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sparatuvs posted:I'll cut to the chase, my friend once posed as an arms dealer online so I could talk with people fighting in Ukraine. Should they not even try? I get that the mechanism of the national agency check is purposely obscured, but it still does consult the NSA.
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Dec 12, 2015 20:13
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If your friend is upfront about it and explained the reasoning, and didn't actually sell weapons in Ukraine, then they are probably fine. Just expect to provide documentation if they want it and for it to take a while longer as they will probably want to look into it!
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Dec 12, 2015 20:40
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Quarex posted:Probably not. I know my Single Scope Background Investigation was not technically a clearance investigation, but thinking about how it went... as long as you are just using these Forums as Forums rather than as, like, a place to recruit people for your seditious militia, I think you are good. But....they ask for BOTH! How does that make sense? Goddammit ok.
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Dec 12, 2015 20:43
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Slaan posted:If your friend is upfront about it and explained the reasoning, and didn't actually sell weapons in Ukraine, then they are probably fine. Just expect to provide documentation if they want it and for it to take a while longer as they will probably want to look into it!
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Dec 14, 2015 04:55
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A job that previously came back as "Eligible but not referred" just changed status to "Eligible, referred" 2 months after it said not referred. Toot toot edit: and got an email from the hiring manager asking if I was still interested since it's been like 8 months since the posting closed they just got the names to them now. The Slack Lagoon fucked around with this message at 15:05 on Dec 15, 2015 |
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Dec 15, 2015 14:10
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My eRecruit status changed from referred to hired today 
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Dec 19, 2015 02:37
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https://www.usajobs.gov/GetJob/ViewDetails/423817000 I'm going to consider it a win if I just get referred. The fact that this job even gets posted is fantastic.
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Dec 20, 2015 06:44
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Wow, Astronauts come in at GS-11? I thought it'd be far more given the danger of it.
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Dec 20, 2015 14:02
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NASA posted:Since all crewmembers will be expected to fly aboard a specific spacecraft vehicle and perform EVA activities (spacewalks), applicants must meet the anthropometric requirements for both the specific spacecraft vehicle and the EVA mobility unit (spacesuit). Applicants brought in for an interview will be evaluated to ensure they meet the anthropometric requirements. LOL no fatties
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Dec 20, 2015 14:04
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Well, Colonel, you have 10,000 hours in the F-18 and 747, you have a PhD in astrophysics, and you helped discover a new particle at CERN. But now that we get a good look at your fat rear end looks like you're a few cheeseburgers past fitting in a spacesuit, so...good luck with your job search!
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Dec 20, 2015 14:09
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Slaan posted:Wow, Astronauts come in at GS-11? I thought it'd be far more given the danger of it. That's for candidates. Actual qualified astronauts are a 14, if I read this right. And the anthropometric requirements: It's not just no fatties, it's "no tall people" and "no super-short people", IIRC.
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Dec 20, 2015 14:12
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I know but this is funnier.
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Dec 20, 2015 14:13
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I got an interview drat
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Dec 22, 2015 19:26
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Massasoit posted:I got an interview drat Goondolences, I hate it when that happens.
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Dec 22, 2015 20:33
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How much of a pain is it for exempted federal employees to parlay their experience applying for a job in another agency? I know a few people who are trying to break out of their jobs into something different and are not on a GS scale but at my job people say if you are exempted it is like having no federal service in your favor.
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Dec 26, 2015 04:52
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Blindeye posted:How much of a pain is it for exempted federal employees to parlay their experience applying for a job in another agency? I know a few people who are trying to break out of their jobs into something different and are not on a GS scale but at my job people say if you are exempted it is like having no federal service in your favor. It seems to depend on the career field; many of the unhappy 0800-series coworkers I've worked with have had decent luck jumping to competitive service GS jobs. General office-work type career fields, or things more generalized like the 2210 IT Specialists? Yeah, good luck with that.
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Dec 26, 2015 21:07
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It also depends on which excepted service you are hired into. The main difference is that you are barred from an MSPB appeal or the federal courts in your first two years of employment, if you are eligible at all (TSA employees, for instance, have no MSPB rights). In places where there's a union regulated under Title V, you are still allowed to file grievances and take 'em to an independent arbitrator once you get past your probation, but you are eligible to apply to positions as an existing federal employee from most excepted services. The main exception to this is the Postal Service.
