Program Specialist

Summary

This position is located at the Jesse Brown VA Medical Center, Chicago, IL and is organizationally aligned under the Surgical Service Line. This position provides comprehensive administrative, technical and program coordination support to Surgical Service , including residency and medical student programs, clinical applications, daily operations, and ADAPC duties.

Duties

The incumbent serves as a Program Specialist within Surgical Service at Jesse Brown VA Medical Center, The position provides comprehensive administrative, technical and program coordination support for Surgical Service Residency and Medical Student Programs, Clinical applications, personnel activities and service operations. Duties Include Coordinates and manages daily operations of the Surgical Service Residency and Medical Student Programs, serving as the liaison between VA Departments. affiliated academic institutions, program leadership and Health Professional Trainees (HPTs). Facilitates trainee onboarding and orientation, including required documentation, credentialing, system access, mandatory trainings, clinical rotation readiness and out-processing in accordance with VA policies and procedures. Serves as the Education Activity records (EARs) Liasion coordinating resident rotation schedules, leave, conferences, examinations and educational records while ensuring accurate documentation and compliance with program requirements. Performs administrative reviews, preparing reports, monitoring program activities and evaluating operational effectiveness and recommending improvements to administrative process, procedures and internal controls. Coordinates Surgical Service administrative operations, including physician and resident on-call schedules, clinical coverage updates, employee timekeeping support and communication with clinical staff and leadership. Serves as the Automated Data Processing Application Coordinator (ADPAC), coordinating system access, user permissions, software requests, PIV Sponsor and providing technical guidance and training. Provides comprehensive administrative and program support, coordinating surgical service meetings, residency program materials, and special projects to enhance service efficiency and regulatory compliance. Perform all other duties as assigned. Highly Desired Experience : 1 - 2 years of Residency Coordination in a high volume environment or similar. Experience providing administrative and technical support in a healthcare setting including EHR functions, program analysis and process improvement. Work Schedule: Monday-Friday 8 am-4:30pm Virtual: This is not a virtual position. Position Description/PD#: 123160 Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized PCS Appraised Value Offer (AVO): Not authorized

Qualifications

To qualify for this position, applicants must meet all requirements by the closing date of this announcement, 11/13/2026. 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-09 position you must have served 52 weeks at the GS-07. 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: Maintain accurate trainee records and databases; Manages daily program operations; Conducts orientation presentations; Prepares reports, analyzes program data; coordinates resident rotation schedules, call schedules, leave, conferences, meetings, and training examinations; Prepare meeting minutes materials; Submits equipment repair or replacement requests and supports implementation, testing and maintenance of clinical information systems. 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 2 full years of progressively higher level graduate education leading to such a degree or LL.B or J.D., if related. 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 a bachelor's degree. 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

A transcript must be submitted with your application if you are basing all or part of your qualifications on education. 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/.