Working in Federal Government

The chance to make a difference

Federal employees change lives here and around the world, working to end homelessness, find cures for disease, keep our food supply safe and more.

Great benefits and competitive pay

Average salaries are competitive with the private and nonprofit sectors, and benefits—including health insurance, retirement and vacation—are sometimes better. Federal salaries can also increase quickly.

Work across the country

Around 80% of government jobs are outside the Washington, D.C., area, and more than 20,000 federal employees work abroad.

Jobs for every interest

Whether you want to work in technology, medicine, engineering or national security, or you have an interest in art history, zoology or architecture, you can find federal opportunities that meet your needs.

Mission-driven opportunities

Engage in challenging and innovative work in the federal government that shapes communities and drives national progress—often on a larger scale than the private sector.

Work-life balance

Federal jobs can offer flexible or compressed work schedules and, may include telework and remote work opportunities. In addition to generous vacation and sick leave, employees get 11 federal holidays off, including Veterans Day and Juneteenth.

Professional development and advancement opportunities

You can find excellent training and development opportunities in government. Many federal agencies work with employees to create individual development plans to help plan short- and long-term career goals. Once you create a plan, you can find opportunities that align with your goals and help advance your career. Agencies may also offer leadership development opportunities for their employees through courses, coaching, or workshops.

The hiring process

It typically takes longer for the federal government to hire people than other sectors. On average, it can take up to several months to bring on a new hire from the time of an application submission to the first day on the job. Some aspects of federal hiring have improved, but applicants can still typically expect a longer process than in other sectors.

Government pay

While many government salaries are comparable to those in the private sector, a pay ceiling for a range of positions means federal employees in some professions earn lower salaries than their private sector counterparts. Government salaries are also location dependent, with different salary schedules set for large metro areas across the country. Many of the government’s top executive jobs pay annual salaries ranging from $150,000 to $197,000. Yet, government employees at all levels often say their primary motivation is not salary but rather the satisfaction from serving the public and doing interesting work. To learn more about government salaries and pay scales, visit Pay and the General Schedule.

Leadership changes

Agency leadership—the department secretaries, deputy secretaries, administrators and others—are is appointed by each presidential administration. Unlike career civil servants, these political appointees move on to other jobs outside of government at the end of an administration. Because of this turnover, work priorities vary depending on each new administration’s policies and priorities, and the people appointed to the lead departments and agencies. Since political appointees do not typically stay in their positions for more than a few years, agency priorities can change relatively frequently.