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Navigating the Federal Job Market
James MacDonald
Economic Research Service
U.S. Department of Agriculture
Presentation for the Session on “Finding a Job at the ASSA Meetings”
AAEA Annual Meeting, Seattle, August 14, 2012
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Applying for Federal Jobs
• Dual/Parallel Processes– Traditional “academic style” Process• Ads in JOE, AAEA newsletter, etc• Interviews at AAEA, ASSA• Visits to agency
– Official Federal hiring policies and procedures• WWW.USAJOBS.GOV• http://www.ers.usda.gov/AboutERS/Employment/
– Follow them both
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ASSA is the Primary Job Market
• Enormous, alienating, and efficient– Check for AAEA functions
• Most federal agencies have adjusted– Some ag econ departments have not
–We want vita and job market paper well before• We do cold interviews, but not many
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Once You Get an ASSA Interview
• Learn about the agency first– Go to the website; ask faculty & friends– Try to envision the nature of the work
• At your interview– Be prepared to discuss your JMP– Ask about the work• How would a month be spent? How do assignments get
chosen? How is success measured & promotion attained?– Your goals: what do you want to work on?
• After your dissertation• In five years
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After Your ASSA Interview
• Normal agency timing...– Two weeks, and then staggered, for visits• Most visits will be like academic—seminar/interviews
– But, uncertainty abounds
– Don’t be afraid to call
– Don’t burn bridges
– Do have your “official” procedure completed
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Top 10 Reasons To Work at ERS
• 1. Influence on Policy • 2. The ERS Team• 3. Modern Facilities• 4. State-of-the-Art Support• 5. Location, Location, Location -- The Capital City• 6. Publish and Flourish• 7. Seminars Abound• 8. Career Building• 9. Competitive Salaries and Benefits• 10. Work-life balance
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But is That What You Want?What’s Not at ERS?
• Make, and advise on, policy decisions
• Manage federal programs
• Super-competitive salaries
• Free choice of research projects– ERS is food, farm, rural, resource
– You’re constrained within them
Here’s where “career-building” comes in
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Start Early & Be Prepared!
• Contact informationJames MacDonald
Chief, Agricultural Structure & Productivity Branch
USDA Economic Research Service
202-694-5610