BASIC REQUIREMENTS. a. Citizenship. Candidates must be a United States citizen. b. Education. Individuals must meet one of the requirements below: (1) Successful completion of a full four-year course of study from an accredited college or university, leading to a bachelor's or higher degree, that included a major study in an academic field related to health sciences or allied sciences appropriate to the work of a histopathology technologist, such as, but not limited to clinical biology, microbiology, physiology, pre-medical, medical lab technology, chemistry, immunology, physiology, anatomy; OR, (2) Baccalaureate degree from a regionally accredited college/university with a combination of 30 semester hours (45 quarter hours) of biology and chemistry (must include credit hours in both); OR, (3) Successful completion of two years of progressively higher level graduate education, leading to a master's degree or equivalent graduate degree, with a major study in an academic field related to health sciences or allied sciences appropriate to the position of histopathology technologist, such as clinical biology, microbiology, physiology, pre-medical, medical lab technology, chemistry, immunology, physiology, anatomy. d. Certification. (1) Candidates must currently possess the histotechnologist (HTL) certification given by 3 the ASCP Board of Certification. The ASCP requires completion of one of the following for a candidate to be considered "board eligible" to take the certification exam: (a) Successful completion of a histotechnician or histotechnology program accredited by the National Accrediting Agency for Clinical Laboratory Science (NAACLS); OR, (b) One year of full time experience in all of the following: fixation, embedding, microtomy, processing, and staining in a histopathology (clinical, veterinary, industry, or research) laboratory. (2) Exception for Non-Board Certified. Non-board-certified candidates designated by ASCP as "board eligible," who otherwise meet the eligibility requirements, may be given a temporary appointment under the authority of 38 U.S.C. § 7405(c)(2)(B). The appointing official may waive the requirement of certification for a period not to exceed two years for a histopathology technologist working under the direct oversight of a supervisor, lab manager, or qualified individual who can verify technical experience. This exception only applies at the entry level. For grade levels at or above the full performance level, the candidate must have HTL certification. Temporary appointments of non-board-certified histopathology technologists may not be extended beyond 2 years or be converted to a new temporary appointment. (3) Failure to Obtain Certification. In all cases, non-board-certified histopathology technologists must meet one of the ASCP histotechnologist eligibility routes at the date of their appointment and must actively pursue certification from the date of their appointment. At the time of appointment, the supervisor will provide the histopathology technologist with the written requirement to obtain certification, the date by which the certification must be acquired, and the consequences for not becoming certified by the deadline. Failure to obtain board certification by the prescribed date will result in removal from the histopathology technologist, GS-0601 occupational series and may result in termination of employment. (4) Loss of Certification. Employees who fail to maintain the required certification must be removed from the histopathology technologist, GS-0601 occupation, which may result in termination of employment. e. Grandfathering Provision. All histopathology technologists employed in VHA in this occupational series or in another occupational series, who perform the duties as described in the qualification standard on the effective date of this qualification standard, are considered to have met all qualification requirements for the grade held, including positive education and certification that are part of the basic requirements of the occupation. For employees who do not meet all the basic requirements in this standard, but who met the qualifications applicable to the position at the time they were appointed to the position, the following provisions apply: (1) Histopathology technologists who do not meet the basic requirements for education 4 and certification may be reassigned, promoted up to and including the full performance level, or demoted within the occupation, but may not be promoted beyond the full performance level or placed in a supervisory or managerial position. (2) Histopathology technologists who are appointed on a temporary basis prior to the effective date of the qualification standard may not have their temporary appointment extended or receive a new appointment on a temporary or permanent basis, until they fully meet the basic requirements of the standard. (3) Histopathology technologists initially grandfathered into this occupation, who subsequently obtain education and/or certification that meet all the basic requirements of this qualification standard, must maintain the required credentials as a condition of employment in the occupation. (4) If histopathology technologists, who are grandfathered under this provision, leave the occupation then those employees lose grandfathered protected status and must meet the full VA qualification standard requirements in effect at the time of reentry to the histopathology technologist occupation in this series. f. Physical Requirements. See VA Directive and Handbook 5019. g. English Language Proficiency. Histopathology Technologists must be proficient in spoken and written English as required by 38 U.S.C. § 7403(f). 5. GRADE REQUIREMENTS. In addition to the basic requirements for employment listed above, the following experience criteria must be met when determining the grade of candidates. a. Histopathology Technologist, GS-7 (1) Experience. None beyond the basic requirements. (2) Assignment. At this level, histopathology technologists serve in developmental positions practicing under close supervision of a supervisor, lab manager, or qualified individual who can verify technical experience. b. Histopathology Technologist, GS-9 (1) Experience. Must have one year of creditable experience equivalent to the GS-7 grade level, which is directly related to the position to be filled. (2) Assignment. At the full performance level, the histopathology technologist independently performs a full range of routine and specialized tests. Utilize information technology systems to apply histopathology techniques and broad scientific principles from the fields of biology, chemistry, anatomy and physiology. The histopathology technologist acts as a technical resource, troubleshooting a variety of specialized lab tests, identifying suboptimal issues, and uses independent judgment and resources to resolve concerns. (3) Demonstrated Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities. In addition to the experience or education above, the candidate must demonstrate all of the following KSAs: (a) Knowledge of laboratory information technology systems and inter-connectivity. (b) Knowledge of histopathology techniques, chemistry, anatomy and physiology principles, theories, concepts, and methodologies sufficient to process specimens, and the ability to perform a full range of routine specialized tests. (c) Ability to identify and test suboptimal specimens and take corrective action to minimize or eliminate impact on a patient's sample. (d) Ability to organize, coordinate, and prioritize simultaneous work assignments; both individual and team related. (e) Skill in applying professional, anatomic pathology principles, practices, concepts, and theories in performing new or difficult specialized testing methods or techniques