USAJOBS

10 Things that Will Improve Your USAJOBS Resume

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I am often asked what the DIY person can do to their resume to make it better. Here are 10 easy-to-implement suggestions: 

  1. Create a Skills Summary or Professional Profile. This is great way to include keywords and summarize who you are and what you bring to the table in a couple of sentences.
  1. Add awards. Give yourself credit.
  1. Get rid of experience that is irrelevant and/or more than 10 years old. Hiring Managers [and Human Resources (HR) people] want to know what you have done lately. And, most likely your experience from 10+ years ago was not at the same level as you are targeting now—so it may not count as qualifying experience. Finally, if you haven’t done something in more than 10 years, even if you are considered qualified, you may not be best If you were the hiring manager, would YOU want to select someone who hasn’t done something in 10 years or someone who is doing it now?

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Preparing for the Senior Executive Service (SES): Candidate Development Programs (CDPs)

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2014 saw many agencies announce Candidate Development Programs (CDPs). The Department of Homeland Security (DHS), the Internal Revenue Service (IRS), the Office of Management and Budget (OMB), the U.S. Secret Service (USSS), the Bureau of the Mint, and the Social Security Administration (SSA) were among the agencies that did so. CDPs are an excellent opportunity for those interested in considering future SES opportunities.

Agencies use CDPs as a succession planning tool to identify and prepare aspiring senior leaders by developing competencies in each of the Executive Core Qualifications (ECQs)—leading change, leading people, results driven, business acumen, and building coalitions. While completion of a CDP does not guarantee selection into the SES (nor is it required), graduates of CDPs who have their ECQs certified by an Office of Personnel Management (OPM) Qualification Review Board (QRB) may be selected for a SES position without further completion.

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Reading a Federal Job Announcement

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When most of us look at a federal job announcement, we tend to focus on the grade of job and not much else. However, if we want to be successful applicants, we need to spend a lot more time focusing on job announcements. Anyone considering applying for a federal job should pay special attention to each of these parts of the job announcement:

  • Who can Apply
  • Qualifications Required / How You Will be Evaluated
  • The Occupational Questionnaire
  • How to Apply

We’ll look at each of these in turn:

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Time to Look for a New Federal Job?

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If it has been a while since you’ve looked for a new government job, it may be helpful to review the two basics before you get started.

1. Make sure your USAJOBS account is up-to-date.

Test your USAJOBS user name and password to make sure that they work. If you cannot remember your user name or password, recover/reset them before you start applying. You do not want to find yourself unable to get into your USAJOBS account at 11:58 PM on the night the job is closing! Contact the USAJOBS Help Desk for assistance.

2. Review your USAJOBS Profile.

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