Create Your Government
Resume in 5 Easy Steps

  • Step 1: Add Contact Info

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  • Step 2: Include Work Experience Details

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  • Step 3: Provide Education Details

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  • Step 4: Select Your Skills

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  • Step 5: Fill in Your Background

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Get Expert Writing Recommendations for Your Government Resume

Elect to write a better government resume by utilizing LiveCareer’s Resume Builder, which offers helpful pre-written text crafted by certified resume writers. Use the phrases as-is, or adjust them to suit your specific qualifications.

Take a look at these three examples of industry-specific text our builder might suggest for your government resume:

  • Negotiated with local and state officials to secure additional resources, enhancing program offerings 30 percent without exceeding budget.
  • Greeted and welcomed constituents and guests, offering immediate assistance and liaising between upper office staff and the general public.
  • Determined target demographics and devised strategic marketing initiatives to reach target audiences.

8 Do’s and Don’ts for Writing a Government Resume

  • Do use data and metrics to illustrate work experience. If you work as a security guard, don’t just say that you patrol buildings and monitor cameras. Instead, write something more specific such as, “Charged with nightly patrol of 5,000-square-foot City Hall property” and “Regularly monitor 15 security cameras.”
  • Do include relevant special training. Suppose you’re applying for legislative aide work in a state representative’s office. Including a three-day seminar you took on a financial or social issue impacting that representative’s state will stand out on your resume.
  • Do change your resume for each application. While you may be submitting multiple resumes for congressional intern roles, each resume should be unique. Use the keywords and attributes in each job posting to show why you are a good match.
  • Don’t treat your resume like a cover letter. Government jobs attract passionate people, and you may want to explain how you care deeply about a cause, but your resume should be succinct. Deliver your work experience briefly, saving the elaboration for your cover letter.
  • Don’t assume that a recruiter understands the relevant acronyms. Jargon and abbreviations are common in government, but a recruiter might not be familiar with them all. If you are including a metric related to your work on the weighted average cost of capital, for example, spell it out with the WACC acronym in parentheses.
  • Don’t start each resume from scratch. Keep a running list of your past employers, dates, awards, skills and experiences, along with any impressive metrics. Keep this list on hand to quickly update and personalize your resume for each application.

Beat the ATS with These Government Resume Skills

You are likely to encounter an applicant tracking system (ATS) as you apply for government jobs. ATS software is used to narrow the applicant pool by searching for certain keywords and phrases on resumes. The system then ranks each resume, and the highest-scoring resumes go to recruiters for review.

Study each job posting for the critical phrases to use. LiveCareer’s Resume Builder, suggests the right mix of skills for your government resume. Here are a few our builder might recommend:

  • Legislation drafting
  • Election management
  • Volunteer oversight
  • Risk management processes and analysis
  • Profitability strategies
  • Brand building
  • Feedback processing
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Government Resumes for Every Professional Level

Entry-Level

Congressional Intern

A functional resume format, like the one shown above, is good for applicants with limited work experience. In this case, the applicant’s experience includes an internship, a volunteer position and a high school yearbook role. A functional resume keeps the focus on skills, while the limited work history goes into a short section at the bottom of the resume.

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Mid-Career

Regulatory Affairs Specialist

This combination resume example works well for an applicant with more than a decade of work experience. A combination resume serves mid-career applicants best by putting the spotlight on work history and skills in equal measure.

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Executive-Level

State Director

A chronological resume format focuses more on work history than on skills. The “Work History” section takes center stage, showing off the applicant’s impressive career trajectory. Skills are listed, as well, but take a step back in this format, which is perfect for senior- and executive-level applicants.

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More Government Resume Samples

Find resume examples for your desired government career. Get access to expert writing recommendations, do’s and don’ts and everything you need to write a perfect resume.

Resume Success Stories

Statistics and Facts About Government Jobs

Typical Job Titles

  • Government Property Inspectors and Investigators
  • Political Scientists
  • Chief Executives
  • Librarians
  • Eligibility Interviewers, Government Programs
  • Financial Analysts
  • Political Science Teachers, Postsecondary
  • Office Clerks, General
  • Secondary School Teachers, Except Special and Career/Technical Education
  • Judges, Magistrate Judges and Magistrates
  • Legislators

Source: O*NET

Median Annual Pay

Chief Executives$189600
Political Scientists$117570
Financial Analysts$85660
Political Science Teachers, Postsecondary$83370
Government Property Inspectors and Investigators$68860
Legislators$24670
050K100K150K200K

Source: O*Net

Typical Education Level

  • Security Guards: High school diploma
  • Government Property Inspectors and Investigators: Associate or bachelor’s degree
  • Chief Executives: Bachelor’s or master’s degree
  • Financial Analysts: Bachelor’s or master’s degree
  • Political Scientists: Doctoral degree

Source: O*NET

Political Science and Government Degrees Awarded by Race and Ethnicity

White$24659
Hispanic or Latino$7068
Black or African American$3928
Asian$2262
010K20K30K

Source: DataUSA

Political Science and Government Degrees Awarded by Gender, Race and Ethnicity

White Male$12711
White Female$9837
Hispanic or Latino Male$2885
Hispanic or Latino Female$3294
Black or African American Male$1592
Black or African American Female$2065
010K20K

Source: DataUSA

Projected Job Growth from 2018 to 2028

  • Chief Executives
    -2 decline
  • Political Scientists
    4%-6% average
  • Government Property Inspectors and Investigators
    4%-6% average
  • Financial Analysts
    4%-6% average
  • Security Guards
    4%-6% average
  • Political Science Teachers, Post Secondary
    7%-10% faster than average
-50
0
50

Source: O*Net

Projected Number of Job Openings from 2018 to 2028

Security Guards$153800
Financial Analysts$30900
Government Property Inspectors and Investigators$30700
Chief Executives$16800
Political Science Teachers, Postsecondary$1900
Political Scientists$800
040K80K120K160K

Source: O*Net

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