Army Civilian Anyone?

jade23 · February 2011

Hi ladies,

Recently, I applied for an army civilian job as a writer/editor for the National Guard. Unfortunately, I wasn't found qualified, which surprised me. I can totally understand not being highly qualified but I really thought I met all the requirements for the position and would at least be found qualified.I have applied to other federal government jobs (although not within the army) and was always found qualified even for positions higher than the one I just applied to.

I am afraid I missed some critical piece but I cannot figure it out. Would it be inappropriate to email them and just ask what my resume was missing and what I can do next time to make it stronger? I am really interested in getting a job as an army civilian but I am afraid I am missing something important to the application process or not understanding the requirements, which is making me look unqualified. If anyone has any tips or strategies that would be much appreciated as well.

Estwd2 · February 2011

I wouldn't worry too much about this. Lots of people try for a long time to get a government job and the hiring process can be wonky. My guess is there were simply a huge number of applicants, you were beat out by someone with veteran's perference, or they technically had to post the job knowing it would go to someone internally (sometimes they have to post the job, even though they know they are going to promote from within). Writer-Editor jobs are a dime a dozen with the government and competition is high because it's not super-specialized and doesn't require more than a BA.

blue_elle · February 2011

I agree with everything pp said. Since the applications are wholly points based there's a myriad of reasons your application wasn't one of the top one's selected. Out of the hundreds of applicants they may have only selected the top 3, and since veterns and others with additional points can score over 100 that can knock everyone else out of the running right off the bat.

My only piece of additional advice would be to always keep in mind when preparing your submission is that most of the time your application package is being scored by a computer. It is crucial that your resume and other documents and your KSA include key words and phrases related to the posting since a person won't be rationalizing your responses. A gentlemen that I know who does posting for his deparment gets an average of 300+ responses within a day or so. Out of those he only ever lays eyes on the top 3-5. The rest are never seen by a human.

TeamC · February 2011

Here's the wonderful thing about federal hiring: There's no person behind that curtain-it's just a computer. There's no one to ask. And there's no one to tell that this is a majorly fuckeds up way to do hiring and they need to improve it. So you just keep trudging on, wasting hours upon hours on your KSAs and double-checking your paperwork and attachments to make sure its submitted perfectly, only to find you're not qualified with no further explanation. Good luck in your search-IMO you need Army friends who are in a position to hire you. Even with a friend who WANTED to hire me, it took 8 months. And I was told to just suck it up, that's just federal hiring.

MsHark · February 2011

It is practically impossible to get a job with them if you aren't a vet, I swear.

You can email them. I emailed them and received this exact response, and I would not be surprised if you received the same email from them:

This recruitment effort was conducted under our delegated examining procedures. The Civilian Personnel Operations Center (CPOC) has been given delegated examining authority by the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) to fill civil service jobs with applicants applying from outside the Federal workforce. As a general rule, qualified applicants are listed in order of their numerical rating with the highest ranked applicants listed first. Ratings are based on the knowledge, skills, and abilities reflected in the candidate's resume as compared to the qualification requirements of the position under recruitment. Qualified applicants, who are entitled to veterans preference, have an additional 5 or 10 points added to their score. (The specific type of preference determines whether 5 or 10 points are added.) Some applicants entitled to 10 preference points are placed at the top of the referral list, regardless of their numerical rating and ahead of all other candidates. The law governing this type of recruitment action also requires that only the three highest-ranking candidates be considered for a vacancy. This is known as the Rule of Three. In addition, an applicant entitled to veterans preference cannot be passed over for selection in favor of a lower ranking applicant who is not entitled to such preference. This preference in the hiring process is intended to acknowledge the obligation we owe to veterans who bravely served our country during times of conflict.

Army Civilian Anyone?

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