Psychology Program Manager Psychology Training Program Manager

Total Rewards of a Allied Health Professional

Psychology Training is a program of the Mental Health Service (MHS) that encompasses all levels of psychology training within the VA (pre-graduate practicum and internship as well as post-graduate fellowship training) along with associated clinical administrative and program development activities. The Psychology Program Manager (Psychology Training Director) reports directly to the Deputy Associate Chief of Staff (D-ACOS) / Chief Psychologist for Mental Health or their designee; and shares responsibility with other MH Program Managers and Section Leads along with the ACOS and D-ACOSs of MHS for the overall quality of MHS clinical services and operations.

Duties may include but are not limited to:

• Program Management Responsibilities
  • Serves as the Training Director for organized Clinical Psychology Training Programs within the Mental Health Service at VA Maine Healthcare System.
  • Responsible for the organization direction and management of these programs and has been delegated full managerial and supervisory responsibilities for all trainees within them.
  • Collaborates with Mental Health Administration Section Leads Human Resources and others as necessary in the recruitment hiring onboarding and retention of advanced healthcare trainees.
• Clinical Service Provision Responsibilities
  • Provides the full range of direct patient care services within the assigned clinical team consistent with the Incumbents scope of competence. Services include assessment intervention consultation supervision and education.
  • Provides psychological assessment and diagnosis of mental disorders including for complex and/or difficult patients.
  • Provides comprehensive evidence-based psychotherapeutic interventions including individual and group therapy.
  • Develops implements and documents the psychotherapeutic treatment plan for an assigned caseload of patients including prompt completion of clinical reminders.
• Enriching Elements
  • As appropriate engages in research and education activities that advance the mission of MHS VA Maine and VHA.
  • Provides clinical supervision for doctoral psychology students and interns postdoctoral psychology residents and other advanced healthcare trainees.
  • Supports academic/training activities with the University of Maine and other academic affiliates in support of the VA training mission.
• Other Responsibilities
  • Fosters accountability among all employees directly supervised by the incumbent.
  • Communicates actively and effectively to maintain and strengthen relationships and collaboration among the various stakeholders that interact with psychology training both within and outside of MHS.
  • Service on workgroups committees or tasks forces of the Healthcare System professional organizations and/or other stakeholders.

• You must be a U.S. Citizen to apply for this 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.
• Must be proficient in written and spoken English.
• Subject to background/security investigation.
• May be subject to satisfactory completion of our credentialing process.
• Selected applicants will be required to complete an online onboarding process. Acceptable form(s) of identification will be required to complete pre-employment requirements ( Effective May 7 2025 drivers 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).
• Complete all application requirements detailed in the Required Documents section of this announcement.

• 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.

Basic Requirements:

• United States Citizenship: Be a citizen of the United States. Non-citizens may be appointed when it is not possible to recruit qualified citizens in accordance with chapter 3 section A paragraph 3.g this part.
• Education: Have a doctoral degree in psychology from a graduate program in psychology accredited by the American Psychological Association (APA) the Psychological Clinical Science Accreditation System (PCSAS) or the Canadian Psychological Association (CPA) at the time the program was completed. The specialty area of the degree must be consistent with the assignment for which the applicant is to be employed. For the purpose of meeting this requirement the term specialty area refers to the specific specialty areas recognized by the accrediting body and not to specific job duties that might require special skills. Currently APA accredits doctoral programs in the specialty areas of clinical psychology counseling psychology school psychology or combinations of two or more of those areas. PCSAS accredits doctoral programs in psychological clinical science. CPA accredits doctoral programs in clinical psychology counseling psychology clinical neuropsychology and school psychology. There are no job assignments in VHA that require the skills of a school psychologist; therefore an applicant with a degree in the specialty area of school psychology is not eligible for appointment. Strictly for the purpose of determining eligibility for appointment as a psychologist in VHA there is no distinction between the specialty areas with the exception of school psychology. OR
  • Have a doctoral degree in any area of psychology and in addition successfully complete a re- specialization program including documentation of an approved internship completed as part of the re- specialization program meeting both of the following conditions:
    • The re-specialization program must be completed in an APA or a CPA accredited doctoral program; and
    • The specialty in which the applicant is retrained must be consistent with the assignment for which the applicant is to be employed.
  • NOTE: The applicant must provide an official transcript and/or certificate documenting the completion of the re-specialization program which includes completion of an APA or CPA internship. Psychologists who have successfully completed a re-specialization program as described above and who were employed by the Department of Veterans Affairs prior to the implementation of this standard are considered to have fully met the educational requirements of these qualification standards. OR
  • Have a doctoral degree awarded between 1951 and 1978 from a regionally-accredited institution with a dissertation primarily psychological in nature.
• Internships: Have successfully completed a professional psychology internship training program that was accredited by APA or CPA at the time the program was completed and that is consistent with the assignment for which the applicant is to be employed. OR
  • New VHA psychology internship programs that are in the process of applying for APA accreditation are acceptable in fulfillment of the internship requirement provided that such programs were sanctioned by the VHA Central Office Program Director for Psychology and the VHA Office of Academic Affiliations at the time that the individual was an intern; OR
  • VHA facilities that offered full-time one-year pre-doctoral internships prior to PL 96- 151 (pre- 1979) are considered to be acceptable in fulfillment of the internship requirement; OR
  • Applicants who completed an internship that was not accredited by APA or CPA at the time the program was completed may be considered eligible for hire only if they are currently board certified by the American Board of Professional Psychology in a specialty area that is consistent with the assignment for which the applicant is to be employed. NOTE: Once board certified the employee is required to maintain board certification. OR
  • Applicants who have a doctoral degree awarded between 1951 and 1978 from a regionally- accredited institution with a dissertation primarily psychological in nature may fulfill this internship requirement by having the equivalent of a one-year supervised internship experience in a site specifically acceptable to the candidates doctoral program. If the internship experience is not noted on the applicants official transcript the applicant must provide a statement from the doctoral program verifying that the equivalent of a one-year supervised internship experience was completed in a site acceptable to the doctoral program NOTE: Psychologists who meet the requirements of this revision and who were employed by the Department of Veterans Affairs prior to the implementation of this standard are considered to have fully met the requirements of this qualification standard.
• Licensure: Hold a full current and unrestricted license to practice psychology at the doctoral level in a State Territory or Commonwealth of the United States or the District of Columbia.
• Board Certification and Loss of Credential:
  • Board Certification: Persons hired to psychology positions in the VHA who completed an internship that was not accredited at the time the program was completed must be board certified by the American Board of Professional Psychology in a specialty area that is consistent with the assignment for which the applicant is to be employed. The board certificate must be current and the applicant must abide by the certifying bodys requirement for continuing education.
  • Loss of Credential: Once board certified psychologist must maintain a full valid and unrestricted board certification to remain qualified for employment. A psychologist who fails to maintain the required board certification must be removed from the occupation which may result in termination of employment. At the discretion of the appointing official an employee may be reassigned to another occupation if qualified and if a placement opportunity exists.
• English Language Proficiency: Psychologists must be proficient in spoken and written English in accordance with VA Handbook 5005 Part II Chapter 3 section A paragraph 3j.

• Ability to organize work set priorities delegate tasks and meet multiple deadlines.
• Knowledge of and ability to utilize evidence based practices and clinical practice guidelines appropriately and ability to guide staff in using these tools.
• Ability to deal effectively with individuals or groups.
• Skill in managing and directing the work of others to accomplish program goals and objectives.
• Ability to translate management goals and objectives into well-coordinated and controlled work operations.
• Ability to establish and monitor production and performance priorities and standards.
• Ability to analyze organizational and operational problems and to develop and implement solutions that result in sound operation of the program.