Find Candidates To Fill Your Vacancies
There are several sources and programs you can take advantage of when finding candidates to hire under special hiring authorities. Students, recent graduates, people with disabilities and veterans are all readily available for agencies to bring on board quickly.
Hire Students and Recent Graduates
Hiring students for internships gives agencies the opportunity to evaluate students and gain their skills without full commitment to hiring.
The Workforce Recruitment Program (WRP) is one program that can assist you. WRP is a recruitment and referral program that connects federal sector employers nationwide with highly motivated postsecondary students and recent graduates with disabilities who are eager to prove their abilities in the workplace through summer or permanent jobs.
Considering the fact that over 2.1 million undergraduate and graduate students with disabilities were enrolled full-time at colleges and universities between 2003 and 2004, this represents an excellent source to find future federal employees. Each year the WRP teams up with federal agencies to fill summer or permanent hiring needs with talented college students with disabilities. As part of its services, the WRP provides a free database of pre-screened potential candidates from colleges and universities across the nation.
Other Student Internship Programs
- Student Educational Employment Program (SEEP) provides federal employment opportunities to students who are enrolled or accepted for enrollment as degree-seeking students taking at least a half-time academic, technical, or vocational course load in an accredited high school, technical, vocational, 2 or 4 year college or university, graduate or professional school. SEEP has 2 major hiring programs:
- Student Temporary Employment Program (STEP) allows agencies to appoint students at all levels to positions unrelated to their fields of study. The intent is to maximize flexibility for agencies and students to bring them in on a temporary basis.
- Student Career Experience Program (SCEP) allows appointment of students in positions related to their field of study. Students are appointed under excepted services and can be converted to career status within 120 days of completing their academic programs. This is a great way for agencies to build their workforces.
- Presidential Management Fellows (PMF) was established to attract to the federal service outstanding graduate students from a variety of academic disciplines and career paths who have a clear interest in, and commitment to, excellence in the leadership and management of public policies and programs. By drawing graduate students from diverse social and cultural backgrounds, the PMF program provides a continuing source of trained men and women to meet the future challenges of public service.
- Federal Career Intern Program (FCIP) is designed to help agencies recruit and attract exceptional individuals into a variety of occupations. It was created and is intended for positions at grade levels GS-5, 7 and 9, administered by each agency. In general, individuals are appointed to a 2-year internship. Upon successful completion of the internships, the interns may be eligible for permanent placement within an agency.
Hire Veterans
Besides cultivating a pipeline of candidates from postsecondary schools, federal agencies can also address the need for skilled workers by targeting already proven employees: veterans. According to John E. Potter, Postmaster General and CEO of the United States Postal Service (USPS),
In many respects, they have led the way in terms of proving employee value. Today veterans are among the best-trained candidates in the job market…Almost one quarter of our career employees have veterans’ preference eligibility…The Postal Service has had excellent experiences with veterans in all areas, including leadership positions.1
Another advantage when recruiting veterans is veterans can be hired quickly, without competition, even before a job is posted. The Veteran’s Recruitment Appointment and Hiring Authority for 30% or more Disabled Veterans gives hiring managers the flexibility to appoint veterans to positions for which they are qualified.
The Department of Veterans Affairs Vocational Rehabilitation and Employment (VR&E) program offers federal employers an opportunity to bring on veterans with disabilities at no cost or red tape for a trial work period. The Non-Paid Work Experience program (NPWE) provides eligible veterans with the opportunity to obtain training and practical job experience concurrently.
After placement in a NPWE program, a Case Manager/Employment Coordinator will work with the veteran and employer to ensure that all training goals are being met. The employer has no obligation to hire the NPWE participant, although hiring is strongly encouraged when resources permit. For more information, call the VR&E Service at 202-461-9600. For more information about hiring veterans with disabilities, please visit www.vetsuccess.gov.
Other Veterans Programs
- Veterans’ Readjustment Appointment (VRA): Veterans are the largest pool of candidates hired under excepted service. The VRA is an excepted appointment to a position that is otherwise in the competitive service. After 2 years of satisfactory service, the veteran is converted to a career-conditional appointment in the competitive service. VRA allows appointment of eligible veterans up to the GS-11 or equivalent. Veterans are hired under excepted appointments to positions that are otherwise in the competitive service and can be hired even before a job is posted. After the individual satisfactorily completes 2 years of service, the veteran must be converted noncompetitively to a career or career-conditional appointment.
This is a good tool for managers looking to fill entry and mid-level positions up to and including GS-11 or equivalent without issuing a vacancy announcement.
- Disabled Veterans with 30% or more service connected disabilities qualify for non-competitive appointments with federal agencies under all grade levels and occupations. Unlike VRA, this special authority can be used to fill positions at any grade level for which they are qualified without issuing a vacancy announcement. Initial appointments are time-limited, lasting more than 60 days; however, you can noncompetitively convert the individual to permanent status at any time during the time-limited appointment.
Learn more about hiring VRA eligible and 30% disabled veterans.
1 HireVetsFirst, “An Employer Speaks”.
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