Student’s Federal Career Guide, 4th Ed
Ten Steps to a Federal Job® or Internship for Students and Recent Grads
Kathryn Troutman, Author
Winner – 2021 Gold Award for Business & Career, IBPA’s Ben Franklin competition
Winner – 2021 Gold Best Career Book, Independent Press Awards
Winner – 2021 Best Interior Design Nonfiction, IPA’s Distinguished Favorites
Now, more than ever, recent graduates need a stable, dependable employer – the US
Federal government is hiring and they WANT to hire students and new graduates. The jobs in the Federal government offer great benefits, and most are telecommuting today. There are plenty of opportunities, in every field, for college students and new graduates. But you must learn how to write the unique-style Federal resume, and it MUST match the qualifications on the announcement. This award-winning book shows you how and walks you all the way through the application process.
Ten Steps to a Federal Job® is a curriculum and formula for teaching and coaching students and recent graduates about the correct Federal resume format.The course and text are the basis for the Certified Federal Job Search Trainer® / Certified Federal Carer Coach® train-the-trainer program – in it’s 22nd year of training.
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“I got my bachelor’s in Political Science and even did an internship in DC. But I had no idea how to find Federal jobs after I graduated! My dad works for TSA and got me this book. It shows how to look for jobs online and gives samples of resumes… Anyway, I got a job! So it definitely deserves 5 stars.” ~ Emily
In this book, you’ll find:
- 13 winning Federal resumes from actual successful applicants who were students or recent grads
- How to feature your education at the top of your resume
- Including accomplishments using course titles & descriptions, projects, activities
- A 10 step application process starting with accomplishments and ending with negotiating the offer
- Actual vacancy announcements and how to match them with keywords
- How to handle the mandatory self-assessment Questionnaires
- An explanation of Pathways opportunities in government for students and recent grads, and why it’s a great place to start a Federal career
This information is concise and reader-friendly, and it’s delivered in an attractive, three color layout. The Guide is a MUST-HAVE for any student or graduate looking to work for Uncle Sam. And it’s written by the Federal Resume Guru, Kathryn Troutman, author of many popular Federal career guides.
The ONLY comprehensive guide for students on starting a government career. The eBook has been redesigned to have a friendly and easy to use interface to access the key chapters and samples. This is one eBook you will enjoy browsing!
Successful Student Resume Samples Included in the Book
- Anne Crane, Health Insurance Specialist, GS-0107-9 (target GS 12)
1 year PhD Studies, Counseling Psychology; MS, Applied Psychology - Jeremy Denton, USMC Veteran, Intelligence Analyst, GS-0132-9
BA, Government and Public Policy, Legal Ethics, Governance - Sadie Harrison, Public Health Internship, SAMHSA, GS-06850-9
Master of Health Sciences (MHS), Mental Health Policy, Economics and Services - Greg Martinez, IT Specialist (Cyber / Information Assurance), GS-2210-07
BS, Computer Science, Minors: Statistics and Economics - Anne Masters, Archives Technician, GS-1421-09
MA, Applied History; Archives and Manuscripts, Study and Writing of History - Marisol Mendez, Army National Guard, MPP, National Security Policy
Master of Public Policy, Archives and Manuscripts, Study and Writing of History - Phillip Sang, Mechanical Engineer, GS-0830-9 (target 12)
MS, Aerospace Engineering; BS, Aerospace Engineering;
BS, Mechanical Engineering - Savannah Smith, Consumer Safety Officer, GS-0696-07
BS, Biology, Molecular and Cellular Biology with minor in Chemistry - Mark Thompson, Foreign Service Management Specialist, GS-0343-07
BS, Sociology; Criminology, Media and Crime, Social Problems, Research Methods - Amita, STEM US Army Cyber Command, GS-2201-9 (target 12)
BS, Computer Information, Digital Forensics Information Systems, Auditing, Cyber - Shawn, Air Force Veteran, Budget Analyst, GS-0560-9
MBA, Business and Logistics, Accounting, Managerial Finance
Create a Digital Federal Career Library with Kathryn Troutman’s Federal Career Books
If you are a mentor, coach, employment specialist, have a copy of all of the Federal career books available to refer to for format samples,
The sample Outline Format Federal resumes can help you with your own Federal Resume format, length, accomplishment writing to help you get BEST QUALIFIED for your federal application.
