US federal jobs are applied for through USAJOBS, the government's job site, and its help pages say what a resume must include. This page follows those official pages, which are more reliable than blog posts. Many older guides describe federal resumes of four or five pages. At the time of writing, USAJOBS gives a two-page limit, so check its help pages again before you apply.
At a glance
| Length | Two pages maximum at the time of writing. USAJOBS does not let you build or upload a longer resume. |
|---|---|
| Contact | Your full name, email address and phone number, plus anything else the job announcement asks for. |
| Each relevant job | Employer, job title, start and end dates by month and year, hours worked per week, and a description showing you can do the tasks at the level the announcement needs. If it was a federal job, include its series and grade. |
| Education | School, completion date, degree type, and GPA when the announcement asks for it. Add certificates, licences and transcripts if the announcement requires them. |
| Matching | Show that you meet every qualification in the announcement, using its own wording. |
| Leave out | Classified or sensitive government information, your Social Security Number, photos, age, sex, religion, and encrypted or digitally signed documents. |
| Layout | US Letter, 0.5-inch margins, a sans-serif font such as Calibri or Arial, about 10 pt body text, plain language and few acronyms. |
| File | PDF is recommended. Up to 5 MB. DOCX, DOC, TXT, RTF, ODT and image files are also accepted, but PDF portfolios are not. |
What to include
- Contact details. Name, email and phone, and anything the announcement adds.
- Work experience. For each job: employer, title, start and end month and year, hours per week, and what you did, in the announcement's terms.
- Education. School, completion date, degree type, and GPA if asked.
- Certificates and licences. Only when the announcement requires them.
- What the announcement asks for. It may call for a security clearance, job-related training, language skills, affiliations, publications or references.
What to leave out
- Social Security Number, photos, age, sex and religion.
- Classified or government-sensitive information.
- Encrypted or digitally signed files.
- Unexplained acronyms. Write in plain language that an HR specialist can follow.
Before you spend time on a federal resume
- Read the eligibility and "who may apply" parts of the announcement first. Many federal jobs have eligibility rules, such as US citizenship, that no resume can change.
- Write one resume per announcement, using its wording for your skills and duties.
- Include hours per week for every job. It is on the required list and easy to forget.
- Stay within two pages. Cut older roles that do not match the announcement.
- Agencies often suggest the USAJOBS resume builder, which prompts for the required fields.
Template for US federal jobs (USAJOBS)
A plain single-column template that follows these conventions. Replace the bracketed parts with your own details, and delete any optional line you do not need.
[Your Full Name] [City, State] | [Phone] | [Email] WORK EXPERIENCE [Job title], [Employer], [City, State or Country] [Month Year] to [Month Year or Present] Hours per week: [for example, 40] Series and grade: [Only for a previous federal job. Delete this line otherwise.] - [What you did, in the words of the announcement, with a result or number.] - [What you did, in the words of the announcement, with a result or number.] - [What you did, in the words of the announcement, with a result or number.] [Job title], [Employer], [City, State or Country] [Month Year] to [Month Year] Hours per week: [for example, 40] - [What you did, in the words of the announcement, with a result or number.] - [What you did, in the words of the announcement, with a result or number.] EDUCATION [Degree type], [Field], [School], [City, State], [Completion date] GPA: [Only if the announcement asks for it.] CERTIFICATIONS AND LICENSES (only if the announcement requires them) [Name], [Issuer], [Year] ADDITIONAL INFORMATION (only if the announcement asks) Security clearance: [Level, or delete this line] Training: [Job-related course], [Year] Languages: [Language] ([level]) References: [Name, title, organization, phone]
Check your resume against these rules
The checker has a setting for US federal jobs (USAJOBS) that flags the items on this page in your pasted or uploaded resume.
Common questions
How long can a federal resume be?
At the time of writing, USAJOBS's help pages give a two-page maximum, and it will not let you upload a longer one. Older guides say four to five pages, so check the current help page.
Do I need to put my salary or supervisor's details?
USAJOBS's help pages do not list them as required. Some agency guides ask for them, so follow the job announcement.
Should I include my Social Security Number?
No. USAJOBS says to leave it out of your resume.
PDF or Word?
USAJOBS recommends PDF because it keeps your formatting and page count. DOCX, DOC, TXT, RTF and ODT are also accepted.