With the NGA.

04/15/2026 - Applied to NGA Hiring event

05/18/2026 - NGA Interview

06/16/2026 - Received pre-conditional job offer

06/26/2026 - Complete SF-86

07/01/2026 - TS/SCI Investigation officially begins

07/14/2026 - Meet with investigation officer to review SF-86 (Foreign born, Naturalized citizen, use to have duel citizenship, hella student loans, some credit card debt, still have family overseas, spouse born overseas with family still living overseas)

07/20/2026 - Investigating officer meets with coworkers, neighbors, and friends in person to interview them

07/30/2026 - Conduct polygraph, drug test, and fingerprinting.

08/14/2026 - Same investigation officer meets with me again for additional information

08/18/2026 - Investigation closed

08/24/2026 - TS/SCI granted

10/28/2026 - Received FJO

11/16/2026 - EOD

Are the benefits of entering the competitive service (i.e the ability to leave and rejoin after 3 years, apply for internal positions to move up steps) worth taking a 20-25k pay cut for a GS-13 position? Working in the gov has been a goal for a long time, but seems less stable currently.

I work in healthcare. I applied for a job with the government. I'm being referred. I've never interviewed /applied for a government job before. Taking any tips/pointers on known patterns of how they interview and what to expect. I have almost 10 years in the specialty, so am well qualified.

- 10/2/26 Applied
- 10/4/26 Announcement Closed
- 10/8/26 Referred to hiring manager
- 10/13/26 Contacted to discuss interview date
- 10/14/26 Interview
- 10/23/26 TJO
- 10/27/26 FJO
- 11/16/26 EOD

Hi everyone! First time ever posting on Reddit. After nearly a year of applying I’ve finally received a FJO and EOD! This has been quite the journey and to be perfectly honest I was very close to giving up. My advice is DON’T give up! Stay the course, dreams do come true. Cheers everyone!❤️

Just wanted to share my experiences with applying for a reviewer position at FDA under title 21 hiring authority.

I applied late May-early June. Now, ~4 mos later, it’s been radio silence. I’ve called the hr helpdesk and they’ve confirmed that HR has not yet received the list of referred candidates from the hiring managers. I knew there was discussion of a hiring backlog with HR being overloaded but this seems on the long end of what I’ve seen here and elsewhere for similar positions.

Just wanted to throw a data point out there if anyone else is in the same boat or has any helpful tips to not go crazy.

I recently moved overseas with my spouse for a PCS. When we got here we had to bring our dogs to the vet for their whole import process and I ended up getting along very well with one of the doctors on staff and saw her on two separate visits. She informed me that there would be some job announcements coming to USAJobs later this year as she was aware of a few staff members that would be leaving, and highly recommended me to apply because of my existing knowledge/background. She said something along the lines of “We always need people with good experience. It would be great to have you on our team, I’d love if you applied.” (I don’t remember the exact words as it was about 3 or 4 months ago)

Should I add anything about the recommendation or would that be irrelevant/look bad?

I’ve never tried to get a job on USAJobs before, my last resume I made was from 2022 and I’ve had 2 jobs(both in the relevant field, the first job was entry to the field and the second was through a contact I met at the first, and provided me a huge opportunity for the second job with better pay and learning opportunities) since then and also a significant amount of OJT but no certifications. I decided that it would probably be good to start with their resume builder, but I’m just not sure if this is something I should add to the Additional Information section or even at all.

Thank you for any input!

Hi everyone!

I'm currently living and working in Michigan and looking to relocate to the Washington, D.C., Northern Virginia, or Maryland area. I recently visited and really enjoyed the region, so I'm hoping to make it my permanent home.

Several people recommended looking into federal employment, and I'd appreciate some advice on getting started.

A little about my background:

- Bachelor's in Cybersecurity (4.0 GPA) and Associate degree in IT Infrastructure/Cybersecurity

- Currently an IT Technical Support Technician with the Saginaw Chippewa Indian Tribe

- Provide IT support across tribal government departments, including courts, police, fire, healthcare, HR, and Tribal Council, along with casino, hotel, and entertainment properties

- Experience with Windows, Microsoft 365, hardware/software troubleshooting, networking, remote support, and audiovisual systems

- Previous supervisory experience and six years in the Army National Guard (Military Police)

- No current active security clearance

I'm interested in IT Specialist (2210), IT Support, IT Analyst, IT Operations, and entry-level cybersecurity positions, but I'm open to other opportunities that fit my background.

A few questions:

1. What GS grades would be realistic with my education and experience?

2. Which federal agencies in the DC/MD/VA area would you recommend targeting?

3. How difficult is it to get hired without an active security clearance?

4. Should I use the USAJOBS resume builder or upload my own resume?

5. Can I apply specifically for positions in the D.C. area, rather than risk being assigned elsewhere?

I'm willing to start in a suitable role and work my way up. My goal is to secure employment before relocating.

I'd appreciate any advice from current federal employees or anyone who's made a similar move. Thanks!

I took mine over a year ago yet I applied to some positions and they reused my scores. OPM said they received my hire assessments and said they're good for a year and they didn't even read my email because it's been over a calendar year has anybody else gotten them reset after the first year? I admittedly didn't take them serious at the time. I even applied to a random position that I knew had had them but that I didn't want and didn't trigger the new assessment.

