The federal government has been in the news lately because of the uncertainty surrounding how they will deal with President Trump's Executive order to reduce the federal workforce and temporarily freeze hiring. There are several exceptions and more to the story. Click HERE to review the details.
What does this mean for a graduating senior?
- Keep in mind that the order is temporary and OPM has 90 days to make recommendations and create a plan.
- Different agencies are dealing with the order in different ways. There is no one hiring statement that will fit all agencies.
- The agencies that the University of Maryland University Career Center have heard from, still plan on participating in career fairs and events on campus because they want to maintain their branding on campus to attract talented candidates when the freeze is lifted. (Search the agencies planning to attend the fair - plan to speak with them and learn more.)
BOTTOM LINE: Seniors, spend your job searching time networking with employees at agencies of interest and continue to gain skills in your last semester. The advice is the same for the class of 2017 as it was for the class of 2016...if you are applying for federal positions:
- be patient and flexible;
- follow all instructions closely;
- network/follow your agency(s) of interest to stay in the "know";
- follow-up on everything; and
- make a contingency plan (i.e. explore positions in private sector or plan for a "gap year") to ensure you have options.
Appointments are still allowed under the Pathways Internship and Presidential Management Fellows programs! It is not a guarantee, but many agencies recruit for full time positions from their past internship pool, so internships continue to be an amazing job search strategy.
Additional resource: The Partnership for Public Service has provided an outline of what the federal hiring freeze means for students. The BSOS Your Career website also includes application tips.
