How to Apply for a Fellowship
The USDA Digital Service is seeking diverse, talented senior practitioners across the following three tracks:
- Digital Service Experts - who have leadership experience in human centered product management, software engineering, and data science
- CX Strategists - who have leadership experience in CX/UX research, and human centered service, content and product design
- Procurement Strategists - who have leadership experience in developing requirements for, and selecting vendors who have agile software development and human centered design experience
Prepare Your Submission
Are you excited to apply? So are we! Before you submit your application, below are a few best practices we recommend reviewing to make sure you are set up for success.
Your resume and application materials will be evaluated by people, not automated screening tools. Be explicit in your resume and include all relevant work experiences and details. Do not assume the reader has expert knowledge or context of your job history. For example, don’t just list your tech skills or the design approaches and methodologies you use. Instead, share a summary of the project or initiative you led or contributed to, the approach you used, and the outcomes you achieved. Below are some additional general recommendations you can use when preparing your resume for the application process:
- A federal resume is not required but is still accepted.
- Make sure your resume is concise (e.g., no more than 3-5 pages).
- When you’re preparing your application, be sure to reference the Qualifications & Evaluation sections of the job announcement to help you best frame your experience.
- For your most relevant, recent, or longest held position(s), provide key bullet points about your responsibilities, accomplishments, and impact of your work. For each prior position, you can list fewer points focusing on the information that is most relevant to the job for which you are applying.
- Don’t be afraid to use technical terminology if it’s relevant to your current or past roles or to the role for which you are applying. Do avoid acronyms and abbreviations.
- Quantify as applicable. For example, “successfully led the development and launch of [product or service] that enabled users to do [x] and/or saved our organization [y amount].”
For more guidance on writing resumes for federal positions, please visit:
Start Your Application
To be a DS Fellow you must be a U.S. Citizen and pass a background check.
The DS Fellows Program is accepting applications via USAJobs. Each track has its own job announcement that includes key language about the position and the application process. Please read the announcements in full before submitting your application. If you wish to apply for multiple tracks, you may do so by submitting an application for each track that interests you and looks to be a good match for you background and skillset.
Key Steps on How to Apply via USAJobs:
- Sign in to your USAJobs account. Create one if you do not have one
- View each USAJobs Fellows Program announcement by track below:
- Review all details and requirements in each USAJobs announcement
- Upload your resume and other relevant documents to your USAJobs account
- Click “Apply” when ready via the specific USAJobs announcement
- Follow the application instructions until completion
- Attach your resume and other relevant documents to your application
- Submit your application before COB 11:59PM ET on the closing date of the job announcement
- Reasonable Accommodations
Our first guiding principle is “people first.” This includes anyone who engages with USDA DS, especially our candidates. We want every candidate to feel empowered during all parts of the hiring process and an important part of that is capturing accommodations.
As part of your application submission, please do not hesitate to share with us any specific accommodations needed in order to apply to the program. Examples may include:
- Requesting for extended breaks between interviews
- Requesting for modifications to equipment or devices
- Requesting for a sign language interpreter
- Requesting a different interview format instead of phone
USDA provides reasonable accommodation to applicants with disabilities on a case-by-case basis. Candidates requiring reasonable accommodation for any part of the application and hiring process should contact the “Agency Contact” listed in the job announcement, which is Ms. Shara Kenner, at shara.kenner@usda.gov.
- Veterans Preference
Veterans can submit relevant paperwork to show that they have veteran’s preference status when submitting their application. If you believe that you qualify for veterans’ preference, please follow the instructions in the job announcement in order to submit relevant paperwork for review as part of your application (e.g., DD-214 Member Copy 4 showing type of discharge/character of service, SF-15 Form and related documentation, VA letter, etc.). Eligibility for application of veteran’s preference will be reviewed by the agency Veteran applicants must meet the qualification of one of program’s roles.
- Privacy Act Statement
The information you submit will be used to evaluate your qualifications for a federal job as a technologist and / or strategist, which is authorized by 5 U.S.C. § 1104 and 5 C.F.R. § 213.3102(r). Our request for DD 214 Form “Certificate of Release or Discharge from Active Duty” is authorized by the Veterans' Preference Act of 1944, as amended, and 5 U.S.C. § 2018a. What you choose to provide is voluntary, but we cannot fully consider your application unless we receive the requested information. This information may be disclosed to a source from which additional information is requested by USDA Digital Service when necessary to obtain information relevant to an agency decision concerning hiring or retaining an employee, issuing a security clearance, conducting a security or suitability investigation of an individual, or classifying positions. A complete list of the routine uses can be found in (and USDA policies and practices we want to link).