I had an interview for a GS-7/9/11 role, 1350 series with BLM on September 28th. Since then, i havent recieved any update from the hiring team or from the department of the interior HR department. The job posting was for 2 field office locations. I also have the 10 points that veterans receive when over 30% disabled and it was not a direct hire position.

The position said I was qualified for the GS7 position and tentatively qualified for the GS9 position based off the questionnaire they require.

I wanted to see if anyone knows general timeframes for either BLM or for the department of interior?

“You applied and were referred to the IT Specialist (Early Career - Information Technology), GS-2210-7/9/11 job announcement under Cross-Government Hiring. This enables your application to be shared with multiple Federal agencies. Candidates will continue to be shared with agencies until December 31, 2026. If interested in your application, an agency may contact you directly for an interview or job offer via email or phone, and you may possibly be contacted by more than one agency.

If you are still interested in being considered for a IT Specialist (Early Career - Information Technology), 2210, 7/9/11 position with a Federal agency, then no further action is needed; we will keep your application active. Please continue to monitor your email, phone, and USAJOBS application status for updates about this hiring action”

just got this email, does anyone know if it’s just an automated message to everyone who applied + got referred, or does it have to do with my application status? for context, i interviewed on thursday 10/15 and was told i’d hear back/get an update by tuesday or wednesday, aka 10/20 or 10/21 to my understanding. it’s just been a week since the date i was told i’d hear back from and just feeling a bit anxious haha 😅

Hi folks, I have recently applied to DEA DI position and passed Phase-1 and 2. Currently I am at Phase-3 Qualification review. May I know how long will it take to get structured interview (Phase 4) scheduled?

Hello all, I’m a GS-7 in Philadelphia in a federal developmental program with a 7/9/11 ladder. I’ve always wanted to settle in Chicago one day, but my current position is pretty niche, and finding a similar GS-11 or GS-12 role there would be difficult. I’d likely need to switch career fields and start at GS-9.

Would it make more sense to leave the program once I reach GS-9 and start gaining experience in a new field, or stay until GS-11 and take a pay cut later? How would leaving a developmental program early look to hiring managers?

Hey guys,

I received a TJO for a federal Park Ranger position (0025 series) in mid-September. Since then, I’ve primarily been communicating with HR and completing the onboarding requirements.

My potential supervisor and I last spoke around mid-September, and I haven’t heard from them since, despite a few follow-ups.

Early last week, HR emailed both of us to coordinate a potential start date, offering a couple of dates in November. My federal credentials are also ready for pickup, but I still haven’t received my FJO or confirmation of a start date from my supervisor.

Has anyone experienced something similar? Is it normal for HR to handle most of the communication while the future supervisor remains unresponsive, even when HR asked me to coordinate a start-date with said supervisor?

I’d appreciate hearing about your experiences and how things worked out. Thanks!

I interviewed for a position at Library of Congress for a GS-13 position. Interview went well in my opinion and they asked for references right after the interview. I interviewed on Sept 18th and it has been 6 weeks since and I have not heard anything back. Is this common?

My question here is, is there any repercussions for turning down a job that’s offered? I know with having spousal preference with a PCS, you’ll lose that preference, but being a 30% or more disabled veteran and military spouse, is there any repercussions across agencies or just with that one particular agency?

I’m onboarding for a lab position at the ATF and in the TJO they said you can reach out to a field office to get prints done. Has anyone else ever gotten their prints done at an ATF field office, or just any of the agency you got hired at’s field office? I feel like it would be simpler but I also feel like it might be hard to get onto someone at a field office

I’ve already had one set of fingerprints that were described as low quality by HR at the ATF and got a second set done. I’ve seen people here say that they’ve been able to get fingerprints done at army recruitment offices and that they’re free of charge? I will note the position I’m onboarding for is not as an agent or anything like that, it’s lab based. Would it be weird for me to reach out to an army recruitment office if so?
How did you guys go about setting this up? Do you call and then have to provide info on the agency you need to submit prints to? Please let me know! I wish I knew this was an option earlier.

Position Title: Legal Assistant

Pay plan/ Series / Grade: GS -0986 -5/6/7/8

Hiring Office: Office of the Chief Immigration Judge

Here is a copy paste of an offer I was given as a nurse with a couple years experience. I was wondering if this is any good and if I should take it or wait to hear back from other GS9 jobs I applied for:

Salary of $109,678.00 Per Year. GS9 Step 10
Other Pay:
• Recruitment Incentive: 25% or
$27,419.00 one-time lump sum with a 1-year service agreement;
• SCAL: Service Credit for Annual Leave of up to 8 hours per period based on years of creditable service.
This position has known promotion potential to the GS-11 level.

I just received notification today regarding setting up an interview for a GS15 position that was not referred to about 2 months ago. Is this normal or has this happened to anyone before

The biggest issue is I recently started a GS 13 position. Is it even possible to accept the GS 15 position when I just started the GS13 job (Great working environment)? Has anyone experienced this?

Is there any hope that there will be some telework involved in this position?

I applied on the job posting, received a referral email. No other updates and just received a not selected email. Did anyone get interviewed?

Applied to a term job that had very specific language about the term status that I don’t remember ever seeing. I don’t have it in front of me, but in effect it was “there is no funding or need for funding for a permanent position.” I have seen other listings in the past for this same role/grade as permanent.

That seems pretty ironclad that the position itself can’t be converted to a permanent. Would you read that as a signal that there would be no perm opportunities arising from that job whatsoever, or just strictly converting that role?