|
I'm also a bit confused about the criticism of a USAjobs resume. Other than being forced into reverse-chronological format over a functional resume it's not very different from any other resume format I've seen. The main difference with government resumes is that they are expected to be more detailed and thus longer. If you use the format properly you can put your most significant/relevant accomplishments at the top of each position section and someone skimming your resume should be able to read it just as easily as any other resume format. I'm with the posters who say that they already had someone in mind.
|
#
?
Feb 18, 2016 14:26
|
|
|
|
| # ? May 10, 2024 13:05 |
|
|
e_wraith posted:100% true, as someone who has read many. Trust me, though, the interviewers are used to seeing USAJobs resumes. And as others have said, if the resume got you to the promotion interview it did the bulk of its job. I'll second this -- I've read probably a couple hundred USAJobs resumes over the last few years for hiring our office has done, and they don't affect me any differently than more formal looking resumes at this point. I just care about the content, not the formatting, and that's the impression I get from everyone else who does paper review for our office.
|
|
#
?
Feb 18, 2016 14:49
|
|
|
USAjobs is getting a makeover.
|
|
#
?
Feb 24, 2016 17:16
|
|
|
Ponderance: So I'm currently doing LiveOps (from the Legit Online Moneymaking thread). How the heck do I even put that down on a USAJobs resume?
|
|
#
?
Feb 24, 2016 17:52
|
|
|
I applied to a posting last night and was utterly confused by how everything was different as I had not seen this. Well...things on USAJobs are different. The actual application was pretty much the usual ugly radial buttons all day long. But the rest of it was quite pleasant!
|
|
#
?
Feb 24, 2016 21:19
|
|
|
Has anyone dealt with going through a security clearance while still employed? I assume they interview your current employer, but obviously that could pose a problem in the event the job falls through or your current employer decides to terminate you or otherwise retaliate. Is it possible for them not to talk to your current employer?
|
|
#
?
Feb 25, 2016 21:31
|
|
|
Phil Moscowitz posted:Has anyone dealt with going through a security clearance while still employed? I assume they interview your current employer, but obviously that could pose a problem in the event the job falls through or your current employer decides to terminate you or otherwise retaliate. Is it possible for them not to talk to your current employer? I can't imagine a situation where they would not talk to your employer whether you are still there or not. My background check was delayed due to their backlog so I didn't have my interview until after I'd left my last job but the investigator(s) still went to my prior place of business to ask about me. Ditto for friends, neighbors etc. If anything I'd rather have it done and over with before starting because getting escorted from the premises after moving and starting your job is worse than your boss being asked a few questions about you. YMMV but if you think that you could potentially be fired for merely going through the security screening for another job that sounds like a problem in and of itself.
|
|
#
?
Feb 25, 2016 22:46
|
|
|
I doubt I would be fired, and I don't care if I were anyway, but it could make things pretty awkward around the office. Thanks for the info.
|
|
#
?
Feb 25, 2016 22:52
|
|
|
Phil Moscowitz posted:I doubt I would be fired, and I don't care if I were anyway, but it could make things pretty awkward around the office. Thanks for the info. Just tell your boss that you're being investigated by federal agents for reasons you can't elaborate on. That'll help clear the air.
|
|
#
?
Feb 26, 2016 01:16
|
|
|
Phil Moscowitz posted:Has anyone dealt with going through a security clearance while still employed? I assume they interview your current employer, but obviously that could pose a problem in the event the job falls through or your current employer decides to terminate you or otherwise retaliate. Is it possible for them not to talk to your current employer? They'll interview you, your manager, and your coworkers. As well as your former managers and coworkers if they feel like giving you a deep enough scrubbing. Hopefully you'll get a pretty chill dude like I did.
|
|
#
?
Feb 26, 2016 02:42
|
|
|
Thesaurus posted:Just tell your boss that you're being investigated by federal agents for reasons you can't elaborate on. That'll help clear the air. That could almost work. If you have a family member who works for the government/military, people may think it's related to that!
|
|
#
?
