I hold 2 foreign Bachelors, 10+ years of experience in Education, 1+ HR, and 3+ Logistics Management. I am currently enrolled in a Masters at Johns Hopkins, and I am always ineligible. I am on 100% VA PDRL. No luck!.
Federal employment in some agencies is very "political", so to speak. I am 100% service connected disabled Veteran, permanent and total, of the USMC and I worked for 20 years in the VA health care sector. I am also a former Union steward in the AFGE labor union, which represents non supervisory VA employees in the VA health care sector. I can tell you that, although there are numerous regulations and policies that VA has for hiring, promotions, setting pay, etc., at the end of the day, it boils down to the fact that the VA Human Resources people do what they damned well please, and they don't necessarily adhere to those policies and/or regulations. Sometimes, I've seen these evil bastards save a position/job opening for someone they know, or are friends with, but they are required to post the vacancy for a certain period of time, so they go through the steps, but they don't pay attention to the other applications they receive and, at the end, give the position to the friend or pre-determined selectee. The preference eligible person, or even others who are more qualified, is hired and that's that. Most preference eligibles are completely unaware that they can legally request the hiring authority to tell them who was, ultimately, hired and what that person's qualifications were that got them hired instead of the preference eligible person. So, as you can see, it's very political and, sometimes, very unfair and/or illegal. I've seen it happen time and time again. Everyone, myself and others I worked with, regards these HR people as totally evil, crooked assholes. As a union steward, I could hardly walk down a hallway without a good number of employees stopping me to ask my help with these crooked bastards. Jus' sayin'. Good luck to everyone who is trying to get hired by a federal agency.
In my experience veterans preference is useless. I have applied to dozens of positions that I held for a decade in non federal positions. 100% service connected and have a campaign badges etc..filled out SP-15.
Unfortunately, it seems like a lot of people have that experience. I know that when I was looking for a fed job, I put in well over a hundred applications and was only selected for one. I do appreciate the fact that we get preference, but I'm not sure how far that weighs into the final hiring decision. My only guess would be that there's a lot of other preference eligible veterans all trying to get into the same spots. Best of luck
I am not sure what type of 100% disability do you have but if it is 100% TDIU then you should be prohibited to work. However, if not TDIU, I would say there are thousand disable veterans out there who are applying federal jobs as you do. I would say most veterans have degree in political science or business. Therefore, if you have degree in scientific or professional series such as in engineering, or in health care professional, you will get federal job very very easily by law, if you apply at GS-7 and below for those positions and you are disable veteran, you will be put in the highest best qualified list regardless of experiences only just having a degree to qualify. For example, if the agency needs 5 positions at GS-5/7 and only 3 disable veterans apply, then those 3 veterans will get a job first and the remain 2 positions will be for NON-veterans. However, if 100 disable veterans apply for only 5 positions, then only veterans will get a job. That is reason why, many agencies are tying to use Direct Hiring Authority to avoid veterans and get NON-veterans for higher experiences. Nevertheless, the key is that apply positions that most veterans are not qualified for and your chance for veteran preference to get federal job will be high.
@@genjustice4766 thanks for the great reply and adding some other considerations. I hadn't thought about that before, but I suppose just as in the civilian workforce, there is a surplus of people with "soft" degrees which increases the competition.
@@ThePartTimeEconomist As federal employee and also veteran, my recommendation for some veterans is that try to get degree in scientific series and when apply jobs through USAJOBS, looking for a lot of many positions open in one announcement (at least 3 positions). If the agency is looking for only 1 position to fill in, then don't waste the time to apply especially job that required any degree is qualified because chance to get job will be very low while tons of disable veterans out there are applying as well.
Can you only use veteran preference once? Whenever I put in for a promotion internal to agency and veterans it does not ask me for veterans preference or SF-15. Only my SF-50
Super informative, but do you know why I am not getting call backs? I knows it’s broad but I’ve applied to a lot of places under these steps with what I’ve been told a good resume, and I have not heard anything from companies.
