A DC government position

[midjeep]

I know that there is a large number of people on this board that has worked for some kind of government entity in the DC area. I do not think I will be getting off a waitlist and cannot find a job for the life of me (I have a really good GPA and more honors than my resume can hold). I know that 90% of the time, students have a connection that got them the job (believe me, I talked to a couple of white house interns this summer and all of them started with "well my dad knows...."). How do you get a staff position at one of these places. I would prefer the senate, congress, or whitehouse but right now I am not being picky. My biggest obstacle is the fact that I am in Texas, but if i had a good chance at landing a job, I would start moving now. I know that a much of interns are starting to leave for school but wasnt sure if anyone needs a staff person to fill their place. Also, is there another position avaliable besides staff positions for a college graduate? I am looking for a staff position because i need to get paid (or at least a stipend for living expenses). If anyone has any suggestions or know of someone looking, please respond. I did the traditional thing by applying via the Net, but I know I will be a single person among the masses. I know I can get killer LORs and have a strong resume, but I just need that one foot in the door, so to speak. Any suggestions would be appreciated (as well as any other job or activity I can do for one year before I reapply for law school; law schools want "something special," but I am from a small town in the middle of west texas so my options are limited, well accept for the 4H club).

[The ZAPINATOR]

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[TroubleWithLSAT]

If you don't have any connections, finding a government job can be a long process.  However the following link lists all the available jobs at the US government that you can apply to:

www.usajobs.com

[onehandedreader]

i was able to pull a full time job in the state legislature by sending my resume all around a month or two before the session started, when they're hiring temporary session staff.  i did intern for a congressman before that, so he recommended me for the job i finally got, but i know people who had no connections and got jobs just by being persistent.

[EL217]

As a hill staffer for a member of congress, I can give you some pointers.  It is possible to work 'in the field,' through the district office(s) of your Texas members - if you want to stick around Texas.  Many people on the hill also start out as interns, or it is possible to get a job by visiting the offices and doing resume dropping (although some offices specifically do not allow this). If you have the resources to support yourself for several months out in dc, the best thing to do is just to go - it is really easy to meet people and it is relatively easy to meet other young staffers.  While having connections do not hurt, it is not a neccesity for getting a job with a congressman or a senator (staff turnover for entry level is usually high enough for folks like you who are trying to get your foot in the door). 

Also, the main news source for all hill offices is Roll Call - you can subscribe to roll call, www.rollcall.com, and they list job openings on the hill. 

Hope this helps.

[EL217]

Oh, you can find the link 'rcjobs' off rollcall.com, or you can just go straight to http://www.rcjobs.com/.