Clarification from the agency

Open to current permanent employees of the Chalmers P. Wylie VA ACC and associated CBOCs.

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Duties and Responsibilities include but are not limited to:

Program Management (75 percent)

1.Conducts and manages an exercise program tailored to individual patients, taking into consideration their age, health conditions, and physical functioning.
2.Plans and sustains a portfolio of funded research in the field of aging, exercise, and functional decline.
3.Selects and administers physical performance measures for Gerofit research and clinical activities.
4.Acts as Program Manager for Gerofit research and clinical project(s) and leads and participates in the activities of the team. Manages communications and changes to the scope, direction, and processes of projects.
5.Plans management approach for projects; conducts complete evaluations of project operations; collects, analyzes, manages and documents data; interprets results; and documents and reports findings.
6.Organizes the data collection and data management processes. Assures compliance with study protocols, study operations manuals, standard operating procedures, and other relevant policies and procedures.
7.Develops follow-up procedures to monitor participant progress. Establishes, coordinates, monitors and manages outcomes-based research and analyses.
8.Assigns specific duties to program employees, as required, and monitors activities and quality of work specific to projects.
9.Prepares reports for both written and oral presentations to the general scientific community to be published in peer-reviewed journals and presented at meetings and conferences.
10.Monitors program progress, budget requirements, and timelines as required for VA reports and other relevant guidelines. Reviews regular status reports and statistical data to verify compliance with a search reporting and administrative criteria.
11.Plans, develops and completes required documentation/paperwork/forms to applicable Institutional Review Boards (IRBs) for initial and continuing human subjects review.
12.Establishes program goals and objectives and identifies results indicative of successful program accomplishments.
13.Establishes a schedule of team meetings, develops meeting agendas, and facilitates ongoing study activities.
14.Provides training and consultation to program team personnel in project protocols, policies, and procedures, including appropriate clinical interview procedures and data collection and maintenance.

Work Schedule: Monday thru Friday; 8:00am to 4:30pm
Compressed/Flexible: Not available
Telework: This position may be authorized for telework. Telework eligibility will be discussed during the interview process.
Virtual: This is not a virtual position.
Position Description/PD#: Physiologist/PD91817A
Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized
Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Available
PCS Appraised Value Offer (AVO): Not Available

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 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 or trial 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, 12/15/2025.

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. 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.

Basic Requirements:

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

• Specialized Experience: You must have one year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the next lower grade GS-9 in the normal line of progression for the occupation in the organization. Examples of specialized experience would typically include, but are not limited to: Conduct and modify/adapt exercise strength, flexibility and balance testing and develop appropriate individualized exercise prescriptions; Develop significant and innovative recommendations for weight management physical activity programs and/or methods; experience in selection, administration and interpretation of physical performance tests; applying concepts, principles, practices, and methodology in managing human physical exercise rehabilitation programs involving analyzing individual data. OR,
• Education: Applicants may substitute education for the required experience. To qualify based on education for this grade level you must have successfully completed three (3) years of progressively higher level graduate education leading to a Ph.D. degree or Ph.D. or equivalent doctoral degree that provided the knowledge, skills and abilities necessary to do the work of a Physiologist and in one of the basic animal sciences or physiology; or a related discipline or field of science that included at least 24 semester hours in the basic animal sciences, of which 10 semester hours were in animal physiology.. This education must have been obtained in an accredited in an accredited college or university. NOTE: Transcripts (unofficial or official) must be submitted with your application materials. Education cannot be credited without documentation.. 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 the second year and specialized experience, as described above, which may be used to meet total experience requirements for this grade level. This education portion must include graduate courses that provided the knowledge, skills and abilities necessary to do the work of a Physiologist and must have been obtained in an accredited college or university. NOTE: Transcripts (unofficial or official) must be submitted with your application materials. Education cannot be credited without documentation.

You will be rated on the following Competencies for this 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.

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.

Preferred Experience: Experience working with bariatric or geriatric patients, certification (e.g., group fitness instructor, health coach, senior fitness specialist, weight management, strength and conditioning coach, etc.)

Physical Requirements: The work involves a wide range of physical demands from sedentary work, sitting in a standard office setting, to moderate and heavy physical demands which include the ability to lead exercise demonstrations and transfer patients in an emergency setting when necessary within the facility (i.e. cardiac arrest during group activities). The work will require long periods of standing, walking, bending, crouching, reaching while leading exercise demonstrations. There is a need to show exercise equipment and be physically active with the patients in designing and teaching an exercise program. Moderate to heavy lifting is required to assist patients and operate equipment. Sitting is required in meetings and for conducting administrative work. The job may require physical stamina, normal use of arms and legs, and good visual and auditory acuity.

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.

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.

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.

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

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.

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.