Pathology Specialist- (Pathologist Assistant)

The Pathology Specialist (Pathologist Assistant) serves in the Anatomic Pathology (AP) section of the Pathology & Laboratory Medicines Services (PALMS) at the LTC Charles S. Kettles VA Medical Center, and at the Dermatology clinic locations within the VA Ann Arbor Heathcare System.Qualifications: To qualify for this position, applicants must meet all requirements by the closing date of this announcement, 01/08/2024.
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-12 position you must have served 52 weeks at the GS-11. 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.
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-12 position you must have served 52 weeks at the GS-11. The grade may have been in any occupation, but must have been held in the Federal service.

• Note: You must submit a copy of your most recent personnel action/SF50. Additionally, 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.

Interchange Agreement:

• Applicants must be eligible under the VA Interchange Agreement, having served continuously for at least one year in the other merit system under this interchange agreement. For more information regarding the VA Interchange Agreement please visit: https://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/hiring-authorities/competitive-hiring/.

You may qualify based on your experience as described below:
Basic Requirements:

• Successful completion of a full 4-year course of study in an accredited college or university leading to a bachelor's or higher degree that included a major field of study or specific course requirements.

Specialized Experience: You must have one year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the next lower grade GS-11 in the normal line of progression for the occupation in the organization. Examples of specialized experience would typically include, but are not limited to: Incumbent is fully knowledgeable about gross anatomy and gross pathology. S/he can recognize reliably pathologic abnormalities in a wide variety of gross specimens. The incumbent's familiarity with microscopic pathology and gross examination and sectioning procedures allows him/her to adapt these procedures to best illustrate and document the pathologic processes and their extent in the microscopic slides. The incumbent is familiar with permanent and frozen section techniques and standard histochemical and immunohistochemical stains. Incumbent has a professional knowledge of medical technology applicable to a wide range of duties in one or more specialty area or functions, and a high level of skill in applying this knowledge in solving very complex problems involving diverse aspects of clinical laboratory practice.
You will be rated on the following Competencies for this position:

• Analytical Reasoning
• Clerical
• Diagnostic Medical Testing
• Technical Competence

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.
Physical Requirements: The work requires long period of standing while performing gross examinations and teaching others to do so, recurring bending over when performing frozen sections and autopsies, occasional lifting of heavy items (bodies), and above average dexterity in dissecting specimens and cutting frozen sections.
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: There is no educational substitution at this grade level.
A transcript must be submitted with your application if you are basing all or part of your qualifications on education. In order to meet the basic requirement, a transcript should be provided to show you meet the minimal qualifications as outlined above in the Qualifications field.
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/.Employment Type: FULL_TIME