The U.S. Federal Government Jobs Megathread: Next time... be more careful!

The Something Awful Forums > Discussion > Ask/Tell > Business, Finance, and Careers > The U.S. Federal Government Jobs Megathread: Next time... be more careful!

WhiskeyJuvenile: Feb 15, 2002; by Nyc_Tattoo

Sundae posted:

Any USPTO workers in this thread? I've been trying to get a job there for four years now. They keep freezing hiring for my relevant fields, but reopened a few positions in the last few weeks. I'm applying again.

Is it as bad as the USPTO job-satisfaction surveys claim it is? The pay's pretty awesome for gov stuff, from what I've seen.

I'm an examiner. The job can be stressful: it's not just that there is a deadline, but occasionally you get a dog of an application an it takes up way more time than it should.

Kaymaster posted:

I worked as a contractor in the USPTO Library, so I got to speak to a lot of examiners and private researchers. Right now, there is a lot of pressure on examiners to meet quotas and deadlines, however, the hours are very flexible. Also, many examiners are working from home now, but I think you need at least a year or two of experience before that happens.

The pay is good and you can move up relatively quickly. I know a guy who started 2 years ago who is already a GS-13 with only a bachelor's degree. He works his rear end off though.

A BS gets you in the door at GS-7, you could take the two accelerated promotions (6 months each) to G-11, and then it's a year to GS-12, then another full year to GS-13. I came in as a GS-9 and am about to make my GS-13 promotion after three years. He'd have to have come in as a GS-11 to make 13 in two years, which is, if I recall, reserved for PhDs and experienced patent professionals; I came in as a lawyer and patent agent, but fresh from taking the respective bars.

# ¿ Jul 14, 2010 18:26

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WhiskeyJuvenile: Feb 15, 2002; by Nyc_Tattoo

Skandiaavity posted:

It's possible I am wrong, or this varies by agency, but I thought a BA/BS only qualified you for GS-5, realistically? Whereas if you had personal experience on top of that, you'd qualify for GS-7/GS-9?

I do know the intel agencies play it up a bit to retain the positions/compete with private sectors, but wow, it'd be cool if I qualified for a GS-9/GS-11 :P

A 3.25 undergrad GPA gets you in as a GS-7 at the PTO, and given the applicant pool, most new hires have above that anyway. That plus a Masters or JD is -9, plus PhD is -11. The PTO only has -5, -7, -9, -11, -12, -13, -14 and -15 as their paygrades though.

I'm making $120k as a GS-12 with overtime, though, so it's a much higher payscale than the DC locality pay.

# ¿ Jul 14, 2010 21:58

WhiskeyJuvenile: Feb 15, 2002; by Nyc_Tattoo

CherryCola posted:

Masters is a 9?? Oh dang, I've been lookin at 6's and 7's.

At the PTO, yeah.

Sundae posted:

Baruch - how picky are they on the qualification standards for "Masters"?

They specifically list it as "Two years of graduate study leading to a Master's Degree".

I did a Master of Engineering program, which compresses the research part into the first year of classes, and you end up with a M.Eng after one year.

Is that typically sufficient to meet the GS-9 rating?

I know the recruiters said I'd be a GS-9, but they also made it sound like I had the job, guaranteed, and then they dropped off the face of the planet.

That's a crapshoot, pretty much. It'd probably depend on credit hours.

# ¿ Jul 15, 2010 15:31

WhiskeyJuvenile: Feb 15, 2002; by Nyc_Tattoo

grover posted:

I don't think it impacts step increases or promotions, but the 2010 GS table will also be the 2011 and 2012 GS table.

Yeah, that's all they're talking about. The 2011 rates were going to be 1% higher than 2010, so we're really not talking serious money here that we're losing anyway: like $25-50 a paycheck pre-tax

# ¿ Nov 30, 2010 05:26

The Something Awful Forums > Discussion > Ask/Tell > Business, Finance, and Careers > The U.S. Federal Government Jobs Megathread: Next time... be more careful!