Careers in Federal Libraries Google Group

I've recently gotten involved with the Careers in Federal Libraries Google Group initiative. This is a joint effort between the ALA Federal and Armed Forces Libraries Round Table, the SLA Military Librarians Division, and the SLA Government Information Division.

The aim of this group is to bring federal librarians and those interested in a federal career together into one social space where they can share ideas and resources. Currently the group has over 100 members and 20 discussion threads. There seems to be a lot of interest in the federal government right now. I believe that increasing unemployment and the promise of the incoming Obama administration to make government service "cool again" will cause more people to consider a career in government.

Alot has been made over the fact that government hiring is a slow, cumbersome process that discourages young people from even trying to apply. One of my main hopes for the new Obama administration is that they will be able to improve the hiring process for career jobs by making the positions, descriptions, and application process more like the private sector. I would also love to see more flexible "leadership" or "management" programs for recent college and advanced degree students to enter government. The regular application process is tilted heavily towards current federal employees and veterans. Without commenting on these policies I would suggest that there be more programs to send bright young grads into the federal workforce. Something along the lines of the Presidential Management Fellows program but geared towards a variety of groups and more flexible. I started to look into this program myself but realized that I didn't qualify since I had been out of school for a year! I would recommend a program that accepts both undergrad and advanced degree grads for a professional management track career in the government.