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Program Applications Specialist

Department of Veterans Affairs
Veterans Health Administration
Veterans Health Administration

Summary

First Consideration will go to Ralph H. Johnson VA Medical Center employees, second consideration to The Department of Veteran's Affairs employees, and then further consideration will extend out to Federal employees. Telework (Ad-Hoc may be authorized) will be offered to only highly qualified applicants.

Overview

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Accepting applications
Posted yesterday · Apply by 07/21/26
Due by 11:59 p.m. ET on July 21, 2026
This job will close when we have received 50 applications which may be sooner than the closing date. Learn more
Location
1 vacancy in the following location:
Work site options
Telework eligible
Yes—as determined by the agency policy.
Remote job
No
Relocation expenses reimbursed
No
Salary
$50,460 - $80,243 per year
Pay scale & grade
GS 7 - 9
Promotion potential
9
Pay scale and grade determines the salary of the job.
Work schedule
Full-time
Travel Required
Not required
Appointment type
Permanent
Supervisory status
No
Federal service type
This job is in the Competitive Service
Represented by a union
No
Drug test
No
Security clearance
Not Required
Position sensitivity and risk
Non-sensitive (NS)/Low Risk
Jobs require a background check and some require a security clearance. The type depends on the job.
Background check type
Financial disclosure required
No
Some jobs require financial disclosure to identify conflicts of interests.
Announcement number
CBTB-12996412-26-DNC
Control number
875926000

This job is open to

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Clarification from the agency

Open to current permanent employees of the Department of Veterans Affairs (including the facility and CBOCs where this vacancy is located) serving on career/career-conditional appointments, including VA Title 38, Hybrid Title 38, and Canteen employees on excepted appointments covered by the interchange agreement and those eligible under CTAP. This does not include temporary, term, or temporary intermittent.

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Duties

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The incumbent will serve in a developmental capacity performing assignments and completing training, both of which are aimed in preparing the incumbent to gain the knowledge, skills, and abilities needed to perform the full range of duties as described in the target position description. This position provides business oversight for a variety of software programs integral to the overall administration and operations of the business.

The incumbent is responsible for the coordination and training for service and facility staff in business and functional areas for various information technology VISTA packages, e.g. ADT (Admissions/Discharge/Transfer); Scheduling; PTF (Patient Treatment File); Medical Record Tracking; Fee Basis; PDX (Patient Data Exchange); HINQ (Hospital Inquiry); AMIEII/IBBA (Intranet BDN/BIRLS Access); IB (Integrated Billing); AMIE (Automated Medical Information Exchange); Discharge Summary; PCE (Patient Care Encounter and Visit Tracking); ACRP (Ambulatory Care Reporting);Network Health Exchange; AICS (Automated Information Collection System); KLF Menu; CIRN (Clinical Information Resource Network);TIU (Text Integration Utilities); EWL (Electronic Wait List), Beneficiary Travel V 1.0; Incomplete Record Tracking V 1.0; Claims Manager - VISTA; EAS (Electronic Application Systems) V1.0; and additional business office programs as added.

The applications control critical applications, which are used primarily by all care lines/services, i.e. Gains and Losses Sheet, Scheduling, Fee Basis, Admissions/Discharge/Transfer, AMIE, HINQ, PTF and a multitude of other software modules.

Incumbent is key point of contact responsible for assuring that all information technology equipment with the service is operational and functions and coordinates with OI&T equipment replacement/installation with all other services.

The incumbent is the point of contact for OI&T for information technology initiative for hardware and software needs for the service. The position is responsible for assisting with the preparation and implementation of the business contingency plans for system failure specifically addressing manual system backup plans addressing how day to day business will be conducted for long and short-term outages.Collects physical and data security needs for the service areas.

Collects individual needs to determine menu access for staff, Regional Officeemployees, and employees from VISN VA facilities. Ensures OI&T assigns appropriate access to terminal and file codes for the purpose of controlling access to the patient and medical records.


