Getting Hired by the Government – Federal Employment Requirements

By Rhonda Campbell

By working for the federal government you can receive several benefits, including retirement, health insurance and paid time off benefits. During your government job search, if you get hired to work for federal agencies when you are a teenager and you enroll in retirement savings plans as early as possible, you can build a healthy financial future. You can also get hired by the federal government to work summer jobs. In some ways the process of getting hired into a federal job is similar to getting hired into jobs in the private sector; in other ways the process is considerably different.

The United States Office of Personnel Management (OPM) works with various federal agencies and organizations to create and publish job qualification criteria for federal jobs, including government security jobs. The standard criteria helps to increase the likelihood that published qualification requirements for available jobs are equitable, accurate and effectively help federal hiring managers attract quality personnel.

Government Jobs Work and Academic Qualifications

Federal employees must be a United States citizen, registered national or a lawfully admitted registered immigrant alien. Additionally, research, scientific and certain other professional jobs like psychology, engineering, biology, medical fields and accounting, require federal employees to have a college degree in their specific area of work. General Schedule (GS)-5 through GS-7 jobs generally do not require applicants to have a college degree. On the job training and hands on work experience are often sufficient at these job levels. Jobs at the GS-9 level typically require the applicant to have a master’s degree while GS-11 level jobs typically require that the applicant have a doctorate degree. Required degrees must be earned at an accredited college or university.

Government Jobs Civil Service Examination and Agency Ranking

Males aged 18 to 25 are required to register with the Selective Service System before they apply for a federal job. Applicants, regardless of age or gender, should check the federal job announcement to note test specifications associated with the particular job they are interested in completing. During the hiring process, federal hiring agencies rank and score each applicant’s work experience, education and overall background against every other applicant who has applied for the job opening. Applicants with the highest rank have increased chance to land the job.

Blue Collar Government Jobs

Apprenticeships are classified as blue collar federal jobs. Applicants for these jobs must complete necessary trade and apprenticeship classroom and on the job training. Before being hired into these government jobs, applicants seeking these jobs must demonstrate their abilities through successfully completing trainings, examinations and work related assignments. Examples of apprenticeship and trade jobs include plumbers, electricians and carpenters.

Government Jobs Temporary Appointments

Government job applicants can also gain employment with federal organizations by working on a temporary status. Temporary, career, blue collar and other professional federal jobs are posted online with USAJobs.gov. Interested persons can also inquire about current government jobs that are open by dialing 703-724-1850. Hearing impaired persons can dial 978-461-8404. Applicants are encouraged to submit a resume and conduct an interview prior to receiving employment.

Teens and college students looking for entry level government jobs or part-time or full-time summer jobs might want to consider getting hired to complete summer work for federal agencies. Some of the summer jobs might turn into permanent employment, especially for college students who are on track to graduate with college degrees within a year or less.

Military veterans and former corporate employees are other types of workers who can get hired to work federal jobs. Before applying for the jobs (even if they are entry level government jobs), applicants are encouraged to study the agency they’re interested in working for, create a strong resume and familiarize themselves with job qualification requirements and application guidelines associated with jobs they want to get hired into.

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Sources:

http://www.usa.gov/Citizen/Topics/Government-Jobs.shtml (USA.Gov: Government Jobs)

http://www.usa.gov/Topics/Parents-Employment.shtml (USA.Gov: Youth Employment)