Feb 26, 2016 03:09
|
|
|
Hot Dog Day #91 posted:That could almost work. If you have a family member who works for the government/military, people may think it's related to that! I hope that's a joke. The investigator is not going to lie to them, if the investigator talks to your employer they are going to tell them. Pretty much the first thing that they say is who they are doing a background investigation on. They might not even talk to your work anyway since they only have limited time. They're probably more interested in your personal references, family members, and any job that you were terminated from.
|
|
#
?
Feb 26, 2016 13:59
|
|
|
Would this be a good way to apply for finance/economics jobs that require masters level and higher or should I just apply directly to the SEC, Federal Reserve, etc.?
|
|
#
?
Feb 26, 2016 14:32
|
|
|
My first interview was an hour long with a panel of interviewers, with behavioral questions and very structured. They asked about 10 prewritten questions and addressed a couple other questions toward specific things in my resume and application packet. I've been asked to do another interview with the chief of the division. I am trying to figure out what this is going to be like. More structure and formal questions, "Tell us about a time where you ..."?
|
|
#
?
Feb 26, 2016 17:00
|
|
|
Yes, it was a joke.
|
|
#
?
Feb 27, 2016 00:41
|
|
|
Is the reasoning behind the step increases meant to encourage you to find a new job? I remember hearing someone joking that once you do not get at least a token step raise every year it is the Government's way of telling you to move on...but the more I think about it, the less it seems like a joke.
|
|
#
?
Feb 29, 2016 05:41
|
|
|
Dr. Quarex posted:Is the reasoning behind the step increases meant to encourage you to find a new job? It certainly feels that way some times. A few months back I did the math on what the current GS scale would be if we had gotten an average increase of 3% per year since 2010 instead of 0%, 0%, 0%, 1%, 1.3% and it was like $10,000 cumulative difference per year even at grade 12 in a 'rest of country' city. Then there are the ramifications of the compounding of those lost funds on retirement accounts etc. It's not good. The step increases help offset that a bit for the first few years but it feels pretty stagnant fast after that.
|
|
#
?
Mar 2, 2016 03:06
|
|
|
poo poo that is proscribed by the Hatch Act follows. If you are reading SA on government time, stop reading here. And stop reading SA on government time for fucksake: That gap is the exact reason why AFGE's calling our push for a 5.3% raise a catch-up. We aren't exactly optimistic about it getting through this Congress, but it's worth fighting for. The growing pay gap between feds and private sector is a disgrace and means that the federal sector will struggle to attract and keep skilled employees in the long run. We're recommending everyone call their Congressional representative and Senators about this topic and ask them to support it. Must Love Dogs fucked around with this message at 04:45 on Mar 2, 2016 |
|
#
?
Mar 2, 2016 04:42
|
|
|
Must Love Dogs posted:poo poo that is proscribed by the Hatch Act follows. If you are reading SA on government time, stop reading here. And stop reading SA on government time for fucksake: I got the same email from my union and already sent my Rep an email. Unfortunately he is borderline tea-party and so his response to this quote:The growing pay gap between feds and private sector is a disgrace and means that the federal sector will struggle to attract and keep skilled employees in the long run. is probably 'good' and unfortunately a not-insignificant portion of the population seems to agree. No pride in having a great well-run government anymore. What do you think our raises will look like under President Trump?
|
|
#
?
Mar 2, 2016 12:42
|
|
|
I know nothing about the Federal hiring process or hiring processes in general, I imagine "Your Name has Been Sent to the Selecting Official" means that HR has determined that I meet the basic requirements and that a recruiter will go through the resumés they received to determine the best qualified candidates to interview, is that about right?
|
|
#
?
Mar 2, 2016 13:44
|
|
|
Soviet Commubot posted:I know nothing about the Federal hiring process or hiring processes in general, I imagine "Your Name has Been Sent to the Selecting Official" means that HR has determined that I meet the basic requirements and that a recruiter will go through the resumés they received to determine the best qualified candidates to interview, is that about right? Correct.
|
|
#
?
Mar 2, 2016 16:05
|
|
|
Soviet Commubot posted:I know nothing about the Federal hiring process or hiring processes in general, I imagine "Your Name has Been Sent to the Selecting Official" means that HR has determined that I meet the basic requirements and that a recruiter will go through the resumés they received to determine the best qualified candidates to interview, is that about right? Ya, you made the first cut. How many other people made it depends on the individual agency's rules.
|
|
#
?
