Federal Resume Template Example

Regardless of the government job you’re applying for, you’ll need a federal resume that gives an in-depth overview of your professional journey. It must provide evidence of success in past positions and demonstrate to governmental agencies that you meet or exceed the position’s requirements. In this guide, we’ll provide strategies and tips to help you craft a federal resume that makes it through human resources and into the hands of hiring managers.

How To Write a Federal Resume

For a professional look, use a resume template to help you assemble your document. At the very least, your federal resume should include these sections:

  • Contact information
  • Profile
  • Professional experience
  • Education and certifications
  • Key skills

Contact information

The contact information section of a federal resume contains more information than a resume for a nongovernmental job. Include your full name, mailing address, phone number, email, and links to online professional profiles or portfolios.

Then, provide information such as the announcement number, your current job title, and your highest previous grade if you’ve worked in a federal position before. Also include your citizenship status, veteran’s preference points, and whether or not hiring managers can contact your current supervisor.

Example

Your Name
Mailing Address, City, State Abbreviation ZIP code
(123) 456-7890
[email protected]
LinkedIn | Portfolio

Announcement #: FY24-ABCD-1234-12345678-AB
Job Title: Administrative Officer
Highest Previous Grade: GS-09

Citizenship: United States of America
Veterans’ Preference: N/A
Contact Current Employer: Yes

Profile

Your resume profile is like a personal briefing to the federal hiring committee. It should concisely outline your core qualifications and provide a quick, insightful snapshot of your experience. A few sentences should be sufficient. This is a great place to integrate keywords from the job announcement in the form of skills, qualifications, and certifications.

Example

Diligent administrative officer with seven years of experience navigating the complexities of federal administration. Background in analytical acumen, strategic coordination, and personnel management at the GS-07 and GS-09 levels. Excels in transforming data into strategic assets through meticulous curation and presentation of administrative reports. Seeking a new challenge at the GS-11 level in managing administrative policies, procedures, operations, and goals.

Key skills

Before a hiring manager even sees a resume, agencies often use an applicant tracking system (ATS) and conduct an official review by human resources personnel. To get through each round of inspection, include keywords in your resume. A key skills list is the perfect place to do this. When listing key skills on your federal resume, be sure to include a mixture of both technical and interpersonal abilities required for the job.

Common hard and soft skills for federal resumes

Hard Skills Soft Skills
Budgeting Adaptability
Cybersecurity Conflict resolution
Data analysis Cultural competency
Database management Customer service
Emergency response planning Emotional intelligence
Foreign language proficiency Ethical judgment
Grant writing Leadership
Policy development Negotiation
Project management Resilience
Software proficiencies Teamwork

Resume writer’s tip: Use strong action verbs

Action verbs are often tagged as keywords by hiring managers. Using these dynamic words can help your resume perform well when put through an ATS. They also allow for concise communication, avoiding phrases like “I was responsible for…” Use some of the action verbs below in the professional experience section of your federal resume:

Action Verbs
Administered Analyzed
Collaborated Coordinated
Developed Evaluated
Facilitated Implemented
Monitored Negotiated
Organized Oversaw
Researched Streamlined
Tailored  

Professional experience

This is where you’ll detail your previous positions, federal or otherwise. Remember that government agencies are looking for in-depth descriptions to prove that you’re fully qualified for the job. If you want to join one of the 4.5 million federal employees, you’ll need to describe your work history at length.

According to USA Jobs, that means providing either paragraphs of text or bullet point lists. You can also combine both, starting with a brief job summary followed by a bulleted list of key career achievements.

Example

Administrative Officer GS-0341-09
Department of Veterans Affairs, Los Angeles, CA
July 2018 – present
40 hours per week
$81,000 per year

Monitor and coordinate administrative services. Proactively manage budget activities, ensuring fiscal responsibility and optimal resource allocation. Assist with procurement and contracting, including preparing requests, evaluating proposals, and initiating contracts.

Contribute to human resources functions for recruitment, performance, and training. Prepare comprehensive letters, reports, and presentations to facilitate effective communication within the agency. Offer valuable insights by recommending space utilization to optimize office space and resources.

Achievements:

  • Streamline reporting processes to reduce document creation time by 10 hours per week while maintaining accuracy and clarity
  • Maintain a 60% to 70% space utilization rate to increase overall workspace efficiency
  • Participate in four targeted recruitment events each year to hire diverse candidates
  • Conduct biannual internal audits to identify and rectify discrepancies and minimize risk of compliance issues
  • Review budgets with department heads to identify opportunities and reduce discretionary spending

Resume writer’s tip: Quantify your experience

As you craft your professional experience section, use numbers when possible to describe your past positions. The best place to do this is within the bullet points of your job descriptions. Percentages, dollar amounts, and other metrics help the hiring manager see what kind of value and results you could bring to their team.

Do
  • “Maintain a 60% to 70% space utilization rate to increase overall workspace efficiency.”
Don’t
  • “Monitor office space utilization rate to improve efficiency.”

Resume writer’s tip: Tailor your resume for each application

Federal employment is declining, so competition is only projected to increase. A generic, one-size-fits-all template won’t stand up to well-tailored resumes. Government agencies are looking for candidates who match their precise specifications, and aligning your resume with the job announcement is your best strategy.

Study the announcement, follow instructions, and do your best to demonstrate exactly what they’re looking for. This looks like incorporating keywords from the job description and providing any information specifically requested.

