A Step-by-Step Guide to Applying for a Federal Job

Federal jobs present great career opportunities for military veterans and spouses, offering excellent benefits and pay. As a veteran or military spouse, you have access to many federal job opportunities that can capitalize on your military service, experience, or circumstance, providing you with priority hiring, special authorities, and more options across various agencies. 

However, there’s a difference between landing a federal job and a civilian job. Landing a federal job requires more research and planning than applying for a private-sector job because federal jobs are more competitive, require more specialized experience and expertise, and have application processes that can seem complicated or overwhelming.  

As a certified federal and military resume writer and federal career coach, I know what it takes to land that federal job, and have written this article to provide you with insights into what jobs are out there, how the federal job application and hiring process works, a step-by-step guide to applying for a federal job, and some best practices I have learned over the years while guiding hundreds of active duty, veterans and their spouses through the federal job application and resume process. 

What kind of federal jobs are available to veterans and military spouses?

As a veteran or military spouses, you have a wide range of federal jobs available to you, with opportunities in healthcare, law enforcement and security, management, information technology, and the trades, just to name a few. 

The trending federal job areas actively offering to veterans and military spouses are:

• Healthcare – The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) manages most of the federal jobs in healthcare (aside from military healthcare professionals) and is always looking for healthcare providers, administrators, and support personnel to fill VA jobs at more than 1,000 locations across the country.
• Law Enforcement and Security – The are hundreds of opportunities at several agencies within the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), such as Customs and Border Patrol (CBP), and the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), as well as Special Agents in the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), Drug Enforcement Administration(DEA), the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), and the Secret Service. A degree in criminal justice will open many doors to these federal jobs.
• Management and Administration – You will find a variety of federal jobs in agencies such as the Internal Revenue Service (IRS), the Department of the Treasury, the military exchange system, the Defense Commissary Agency (DeCA), as well as federal jobs in each of the military services. Positions include human resources, accounting, finance, and budget, supply and logistics, contracting and acquisitions, and auditing, just to name a few.
• Information Technology (IT) – IT jobs are in high demand, especially in cybersecurity, data analytics, and artificial intelligence (AI). Jobs in traditional IT roles are also widely available, including network engineers, web developers, and computer programmers. 
• Trades and Labor – Many jobs in the trades and labor capitalize on skills you may have developed in the military, including HVAC repair, automotive, aircraft, facilities, and equipment maintenance.  

Hiring Appointments

There are five types of hiring appointments for federal jobs, each broken down into job classifications or categories.

Competitive Service 

Nearly 70% of all Federal jobs on USAJOBS fall into this category. Candidates are hired through competitive exams and education and are open to the public.

Excepted Service

Jobs labeled as ‘Excepted Service’ are excepted by law from competitive hiring and are usually with authorized agencies like the FBI, FAA, U.S. Postal Service, NSA, and the Departments of State and Defense. 

Excepted service allows these agencies to hire workers in specialized roles much faster than the normal process. Some initial appointments, such as Veterans Recruitment Authority (VRA), 30% or greater Disabled Veterans, Schedule A Disability, some student internships, and recent graduates, also fall into this category of hiring appointments. 

Agencies set their own requirements and do not have to post their jobs on USAJOBS, although, in my experience, most agencies want to cast a wide net when advertising job vacancies.

Direct Hiring

Some positions are either critical or hard to fill and have been granted direct hire authority. This means a shorter hiring process because not all of the same hiring regulations apply. Agencies have the authority to direct-hire for certain medical occupations, IT, information security, and acquisition positions. 

Nonappropriated Fund (NAF)

These positions support military Morale, Welfare, and Recreation (MWR) programs, exchanges, and lodging, and are paid from revenue generated by these programs. Vacancy announcements will specify if it is a NAF position and outline the requirements, salary, and benefits.

Senior Executive Service (SES)

Members of the SES corps hold positions that serve as a liaison between political appointees and federal employees. You can find SES members in most federal agencies. As an executive resume writer, I worked with more than 150 clients applying for SES positions across a variety of agencies, including the IRS, Treasury, the Office of the Secretary of Defense, and the Navy, Army, and Air Force.

