Ten Steps to a Federal Job: Navigating the Federal Job System, Writing Federal Resumes, KSAs and Cover Letters with a Mission [Paperback]

Kathryn K. Troutman (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 2002

The government is hiring, for homeland security jobs and more! But if you want to be successful in landing a federal job, you need to understand the government's unique and complex application process. In this complete guide, Troutman shares the expertise that has enabled her to help many others just like you go on to new and rewarding jobs in federal service.

Applying for federal employment is different than in private industry. This new guide shows you how to succeed by breaking the government's intricate process down into 10 simple steps. Both first-time applicants and those already within government will find something new here, as application processes change over time. Ten Steps is simply the most up-to-date book on federal employment available today!

Written for all job levels and categories, with salaries ranging to $140,000.

Ten Steps to a Federal Job is a "must have" for any job seeker looking for federal employment. Let Troutman's latest guidebook walk you through every step of the application process and into a rewarding job in federal service.

Includes a CD-ROM with samples and examples, and our Federal Resume and KSA Builders, normally sold for $35 each.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"...Troutman covers aspects of the federal job search in [a] format that I haven't seen pulled together elsewhere..." -- Joyce Lain-Kennedy, The Dallas Morning News, August 4, 2002

"If someone is serious about working in the Government, he/she would only need this book...Well done!" -- Writers Digest, April 5, 2004

From the Publisher

Each book is signed by the author Kathryn Kraemer Troutman who is the founder and president of The Resume Place, Inc., a service business located in Baltimore MD,specializing in writing and designing professional federal and private-sector resumes, as well as coaching and education in the federal hiring process.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 290 pages
• Publisher: The Resume Place, Inc. (September 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0964702533
• ISBN-13: 978-0964702530
• Product Dimensions: 9.9 x 8 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.6 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (31 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #441,071 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

26 of 26 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars An Excellent Resource, February 15, 2005

By 

A Resume Writer (Washington, DC) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Ten Steps to a Federal Job: Navigating the Federal Job System, Writing Federal Resumes, KSAs and Cover Letters with a Mission (Paperback)

As a former federal personnelist and now a professional job searcher and writer/editor of federal style resumes and KSAs, I can tell you that this book is an excellent resource for the federal job seeker. The chapter on writing KSAs alone is worth the price of the book, since this seems to be a major hang-up for those seeking federal employment. The section, "Writing the Unwritable KSA" is invaluable. There are numerous sample resumes, KSAs, and templates in the book and on the accompanying CD-ROM and links to a "document builder" web site. If fact, your resume and KSAs are practically already written for you. All you have to do is fill in information about your own experience.

There are however a few shortcomings: There is scant information on grammar and proper usage. Also, there is no information on writing the Executive Core Qualifications (ECQs) for Senior Executive Service (SES) positions. I find this to be inexplicable since this is a book on federal employment. SES aspirants will have to look elsewhere for help or pay Troutman's company to write their SES packages. Finally, there are only a few examples of resumes or KSAs for GS-13/14/15 level positions. Most of the examples provided are for entry, mid-level, and Wage Grade positions.

12 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars This books make bureacratic job search processes easy!, January 17, 2005

By 

A. Hanson (Seattle WA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Ten Steps to a Federal Job: Navigating the Federal Job System, Writing Federal Resumes, KSAs and Cover Letters with a Mission (Paperback)

I am a resume coach at North Seattle Community College in Seattle, WA. I want to tell you how helpful this book is in teaching my two-year students to write resumes for hard-to-find jobs. Many of our students are technical and electonics students, jobs that took a very deep dive in the 2001 - 2003 downturn.

Yet, no one thought about applying to the federal government -- Ten Steps to a Federal Job makes the process a real option! By using this book, an IT/Electronics student wrote a federal resume that got him a database development job -- after being out of work and looking diligently for 18 months! I also worked with a deaf student who received special status toward a job as a biologist, categorizing plants for the US Forest Service in Wenatchee. The diversity of jobs available through the government is broad indeed.

As Kathryn's book points out, you don't have to live in Washington D.C. to be a successful candidate! Seattle - like many cities - has many local agencies that are hiring - like the IRS, the EPA, Social Security, NOAH and Immigration. People don't think of the federal government as an employer-- but they hire tons of people. They hire technical people, and even ones with gray hair! And I personnally have seen people win, using the principles laid out in Kathryn Troutman's book.

By using the simple processes and writing tips -- and the great examples on the CD -- you can find appropriate jobs and write a winning application packet. Kathryn Troutman is the absolute authority on this subject--she teaches classes to federal employees at federal agencies all the time--And by working with her book, I can now write a resume that gets jobs for students, disabled workers, boomers and techies.

The government is hiring, here and abroad. And in ten steps, you can be a contender for a federal job.

12 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Must for the Military to GS Transition, October 31, 2002

By 

SDrexler (NW, GA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Ten Steps to a Federal Job: Navigating the Federal Job System, Writing Federal Resumes, KSAs and Cover Letters with a Mission (Paperback)

For those of you on active duty wanting to make the transition to the GS side Kathryn Troutman's Ten Steps to a Federal Job is the first weapon of choice!

Her book and supplemental CD-ROM, filled with numerous examples of excellent resumes, arms you with the Step by Step manual to get started, solidify your work experience with the correct verbiage, and hammer home your marketable skills.

Do not be fooled into thinking you can navigate the Federal hiring process armed with only the information provided during your separation lectures, these are nice but Kathryn's book gives you more - much more! Inside you will find how to formulate your Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities (KSA's), selecting the correct job series to parallel your experience, great web links, and even interview tips! Additionally, if you are unclear about the material call the Resume-Place for FREE advice! You just might get to talk to Kathryn herself, she quickly emailed me the answers to my in-depth questions!

This book is a must have in any rucksack - right next to Kathryn's Electronic Federal Resume Guidebook & CD-ROM!