Mar 2, 2016 16:06
|
|
|
TheMadMilkman posted:Ya, you made the first cut. How many other people made it depends on the individual agency's rules. Good to hear, although I'm not trying to read tea leaves too much because I have no idea how their rules work or how qualified the other applicants to the position might be. The main qualification required is having done Army type stuff so there's a very wide spectrum of people that would technically qualify. They're hiring for "many" positions but who the gently caress knows what that means. Phil Moscowitz posted:Has anyone dealt with going through a security clearance while still employed? I assume they interview your current employer, but obviously that could pose a problem in the event the job falls through or your current employer decides to terminate you or otherwise retaliate. Is it possible for them not to talk to your current employer? I really wonder how this would play out in my case, I've been living overseas for a few years and none of my employers I've had over here speak English. I had the agency's clearance liaison on the phone a couple of weeks ago to try and get an idea of what sort of paperwork I'd theoretically need to gather up and he said there shouldn't be any issues at all with that but I imagine that would be a headache for their investigators.
|
|
#
?
Mar 2, 2016 16:54
|
|
|
Dislike button posted:I got the same email from my union and already sent my Rep an email. Unfortunately he is borderline tea-party and so his response to this Defenders of the Wall will get nice raises, COLA, maybe even pensions (or be entombed within the wall, hard to say). IRS will probably have their pay docked to pay him back for all the inconvenience they've caused him. Hard to say about anything else, but wall duty will probably sound good. Hatch, if you're reading this, I'm on break and on my phone.
|
|
#
?
Mar 2, 2016 23:42
|
|
|
Updated timeframe. Apply 10/2/15 Closed 10/13/15 Referred 10/26/15 Interview 11/18/15 Followed up 11/25/15 Called to schedule second interview with section head 2/25/16 Second interview 2/26/16 Informal offer 2/29/16 Verbal offer from HR 3/3/16 They say the actual tentative offer letter will come in about 3 weeks (lmao) then the BI will take another 3.5 months. Also they offered me at GS14 step 1 despite having approved me at GS-15 (I applied and said I would consider 14/15, but I thought they would at least try to get as close as possible to my current salary).
|
|
#
?
Mar 3, 2016 20:23
|
|
|
Did you counter offer? GS 14 Step 1 is what a 3rd year attorney would make in my agency. You're clearly worth more than that.
|
|
#
?
Mar 3, 2016 21:52
|
|
|
TheMadMilkman posted:Did you counter offer? GS 14 Step 1 is what a 3rd year attorney would make in my agency. You're clearly worth more than that. I haven't gotten the official tentative offer letter and the HR rep said that is the time to counter. But I obviously will, unfortunately if they can't pay GS-15 step 1 at a minimum I probably can't swing it, cool as the opportunity is. Frustrating to get this far for that.
|
|
#
?