Promotion Potential: The selectee may be promoted to the full performance level without further competition when all regulatory, qualification, and performance requirements are met. Selection at a lower grade level does not guarantee promotion to the full performance level.

Work Schedule: Monday - Friday; 0730 - 4:00
Compressed/Flexible: Not Authorized.
Telework: Ad-Hoc may be authorized.
Virtual: This is not a virtual position.
Position Description/PD#: Program Applications Specialist/PD101010
Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized.
Critical Skills Incentive (CSI): Not Authorized.
Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized.

Requirements

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Conditions of employment

  • You must be a U.S. Citizen to apply for this job
  • To be considered for this position, you must complete all required steps in the process. In addition to the application and questionnaire, this position requires an online assessment. The online assessment measures critical general competencies required to perform the job.
  • All applicants tentatively selected for VA employment in a testing designated position are subject to urinalysis to screen for illegal drug use prior to appointment. Applicants who refuse to be tested will be denied employment with VA.
  • Selective Service Registration is required for males born after 12/31/1959
  • Physical Requirements: The work required does not inherently include any physical requirements essential for successful job performance that could not otherwise be performed with accommodation or workplace adjustment. A pre-placement physical examination is not required.
  • 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 identification 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 or 2-year trial 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

To qualify for this position, applicants must meet all requirements by the closing date of this announcement, 07/21/2026.

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-09 position you must have served 52 weeks at the GS-07. For a GS-07 position you must have served 52 weeks at the GS-05 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. 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 provide an additional SF-50 that clearly demonstrates one-year 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.

You may qualify based on your experience and/or education as described below:

  • 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. Examples of specialized experience would typically include, but are not limited to: Advocates for VetLink and ICB program needs at the facility and brings matters requiring higher level intervention to the attention of medical center leadership; Facilitates communication across care lines and services to achieve maximum fulfillment of VetLink and ICB program goals and objectives. Assures that each facility establishes and utilizes proper VHA workload reporting and data management systems for VetLink and ICB programs. Monitors core quality and performance measures for all VetLink and ICB programs.
  • Specialized Experience: You must have one year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the next lower grade GS-07 in the normal line of progression for the occupation in the organization. Examples of specialized experience would typically include, but are not limited to: Advocates for VetLink and ICB program needs at the facility and brings matters requiring higher level intervention to the attention of medical center leadership; Facilitates communication across care lines and services to achieve maximum fulfillment of VetLink and ICB program goals and objectives. Assures that each facility establishes and utilizes proper VHA workload reporting and data management systems for VetLink and ICB programs. Monitors core quality and performance measures for all VetLink and ICB programs.

OR,
  • Education: Applicants may substitute education for the required experience. To qualify based on education for this grade level you must have a master's or equivalent graduate degree, or 2 full years of progressively higher-level graduate education leading to such a degree, or LL.B. or J.D., if related. This education must have been obtained in an accredited business or technical school, junior college, college or university for which high school graduation or the equivalent is the normal prerequisite. One year of full-time graduate study is defined as 18 semester hours, Unofficial transcripts required when using education to qualify.
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 1 full year of graduate level education.
Example: Combinations of successfully completed post-high school education and experience may be used to meet total qualification requirements for the grade levels specified in the table, and may be computed by first determining the applicant's total qualifying experience as a percentage of the experience required for the grade level; then determining the applicant's education as a percentage of the education required for the grade level; and then adding the two percentages. The total percentages must equal at least 100 percent to qualify an applicant for that grade level. Only graduate education in excess of the amount required for the next lower grade level may be used to qualify applicants for positions at grades GS-7 and GS-9. (When crediting education that requires specific course work, prorate the number of hours of related courses required as a proportion of the total education to be used.) Example of combination of education and experience the position to be filled is a Supervisory, Medical Administration Specialist, GS-0301-07. An applicant has 9 months of specialized experience equivalent to GS-5 and 2 1/2 years of creditable graduate level education. The applicant meets 75 percent of the required experience and 50 percent of the required education, i.e., the applicant has 1/2 year of graduate study beyond that required for GS-7. Therefore, the applicant exceeds the total requirement and is qualified for the position.

