Skills-Based Hiring in the Federal Government

You do not need a four-year degree to build a meaningful career in the federal government. More than 70 million workers, half of the U.S. workforce, have gained valuable skills through community college, military service, apprenticeships, workforce training programs, certifications and on-the-job experience instead of through a bachelor’s degree. These individuals are known as STARs — workers Skilled Through Alternative Routes.

The federal government is increasingly moving toward skills-based hiring practices that focus on what candidates can do, not just where they went to school. In recent years, federal agencies have expanded efforts to reduce unnecessary degree requirements and improve hiring assessments so applicants can demonstrate relevant skills and competencies.

Whether you are transitioning careers, building on years of experience or looking for your first federal opportunity, there are pathways into public service for STARs.

What is Skills-based Hiring?

Skills-based hiring focuses on assessing candidates based on their abilities, competencies and experience rather than relying primarily on educational credentials or previous job titles.

In 2020, the federal administration issued Executive Order 13932, “Modernizing and Reforming the Assessment and Hiring of Federal Job Candidates,” which directed agencies to reduce overreliance on degree requirements and strengthen the use of competency-based assessments to determine how a candidate’s experience aligns with key skills needed for the role. The order recognized that many capable workers are excluded from opportunities when employers rely too heavily on college degrees as a proxy for skills.

In 2022, the Office of Personnel Management released formalized guidance to help agencies integrate skills-based practices and phase out unnecessary degree requirements. In 2024, OPM updated job classifications for the 2210 job series which includes roles in IT and cybersecurity, removing unnecessary degree requirements and shifting to a skills-based assessment of candidates.

In 2024, Congress passed the Chance to Compete Act, which requires agencies to use technical assessments that allow for the demonstration of job-related skills, abilities, knowledge and competencies rather than relying primarily on candidates’ self-assessment of skills. Additional legislative efforts to encourage skills-based talent practices include the Opportunity to Compete Act, Federal Jobs for STARs Act and the Skills-based Federal Contracting Act, underscoring bipartisan interest in reducing reliance on educational attainment as a primary qualification.

In 2025, OPM reinstated its commitment to skills-based hiring in its Merit Hiring Plan, issued in response to Executive Order 14170, “Reforming the Federal Hiring Process and Restoring Merit to Government Service.”

As a result of the federal government’s efforts to encourage the use of skills-based hiring practices within the last few years, agencies have increasingly:

• Reviewed job qualifications to remove unnecessary degree requirements.
• Expanded use of skills-based assessments.
• Focused more on relevant experience, certifications and demonstrated abilities.
• Increased use of apprenticeships and workforce development pipelines to source talent.
• Improved hiring processes to widen talent pools and better identify qualified candidates from diverse career pathways.

For STARs, this means federal employers are placing greater value on the skills you have no matter where you attained them. Your practical knowledge, problem-solving abilities and skills built through alternative routes prepare you to build a meaningful career in public service.

Your experience may come from:

• Military service
• Apprenticeships
• Community college or technical programs
• Industry certifications
• Workforce training programs
• Freelance work
• Community leadership
• Years of hands-on work experience

Federal agencies increasingly encourage applicants to demonstrate competencies gained through both formal and informal learning pathways.

The federal government also has programs to help apply your skills or build new skills to enter public service.

One example is the Cybersecurity Apprenticeship Program for Veterans which helps veterans translate their skills gained through military service to build careers in cybersecurity. To learn more about more public service apprenticeship programs, visit https://www.apprenticeship.gov/public-service-apprenticeship-programs.

Tips for STARs Applying to Federal Jobs

Public service can provide meaningful career opportunities for STARs. The federal government is committed to skills-based hiring practices and needs your skills to deliver essential services and goods. To help you stand out, below are a few application tips: