<p>Hi, does anybody know how easy it is to get a job with the Federal government in the US? I have a Bachelor of Arts degree in Economics from California State University, Chico and a Certificate for Account Clerk from Butte Community College. My grades in college were decent (around a 3.0, B or B+ average). I am just applying and applying to Federal jobs because of the great benefits and the pay scale.</p>
<p>I currently work at Wal-Mart as a cashier where I have worked there over 3 years. What is nice about this is that the job is part-time and it gives me the time to apply for other jobs. My resume looks sharp and I am ready to move on from my job at Wal-Mart.</p>
<p>If you’re not dead-set against this, consider part-time service in the Reserve/National Guard as a commissioned officer to complement whatever career field you choose in the Federal government.</p>
<p>There are a lot of perks and it allows you to network more effectively.</p>
<p>Um… I apply to social science research analyst spots, secretary spots, program analyst spots, and a bunch of national security related positions (this is my career interest). As I said, I can’t even get an interview for a GS-5 ($33,000/year) secretary.</p>
<p>I applied to the State Department “entry level” program and the cutoff to make the list was over 100, aka only veterans had a chance. I don’t mind that, I think they deserve some bonus for their service. But if you are filling all the positions with people with multiple years of work experience, it is disingenuous to call them entry level positions, if actual entry level people stand no chance.</p>
<p>I am finding good success on the internship route though (with tons of applications, I’ve gotten a few very good offers). Just have to turn one of them into a job for after grad school.</p>
<p>Federal jobs are very competitive - particularly entry-level positions. I HIGHLY RECOMMEND seeking out internships to get your foot in the door.</p>
<p>I spent the last six months working as a Student Conservation Association/Americorps intern for the Forest Service, and built a great network. I’m now being hired into a permanent position through the Student Career Experience Program, working summers as a park ranger for the next two years while I get my master’s degree.</p>
That sounds about right. It’s definitely tough out there.</p>
<p>I have friend that said exactly the same thing. Defense contractors were looking for “entry level” positions but they required you to have a pre-existing and current TS clearance. There was almost no way to have a TS clearance unless you were in the military.</p>
<p>Keep your chin up though and be persistent.</p>
<p>Yea, the clearance issue is annoying. You have to have a job or internship offer to get a clearance, but for most jobs they prefer active clearances (and the contractors demand active clearances). I tried to offer to fund the clearance out of my future paychecks for an opening I was looking that, but they didn’t seem interested in that, lol.</p>
<p>I was super bummed about this process before grad school. Even with my “non competitive” status from americorps vista (one of the reasons I chose to do it), I was getting no bites. But the internship route seems to be the best.</p>
Unfortunately, it doesn’t work that way. And not to mention the total cost of OPM (Office of Personnel Management) conducting a background investigation for a TS clearance will usually run anywhere from $1-2 million.
As you can see, that’s why positions that require you to have a TS clearance easily pay over $100,000 for “entry level” work.</p>
<p>those numbers seem very high. Do you have a citation for them? Most of the numbers I hear regarding costs are low-mid 5 figures. There are also a lot of people with TS that don’t make anywhere near 100k, but they can get there in their careers (a lot of the people in the office where I’m interning have this, or higher, and don’t make 100k. But most of them are fairly young, and there is a not-exactly-small portion that do make in the 100k-150k range).</p>
Oh okay, I think you misunderstood. You are correct, there’s not a lot of positions actually “in” government that pay around that range.
I should have been clearer. My friends who were IT/CS majors stumbled upon job listings for defense contractors and subcontractors looking for “entry” level positions with the requirement that you have a current TS clearance.</p>