Dental Lab Technician

The Dental Lab Technician works in the Dental Service at Martinsburg VA Medical Center. S/he is involved in complex oral-maxillofacial prosthetics including fixed, semi-fixed, or removable implant cases, partial and complete dentures when the severe nature of the dental abnormalities to be overcome require working to unusually close tolerances, resolving particularly difficult problems of retention, stability, balance, reducing tension on natural teeth and tissue, and similar problems.

Qualifications:

To qualify for this position, applicants must meet all requirements by the closing date of this announcement, 01/18/2024.

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-9 position you must have served 52 weeks at the GS-8. 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-8) in the normal line of progression for the occupation in the organization. Examples of specialized experience would typically include, but are not limited to:

• Use of dental laboratory material such as impression materials, plasters, stones, hydrocolloids, waxes, metals, acrylics, porcelain, and similar materials.
• Use of laboratory equipment such as hand tools, dental lathes, engines, and hand pieces, furnaces, casting machines, presses, flasks, and related equipment.
• Use of precision instruments such as articulators, surveyors, and microanalyzers.
• Construction of dental prosthetic appliances.

. OR,

• Education: Applicants may substitute education for the required experience. To qualify based on education for this grade level you must have two full years of graduate education or a master's degree in a degree relevant to the position.

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 Bachelor's Degree.

You will be rated on the following Competencies for this position:

• Attention to Detail
• Customer Service
• Organizational Stewardship

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: Long periods of standing, sitting and bending are required. It is necessary to replenish plaster bins, and move heavy flasks in processing cases. It is required to move heavy case pans from one area of the lab to another and it is required to use a step stool to check top shelves of case storage areas.

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/.