Qualifications

Applicants pending the completion of educational or certification/licensure requirements may be referred and tentatively selected but may not be hired until all requirements are met.

Basic Requirements:

• United States Citizenship: Non-citizens may only be appointed when it is not possible to recruit qualified citizens in accordance with VA Policy
• English Language Proficiency: Clinical Laboratory Scientists must be proficient in spoken and written English in accordance with VA Handbook 5005/72, Part II, Chapter 2, Section D, 5a, and in accordance with 38 U.S.C. 7403(f)
• Education-Transcripts required
• A bachelor's degree or higher from an accredited college or university
• Foreign Education: To be creditable, education completed outside the U.S. must be deemed at least equivalent to that gained in a conventional U.S. program by a private organization specializing in the interpretation of foreign educational credentials
• Graduates of foreign baccalaureate degree programs meet the educational requirements if they meet either of the following: Foreign transcripts are evaluated by an acceptable evaluation agency, and the degree is found to be equivalent to a NAACLS-approved U.S. clinical laboratory science degree program
• -OR- The applicant submits a letter from ASCP BOC or AMT stating the individual is eligible to take the certification examination
• NOTE: Possession of a certification identified in the Certification requirement below automatically determines the foreign education as creditable and no further documentation or proof of equivalency is needed
• Certification-Documentation required
• Candidates must meet one of the certification options below
• Generalist certification as an MLS given by ASCP BOC or AMT
• Generalist certification as an MT given by ASCP BOR or AMT
• Categorical certification or Specialist certification by ASCP or AMT
• Grade Determinations: In addition to the basic requirements for employment, candidates must meet the following grade-determining criteria for placement at grade levels specified
• GS-12 Clinical Laboratory Scientist (CLS) Technical Specialist Assignments
• For all GS-12 assignments above the FPL, the higher-level duties must consist of significant scope, complexity (difficulty) and range of variety and be performed by the CLS at least 25% of the time
• Candidates at this grade level are in one of the following assignments
• Experience
• One year of creditable experience equivalent to the next lower grade level is required for all GS-12 assignments
• Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities
• In addition to the experience or education above, the candidate must demonstrate the following KSAs: Knowledge and understanding of concepts, principles, methodology of medical laboratory technology, regulatory and accrediting agency requirements, medico-legal requirements, and pertinent statistics sufficient to perform complex diagnostic tests
• Knowledge of instructional techniques to instruct newly hired clinical laboratory scientists and clinical pathology residents in proper performance of tests and applications of laboratory procedures
• Knowledge of one or more advanced clinical laboratory functions
• Skill to apply new scientific/technical developments to develop procedures for new tests and modify existing procedures and methods to resolve problems relative to complex and difficult situations
• Ability to provide guidance and technical direction to accomplish the work of a clinical laboratory
• Ability to provide guidance and technical direction to accomplish the work of the specific laboratory section
• Assignment
• Please see the CLINICAL LABORATORY SCIENTIST QUALIFICATION STANDARD - GS-0644 for a detailed description of this assignment
• Preferred Experience: Requires at least one year of specialized experience equivalent to the GS-11 level, focusing on validating, interpreting, and troubleshooting complex chemistry procedures
• Must have knowledge or ability to manage complex instrument systems, resolve issues with laboratory instrumentation and data flow, and implement unique or emerging tests in clinical chemistry, to include writing and/or updating policies and procedures
• Responsible for Accreditation Inspection Readiness, training staff, and documenting competency as required, The full performance level of this vacancy is GS-11
• The actual grade at which an applicant will be selected for this vacancy is GS-12
• Physical Requirements: see VA Handbook 5019.