Student
Services Government Jobs
Students may be surprised
to learn that an attorney working for a state or federal government can
experience a wide variety of legal practice areas including litigation,
environmental law, consumer protection, labor law, international relations,
energy law, intellectual property law, civil rights, contracts and procurement,
torts, business law and tax law. Government positions offer a host of
other specialty practice areas, as well as positions focusing on analysis,
policy and management, plus specialized job titles (such as FBI and CIA
agent, income tax auditor, etc.).
The general benefits
of working for the government include lots of responsibility early in
your career, no billable hours, more friendly-family work schedules and
great vacation, health and retirement benefits.
Federal Government Resources
The following
links provide informational websites on various governmental offices and
agencies.
U.S.
Congress Websites
White
House/Federal Departments Websites
Federal
Government Agencies Website
Although
federal hiring is decentralized and each agency (and, often, each field
office) handles its own recruiting, the U.S. Office of Personnel Management
offers the most comprehensive postings of openings www.usajobs.opm.gov.
www.studentjobs.gov,
lists student internships and volunteer opportunities.
The Partnership
for Public Service, www.ourpublicservice.org,
also offers basic information about applying for federal jobs.
The National
Conference of State Legislatures' website, www.ncsl.org/public/joblegis,
provides States Legislatures' Job Openings and Employment Web Sites.
Most agencies
require students to enclose in their application packets one of two standardized
employment forms (SF-171 or OF-612), both of which are available on www.usajobs.opm.gov.
The Federal Yellow
Book, available in the Office of Career Development Library, provides an overview of
the 14 Cabinet-level departments and 84 independent agencies within the
federal system, as well as research names and contact information.
NALP’s Federal Legal Employment Opportunities
Guide, available at www.nalp.org
contains a brief description about each federal
government department, the agency’s mission,
website addresses and internship/employment information.
The Office of Career Development also has the following resources to assist
you in finding a government internship: (1) The Congressional Internship
Book; (2) FedLaw: Legal Internships with Federal Agencies; and (3) Washington
Internships in Law and Policy.
State
Government Resources
The following
links provide useful information on Texas' various state agencies:
www.oag.state.tx.us:
Office of the Attorney General
www.tdcaa.com: Texas District and County
Attorneys Association
www.sao.state.tx.us: State Auditor's
Office
www.governor.state.tx.us:
Governor's Office
www.hhsc.state.tx.us: Health
& Human Servcies Commission
www.lbb.state.tx.us: Legislative
Budget Board
www.tceq.state.tx.us: Texas
Commission on Environmental Quality
www.puc.state.tx.us: Public Utility
Commission
www.dot.state.tx.us: Department
of Transportation
www.twc.state.tx.us: Texas Workforce
Commission
www.tyc.state.tx.us: Texas Youth
Commission
www.courts.state.tx.us: Texas
Judiciary
The Office of Career Development Office also has the following resources to assist you in finding
a state government position/internship: (1) State Yellow Book (who’s
who in the executive and legislative branches of the 50 state governments);
(2) The City and County Attorney Internship Book (description of legal
internships with city or county offices throughout the United States,
including application procedures and deadlines); and (3) Texas State Directory.
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