Veteran Friendly Employers

You might want to consider federal agencies that have been identified as military-friendly employers. There are several agencies that value your military experience and consistently hire military members leaving the service, veterans, and military spouses/dependents. Here are some of those agencies you might want to consider when searching for a federal job:

• Department of Veterans Affairs (VA)
• Transportation Security Administration (TSA)
• Department of Labor
• Department of Homeland Security (DHS)
• Department of Defense (DOD)

Also, check out Feds Hire Vets, a program within OPM’s Transition Assistance Program that provides resources before and after transitioning to civilian life. Feds Hire Vets is tailored to help those seeking federal government job opportunities, especially in areas such as special hiring authorities and veterans hiring preferences.

USAJOBS

USAJOBS is the official job site for open positions in the federal government, and a centralized portal that allows you to:

• Save jobs and searches, allowing you to apply for jobs later and get email alerts when new jobs are posted. Search preferences improve your search results and help agencies match your work preferences with jobs they are looking to fill.
• Upload the required application documents listed in the Job Opportunity Announcement (JOA).
• Make your resume searchable by an agency recruiter.
• Create a resume in the resume builder (you can also upload a resume you wrote).
• Apply for federal government jobs.

Whether you are a member of the military leaving the service, a veteran looking to move into the federal space, a military spouse or dependent looking for or advancing your career, or are early in your career journey looking for an entry-level role, USAJOBS has the job for you, and can help you manage the process from search to hire.

Note: Even though USAJOBS is the official job portal for federal jobs, each federal agency manages its own job openings, and you may find positions in an agency that is not listed on USAJOBS. In my experience, that is the exception, not the rule.

Step-by-Step on Using USAJOBS to Find and Apply For A Federal Job

Create an Account on Login.gov

Before you can start your job search, you will need to create an account with login.gov to be able to make a profile on USAJOBS. Login.gov is a centralized sign-in service that lets you access multiple government websites (USAJOBS, VA, Social Security Administration) with a single username and password.

Set Up a USAJOBS Profile

Once you have a login.gov account, you can create a profile on USAJOBS to apply for any job. Within your profile, you can create multiple resumes and apply for various positions.

Search for Jobs

You start your job search by typing in a job, keyword, agency, or job series into the search box located at the top of the USAJOBS home page. Once you get initial results, you can use the search filters on the right of the page to narrow your results by appointment type, department or agency, hiring path (competitive, excepted, career transition, SES, student, special authority), salary, pay, series, work schedule, and more.

You can search for jobs without a USAJOBS profile, but it’s best to create and sign in to your profile before searching. This way, you can save searches and create preferences in your profile. When you save a search, USAJOBS will automatically look for jobs that match what you’re looking for and email you, daily, weekly, or monthly with those jobs. 

Review Job Announcements

Let’s say you have found a job that you are really interested in. Now it’s time to review the job vacancy announcement to make sure you are eligible and meet the qualifications.  For each job, there are unique qualifications, and your application and resume must show that you meet them. 

Note: As we go through the next few sections, have that job announcement available for reference.

What are the different sections of a job announcement?

As you can see, the job announcement is lengthy and can be overwhelming at first. But you must read each section clearly. I have had clients disqualified from a job because they did not fully read or understand the job announcement before applying. So, let’s take each section and look at it separately:

• Overview: This section gives you important information such as the application deadline, salary, pay scale, grade, location, and telework options.
• This job is open to: This section tells you who is eligible to apply, so make sure you qualify before applying.
• Duties: This section describes the daily activities, duties, and responsibilities of the position. Pro Tip: Use keywords to directly map your experiences to these duties and incorporate them into your federal resume. 
• Requirements: This section outlines the qualifications you need, the conditions you must agree to, education, time in grade, benefits available to you, and how the hiring managers will evaluate your application. The “Additional Information” section will also indicate if the position is Military Spouse Preference (MSP) or Veterans Employment Opportunity Act (VEOA) Eligible.
  • How do I know if I am eligible for the job?
    • Read the “This job is open to” section to see if you are eligible. If you are on one of the listed hiring paths, you are eligible. 
  • How do I know if I am qualified?
    • Read the “Conditions of Employment”, “Qualifications”, “Education”, and “Additional Information” sections to see if you meet the qualifications. Your resume and application must show the hiring managers that you qualify for the job.
• How you’ll be evaluated: This section states how your application will be evaluated, such as a structured resume review, documentation to determine your ability to demonstrate stated competencies, a writing sample, or a job assessment. 
• Required documents: This section lists all the documents you need to include with your application to prove you are eligible and qualified. Examples of required documents include a resume, cover letter, diplomas, VA disability letters, certification or licensure, and DD-214. Sending the wrong documentation or failing to include all required documents may disqualify you from the job. Since the required documents vary significantly by job and applicant type, I advise thoroughly reading the JOA. To streamline the application process, you can upload and store all the necessary documents by clicking on the “Documents” section in your USAJOBS profile. Pro Tip: You can store up to 5 resumes and 10 other documents for future job applications. 
• How to Apply: This section explains the steps to apply for the job, including a link to the Application and Job Questionnaire (if required). In response to the Merit Hiring Plan instituted in 2025, agency self-assessments were replaced by an Application Questionnaire that asks position-specific questions on eligibility, military or federal service, a position assessment, and four short essay questions (200 words or less) addressing the applicant’s commitment to the Constitution, how they could improve government efficiency, and a demonstration of a strong work ethic. Pro Tip: If you have any questions about the announcement or position, contact the hiring agency representative listed below the “How to apply” section. 