What if you don’t have experience?

Not every government job requires previous federal experience, and you may even qualify to apply if you have a certain level of postsecondary education. Instead of relying on an extensive work history, you can describe your time participating in school, extracurricular activities, volunteer work, or personal projects and the transferable skills earned there.

The key is to provide details and examples of past success related to the job you’re applying for. For example, suppose you’re applying for a federal project management position. You could leverage your involvement in a volunteer organization where you led a community project. Outline how you applied project management principles to set goals, allocate resources, and meet deadlines.

Education and certifications

The academic requirements for federal jobs will vary greatly depending on the specific position, agency, and level of responsibility. From administrative roles to highly specialized technical positions, the minimum level of education will be spelled out in the job description.

List any relevant or required degrees or diplomas, providing the institution name, location, completion date, and GPA if requested. If you’ve earned certifications in software proficiencies or specialized skills related to the position, include those in a separate section.

Example

Education
Associate of Arts (A.A.) Business Administration
Los Angeles City College, Los Angeles, CA
September 2014 – June 2016
Honors: Dean’s List 2015, 2016
GPA: 3.8

Certifications

  • Certified Administrative Professional (CAP), IAAP, 2017
  • Microsoft Office Specialist, Microsoft, 2016

Additional information

If you have more information to share that doesn’t fit into the sections we’ve mentioned above, create additional resume sections. These could include awards, volunteer work, professional affiliations, special training, language proficiencies, accomplishments, leadership activities, or publications. Just be sure anything you include is pertinent to the job you’re applying for.

Example

Affiliations
Association of Government Accountants, AGA
2017 – present

Volunteer Work
Community Garden Organizer, Urban Agriculture Initiative
2019 – present

Federal Resume Template Text Example

Your Name
Mailing Address, City, State Abbreviation ZIP code
(123) 456-7890
[email protected]
LinkedIn | Portfolio

Announcement #: FY24-ABCD-1234-12345678-AB
Job Title: Administrative Officer
Highest Previous Grade: GS-09

Citizenship: United States of America
Veterans’ Preference: N/A
Contact Current Employer: Yes

Profile

Diligent administrative officer with seven years of experience navigating the complexities of federal administration. Excels in transforming data into strategic assets through meticulous curation and presentation of administrative reports. Seeking a new challenge at the GS-11 level in managing administrative policies, procedures, operations, and goals.

Experience

Administrative Officer GS-0341-09
Department of Veterans Affairs, Los Angeles, CA
July 2018 – present
40 hours per week
$81,000 per year

Monitor and coordinate administrative services. Proactively manage budget activities, ensuring fiscal responsibility and optimal resource allocation. Assist with procurement and contracting, including preparing requests, evaluating proposals, and initiating contracts.

Contribute to human resources functions for recruitment, performance, and training. Prepare comprehensive letters, reports, and presentations to facilitate effective communication within the agency. Offer valuable insights by recommending space utilization to optimize office space and resources.

Achievements:

  • Streamline reporting processes to reduce document creation time by 10 hours per week while maintaining accuracy and clarity
  • Maintain a 60% to 70% space utilization rate to increase overall workspace efficiency
  • Participate in four targeted recruitment events each year to hire diverse candidates
  • Conduct biannual internal audits to identify and rectify discrepancies and minimize risk of compliance issues
  • Review budgets with department heads to identify opportunities and reduce discretionary spending

Contact Employer: Yes
Supervisor: First Name Last Name
Phone Number: (123) 456-7890

Administrative Officer GS 0324-07
Department of Veterans Affairs, Los Angeles, CA
November 2016 – June 2018
40 hours per week
$63,000 per year

Gathered information and prepared administrative reports. Offered valuable advice and assistance to manager and staff concerning personnel processes and procedures. Maintained databases and shared computer drives, using technological proficiency to keep information up to date.

Collaborated with management to optimize purchases and supply use by maintaining awareness of available resources. Analyzed budget needs, managing procurement and contracting to ensure efficient office operation.

Achievements:

  • Carried out a procurement plan for office supplies to reduce costs and generated annual savings of $70,000
  • Negotiated contracts with medical equipment providers to decrease delivery time by 10%
  • Worked with management to streamline training programs and improve veteran employee integration
  • Compiled patient care data for monthly briefings and reduced preparation time by 50 staff hours annually

Contact Employer: Yes
Supervisor: First Name Last Name
Phone Number: (123) 456-7890

Education

Associate of Arts (A.A.) Business Administration
Los Angeles City College, Los Angeles, CA
September 2014 – June 2016
Honors: Dean’s List 2015, 2016
GPA: 3.8

Certifications

  • Certified Administrative Professional (CAP), IAAP, 2017
  • Microsoft Office Specialist, Microsoft, 2016

Skills

  • Budgeting and financial management
  • Communication
  • Contract management software
  • Data analysis
  • Government regulations
  • Leadership
  • Project management
  • Risk management
  • Supply chain management
  • Time management

Affiliations

Association of Government Accountants, AGA
2017 – present

Volunteer Work

Community Garden Organizer, Urban Agriculture Initiative
2019 – present

Andrew Stoner

Executive Resume Writer and Career Coach

A resume should be a forward-looking value proposition that showcases your most relevant accomplishments for a target role — not a rear view summary of your previous roles and responsibilities.

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