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Federal Employment:
Understanding & Using Veterans’ Preference
If you are, or will be, a Veteran, you’ve probably heard that you can gain a leg up by using your Veteran’s Preference when applying for Federal employment. Every bit helps in the competition for Federal employment, but we often find that candidates don’t understand how preference works or fail to adhere to guidelines that govern using preference.
Veterans’ Preferences lets ELIGIBLE Veterans have preference in hiring over other applicants for federal positions. Here are some important aspects of that statement to understand:
Not all Veterans are eligible for Veterans’ preference.
Preference doesn’t replace qualification nor does it rank Veterans over ALL other candidates.
Veterans’ Preference cannot be applied to all Federal positions.
So, it might be more accurate to say, certain Veterans may receive preference in hiring over some candidates for specific Federal positions.
Explaining Veterans’ Preference in these terms isn’t meant to dissuade applicants or rain on their parades, but it’s meant to set reasonable expectations and explain why breaking into Federal employment isn’t as easy as simply having Veterans’ Preference.
Throughout the remainder of 2015, we’ll be discussing hiring authorities, position types, and other aspects of Federal Employment that determine whether Veterans’ Preference applies, but, for now, we’re going to review Veterans’ Preference and what you need to do to use it.
What Veterans’ Preference Is: Veterans’ Preference basically falls into two categories: 5-Point Preference (for many former military members) and 10-Point Preference (or Disabled Preference).
The Feds Hire Vets website explains, you are 10-point preference eligible if you served at any time, and you:
1. have a servic-connected disability, OR 2. received a Purple Heart.