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.

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/.

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: https://sites.ed.gov/international/recognition-of-foreign-qualifications/.

Additional information

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. For more information about the Act and the complaint process, visit Human Resources and Administration/Operations, Security, and Preparedness (HRA/OSP) at The Fair Chance Act.

Reasonable Accommodation (RA) Requests: If you believe you have a disability (i.e., physical or mental), covered by the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 as amended that would interfere with completing the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments, you will be granted the opportunity to request a RA in your online application. Requests for RA for the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments and appropriate supporting documentation for RA must be received prior to starting the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments. Decisions on requests for RA are made on a case-by-case basis. If you meet the minimum qualifications of the position, after notification of the adjudication of your request, you will receive an email invitation to complete the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments, based on your adjudication decision. You must complete all assessments within 48 hours of receiving the URL to access the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments if you received the link after the close of the announcement. To determine if you need a RA, please review the Procedures for Requesting a Reasonable Accommodation for Online Assessments.

Receiving Service Credit for 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.

This job opportunity announcement may be used to fill additional vacancies.

The Interagency Career Transition Assistance Plan (ICTAP) and Career Transition Assistance Plan (CTAP) provide eligible displaced 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 for this vacancy. To be well-qualified: applicants must possess experience that exceeds the minimum qualifications of the position including all selective factors, and who are proficient in most of the required competencies of the job. 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/.

Candidates should be committed to improving the efficiency of the Federal government, passionate about the ideals of our American republic, and committed to upholding the rule of law and the United States Constitution.

How you will be evaluated

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

Your qualifications will be evaluated based on your application materials (e.g., resume, supporting documents), your responses on the application questionnaire, and your responses to all assessments required for this position. You will be assessed on the following Competencies for this position:

  • Attention to Detail
  • Customer Service
  • Decision Making
  • Flexibility
  • Integrity/Honesty
  • Interpersonal Skills
  • Learning
  • Reading Comprehension
  • Reasoning
  • Self-Management
  • Stress Tolerance
  • Teamwork


Your experience must be fully documented on your resume and must include job title, duties, month and year start/end dates AND hours worked per week. 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. IN DESCRIBING YOUR EXPERIENCE, PLEASE BE CLEAR AND SPECIFIC. WE WILL NOT MAKE ASSUMPTIONS REGARDING YOUR EXPERIENCE. Overstating your qualifications and/or experience in your application materials or application questionnaire may result in your removal from consideration. Cheating on the online assessment may also result in your removal from consideration.

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.

During the application process you may have an option to opt-in to make your resume available to hiring managers in the agency who have similar positions. Opting in does not impact your application for this announcement, nor does it guarantee further consideration for additional positions.

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 Health Administration

OUR MISSION: To fulfill President Lincoln's promise "To care for those who have served in our nation's military and for their families, caregivers, and survivors" - by serving and honoring the men and women who are America's Veterans. How would you like to become a part of a team providing compassionate whole health care to Veterans?

Located in historic downtown Charleston, SC, the Ralph H. Johnson VA Medical Center is a tertiary care teaching hospital providing the highest level quality for more than 75,000 Veterans along the South Carolina and Georgia coast. The Ralph H. Johnson VA is rated is the second fastest growing VA in the U.S. for percentage patient growth. For the past three years, the Charleston VA has been rated a 5-Star medical center for quality and efficiency, the highest possible rating according to VA's Strategic Analytics for Improvement and Learning Value (SAIL) model. The 152 bed hospital includes six outpatient clinics, a 20 bed nursing home, women's health, and the full range of inpatient and outpatient care including Medical and Surgical Intensive Care. The VAMC provides more than 934,000 outpatient visits and approximately 4,300 inpatient stays annually.

Agency contact information

DeShonda Chatman
Email
deshonda.chatman@va.gov
Address
Ralph H Johnson Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Center
109 Bee Street
Charleston, SC 29401
US

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