Mar 3, 2016 22:20
|
|
|
Hi government goons. I'm in the process of starting to actually apply for federal jobs, and boy has it been a learning process.  I was hoping to get some advice on how to navigate my current situation. I've spent the afternoon reading the entire thread from page 50 onwards, so I don't think I'm asking anything that has already been answered in the last like three years. I'm a physical scientist looking for field and/or lab research jobs. I have a BS and a MS (individual, earned before starting a PhD) in environmental science and water resources/freshwater biogeochemistry. Currently, I am in a PhD program but after a metric fuckton of soul searching and reality checks, I've decided to leave the program. I will have been in the program three years after this semester and have gained a lot of really useful and marketable skills which I'm pretty proud of. I'm meeting with my adviser on Monday to talk about whether or not I can reasonably get a (second) MS degree from here - normally after three years the answer would be, "Yes - write up a MS thesis and you're good," but most of my research has been tied up with developing a new method that ultimately has been a failure since it just doesn't work, for all my efforts. Negative data doesn't mean no data in my case, but I just don't see how I can get a thesis out of "I worked on method development for over 2 years and at the end of it all we just can't use this for anything." But we'll see. Ultimately, what I did in my first MS degree is going to be far more useful for what I want to do with my career. Based on my searches, it looks like I'll be applying for jobs from the GS-9 to GS-11 levels. A lot of the jobs I'm looking at are hiring at both levels, with differences in the job responsibilities. If I'm safely qualified for both a GS-9 and GS-11 position, does it hurt me any to apply for the lower level? I'm really looking to spend some time actually in the field or at a lab bench, and not in a more managerial position. For GS-11 jobs where in the description it says, "Three years of progressively higher level graduate education (54 semester hours, 81 quarter hours or the equivalent) leading to a Ph.D. degree in physical science or other directly related field of study," I'm still good to apply for those, correct? I have the credits done between my MS and the PhD studies, but I won't have a Dr. in front of my last name. I'm just getting confused by the language. Finally, if my adviser and I find that it's not going to be viable to get a second MS from this, I would still have the job titles of "Graduate Researcher" and "Graduate Teaching Fellow" from my time here. Since I did them as part of a degree program but didn't earn the final degree, would they still be counted as education, or could I count them as work experience? Thanks for your help! Edit: I'm working on the USAJobs Resume Builder, and I feel pretty unsure of how to list my BS and MS education. I completed a special 3-2 program where the last year of undergrad counted as the first year of my MS, and I had to get a special Dean's scholarship to do it. Technically, I received my BS in 2012 and my MS in 2013, and my transcripts show that I completed 142 credit hours for my BS but only 21 for my MS, since my "senior" year credits, which were entirely graduate classes, double counted for both degrees. I was going to include the 3-2 program information in the "additional information" section, but I'm worried about my resume getting thrown out automatically for only having a "21 credit" MS. Aceofblue fucked around with this message at 00:30 on Mar 5, 2016 |
|
#
?
Mar 5, 2016 00:00
|
|
|
Aceofblue posted:Based on my searches, it looks like I'll be applying for jobs from the GS-9 to GS-11 levels. A lot of the jobs I'm looking at are hiring at both levels, with differences in the job responsibilities. If I'm safely qualified for both a GS-9 and GS-11 position, does it hurt me any to apply for the lower level? I'm really looking to spend some time actually in the field or at a lab bench, and not in a more managerial position. Firstly: your three years absolutely should count, yes. GS-11 is basically the "A.B.D." level, if you want to think of it like that. I applied to plenty of jobs at that level before finishing. And realistically, there are barely any jobs that do require a Ph.D.--there are technically GS-12 and GS-13 research positions that require a doctorate, but I have seen all of like 2 or 3 in years of fairly heavy USAJobs use. And all required a History doctorate, if I recall correctly. I applied to an absurd number of positions before landing one, but really I should have stayed focused, since I only applied to about a dozen jobs actually directly related to my graduate research and I did indeed get one of those. You certainly stand a decent chance of getting a GS-11, and an even better chance of getting a GS-9, if you are looking for things in your field (as it sounds like you are). Your question about how to frame your graduate experience is a little trickier; if you were paid for it and it was separate from your required scholastic obligations, I would put it as a job, yes. I list my semesters as an adjunct alongside my research assistantship as work employment, certainly. Someone else might have a different opinion on that, but you also have to remember that the people looking at your résumés are likely barely going to understand what you did as a graduate student anyway, so they will likely not question it. As for the 3-2 program, uh. No clue really, other than that you are always supposed to use what makes you sound best if you can actually back it up with facts, so I would just include the relevant senior year credits with the other exclusive credits when counting. That all said...anyone else here ever had to revise their résumé after ages in graduate school? My supervisor theorized that part of the reason I did not get the promotion I applied for was because I did not explicitly spell out the skills I learned/tasks I completed while in school, and unsurprisingly graduate school makes up a huge chunk of my last decade of life whereas most people have "generic job, generic slightly better job, generic even more slightly better job" to fill in the gaps. Obviously I am not used to thinking in these terms; like, I assumed that degrees spoke for themselves, but when you think of it instead as like "conducted research for, performed statistical analysis on, and composed dozens of 20-30 page research documents" it does sound a bit more tangible. All I am saying is, immigration law counts one year of higher education as equivalent to 3 years of work experience; why am I not treated as someone who has worked long enough to retire already? 
|
|
#
?
