Free Federal Resume Templates (+ Writing Tips)

Choose the right resume format.

If you’ve researched how to write a resume before,  you’ve heard about the three resume formats you can use: chronological, functional and combination. Out of these three, we recommend the chronological format since, for federal applications, this is considered the standard and accepted format.

The chronological resume format prioritizes the work history section as the main section of your resume. The work history section of your federal resume should consist of a list of all your jobs organized in reverse-chronological order, beginning with your current or most recent position first and working backward to your first job.

Prepare your applicant information.

A resume for a federal job needs a more elaborate contact information section. Besides your full name, phone number, email and address, you need to inform the federal government of:

• Citizenship status: Are you a citizen or not? Do you need a work visa or permit to work in the United States?
• General Schedule (GS) score: The GS score is a number that classifies you based on your education and experience level. For example, if you have an associate degree or two years of full-time study after high school, you have a GS-4 score.
• Veteran status and preference: If you are a veteran, you need to share your preference (0, 5 or 10). Find yours here.
• Disability status: Inform if you’re a veteran with a disability or a regular citizen with a schedule A appointment. Learn more here.

Clearance: If you’ve previously worked in the federal government, you have a certain level of clearance that gives you access to classified information. Share your clearance level and inform if it is currently active.

Open with a strong professional summary.

Your federal resume’s content officially begins with an opening summary statement, a few sentences explaining your desire for the job and your top skills and qualifications. You can format this section as a few phrases in a bulleted list and include the following in your federal resume summary:

• Desired job (official job title)
• Announcement number (if applicable, it should appear on the job advertisement)
• Two or three of your top job-relevant skills
• Two or three key accomplishments from your career
• Any qualifications such as specialized training, areas of expertise, certifications or licenses

Federal resume summary example:

Motivated professional seeking a full-time position as an accountant (22-OC-00088-11520258-DE) in the Department of Energy. Expert at maintaining accurate, compliant records and controls to ensure seamless and efficient operations. Resourceful and cost driven with a well-organized approach and excellent project management skills. Great collaborator with excellent mathematical skills, GAAP expertise and IFRS knowledge.

Outline your work history.

On a federal resume, you have to approach the work history section with greater detail. Thoroughly describe your job as well as your accomplishments and results. Employment details you need to list for each position include:

• Job title
• Employer
• GS Level
• Salary
• Employment duration dates
• City and state
• Average hours worked per week
• Supervisor’s name and contact information
• Whether recruiters can or cannot contact previous supervisor for a reference

Check out this federal resume work history entry as an example:

Attorney                    01/2014 – Present

Secretary of the Navy Offices (SECNAV)

Washington, D.C.

Pay scale and grade: GS 11-15

Salary: $135,700

Hours per week: 40

Clearance: Secret

Supervisor: Lorne Meisel (555-555-5555)

Yes, you may contact the supervisor.

In addition to this list of details, you will include between four and six bullet points describing your role, your regular tasks and key accomplishments. Make sure these bullet points are tailored to the position by including requirements and keywords taken from the job description.

Use quantifiable metrics to illustrate the reach of your impact, whether that be numbers, percentages or dollar amounts. Use our guide on how to write a work history to learn more. 

Compile a list of your professional skills.

Build a dedicated skills section to highlight between six and eight job-relevant abilities on your federal resume.  In some cases, you can create a section titled “Job Relevant Skills” and list the skills that directly relate to the role. Then include an additional section to list the rest of your skills. This way employers can identify you possess all the required skills for the role.

Showcase your education.

The education section of your federal resume should consist of a list of all your academic degrees and achievements. If you have more than one degree, you should list them in reverse-chronological order. For each degree, mention:

• Name of the school you attended
• City and state of the institution
• Graduation date
• Major and minor (if applicable)
• GPA