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Dec 26, 2015 23:09
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I'm just starting a job search on USAJobs and had some questions I'd like to ask the posters here. My apologies if this is stuff that has been answered in the thread before, I'm working my way through it from the beginning. I'm in my late 20s and have degrees in the humanities- my BA is in philosophy and my MA is in English Literature. A lot of people like to talk up the professional "uselessness" of these degrees, but I'm wondering how I can spin them as a positive thing if I'm applying for some kind of entry-level clerical position with a Federal agency- is my academic background a millstone around my neck or something potentially helpful? Is having an MA, even in a "useless" field something that looks good to prospective employers? As far as job experience goes, I have ~5 years of retail experience, a few years of being a student aide in a college library from my undergrad, and about a year of being a substitute teacher. I'm only mentioning the student aide stuff and my current retail job where I'm middle management on my resume. I'm also wondering how to address cover letters when agencies don't provide a specific contact for the application? "Dear Hiring Manager" and "To Whom It May Concern" both seem pretty unlikely to get me anywhere. Answers to the above questions and any general advice is much appreciated.
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Jan 3, 2016 22:30
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I have a similar academic background (humanities/"useless" bachelors + masters), and have managed to spin it into a decent career. I have no experience with USAJobs, but I'd be happy to look over your resume and cover letter if you'd like. Shoot me a PM. I've coached a few friends through similar transitions from academia to the corporate/professional world. I mostly lurk in this thread because I used to deal with federal officers in a previous role as a contract manager for my federal contractor employer. Also, I read _The Pale King_ by DFW once, so I always enjoy hearing about GS's and such. 
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Jan 4, 2016 05:29
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This is a stretch but maybe someone here has some experience and can point my rapidly destabilizing rear end towards a solution. TLDR: Murphy's Law Case Study BLUF: Offered a job, formal offer letter recieved with 1 week left before start date, gaining supervisor on leave until start date. Unsure if start date can be moved because HR is waiting on the supervisor to respond, and I have no report location or time due to aforementioned supervisors lack of availability. The awful details... I was selected for a poisiton, was contaced by HR on December 14th with a proposed start date of January 11 and a promise that once the date was confirmed that I would receive the formal offer letter and associated new-hire paperwork. I do the math and say, poo poo 4 weeks is plenty of time and accept with the qualifier that I need adequate time (2 weeks before start date) to give my current emplyer notice of my resignation. HR lady acknowledges, says letter will be sent shortly. A week goes by, no update, I reach out to the HR lady (Dec 21), same answer as before "waiting on letter to be reviewed so that I can send to you.". Christmas happens, still no letter, call everyone under the sun that I can find to light a fire under her, placed an emphasis on the fact that it is now December 30th, we are within the 2 week window, and I still haven't given my notice due to not having a formal offer letter in hand and request the start date be moved to January 25th. Eventually I get ahold of someone important, explain my plight and the request to move the start date to January 25th, and like magic HR lady responds to me on December 31st with the offer letter and on-boarding documents. Here's where it gets great.. The offer letter she sent on December 31 is dated December 21, and has the start date of January 11th. I tell her that this isn't acceptabe and that I need the letter to be ammended to reflect the start date of January 25th, she acknowledges, copies in my gaining supervisor, and states that once the gaining supervisor confirms that the modification is ok she will issue the revised offer letter. No big deal right? Wrong Gaining supervisor is on leave until January 11th, so not only is HR lady unlikey to ever receive a response before the 11th but I have no start time or location because she is the sole POC that I've been given on the offer letter. What. The. gently caress. So I guess I have to give one week notice at my current job, and be an ashhole who can't plan if they by some miracle fix it before the end of this week. If they don't then I still have to figure out where the hell I'm supposed to report to on my first day. Has anyone else had their poo poo be this incredibly hosed up? What the hell should I do? SpaceBanditos fucked around with this message at 20:11 on Jan 4, 2016 |
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Jan 4, 2016 20:07
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About cover letters, I have always used "Dear Hiring Committee" unless there is a specific supervisor or contact identified in the listing and I've had several referrals. I don't get the sense that it matters, especially with USA Jobs (though probably more so if you are mailing an application). On another subject, here is a timeline for me. I know this is not necessarily something to worry about, especially with the holidays, but what does the thread think: 10/13 - closed 10/30 - referred 11/18 - phone interview ??? I sent a follow up email about a week after the interview thanking the supervisors who interviewed me and they said they would try to make a recommendation as soon as they could but after that it would be out of their hands and might take a "couple of weeks." I think the interview went pretty well, though it was easily one of the more difficult interviews I've done and I've done quite a few. But now I'm sitting here wondering whether the delay means anything (maybe, probably not) and whether to follow up again (I feel like probably not). I realize this kind of timescale is not unusual but coming from the private sector it's driving me crazy.
