience. Please see the announcement duties section for details.

PHYSICAL REQUIREMENTS: Works often requires intensive concentration. The work is mainly sedentary; however, travel will be required at times. No special physical demands are required. The position may requires working weekends and other irregular tours of duty. Typically, the employee sits comfortably with periodic walking to and from the research building to the main hospital, standing, bending, carrying light items such as files, policy and committee meeting binders, books, etc.

You will be rated on the following Competencies as part of the assessment questionnaire for this position:

• Administration and Management
• Compliance Inspection
• Research

IMPORTANT: A full year of work is considered to be 35-40 hours of work per week. All experience listed on your resume must include the month and year start/end dates. 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.

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; religious; 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.

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/.

How you will be evaluated

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

IN DESCRIBING YOUR EXPERIENCE, PLEASE BE CLEAR AND SPECIFIC. WE WILL NOT MAKE ASSUMPTIONS REGARDING YOUR EXPERIENCE. If your resume does not support your questionnaire answers, we will not allow credit for your response(s).

Your responses to the assessment questionnaire will be reviewed along with the information provided in your resume and supporting documentation to determine if you are qualified for the position. If, after reviewing your resume and/or supporting documentation, a determination is made that you have inflated your qualifications and or experience, your rating may be lowered and/or you may lose consideration for this position. Please follow all instructions carefully. Errors or omissions may affect your eligibility.

The Department of Veterans Affairs performs pre-employment reference checks as an assessment method used in the hiring process to verify information provided by a candidate (e.g., on resume or during interview or hiring process); gain additional knowledge regarding a candidate's abilities; and assist a hiring manager with making a final selection for a position.

Candidates who apply under All U.S. Citizens announcements will be rated and ranked using Category Rating procedures. Qualified candidates will be assigned to a quality category. The categories are defined as follows:

• Best qualified - applicants possessing experience that substantially exceeds the minimum qualifications of the position including all selective factors, and who are highly proficient in all requirements of the job and can perform effectively in the position;
• Highly qualified - applicants possessing experience that exceeds the minimum qualifications of the position including all selective factors, and who are proficient in most of the requirements of the job;
• Well qualified - applicants possessing experience that meets the minimum qualifications of the position including all selective factors, and who are proficient in some, but not all, of the requirements of the job; and
• Qualified - applicants possessing experience and/or education that meets the minimum qualifications of the position including all selective factors.

Application of Veterans' Preference: Category rating and selection procedures place those with veteran's preference above non-preference eligibles within each category. Preference eligible applicants that meet the eligibility and qualification requirements and who have a compensable service-connected disability of at least 10 percent are listed in the highest quality category (except when the position being filled is scientific or professional at the GS-09 grade level or higher).

It is the policy of the VA to not deny employment to those that have faced financial hardships or periods of unemployment.

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.