After the military, transitioning veterans sometimes struggle to find employment. Certain employers do not understand the intricacy of veterans’ resumes and skills set which leads to qualified veterans being overlooked for jobs they are qualified for.
Federal government jobs offer veterans’ preference when hiring, great benefits, job security, and allows veterans to develop the skills they learned in the military and apply them in the workforce. According to the Office of Personnel Management, more than 633,000 veterans were employed by federal agencies. While veterans’ preference does not mean you are automatically hired, it lets you get your foot in the door and allows you to explore career options in the federal government.
Here are a few tips to help you get started on your federal job search.
Sign up for USAJOBS. gov
This is the official government job portal website for listings and applications. This site is easy to use and allows you to search for multiple jobs at different agencies at once. The sign-up process is time consuming, and you will have to enter a lot of information about your background, military service, and past employment. Have your DD-214 and any other official paperwork that documents your military service, training and discharge.
USAJOBS allows you to create multiple resumes when applying for different jobs that match your skills.
Create a federal resume
When applying for civilian jobs, you will need a different resume than when applying for federal jobs. For federal jobs, you will need to write a more detailed and much longer resume detailing your experience, skills, and descriptions of your duties in the military. You can find various video tutorials online that will help when creating a federal resume.
Apply to agencies that hire the most veterans
Many veterans can do any job with the right skills and training. Certain jobs like law enforcement and investigations are prime careers for veterans as these jobs use many of the skills used in military service. The Department of Defense and the Veterans Affairs Departments employed more veterans than any other federal agency. It is also recommended for veterans to apply to agencies outside of the norm such as the Department of Commerce or Department of Agriculture.
Lesser-known agencies often have less competition and provide additional growth opportunities.
Get ready for competition
As a veteran applying for federal jobs, the competition is stiff. There are other veterans applying for the same jobs that might have more experience or skills. It’s easy to become discouraged when applying for these jobs. Visit FedsHireVets.gov for veteran assistance when applying for federal jobs.