Digital Book Rules:
- You will have access to the eBook for 5 years
- The eBook is accessible on 3 devices or 3 browsers
- With our eBook platform you can:
- Mark-up the pages with colors in pan
- Add notes for your favorite pages for future reference
Copyright material by Kathryn Troutman
You may not:
- Print the book
- Create screenshots of the copyright material
- Download the PDF of the book
THERE is a watermark at the bottom of each page with your name in the watermark.
If you are an instructor or employment coach, it is extremely helpful for the Federal jobseekers to have access to samples of Federal resumes. A print book in hand can show the jobseeker the best Outline Format federal resume. With our new digital book platform, we can provide bulk orders for eBooks with a code for each book access.
Book rates:
- 50 to 149 print or e-Books: $12.00 each
- 150 to 250 print or e-Books: $10.00 each
- Shipping for print books in the US: $35 per box (25 books per box)
- Shipping for print books in HI, AK, APO: $85 per box
FOR A CUSTOM QUOTE:
Use our contact us form and tell us specifically what you want (Click here.)
A custom quote is required for ALL bulk orders.
Customer Services for Bulk Orders:
Nicole Becker: nbecker@resume-place.com
We will quickly prepare an invoice and estimate and send to you for your consideration. Government agencies are tax-free. Resume Place, Inc. can provide W-9 or 889 for all book purchases.
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Once-a-week news on USAJOBS, Federal Resumes, SES ECQs, Hiring Authorities, and Interview Tips.
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Anonymous –
I would be lost without this book.
Within 3 weeks of contacting the Resume place I wet from zero interviews to 4 job offers! For months I had been filling out federal applications without much progress to speak of. Today I’m in my first week of employment at a job that I was able to choose from and negotiate with. I highly recommend you reach out to Kathryn and her team on top of purchasing one of their guidebooks!
Anonymous –
Wish I Had Found This Sooner.
I ordered the Student’s Federal Career Guide, 3rd Edition, to view sample federal resumes for recent graduates. I was looking for methods to expand my two-page resume. I especially liked the technical skills list for the Anne Crane federal resume. It was so impressive that she featured her statistical and computer skill at the top of the resume, before the Work Experience. And she got hired as a GS 11, Health Insurance Specialist with Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services with her first federal resume. That’s an amazing story and makes me hopeful as my educational background is very similar. I will make my resume look like Anne Crane’s resume in the book. The sample LinkedIn profile was also tremendously helpful. I would highly encourage upcoming graduates, recent graduates, or anyone helping them to find federal jobs, to purchase this book. It really does break down the process in a very easy-to-follow manner.
Anonymous –
I got a job!
I got my bachelor’s in Political Science and even did an internship in D.C. But I had no idea how to find federal jobs after I graduated! My dad works for TSA and got me this book. It shows how to look for jobs online and gives samples of resumes… which are REALLY different for government jobs. For example, the resume had to have the addresses of all the places I worked in the past and the name and phone number of my supervisors. Also, it turned out WAY longer than my original resume. Anyway, I got a job! So it definitely deserves 5 stars.
Anonymous –
The Most Important Resource for getting a job in the Federal Government
There was so much to learn! I’ll itemize it into list format!
1. Add my small business: Cartoonist, to my resume (which was 8 years). I thought it wasn’t relevant, so I was going to leave it off.
2. Add my small family business experience to the resume. I thought that wasn’t relevant, also.
3. Put education at the top: since I just finished my MBA
4. That Veteran’s Preference for 30% or more Disabled is AWESOME and it WORKS!
5. That the resume can be 5 pages!
6. I needed to add my university courses to my resume, so managers could see all of my budget and finance projects.
7. I needed to mention budget and account work in my family small business
8. That I needed interview preparation and practice with someone, since I got out of the military 13 years ago and I needed the practice
9. To get a coach, if you need one: for federal jobs or private sector. Knowing rebuttals to interview questions makes a difference!
10. To be patient and persevering: I had a total of 33 referrals, 7 interviews; 3 offers (2 of them at the same time). It will all turn out GREAT – for me I’m hired. It took a total of 7 months from the time I met Kathryn Troutman. I landed Budget Analyst, GS 9. I am thrilled! My career is on a roll now.
Anonymous –
A comprehensive resource for deciphering the federal hiring system.
The federal hiring system is substantially different from the private sector, and hence can be very intimidating to newcomers. That’s a shame, because there are always federal vacancies. In today’s difficult job market, it would be foolish to leave these abundant job opportunities on the table. Yet without some help, well-qualified job candidates can be overlooked simply because they didn’t put their applications together correctly. I know this because I’ve written federal resumes for clients, applied for dozens of federal jobs myself, and now write federal vacancies and evaluate candidates as part of my job.
Anonymous –
This book is a guide to applying for federal jobs specifically written for students just entering the workforce. It contains both the basic information needed to understand the federal hiring system, and step-by-step instructions to finding and applying for jobs. Divided into ten steps, from researching opportunities to interviewing, the book is comprehensive, logically organized, and easy to follow. About a third of the book consists of successful resumes and cover letters for those who learn best by following examples. It is written for students of any subject, but contains information specific to particular subject areas. For example, the “Find your federal job chart” lists federal job titles that match college majors, and is five pages long.
Anonymous –
Author’s real world recognition of book’s value
I was skeptical about writing a review for my own book, but at the risk of appear self-serving, I have to admit there are a lot of great tips, suggestions, and tested methods that work in this book.
Getting into the federal government is becoming harder and harder, even with the programs like Pathways, which concerns me a lot as I know the government is losing a lot of great talent to other sectors because of this.
For the last 2 years, I’ve been living in Monrovia, Liberia, the last year of which I have worked for the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID). Although I knew our book was good, but I honestly believe that the resume template Kathryn and I wrote about was one of the main reasons I was able to find my current position.
Over the last year at USAID, I’ve served on a few hiring committees and have seen how much work federal hiring managers must go through just to identify candidates to interview. Every decision made during the review, interview, and hiring processes must be justified down to the littlest detail. Having resumes that detail exactly what the job description described is so helpful!
Too often, we spent so much of our time deciphering exactly how a candidates experiences related to what we needed. Although many of of the resumes I reviewed were from Liberians who have not been exposed to a the American-style resume, it became obvious to me how simple it would be for them to organize their resumes according to our style.
The resumes style we discuss in our book puts the necessary knowledge, skills, and abilities up front and makes life easier for those in HR and the hiring manager.
On top of this, I’ve had a number of people outside of the public sector tell me they like the easy-to-read organization of our resume style and would like to see more of that in their candidates.
And the resume is only one part of all the great information in our book.
I hope you enjoy the book and find it useful. I look forward to hearing your thoughts, suggestions, and questions.
Anonymous –
Excellent Resource for Students and Recent Graduates
Reviewed in the United States on March 11, 2021
Not working with federal employment in my day-to-day, this book is my go-to for all things hiring. I work with college students and recent graduates and every time I help them with their resumes, I brush up on my knowledge by referring to this resource. I honestly don’t know what I would do without it. I know that the advice I have given to my students based on Kathryn’s book helped to land a federal internship.
To be honest, all of Kathryn Troutman’s resources are phenomenal. They’re clear and easy to follow, well laid out and aesthetically-pleasing!
Anonymous –
Everything you need to know
Everything you need to know, or could ever think of needing to know to land your government job. I found government job resumes were harder. There’s a lot involved and am really glad I got this book! I even learned that the government will do direct hires sometimes for Schedule A Hiring Authority and if you attend any of the government job fairs, you can ask the HR people any question that’s been on your mind, here in this forum. I never would’ve found out about these “government job fairs” if it wasn’t for the Jobseeker’s Guide by KT. Also, if you get stuck, as I did, you can just hire her to help you write the resume. It’s not cheap, but it’s worth it. Good luck!
Anonymous –
5.0 out of 5 stars Most informative guide there is for federal jobs
This book (and all the others) offer the best insight into obtaining and progressing in the federal job sector. The knowledge prepares you to be better prepared in writing a federal resume, how to search for jobs, and targeting your resume for the job you want. Very valuable and should be in all career coaches, federal job seekers, and college career counselor libraries, as well as for those that work with military and the community of people looking for jobs