USA STAFFING: FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS (FAQS)

USA STAFFING: FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

(FAQS)

NBR

QUESTION

ANSWER

Two different systems, USAJOBS and USA

STAFFING, are involved in the application

process. What is the difference between the two

sites?

USAJOBS is used to search for

Federal jobs, store resumes for later

applications, and to get application

status information for positions you’ve

applied for. The USAJOBS website is

http://www.usajobs.opm.gov

USA STAFFING is used to apply for

vacant positions.

If you are searching for a job, establish

an account in USAJOBS, establish a

resume, and set up ‘search agents’

that will send you emails when JOAs

open in the field and geographic

location you are interested in.

When you actually apply for a job, the

How to Apply section in the JOA will

route you to the USA STAFFING site

where you answer questions and

complete the application requirements.

The USA STAFFING website is:

https://applicationmanager.gov/

Where do I find USAJOBS help?

For the most up to date and complete

assistance for using USAJOBS -

1. Go to the USAJOBS website:

http://www.usajobs.opm.gov

2. Click on the ‘Info Center’ link at

the top of the page.

3. Select the topic you wish to

review. The site includes

tutorials and FAQs on all

aspects of using USAJOBS and

tips for applying for jobs.

Where do I find USA STAFFING help?

For the most up to date and complete

assistance for using USA STAFFING -

1. Go to the USA STAFFING

website:

https://applicationmanager.gov/

2. Click on the ‘Help’ link at the

top of the page.

3. You can take a ‘guided tour’, or

select a topic from their menu

to review.

If I can’t find an answer in the help

documentation, how do I contact the USAJOBS

or USA STAFFING help desks?

For questions related to the position

being advertised in the Job

Opportunity Announcement (JOA),

contact the agency POC listed in the

How to Apply tab.

Both USAJOBS and USA STAFFING

have extensive on-line user help

sections, and in most cases an answer

can be found there. If you are

unsuccessful in locating an answer

and wish to contact the site help desk,

here is where the contact information

can be found:

For technical questions about

USAJOBS, see the Contact Us link on

the USAJOBS home page.

For technical questions about USA

STAFFING, click on ‘Important Links’

on the upper right of the USA

STAFFING home page. On the lower

part of the page there is a ‘Was this

helpful to you’ section. Click on the

‘More Details’ link. The information

needed to contact the USA STAFFING

help desk can be found in the section

titled ‘Questions about how to use

Application Manager’.

I think I put in the wrong Social Security Number

(SSN) (or other personal information) in my USA

STAFFING or USAJOBS account. How do I fix

it?

USA STAFFING: Once you login to

USA STAFFING, find the ‘My Profile’

section of the main page. Select the

‘Edit Profile’ link. Go to the ‘Confirm

Social Security Number’ tab, enter

your SSN, and click on update. The

correct SSN will be stored with your

account. You can also review and

update your other personal information

in this area.

USAJOBS: Once you log into your

USAJOBS account, click on the ‘Edit

Profile’ link to update your personal

information. To update your SSN,

you must edit a USAJOBS resume,

and update the SSN in the resume

personal data section.

USAJOBS has an area where applicants can

upload supporting documents such as SF-50s,

Veteran information, etc. Will current DLA

employees be required to provide supporting

documents?

If the required documents are in your

electronic Official Personnel Folder

(eOPF), you will not be required to

submit new copies. You should

review the ‘How to Apply’ section in

the JOA you are applying for and

submit/upload any required

documents that are not in your eOPF.

Can supporting documents be faxed in rather

than uploaded?

Yes. Uploading documents into

USAJOBS is strongly encouraged, but

there are faxing instructions on each

Job Opportunity Announcement (JOA)

in the ‘How to Apply’ Section.

Is there a character limit within the USAJOBS

resume builder?

Yes. There is a 3000 character limit in

the duties statement for each position

you describe. There is an ‘Additional

Information’ section at the end of the

resume that provides for up to 20,000

characters.

How do I transfer the resume I currently have in

the Automated Staffing Program (ASP) into a

USAJOBS resume?

There is no automated way to transfer

a resume from ASP into the

USAJOBS resume. You can ‘copy

and paste’ information from your ASP

resume into like fields in the

USAJOBS resume. Open both your

ASP resume and the USAJOBS

resume builder at the same time in

different browser windows.

You can also copy your ASP resume

from the ASP ‘View Resume’ area into

a MS Word or similar format and store

it on your computer for later use.

What information is stored in the USAJOBS

application status, and how long is the

application status history visible?

The Application Status section will

store information about the JOA you

applied for (with a link to the JOA), the

date you applied, and the ‘Application

Status’. Click on the ‘More

Information’ link to get the details on

your application status.

Application status information is kept

for 18 months after posting.

What is the size limit on an uploaded resume in

USAJOBS?

What file formats does USAJOBS accept for an

uploaded resume?

The size limit for uploaded resumes in

USAJOBS is 3 MB.

Accepted file formats include:

MS Word (DOC or DOCX), GIF, JPG,

JPEG, PNG, RTF, or PDF.

Is there a character limit in the space where a

narrative is to be provided in response to a

question from the questionnaire in USA

STAFFING?

Yes. When a question is created a

character limit is set on the response,

and the applicant can see that limit on

the on-line questionnaire (you will see

a statement below the question

response that reads “You have x

number of characters”.)

Will applicants receive points for experience,

training, education, and awards like they do in

ASP?

Applicants receive points in both

systems for experience, training,

education and awards, but the

processes are a little different.

The ASP system ‘reads’ the resume,

looking for skills that match those

identified as required for the job. ASP

then assigned points based on the

number and types of skills matched.

In USA STAFFING, experience points

will be awarded based on the answers

to experience related questions.

Is it possible for a user to remove supporting

documents they have submitted for a specific

vacancy announcement?

You would be required to reapply for

the job again without the documents

while it is still open. This would

overwrite the original application.

I share an email address with another person.

Can I set up two USAJOBS accounts with the

same email address?

No, the email address is part of the

USA STAFFING account record. You

would be required to establish another

email address.

I forgot my USA STAFFING password. The

system asks for my password in the Forgot

Password section and I don’t have it. What do I

do?

Click on the “Forgot Username or

Password” link on the main login

screen.

The next screen asks you to input your

email address. Input the email

address and click the “Submit email

address” button.

At the next screen enter something in

the password block (even if it is the

wrong password) and click on ‘Submit

Password’. You will then see an

option to select an “I don’t know my

password” button.

USAJOBS says my resume is ‘unsearchable’.

What does that mean and how do I fix it?

Uploaded resumes cannot be made

‘searchable’. For resumes entered

directly into USAJOBS, there are links

within the USAJOBS user account in

the resume section that can make a

resume ‘searchable’.

Making a resume ‘searchable’ opens it

up for agencies to view if they choose

to search for job candidates through

resume scans. It’s a new and limited

use feature, and applicants should not

expect to receive job offers simply by

making a resume searchable.

Instead, you should apply for those

positions you are interested in through

the JOA process.