Mar 5, 2016 05:58
|
|
|
McCoy Pauley posted:I've been on this situation from the hiring end. We've put out 14/15 vacancies because we're willing to consider less experienced attorneys, but we will hire someone at a 15 if they have enough years of work experience. Our practice is certainly to do as much as we can do for the person we're hiring, in terms of bringing them in at the highest step/grade that makes sense for their experience. We've had people come from the private sector who maybe weren't clear on the difference between 14 and 15, and we've hired them as 15s even though they said they'd accept a 14 or a 15. I would hope that wherever you're interview does that for you. As an update they've offered 14 step 5, which is about $5k short of 15 step 1. But more troubling I think is the significant difference between in-step increases between 1-2-3 and 5-6-7-8-9-10. Am I understanding it correctly that essentially, using DC numbers, someone hired at GS-15s1 could be making $140k in three years, whereas someone hired at GS-15s6, starting close to the same salary as 15s1, wouldn't hit $140k for eleven years minimum (and couldn't even get a raise at all for at least two years)? This is the issue that Dislike button and Dr. Quarex are talking about a little bit up.
|
|
#
?
Mar 8, 2016 00:23
|
|
|
Is it an auto to GS-15 or is it a GS 14 with potential promotion to 15 later?
|
|
#
?
Mar 8, 2016 01:10
|
|
|
GS-11/15 is how it was listed, with "promotion potential" as 15. What would be an auto GS-15? When I applied, I checked the boxes saying I wanted to be considered for 14 and 15 which was probably a mistake. But then I got an email telling me I was qualified at 15. The email said this: quote:Series/Grade: So I've been thinking about it in those terms ever since, and the GS-14 offers were disappointing. Considering relocation and increased cost of living and other personal financial considerations (kids, etc) and I probably can't do it unless it's at 15.
|
|
#
?
Mar 8, 2016 01:28
|
|
|
If it follows most other attorney positions, GS-14 is probably the full working level, meaning that if you came in at 11 you would automatically be promoted a pay grade each year until you reach 14. Chances are that there are GS-15 positions, but you have to be a 14 for a year and then apply for the higher grade when one opens. I would still ask just to make sure. If it was an auto promotion to 15, you would go from GS-14 step 6 to GS-15 step 2 next year. There's a "2 step rule" for grade promotions -- take your current pay step, add 2 steps, then find the first step on the new grade that meets or exceeds that number. You can also ask why you were offered a 14 when you were marked as qualified for a 15. I know of numerous people who have pushed this point, myself included. I wasn't successful, but I know people who have been. Nobody's job offer was affected by asking, so why not ask?
|
|
#
?
Mar 8, 2016 02:37
|
|
|
On top of that, since you're putting in for an 0905, I'm guessing you have a poo poo ton of loans, yeah? There's ways to reduce what you pay and eventually have a whole big chunk of your loan debt forgiven tax free after ten years working for the government.
|
|
#
?
Mar 8, 2016 03:29
|
|
|
TheMadMilkman posted:If it follows most other attorney positions, GS-14 is probably the full working level, meaning that if you came in at 11 you would automatically be promoted a pay grade each year until you reach 14. Chances are that there are GS-15 positions, but you have to be a 14 for a year and then apply for the higher grade when one opens. Thanks for the advice. I'll have to ask about the auto-promotion, but I am in a strange bargaining position--I was made an unofficial offer by agency HR, who told me that if I wanted to negotiate I could in response to the official TO. I've been talking to agency leadership who interviewed me and they confirmed the lower offer, and I sort of discussed with them that it was too low for me to consider but I thought I had been qualified at 15. She ran it up the flagpole and they came back with 14s5, but no real explanation as to why I qualified at 15 but got a 14 offer. Must Love Dogs posted:On top of that, since you're putting in for an 0905, I'm guessing you have a poo poo ton of loans, yeah? There's ways to reduce what you pay and eventually have a whole big chunk of your loan debt forgiven tax free after ten years working for the government. By the time I have ten years in my loans will be paid off. Phil Moscowitz fucked around with this message at 03:42 on Mar 8, 2016 |
|
#
?
