Dear Gabrielle,
Breaking into gov employment can be most difficult and frustrating.  Some
folks manage to land wonderful jobs without even trying (or, so it seems),
other well qualified folks try for years and years, unsuccessfully.
My suggestions to you are these:
->Once you find a vacancy announcement on USAJOBS which you are
considering, try to find the "selecting official" - the individual who
actually makes the recommendation.  Make sure the job is, in fact,
something you're interest in - vacancy announcements often don't represent
the actual job well at all.  By asking some "intellegent questions" you're
clarifying in your mind what they are looking for and hopefully making an
impression on that individual so that when your application comes up,
there's already a plus sign mentally attached.
->Although the old (dreaded) SF171 application is no longer required - it
had its uses.  Now you can use a resume or the OF613 (I think the # is
right??).  These folks want as much DETAIL as they can get - the kind of
information NOT put in a resume.  How long, how complex, level of
independence, unusual circumstanaces, etc.  All this information ultimately
ends up being quantified - you want to make sure your ranking number is
higher than everyone else's.  Also, don't skimp on the KASOCS - that's the
place where you need to shine.  Lots of folks don't realize the importance
of writing strong statements there.
->Once you've put together your basic application (hopefully you only do
this once and then reuse) find a "friendly" federal administrative or
personnel officer with hiring experience and ask them to review your
application.  If you can't find one of those to give you the time,  someone
(at the Smithsonian) who's been on both sides of the hiring process (as I
have) will be able to offer useful criticism.
Yes, there's a LOT of red tape and good, qualified people are often on the
wrong side of the tape and there's not much a selecting offical can do.
But there are some tricks to improve your odds in the lottery.
Best of luck!
Sarah Tuttle


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From: Gabrielle Burke <[log in to unmask]>
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Job With Government
Date: Tuesday, March 02, 1999 10:17 PM

I am completing my M.A. in History from UMASS with a certificate in Public
History.  In addition to my education background, I have experience working
at a house museum doing both administrative duties (including collections
management) and education programming.  Finally, I also have two years of
teaching experience (including Native American History, Early American
History, Latin American History) at the college level.
In three months, I will have finished the coursework for my program.  I am
following all of your general job seekers suggestions but I have a specific
question.  How do I increase my chances for a job at one of the branches of
the Smithsonian?  Seeing that it is a government institution, is there
anyway to break through the "red tape" to increase my chances or is it like
a lottery?
Thanks for helping us new comers enter the field that we love.

Gabrielle Burke