Washington, DC - The U.S. Office of Personnel Management (OPM) today announced Tuesday, January 22, as the deadline for applying to the Federal Candidate Development Program (Fed CDP). Fed CDP is open to employees who work for the federal government and can show one year or more of leadership experience at the GS-15 level. The vacancy will close on the day OPM receives 500 eligible applications or on January 22^nd, whichever comes first.

"The program provides training and developmental opportunities to outstanding federal employees to prepare them for entry into the Senior Executive Service (SES)," said OPM Associate Director Kay Ely. "It also helps ensure agencies will have an executive workforce that can handle tomorrow's challenges."

Those applying to the program go through a rigorous assessment/selection process, which includes an initial screening of qualifications and evaluation of written narratives describing key accomplishments, followed by an assessment center and a structured interview.

Once selected, candidates participate in a rigorous 12-month developmental component, which includes: classroom training sessions; developmental assignments; on-the-job learning; leadership forums; mentoring; coaching; field experiences; reading assignments, and Web-based learning.

For further information on the program and application process, please visit http://www.opm.gov/fedcdp/