What’s more rare? Big Foot riding a Unicorn, or government job?
This question can be highly debated. For many, they feel like they have a better chance of seeing Big Foot riding a Unicorn than they do of landing that government job of their dreams. Contrary to popular belief, government jobs are not hard to obtain, but it does require some inside knowledge of how the process works.
As a federal human resources professional I get to review hundreds of applications a week for various jobs that have been posted. Unfortunately, many of the applicants are disqualified on technicalities. Then what is leftover for the hiring department to fill their vacancies is not always the most desirable. Many of those applicants that are screened out would otherwise be the most qualified candidates.
I do get to educate applicants on how to apply properly, but usually that is following the rejection notice that the applicant just received. By this point, there is nothing that can be done to help with the job they had their heart set on. This then becomes a lesson of how to do better next time. Only there might not be a next time.
This is a serious problem. The solution, www.federalhiringadvice.com. To help make government jobs more of a reality than a fantasy, I have begun a startup to educate applicants before they are rejected. This is to help all of the best applicants understand the federal hiring process in order to put themselves in the best position to be hired.
Let’s face it, the job announcement is very long and boring. Most people see the title and the pay, maybe the summary of the position, and say, “Hey, I can do that!” What they fail to do then is continue reading to see what the qualifications and required documents are.
Many people are so used to applying to private sector positions where qualifications can be more flexible, they take the same approach with their federal job application and are disqualified. This is the one piece of advice that I would give everyone, read the entire announcement and provide everything it asks for. If it asks for your transcripts, don’t provide your diploma. If it asks for your resume to contain certain information, provide it in the specified format. If it has specific experience required, include that experience in your resume.
The mindset is, if I give them a taste, then I can wow them in the interview. The problem with that mindset is, without providing all that is required from the job announcement a person will never get a chance at an interview. Then there is also the chance that someone could do everything right and still not get an interview, but that is a subject for another day.
The point is, federal hiring is ridiculous. We all know that. That doesn’t excuse us from following the rules to get the job we want though. When applying to the government job properly, it can allow for Big Foot riding a Unicorn to remain the rarer sight.
