How to Land a Top-Paying Federal Job: Your Complete Guide to Opportunities, Internships, Resumes and Cover Letters, Application Essays (KSAs), Interviews, Salaries, Promotions, and More! by Lily Whiteman

From the Publisher

If you've ever thought about applying for a government job, now is a great time to do it. With about 40% of the federal government's employees expected to retire in the next 10 years, a massive retirement wave has already begun, and Uncle Sam's door is now wide open for new hires. But with advantages like unbeatable job security, outstanding benefits, and salaries that are competitive with-if not better than-private sector salaries, competition for federal openings is fierce.

How to Land a Top-Paying Federal Job gives you all the tools and guidance you need to get hired for a government job (domestic or overseas), internship, or fellowship. Written by a leading authority on federal careers, the book draws on interviews with more than 100 hiring managers to provide true insider perspectives on what works and what doesn't when vying for a government job. Armed with the advice in this book, you'll become a master at steering your way through the entire job search and hiring process.

Use the secrets of the experts to craft winning applications; write irresistible cover letters; excel at interviews; negotiate your salary and benefits; and then speed your advancement up the government ladder. This reader-friendly book gives you:

• little-known ways for finding openings
• shortcuts for instantly impressing gatekeepers on paper, online, and in person
• sure-fire tips for negotiating a top salary
• expert techniques for landing quick promotions

What People Are Saying

I wish that Lily Whiteman's ground-breaking book had been around when I was in grad school. The book provides the essential toolkit for anyone interested in cracking open the federal hiring process. An invaluable resource to be used throughout your career. You won't find another book on the market with more honest, relevant advice for landing your dream job in the federal government. --Katherine Hudson Walker, President of Young Government Leaders

This is the perfect book for anyone wanting to get into the federal government for the first time, or for current feds seeking promotions and jobs in the senior executive service. Providing previously unavailable behind the scenes information and resources, this book has it all. Plus, its fresh writing style entertains and educates. If you buy one book on federal jobs, make it this one! --Cory Edwards, Creator of Career Directors International's Certified Federal Résumé Writer Certification Program

This is the perfect book for anyone wanting to get into the federal government for the first time or, for those already in the federal government, to get promoted within the federal system…This book has it all ? from creating a federal resume, writing KSAs and ECQs, interviewing and negotiating a salary ? to job leads and special hiring programs. Uses a fresh writing style that entertains and educates. If you buy only one book to help you get a federal job, make it this one! --Association of Career Professionals

This book pulls together needed and hard to find information on ways to get a job in federal government. It is a very helpful resource. --Sandy Hessler, Director of Career Advancement, Harvard Kennedy School

This book is essential reading for anyone who wants to decipher the federal government's hiring system. Don't apply for a federal job without it. --Paul C. Light, Paulette Goddard Professor of Public Service, Robert Wagner School of Public Service, New York University

Peppered with cartoons and a touch of wit, Whiteman's book is the layman's field guide to a federal job search…. The book is based on hundreds of interviews with federal hiring managers and job hunters. Unlike other similar guides, it focuses on process rather than just aggregating information about agencies. This book provides step-by-step instructions on crafting successful résumés, cover letters and essays that get applicants out of the pile and into the interview. As readers gear up for the hot seat, Whiteman lets them in on the do's and don'ts of interviewing for a federal job. And when an offer does roll around, readers can find tips on negotiating salary and climbing the ranks. --Roll Call, the Newspaper of Capitol Hill

This book is a must read. Anyone who aspires to a federal position or promotion within the federal service will find Whiteman's advice invaluable as they prevail over obstacles of entry and advancement throughout their federal careers. Whiteman gives her readers access to a wide range of information on the federal service application process, interview techniques, and how to successfully sell your resume to hiring managers. Her hot tips are excellent resources that are appropriately positioned throughout the book to help the reader gain additional insights. This is a superb reference book and action plan for all prospective and current federal employees. --Farrell J. Chiles, former Chairman of the Board, National Organization of Blacks in Government

An excellent resource for undergraduate and graduate students who are interested in securing an internship in the public sector… A great resource for new career professionals and mid-career professionals who seek a federal career and are interested in 'insider' tips to navigate the federal hiring process…describes the myriad diversity programs for women, minorities and disabled job seekers…provides for easy reading and a straightforward approach…will almost certainly ensure that job-seekers submit an A+ application…. Anyone looking for a federal job, or any job for that matter, would definitely benefit by reading this book. --Journal of Public Management & Social Policy

Most books on how to find a federal job are about as interesting as the tax code. But [this book] offers a mountain of helpful advice in a visually appealing, easy-to-read format. --Government Leader Magazine

Whiteman's enlightening, entertaining book will teach you everything you need to know about how to put the right spin on your credentials on paper and in person. --Ray Kurzweil, Recipient of the National Medal of Technology, author of The Singularity Is Near: When Humans Transcend Biology

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