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An Official Web Site of the United States Government
Saturday, September 15, 2012

Become a PMF

Find a Job

If you pass the in-person assessment, you will become a Finalist. As such, you are in the final stages of becoming a PMF. Now, with your Finalist status, you're eligible to be appointed to a PMF job in a participating agency after:

  1. We officially announce Finalists.
  2. You complete all graduate degree requirements (not necessary to have graduated), including successful completion or defense of any thesis or dissertation.
  3. You complete any background investigation required by the hiring agency.

The Finalist status expires one year after the date Finalists are officially announced. For example, Finalists for the PMF Class of 2012 were selected on January 24th, 2012; they have until January 24th, 2013, to be appointed to a PMF position.

Next Steps

Photo of job fair

You now have to get hired into a PMF position, pass a background investigation, and go through the agency's on-boarding process. It can take several months to pass a Federal background investigation for a security clearance (if applicable). Because you'll want to have as much control as possible over when you start your PMF position, it is important to plan ahead. Thus, we ask Finalists to take the following steps, which are explained in more detail below:

  1. Review the Memo to PMF Class of 2012 Finalists under the Become a PMF\Current Finalists webpage.
  2. Update your contact information by logging into the Information Worksheetlock icon database.  NOTE: The login screen provides instructions for Finalists on how to obtain their initial User ID and Password.
  3. Update your resume by fax.
  4. Start collecting information for the background investigation.
  5. Continue to monitor the Projected Positions System for available positions.

Updating Your Contact Info

All communications are conducted by email. Both current Finalists and Fellows use this on-line form, the Information Worksheet, to update their personal contact information (e.g., name changes, home mailing address, personal phone numbers, and personal email address). Upon appointment as a Fellow, the appointing agency's Agency PMF Coordinators can update your appointment and work contact information. Finalists should follow the instructions found on the login screen on how to obtain their initial password. Select the following link to log in: Information Worksheet lock icon.

Updating Your Resume

Agencies will have access to your on-line resume, which you supplied during the application. If you want to update your resume to ensure that it has the most current information, you will need to fax it to the automated system. Simply saving your resume in USAJOBS will not get the updates in the hands of agencies.

The fax cover sheet below must be used by Finalists to transmit your updated resume.

  1. Download and print the customized fax cover sheet. There is a 2011 version and a 2012 version for Finalists. Please be sure to use the correct version for your class. 
  2. Fill out the remaining information on the cover sheet.
  3. Print your resume.
  4. Before faxing, it is important for your resume to be correctly oriented in the fax machine otherwise it will not post correctly.
  5. Using the fax cover sheet, fax your resume to (478) 757-3144 (long-distance phone charges may apply).

Due to the volume of transmissions, it may take a few days for your updated resume to become synchronized with your record. You can confirm receipt via your Application Manager account by selecting the PMF announcement you used to apply, select the "Details" tab, and view the latest date/time stamp of the resume associated with your record. Your original resume will still be listed, but the system will pull the latest version when Agencies search and view your resume.

Preparing for a Background Investigation

These investigations can be lengthy and may require you to provide extensive information regarding your background. The most common Standard Form (SF) used by agencies is the SF 85, Questionnaire for Non-Sensitive Positions. You are highly encouraged to review this form and start collecting the requested data ahead of time. Some agencies require agency-specific forms for this purpose; if this is the case, they will inform you.

All new hires into the Federal Government must complete some level of a background investigation before being issued government identification and/or starting employment (e.g., the Personal Identity Verification (PIV) Smart Card Program). If you are offered an appointment, the appointing agency's human resources office will send you the necessary paperwork and instructions. The PMF Program Office does not initiate or perform such investigations.

It is common for background investigations to be longer than normal for those with any overseas activity (e.g., attending school overseas, residing overseas, military stationed overseas, etc.).

Depending upon the circumstance, it is possible that prior background investigations will not transfer from one agency to another and many agencies have unique requirements.

UPDATED: 01-23-2012, 1:45 PM (ET)