Create Your Job Application

After reading the “How to Apply” section, make sure you have collected all required documents and have them uploaded to your profile before you begin your application. 

How to Create a Job Application

I am now going to walk you through a step-by-step process for creating a job application. 

1. Once you are ready, click “Apply.”
2. Select one resume. You can either upload a saved resume or use the resume builder to create one. Pro Tip: Read my article “How to write a Winning Federal Resume” to learn about best practices and tips from my experience in writing more than 200 resumes as a senior executive federal resume writer. 
3. Select the documents you want to submit with your application by clicking on “Upload a Document.” Make sure you have reviewed the list of required documents for this job.
4. Click Save and Continue. Pro Tip: You may be asked to provide some demographics about yourself and/or complete a brief survey. Fill it out before clicking ‘Save and Continue.’
5. Submit your application to the hiring agency.

Once you complete your application on USAJOBS, you will be sent to the agency’s application system, and your application will be submitted once you have completed all the agency-specific requirements, such as:

• Providing more personal information or documentation.
• Answering eligibility questions.
• Completing an occupational questionnaire. You can find a preview of the questions in the ”Required Documents” section.

After you submit your application to the agency, go back to the ”Applications” section on your “My Jobs” page to make sure the hiring agency received your application. Your application status will indicate that you applied and include the date you submitted it. You can always check the status of your application in your USAJOBS profile with the ”Track This Application” link.

You can also find and filter your job applications by status in either your Active or Archived application list. 

What do hiring agencies do once they have my application?

The hiring agency will start reviewing applications after the job announcement closes. The hiring agency will review your application to make sure you’re eligible and meet the job qualifications. The agency will either use a 100-point numerical scale or use a category rating to quantify its assessment of your job qualifications and competencies.

Numerical Rating (100-point scale)

• Candidates are rated on a 100-point scale, with 70 being the minimum passing score. 
• Veterans who qualify for Veterans’ Preference will have 5 or 10 points added to their score.

Category Rating

Although categories differ by agency, here are the most common rating categories: 

• Best Qualified: Highest level of aptitude in required competencies and experience.
• Well Qualified: Meets all required competencies, but not enough to be Best Qualified.
• Qualified: Meets the minimum requirements to perform the job.

Note: Veterans eligible for hiring preference will be placed ahead of other candidates within each category. 30% or more disabled veterans may be placed at the top of the highest category.

Interviewing Qualified Applications

The hiring official will review the highest-qualified candidates and schedule interviews with selected applicants. Depending on the number of applicants, scheduling interviews may take some time. Agencies can interview you in a panel, in person, via video, or by phone. There may be more than one round of interviews, such as a phone interview and then a follow-up in-person interview.

Pro Tip: If you want to crush the interview, read my “Winning Interview Techniques” article.

Selecting a Candidate

After the agency completes all interviews, it will select a candidate and contact them to start the job offer process. For those not selected, the hiring agency will update the job status to ”Hiring Complete.” If the hiring agency does not fill the position, the job status will be updated to“Job Canceled.”

Extend a Job Offer

If you are selected, the hiring agency’s Human Resources office will extend a tentative job offer, pending any security clearance requirements or validation of any additional information.  

When is the job offer final?

The job offer is final when the agency completes the background investigation and any additional security checks. The hiring agency will contact you directly to set up a start date.

Final Thoughts

There’s a difference between getting a federal job and a civilian job. Federal jobs offer veterans serving their country in uniform a second career in the federal government. Federal jobs are also a great way for military spouses to pursue rewarding careers within the federal government. Further, federal jobs offer tremendous benefits, but the job application process can be overwhelming and complicated. But don’t despair, by following the tips and step-by-step guide in this article, you can greatly increase your chances of landing that federal job.