I have no idea. I ended up putting in for probably 100 positions before I finally got offered one. I don't know if it's just super competitive or what. Good luck though and best wishes on your search
I would strongly suggest going over your resume. It took me months of research and at least a dozen rewrites to get to a point I think it looks good. That would be my first guess for your issue. Second would be that you might be applying to very competitive jobs or you are not relating your experience as closely as possible to the requirements for the job. Occasionally, some jobs will show how many applicants there are. I have had some with as low as 3, 12, sometimes 120. I have even heard that some open to the public can have 1000+. Also, keep in mind thay by law every single resume has to be readby a live person. So if they have 1000+ resumes, they might disqualify you for very minor things.
Hello, I'm 19 years old I just enlisted into the Air Force reserves. My job in the reserves will be Security Forces. When I graduate tech school I'll have a Federal Law Enforcement accreditation. I plan on volunteering for a deployment when I'm qualified to do so. When I come back from the deployment I should have a campaign badge of some sort. I plan on applying at BP, CBP, DHS etc. I'll be 20-21 depending on the if I get deployed my first year being in. Do you happen to have any advice on when to apply and would I have preference....? because I want to have two federal law enforcement jobs....!? (Please keep in mind I graduated high school and have attended a aviation technical college if that makes a difference)
First off, congrats on your career choice! One thing that I can say is that the federal law enforcement places a very high rating on your education. So, if all possible try and take as much advantage of tuition assistance as you can while you're in the service. Having a bachelor's degree is almost mandatory for many of them. The other thing I want to point out is that competition for federal law enforcement is EXTREMELY intense. I had a master's degree, spoke spanish, and had a combat deployment, and I only heard back from the border patrol. That's not to discourage you at all, but it is to say make sure you take advantage of every single training opportunity that comes your way. More of an administrative note that will help you with your background check is that if you move around a lot be sure to keep an informal list of your addresses and various contacts that you had at that address. It will definitely help your background check.
@@ThePartTimeEconomist I greatly appreciate the advice. My goal too is to learn spanish as well to "level up" my resume; as well as get EMT certified. I know those two would some what benefit border patrol or cbp. Also I haven't skimmed through your channel completely....Do you have a video on finances while in the military regardless of the components(AD, Reserve, Guard) with investing. As stated previously I'm 19....with absolutely no debt, No major student loans, No car loans, No "baby mommas" etc. I know 10-20 years from now I want to be in a stable financial position without the finacial aid of my parents.
@@headhuncho4837 I have a few general videos on personal finance, but nothing super military specific. There's a book called "The Simple Path To Wealth" that is a really good read about how to achieve financial security. For as young as you are, any money you can put away now will have a HUGE impact due to the way compounding interest works. Even saving 50 USD a month at your age will set you up for major success later on.
@@ThePartTimeEconomist That is very surprising because I met a Navy vet who was a cook on a ship with a BA in liberal arts that got into the FBI with no language training at all. Also told by HSI without military my application would go in the trash despite having a masters degree.
Ok so I get confused when I see the Veteran symbol because I am considered a veteran but have not served 3 consecutive years active duty. I applied for a job that indicated VRA and on my DD 214 I served over 180 days and it reads that i fell under “operation enduring freedom” on it. Does that mean I am eligible for the VRA? One of my applications went forward but I’m still worried maybe I won’t be eligible after all.
Thank you so much for taking the time to explain this. Much appreciated.
Usajobsfinder on Instagram find a great job for me upon arrival to the United States. Thanks so much
Thank you for your explanation on where to supply those documents!
very good info! breaking it down and showing us on your screen really helped. Thanks!
I hold 2 foreign Bachelors, 10+ years of experience in Education, 1+ HR, and 3+ Logistics Management. I am currently enrolled in a Masters at Johns Hopkins, and I am always ineligible. I am on 100% VA PDRL. No luck!.
That's an impressive resume.I hope things work out eventually.
