By Jules Lindgren
The Office of Budget and Management is the best place to work in the federal government, according to new rankings release by the Partnership for Public Service Wednesday.
The rankings for the federal government?s best places to work are based on an employment satisfaction survey the U.S. Department of Personnel Management distributes to federal government employees each year.
The survey measures work-life balance, family-friendly culture, teamwork and effective leadership.
The rankings provide federal agencies with a convenient yardstick to measure improvement in work places, said Bethany Hardy, spokeswoman for the Partnership for Public Service.
It is also a useful tool for job seekers, particularly young people, who often are less informed about jobs available in the federal government, she said.
?There?s a declining interest in government,? said Bob Tobias, Director of the Institute of Public Policy Implementation at American University. ?And in my opinion, this has to do with a huge information gap.?
Richard Cox, liberal arts career counselor at BYU, said he gets the most inquiries about working in agencies like the FBI and CIA, but these are not the only options available to students.
?There are some outstanding job opportunities with a number of government agencies,? he said.
Several federal recruiters come to BYU each year, but Provo is over 2,000 miles away from Washington, D.C., and many agencies don?t have the funds to recruit here, Cox said.
?I recommend strongly getting on government agencies? websites and start doing research,? he said.
Jobs in the federal government are extremely varied. Agencies are looking for scientists, analysts, accountants?almost anything, Vince Fordiani, recruiting coordinator with the Master?s of Public Administration program said.
?There are opportunities for anybody in any major,? he said.
The rankings show that the government is not quite on par with the private sector ? only one in three agencies received score higher than the average in the private sector.
However, the government scored significantly higher in such areas as employee skill-to-work match, and meaningfulness of work.
?I see a lot of interest among people who are wanting to make a difference,? Fordiani said.
Christopher Jansen, 24, a political science major from Thousand Oaks, Calif., is planning on becoming a Foreign Service Officer in the U.S. Department of State. He said the events of 9-11 had a big impact on his decision.
?For me it was more about patriotism,? he said. ?It was a way of giving back.?
Most jobs available in the federal government are posted at usajobs.gov.