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Jan 4, 2016 20:20
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In person interview tomorrow. Anyone have experience with the Pathways recent grads program re: conversion to permenant? The position also is 7/9/11/12 but can only start as a 7. If I was gs7-step7 it would be comparable to my current pay. Is it realistic that, if offered the position, they would match step to my current pay? It's my dream agency/job, but I am hesitant about permenant conversion and starting pay.
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Jan 4, 2016 20:27
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SpaceBanditos posted:This is a stretch but maybe someone here has some experience and can point my rapidly destabilizing rear end towards a solution. Take a deep breath, keep working your current job, and wait for them to get back to you. Having just started a job about a month ago, I would hazard a guess that the start date is entirely flexible and you will be able to work out a date that allows you to give plenty of notice. Government is slow on these things but they're not out to trick you.
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Jan 4, 2016 20:56
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But if the letter says January 11th and they don't issue a new one.. I'm supposed to report for duty on the 11th (4 business days from now). Right?
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Jan 4, 2016 21:00
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Massasoit posted:In person interview tomorrow. Be prepared to provide proof of your current pay -- W-2s or a paystub should be sufficient. If it's in an equivalent position (like your worked IT and now you're getting an IT position) and the match is within the paygrade, they will typically match. There's also no reason to really bring this up until you get an offer. If they aren't willing to match, I'd still take job. At GS-7 Step 7 under Rest of US pay amounts, you would make: GS-7 step 7: $47,481. GS-9 step 3: $51,629. GS-11 step 1: $58,562. If you came in at GS-7 step 1, it would be: GS-7 step 1: $39,570. GS-9 step 1: $48,403. GS-11 step 1: $58,562. Year one would hurt, but the year 2 difference isn't that large. By year 3 you're making the same amount either way. TheMadMilkman fucked around with this message at 21:11 on Jan 4, 2016 |
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Jan 4, 2016 21:05
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SpaceBanditos posted:But if the letter says January 11th and they don't issue a new one.. I'm supposed to report for duty on the 11th (4 business days from now). Right? I would ignore the letter. You didn't agree to it, and HR has affirmed your non-acceptance via email. If you want to sleep easy, you can call them and validate this is the case, but otherwise I'd just wait for them to get in touch for a new start date. Don't go doing anything silly by quitting or putting in notices for a start date you've said you couldn't meet.
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Jan 4, 2016 21:43
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Well the gotcha is that I did say I could meet it when they proposed it on December 14th, with the qualifier that I needed the letter ASAP to give my 2 weeks which didn't happen. Guess I'm the foolish one for thinking that they could get an offer letter out in 2 weeks. Doubly so when all it consists of is my name, job, grade, start date, and supervisor name which is all (except for the supervisor's name) included in the conditional offer they provided months ago... 
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Jan 4, 2016 22:57
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SpaceBanditos posted:Well the gotcha is that I did say I could meet it when they proposed it on December 14th, with the qualifier that I needed the letter ASAP to give my 2 weeks which didn't happen. I wouldn't sweat it. They are cognizant of the standard courtesy 2 weeks and the supervisor will likely have no issues with sliding your start date to the beginning of a new pay period. I would suspect that you'll see a firm offer come in with a start date of the 25th along with all of the onboarding documentation that you'll be expected to fill out. We have had folks repeatedly push their start dates back without any issues. Then again, it will likely be up to how much of a stickler your new supervisor might be.
