Interview with Kathryn Troutman

Today’s guest describes how to find a government job.

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Kathryn Troutman, also known as the Federal Resumé Guru, is the founder and president of Resume Place, Inc., a service business located in Baltimore, MD. It specializes in writing and designing professional federal and private-sector resumes, as well as coaching and education in the federal hiring process.

Troutman has managed her business for the past 30 years. With her team of 20 Certified Federal Resume Writers, Resume Place advises and writes more than 300 federal resumes per month for military, private industry, and federal clients worldwide.

Our Sponsor

We’re proud to have the University of Tennessee Physician Executive MBA Program, offered by the Haslam College of Business, as the sponsor of this podcast.

The UT PEMBA is the longest-running, and most highly respected physician-only MBA in the country. It has over 700 graduates. And, the program only takes one year to complete. 

By joining the UT Physician Executive MBA, you will develop the business and management skills you need to find a career that you love. To find out more, contact Dr. Kate Atchley’s office at (865) 974-6526 or go to nonclinicalphysicians.com/physicianmba.

Federal Resumé Guidebook

With the establishment of the Internet, in 1996 the government created an online application website called, USA Jobs. This was implemented to change the resumé format. Vice President Al Gore created the program called Reinventing Government that accepts a resume like the rest of the world.

Following that, Troutman wrote the first edition of her book, the Federal Resumé Guidebook, about how to write a federal-style resume. It is still in print, in its 7th edition. The book is available on her website and on Amazon.

The federal resumé is longer and includes more details than your private sector resumé would. A physician’s resumé will be five or six pages. It’s going to be longer because it has to include more skills that are relevant to the job that you’re applying for. It details your top skills, your areas of expertise, your education, and your research presentations. You might also add training, mentoring, and development of staff that you worked with. 

Benefits of Working for the Federal Government

Kathryn pointed out that the Centers for Disease Control, Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services, Food and Drug Administration, Veterans Administration, National Institutes of Health, and Health and Human Services hired many clinicians to be public health specialists and experts due to the recent pandemic. 

Physicians’ skills and experience can translate from clinical care to health policy, quality assurance, and patient safety. An active license may be required.

Find a Government Job

During the interview, Kathryn mentioned that usajobs.gov, cdc.gov, hhs.gov, and every one of the departments that “.gov” as the suffix employ clinicians to do nonclinical work. 

She recommends that you do an agency search and then type in the word “careers.” Then read the list and see if you can find the positions that would be physician-related, such as professional public health and scientific jobs. Those are the ones that you’re going to be interested in. 

Closing Advice

  • Pick an agency and pick a mission that would be of interest to you. Then go to its website, type in the word “careers” and see what jobs there are. That’s your first fishing expedition. Just keep at it, do your research.
  • And then you’ve got to work on the resumé. You got to deal with it. Expand the resumé. Get help if you need it.
  • And consult the Federal Resumé Guidebook. It shows you the format. Play the game, and see what happens.

Summary

Kathryn provided what we need to apply for a federal job. You can find more help at resume-place.com. There you can arrange a one-hour consult if you like. You can also write to them. 

NOTE: Look below for a transcript of today’s episode.

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Disclaimers:

Many of the links that I refer you to are affiliate links. That means that I receive a payment from the seller if you purchase the affiliate item using my link. Doing so has no effect on the price you are charged. And I only promote products and services that I believe are of high quality and will be useful to you.

The opinions expressed here are mine and my guest’s. While the information provided on the podcast is true and accurate to the best of my knowledge, there is no express or implied guarantee that using the methods discussed here will lead to success in your career, life, or business.

The information presented on this blog and related podcast is for entertainment and/or informational purposes only. I do not provide medical, legal, tax, or emotional advice. If you take action on the information provided on the blog or podcast, it is at your own risk. Always consult an attorney, accountant, career counselor, or other professional before making any major decisions about your career.