Federal employment in some agencies is very "political", so to speak. I am 100% service connected disabled Veteran, permanent and total, of the USMC and I worked for 20 years in the VA health care sector. I am also a former Union steward in the AFGE labor union, which represents non supervisory VA employees in the VA health care sector. I can tell you that, although there are numerous regulations and policies that VA has for hiring, promotions, setting pay, etc., at the end of the day, it boils down to the fact that the VA Human Resources people do what they damned well please, and they don't necessarily adhere to those policies and/or regulations. Sometimes, I've seen these evil bastards save a position/job opening for someone they know, or are friends with, but they are required to post the vacancy for a certain period of time, so they go through the steps, but they don't pay attention to the other applications they receive and, at the end, give the position to the friend or pre-determined selectee. The preference eligible person, or even others who are more qualified, is hired and that's that. Most preference eligibles are completely unaware that they can legally request the hiring authority to tell them who was, ultimately, hired and what that person's qualifications were that got them hired instead of the preference eligible person. So, as you can see, it's very political and, sometimes, very unfair and/or illegal. I've seen it happen time and time again. Everyone, myself and others I worked with, regards these HR people as totally evil, crooked assholes. As a union steward, I could hardly walk down a hallway without a good number of employees stopping me to ask my help with these crooked bastards. Jus' sayin'. Good luck to everyone who is trying to get hired by a federal agency.
Sf-15 is not required for for those 30% or more
In my experience veterans preference is useless. I have applied to dozens of positions that I held for a decade in non federal positions. 100% service connected and have a campaign badges etc..filled out SP-15.
Unfortunately, it seems like a lot of people have that experience. I know that when I was looking for a fed job, I put in well over a hundred applications and was only selected for one. I do appreciate the fact that we get preference, but I'm not sure how far that weighs into the final hiring decision. My only guess would be that there's a lot of other preference eligible veterans all trying to get into the same spots. Best of luck
I am not sure what type of 100% disability do you have but if it is 100% TDIU then you should be prohibited to work. However, if not TDIU, I would say there are thousand disable veterans out there who are applying federal jobs as you do. I would say most veterans have degree in political science or business. Therefore, if you have degree in scientific or professional series such as in engineering, or in health care professional, you will get federal job very very easily by law, if you apply at GS-7 and below for those positions and you are disable veteran, you will be put in the highest best qualified list regardless of experiences only just having a degree to qualify. For example, if the agency needs 5 positions at GS-5/7 and only 3 disable veterans apply, then those 3 veterans will get a job first and the remain 2 positions will be for NON-veterans. However, if 100 disable veterans apply for only 5 positions, then only veterans will get a job. That is reason why, many agencies are tying to use Direct Hiring Authority to avoid veterans and get NON-veterans for higher experiences. Nevertheless, the key is that apply positions that most veterans are not qualified for and your chance for veteran preference to get federal job will be high.
@@genjustice4766 thanks for the great reply and adding some other considerations. I hadn't thought about that before, but I suppose just as in the civilian workforce, there is a surplus of people with "soft" degrees which increases the competition.
@@ThePartTimeEconomist As federal employee and also veteran, my recommendation for some veterans is that try to get degree in scientific series and when apply jobs through USAJOBS, looking for a lot of many positions open in one announcement (at least 3 positions). If the agency is looking for only 1 position to fill in, then don't waste the time to apply especially job that required any degree is qualified because chance to get job will be very low while tons of disable veterans out there are applying as well.
Don’t give up my brother. Trust me I understand what you are going threw
Hi ,
I am on H1B and I am looking for the staffing agency who work for IT contract Jobs in VA
Thanks
how do you get a FREE copy of the SF 15 ?
Can you only use veteran preference once? Whenever I put in for a promotion internal to agency and veterans it does not ask me for veterans preference or SF-15. Only my SF-50
I'm sorry, but I really don't know the answer to that. Good luck anyway!
If you are a current federal employee can one of these preferences waive time in grade? I saw mixed responses looking it up.
Thank you so much!!!
I served in the Navy from 2012-2016 honorably discharged. Do I have 5 point veteran preference?
Does the national defense service medal count for veterans preference? 5 pts
I got on a mobilization that did not last 120 days.
Honorable discharge
Usajobsfinder on Instagram find a great job for me upon arrival to the United States. Thanks so much
Super informative, but do you know why I am not getting call backs? I knows it’s broad but I’ve applied to a lot of places under these steps with what I’ve been told a good resume, and I have not heard anything from companies.
I have no idea. I ended up putting in for probably 100 positions before I finally got offered one. I don't know if it's just super competitive or what. Good luck though and best wishes on your search
I would strongly suggest going over your resume. It took me months of research and at least a dozen rewrites to get to a point I think it looks good. That would be my first guess for your issue. Second would be that you might be applying to very competitive jobs or you are not relating your experience as closely as possible to the requirements for the job.
Occasionally, some jobs will show how many applicants there are. I have had some with as low as 3, 12, sometimes 120. I have even heard that some open to the public can have 1000+. Also, keep in mind thay by law every single resume has to be readby a live person. So if they have 1000+ resumes, they might disqualify you for very minor things.
Hello, I'm 19 years old I just enlisted into the Air Force reserves. My job in the reserves will be Security Forces. When I graduate tech school I'll have a Federal Law Enforcement accreditation. I plan on volunteering for a deployment when I'm qualified to do so. When I come back from the deployment I should have a campaign badge of some sort. I plan on applying at BP, CBP, DHS etc. I'll be 20-21 depending on the if I get deployed my first year being in. Do you happen to have any advice on when to apply and would I have preference....? because I want to have two federal law enforcement jobs....!? (Please keep in mind I graduated high school and have attended a aviation technical college if that makes a difference)
First off, congrats on your career choice! One thing that I can say is that the federal law enforcement places a very high rating on your education. So, if all possible try and take as much advantage of tuition assistance as you can while you're in the service. Having a bachelor's degree is almost mandatory for many of them. The other thing I want to point out is that competition for federal law enforcement is EXTREMELY intense. I had a master's degree, spoke spanish, and had a combat deployment, and I only heard back from the border patrol. That's not to discourage you at all, but it is to say make sure you take advantage of every single training opportunity that comes your way. More of an administrative note that will help you with your background check is that if you move around a lot be sure to keep an informal list of your addresses and various contacts that you had at that address. It will definitely help your background check.
@@ThePartTimeEconomist I greatly appreciate the advice. My goal too is to learn spanish as well to "level up" my resume; as well as get EMT certified. I know those two would some what benefit border patrol or cbp. Also I haven't skimmed through your channel completely....Do you have a video on finances while in the military regardless of the components(AD, Reserve, Guard) with investing. As stated previously I'm 19....with absolutely no debt, No major student loans, No car loans, No "baby mommas" etc. I know 10-20 years from now I want to be in a stable financial position without the finacial aid of my parents.
@@headhuncho4837 I have a few general videos on personal finance, but nothing super military specific. There's a book called "The Simple Path To Wealth" that is a really good read about how to achieve financial security. For as young as you are, any money you can put away now will have a HUGE impact due to the way compounding interest works. Even saving 50 USD a month at your age will set you up for major success later on.
@@ThePartTimeEconomist Ok great I'll listen to it right now. Once again I greatly appreciate the advice and the knowledge. Thank you so again.
@@ThePartTimeEconomist That is very surprising because I met a Navy vet who was a cook on a ship with a BA in liberal arts that got into the FBI with no language training at all. Also told by HSI without military my application would go in the trash despite having a masters degree.
Ok so I get confused when I see the Veteran symbol because I am considered a veteran but have not served 3 consecutive years active duty. I applied for a job that indicated VRA and on my DD 214 I served over 180 days and it reads that i fell under “operation enduring freedom” on it. Does that mean I am eligible for the VRA? One of my applications went forward but I’m still worried maybe I won’t be eligible after all.
Did you deploy during enduring freedom? Receiving a campaign badge is one way to qualify.
@@ThePartTimeEconomist yes I deployed
@@JesusBelieverDiane I think you should be good. Your dd-214 should show a campaign badge for that.
They will hire a military wife before they hire a veteran. haha
Ve😅ry true