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Jan 5, 2016 06:15
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Yea it will work out one way or another, and even if it doesn't I just got notification this morning of selection for a GS-11/12 position that would be badass as well. Best problem to have I guess..  I know there's a ton of personal stuff that has to be considered but discounting that for a moment.. Assuming I've done the math and would be comfortable doing either job, how dumb of an idea is it to take a GS-1102-09/11 job over a GS-0343-11/12 assuming the commute would be 30 min (GS9) vs ~1 hour assuming metro doesn't break (GS11)? Would I be seriously handicapping myself by having to look for a GS 12 position in 2 years when I could essentially begin the hunt for a GS 13? EDIT for my overview of each! 0343-11/12: + Pay + GS11/12 + Opportunity + 0343 series is a good career field even if it is somewhat general + Get to GS-13 Faster assuming I don't mess up and get canned. - Commute (min of 1 hr each way assuming metro doesn't break, which it will) - May be in over my head - Less training and Certs? - Did I mention the commute? 1102-09/11: + Commute (30 min each way accoring to google) + Opportunity + 1102 series is very structured basically become a FAR and DFAR master which every agency needs + Lots of training and DAWIA Certs - May be boring - Will have to find another job to get GS12 experience to get into a GS13 slot - Pay would suck for 1 Year and be ok after that SpaceBanditos fucked around with this message at 14:03 on Jan 5, 2016 |
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Jan 5, 2016 13:23
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SpaceBanditos posted:Yea it will work out one way or another, and even if it doesn't I just got notification this morning of selection for a GS-11/12 position that would be badass as well. Within contracting you will always have plenty of work and there is a lot of opportunity to move all the way up to GS-15 within that series, or cross-train into logistics and program management. As to whether you would like the work or the commute that's not something that we can answer.
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Jan 5, 2016 14:37
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I think my interview went well, but they said it only starts at 7-1 Which is about 6.8k less than I make now
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Jan 5, 2016 16:02
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Massasoit posted:I think my interview went well, but they said it only starts at 7-1 I understand it's tough to take a pay cut even for just a year, but it'd be insane to pass up an opportunity with your "dream agency/job" should you be offered it when you can guarantee that you'll be making more than you are now in a year and a permanent position with said agency. If you can go from ~$46k to ~$70k in 3 years you've done very well for yourself, especially if it's a job you actually, you know... want to do.
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Jan 6, 2016 01:22
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Grouco posted:I have a similar academic background (humanities/"useless" bachelors + masters), and have managed to spin it into a decent career. I have no experience with USAJobs, but I'd be happy to look over your resume and cover letter if you'd like. Shoot me a PM. I've coached a few friends through similar transitions from academia to the corporate/professional world. Much appreciated! I will send something along shortly.
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Jan 6, 2016 01:44
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Massasoit posted:I think my interview went well, but they said it only starts at 7-1 Pathways is a great program, and as the other poster wrote, if it's your dream job then take the temporary pay cut. Just know that conversion is not guaranteed, and in my agency one participant has been terminated during the program, and another not recommended at the end of his program. Your supervisor and management have to recommend you be converted. If you do your job well and impress them it shouldn't be an issue.
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Jan 6, 2016 03:13
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spongeworthy posted:Pathways is a great program, and as the other poster wrote, if it's your dream job then take the temporary pay cut. Just know that conversion is not guaranteed, and in my agency one participant has been terminated during the program, and another not recommended at the end of his program. Your supervisor and management have to recommend you be converted. If you do your job well and impress them it shouldn't be an issue. In the interview they said they fully intend for the position to be permanent. They wanted to recruit an entry level person, and said they thought this was the best way to accomplish their goal. If offered the position I would more than likely take the job. I'd have to discuss with the fiancee though.
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Jan 6, 2016 03:16
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I love how tight lipped everyone in this thread is about their agency and job.
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Jan 6, 2016 05:48
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Can't say I fault that behavior. The case law for social media in the federal government is still developing, and there have been cases where private discussion groups of federal employees on Facebook and the like have ended with removals under the Hatch Act after someone dimed them out to OSC.
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Jan 6, 2016 07:05
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Thesaurus posted:I love how tight lipped everyone in this thread is about their agency and job. Must Love Dogs posted:Can't say I fault that behavior. The case law for social media in the federal government is still developing, and there have been cases where private discussion groups of federal employees on Facebook and the like have ended with removals under the Hatch Act after someone dimed them out to OSC.
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Jan 6, 2016 21:53
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I'll post my agency when I retire.
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Jan 6, 2016 23:16
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Must Love Dogs posted:Can't say I fault that behavior. The case law for social media in the federal government is still developing, and there have been cases where private discussion groups of federal employees on Facebook and the like have ended with removals under the Hatch Act after someone dimed them out to OSC. It's also worth noting that this forum is not at all private. It's possible to lurk the forum and search it from Google without ever registering or participating.
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Jan 7, 2016 14:01
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