Mar 8, 2016 03:39
|
|
|
If you already brought it up and it went up the chain, then pushing the issue probably won't result in anything. Government hiring really is a mess.
|
|
#
?
Mar 8, 2016 05:14
|
|
|
Dr. Quarex posted:Hello, as someone who entered federal service while completing his Ph.D. and now has a Ph.D. and is still in federal service, I feel almost competent to answer this! Thanks! I just had a talk with my committee yesterday, and they (surprising to me, but perhaps that was my own insecurities talking) are fully in support of me and think that there's no reason I won't be able to write up a thesis and get a second MS by August. It's a huge relief, and it gives me some time to job hunt before then. My question now is that will having my work here be considered a second MS impact me when applying for GS-11 jobs with the "3 years of progressively higher level graduate education leading to a Ph.D. degree or Ph.D. or equivalent doctoral degree, if related." qualifier? Or does it not matter that my 2nd grad degree is also a MS, and it's my total credit hours that will matter? I'll have 4 years total of graduate credits so I can't imagine just because it's called a MS it'll stop me from applying for GS-11 jobs. Edit: One last stupid question. I keep seeing conflicting information so I'll just ask - if you have advanced degrees, do you list your high school education? I know for my private sector resume anything related to high school literally doesn't matter and I leave it off, but since the federal resume is so much more lengthy I wasn't sure. When I was reading through the thread, I definitely remember people complaining about the questionnaires asking about your high school experiences, which seems really silly to me at this point. Aceofblue fucked around with this message at 19:51 on Mar 8, 2016 |
|
#
?
Mar 8, 2016 19:37
|
|
|
Aceofblue posted:My question now is that will having my work here be considered a second MS impact me when applying for GS-11 jobs with the "3 years of progressively higher level graduate education leading to a Ph.D. degree or Ph.D. or equivalent doctoral degree, if related." qualifier? Or does it not matter that my 2nd grad degree is also a MS, and it's my total credit hours that will matter? I'll have 4 years total of graduate credits so I can't imagine just because it's called a MS it'll stop me from applying for GS-11 jobs. As for high school ... ugh. Yeah I am not sure there is a definitive answer. I can tell you that I was ridiculed (politely) for including my high school information in my USAJobs résumé even though it specifically says to include all previous education, so you should probably be safe skipping it there; I will also say that a lot of entry-level positions are going to have questionnaire sections about high school achievements (as you noticed us discussing earlier in the thread) and there is not really any way to avoid discussing it there. But yeah, for as much as I want to highlight my EDITING AWARD FROM YEARBOOK CLASS likely it is not hurting me much to pretend I never went to high school. I just want to know when I can take my undergraduate degree off so my age is not immediately obvious  And whether they will accept this scan of my diploma as evidence of my Ph.D. in lieu of the transcripts that are not final yet, haha.
|
|
#
?
Mar 8, 2016 20:04
|
|
|
Dr. Quarex posted:That is actually an interesting call about the second master's; I think because it was intended as a doctoral program, you definitely still qualify; a lot of people read the GS-11 requirement as just being in graduate school for three+ years, but it really does/is supposed to mean progress toward a doctoral-equivalent without needing to complete it, which is why yours does count. As opposed to someone who just took a year too long to complete a master's program and tried to claim it. It would be easiest if your transcripts mention it being a doctoral program or have mention of doctoral candidacy or something but I do not think you should have any trouble. Dr. Quarex, my USAJobs Resume lifesaver.  I don't know if it's as relevant to a federal job as it is an one in academia, but all the PhD's I know have never taken their undergrad off their full CV. I guess it may be different if you're looking at a shorter resume rather than the full CV that lists literally everything, though.
|
|
#
?
Mar 8, 2016 21:56
|
|
|
|
| # ? May 10, 2024 13:05 |
|
|
It looks like under the new USAJobs platform that particular question doesn't really matter anymore. The new platform looks like it just relies on your resume/uploaded documents and doesn't require you to manually enter resume information.
El Mero Mero fucked around with this message at 22:59 on Mar 8, 2016 |
|
#
?
Mar 8, 2016 22:55
|
|
