Where the (Federal Government) Jobs Are

It's no secret that the federal government is one of the feworganizations that has been able to maintain hiring throughout the recession.It's even less of a secret that it's the nation's number one employer, providingpaychecks to around 1.9 million people. Less easy to come by, however, isreliable information on what it's like to work for the different agencies,which of them are hiring, or, indeed, what some of them even do. Fortunately, there is an answer: Where the Jobs Are, a site provided bythe Partnership for Public Service that surveys some 35 federal agencies ontheir hiring needs over the next five years. All of the participants are in theexecutive branch, with the exception of the Government Accountability Office,which is a congressional entity.

The mostheadline-grabbing piece of information the site has to offer is that some"273,000 mission-critical employment opportunities…will be available inthe federal government from October 1, 2009 through September 30, 2012."

Here area few more headline-grabbing figures from the site:

·     More than 54,000 of the projected hires are inmedical and public health positions

·     Jobs in security and protection (including everythingfrom park rangers to intelligence analysis) are expected to grow by over 52,000positions

·     More than 31,000 jobs will be created incompliance and enforcement

·     The site estimates that 23,596 of the new hireswill be in legal fields—from attorneys to passport/visa examiners

·     Some 17, 287 hires are projected inadministration/program management

Facedwith that many openings, it may be difficult to know where to begin evenlooking for a position. That, however, is exactly why the site exists. In itsown words, the site works as follows:

"To better inform potential jobapplicants about available opportunities, Where the Jobs Are summarizes theoccupational categories where hiring will occur, identifies the hiringagencies, and projects the number of jobs to be filled in each category. Inaddition, each agency is profiled with information on its mission, employeedemographics, hiring priorities and recruitment programs, employment andretention incentives. The “For Job Seekers” section also provides generalinformation and resources to help potential candidates search for federalcareers."

It seems pretty clear, then: ifyou're looking for information on a position you've seen advertized, or arekeen to know more about life on the federal payroll, Where the Jobs Are may well be a good place to start gathering theinformation you need to take your next career step.