Frequently Asked Questions Employment

Under Executive Order 11935, only United States citizens and nationals may be appointed to competitive service Federal jobs. In rare cases, agencies may hire certain non-citizens when there are no qualified U.S. citizens available, unless the appointment is prohibited by statute. In addition, Congress frequently restricts agencies’ ability to hire non-citizens into the excepted service as well, through appropriations provisions. For more information about citizenship requirements, please visit: http://www.usajobs.opm.gov/EI9.asp.

No. A student is eligible to be noncompetitively converted in any Federal agency. Agency student employment coordinators are urged to try and place the graduates with other agencies, if placement in their own agency is not possible. Checking the job listings on the USAJOBS is one way to locate appropriate positions for graduated students.

Agencies develop their own procedures for interview practices. The decision to interview may depend on a variety of factors, including your ranking against other candidates, the number of positions being filled, and the number of people who applied.

Pursuant to 5 CFR § 302.101(c)(8)), each agency is required to follow the principle of veterans' preference as far as administratively feasible and, on the request of a qualified and available preference eligible, to furnish him or her with the reasons for his or her non-selection.

The time it takes to be contacted to schedule an interview or to be notified of non-selection for a position may vary. Agencies have a 45-day timeline goal for hiring, and OPM has developed a 45-day hiring model to increase efficiency in the hiring process. The model focuses on a series of recommended steps from the date the vacancy announcement closes until the time an offer is made to a candidate. OPM holds agencies accountable for the degree to which they achieve the 45-day goal, but the goal is not legally binding upon the agency and confers no particular rights on applicants. It is recommended you maintain the vacancy point-of-contact information so you can obtain the status of your application and the position for which you applied.

No. These programs are established pursuant to 5 CFR § 213.3201 and 5 CFR § 213.3202 (a) and (b), respectively. Section 213.3202(b), establishing the Student Career Experience Program explicitly states that written tests are waived for students in the Student Career Experience Program. See 5 CFR § 213.3202(b)(15). This includes initial appointment and conversion. Although it is not explicitly stated in subparagraph (b), written tests are also waived for entry into the Student Temporary Employment Program. That program, like the Student Career Experience Program, was created pursuant to 5 CFR § 213.3201. Section 213.3201 establishes that positions filled under this authority are excepted from the usual competitive examining procedures.

Students are appointed under Schedule B, 5 CFR § 213.3202. This is the type of appointment authority regardless of the type of academic program.

Under the new 5 CFR 213.3102(u) appointing authority, a hiring agency may make:

• A temporary appointment for an individual who has the proof of disability but not the certification of job readiness. Using some type of temporary appointment in lieu of certification of job readiness has long been available to agencies. OPM is continuing this practice but clarifying it in the context of the revised appointing authority. The individual may work under the 5 CFR 213.3102(u) appointment until the agency determines that the individual is able to perform the duties of the position, or he/she gains the certification from one of the entities listed in this document. Once certification is obtained, the agency may then appoint the individual to a time-limited or permanent appointment under the 5 CFR 213.3102(u) authority. If the individual does not gain certification during the appointing authority timeframe, or does not demonstrate satisfactorily his or her ability to perform the duties of the job, the agency must separate the employee. (Refer to 5 CFR 213.104 for the definition and restrictions on temporary appointments in the excepted service.)
• A temporary appointment of an individual who provides proof of a disability and certification of job readiness, when the duties of the position do not require it to be filled on a permanent basis. (Refer to 5 CFR 213.104 for the definition of temporary appointment)