Program Specialist

Full Job Description

This position is in the Research & Development (R&D) Service at the VA St Louis Health Care System (VASTLHCS) and will provide a high level of assistance to the Principal Investigator (PI) in coordinating the recruitment, clinical interviewing, data collection and data analysis as well as administrative aspects of assigned studies.

To qualify for this position, applicants must meet all requirements by the closing date of this announcement, 02/11/2026.

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-9 position you must have served 52 weeks at the GS-7. 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-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: maintaining records, prepares project administrative and statistical reports; develop metrics and reports to monitor the quality of programs, plans, procedures, and methodologies; and/or analyze initiatives and processes; codes and cleans data using standard protocols; oversee procurement of supplies.

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 two full years of progressively higher-level graduate education leading to such a degree or LL.B.

or J.D.. 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 or superior academic achievement.

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/.

Major Duties:

Duties and responsibilities include but not limited to: Serves as project manager in support of a Principal Investigator (PI) conducting one or more research protocols.

Manages routine day to day research activities such as overseeing data collection and survey interview procedures and oversight of project research assistants.

Maintains complex existing databases and data spreadsheet files. Manages the screening and evaluation of candidates for clinical studies.

Manages implementation, control and reporting on clinical tests. Administers standard tests to measure and track indicators.

Ensures the accurate collection and completeness of all project data by research staff.

Manages day to day activities related to conducting and overseeing telephone-focused and in-person survey interviews with Veterans and or family members.

Generates periodic reports; extracts information from veterans' medical charts; codes and cleans data using standard protocols; prepares intervention materials; submits IRB packages for human studies research protocols; conducts literature searches required for the assigned research project; and coordinates ideas and suggestions throughout all phases of the research.

Work Schedule: Monday-Friday from 7:30am-4:00pm Virtual: This is not a virtual position.

Position Description/PD#: Program Specialist/PD09562-A Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized Critical Skills Incentive (CSI): Not Approved Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized