Summary

This position is one of Research Health Science Specialist within Research Service at the Veterans Affairs Medical Center in New Orleans. This position is responsible for assisting senior members of the research team with data management - survey methodology - and policy development.

Qualifications

To qualify for this position - applicants must meet all requirements by the closing date of this announcement - 06/10/2026. 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. Individual Occupational Requirement: Applicants who meet the Individual Occupational Requirements described below are fully qualified for the specified entry grade and must also meet the specialized experience and/or education requirements. Bachelor's or graduate/higher level degree: major study in an academic field related to the medical field - health sciences or allied sciences appropriate to the work of the position. This degree must be from an educational program from an accrediting body recognized by the U.S. Department of Education (external link) at the time the degree was obtained. In addition to meeting the above Individual Occupational Requirement (IOR) - applicants must also meet the experience and/or directly related education relevant to this position. 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: Experience working with primary investigators/psychologists conducting research. Proficient in participant recruitment and enrollment including obtaining informed consent. Ability to administer research protocol. Proficient in data entry - cleaning - coding - and analysis. Experience maintaining participant files; ability to prepare reports for granting agency. Knowledge of regulatory submissions - maintenance - and compliance regulations. OR - Education: Applicants may substitute education for the required experience. To qualify based on education for this grade level you must have 2 years of progressively higher - level graduate education leading to a master's degree or master's or equivalent graduate degree. (Transcript Required) OR - Combination: Applicants may also combine education and experience to qualify at this level. Equivalent combination of successfully completed graduate education (in excess of the first graduate year or 18 semester hours) and specialized experience to meet the total requirements. The education portion must include graduate courses that demonstrate the knowledge - skills - and abilities necessary to do the work of the position. 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/.

Duties

• Coordinates payments distribution
• Recruits for protocols and problem solves barriers to recruitment
• Oversees and develops Standard Operating Procedures for the protocols
• Identifies - collects and manages local data collection efforts
• Acts as expert in protocol adherence for site therapists
• Assists in coding data for qualitative research
• Screens and assesses documents for inclusion in environmental scan combining several search terms - parameters - and factors
• Performs a variety of administrative functions necessary for the research protocols
• Organizes and facilitates multi disciplinary investigative teams
• Obtains verbal informed consent and maintains ongoing consent from research participants
• Ensures research is in compliance with Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) - Institutional Review Board (IRB) and other regulatory agencies
• Conducts periodic assessment of study to ensure compliance
• Work Schedule: Monday-Friday 8:00am-4:30pm - subject to change based on the needs of the facility
• Telework: This position may be authorized for telework
• Telework eligibility will be discussed during the interview process
• Virtual: This is not a virtual position
• Position Description/PD#: Research Health Scientist Specialist/PD074020 Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized Critical Skills Incentive (CSI): Not Approved Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized