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Our cross-country journey to find diverse federal talent

The Partnership’s Public Service Roadshow is helping to build a federal workforce that understands the lived experiences of all Americans and is prepared to tackle the full spectrum of challenges facing our nation.  

The roadshow, which delivers on-campus training to students, faculty and advisors on how to successfully navigate the federal hiring process, prioritizes diversity, equity, inclusion and accessibility, targeting communities that have historically lacked access to federal opportunities, rural areas and minority-serving institutions, as well as first-generation students, nontraditional students and students with disabilities nationwide.  

Deploying a DEIA-centered recruitment strategy  

During our first roadshow in the fall of 2022, we visited 58 colleges or universities, 43% of which were minority-serving institutions, across 23 states and offered several nationwide virtual sessions.  

We visited institutions such as Valencia Community College, where 29% of the student population is over 25 years old, and George Mason University, where nearly 40% of students identify as first-generation college-goers. Our presentations also include information on accessing federal opportunities for individuals with disabilities, Native American students, students with two-year degrees and veterans.

In addition, we emphasize that joining the federal government does not require moving to Washington, D.C., a critical point given that 85% of federal jobs are located outside the Beltway. Instead, our customized content describes the federal landscape in the community where schools are located, exposing students to job opportunities right in their own backyard.  

Since we cannot visit every college or university in the nation, we also offer virtual sessions for students across the country. These sessions include American Sign Language interpretation.  

The impact of using a DEIA-centered recruitment strategy  

As a result of this effort, we received over 1,800 applications for the summer 2023 cycle of our Future Leaders in Public Service Internship Program, which placed 238 students in paid summer internships at one of five federal agencies: the departments of Transportation, Commerce, and Housing and Urban Development, as well as the General Services Administration and the Small Business Administration.

These students represented 134 colleges and universities from 36 different states, focusing on a wide range of topics and program areas, including artificial intelligence, international diplomacy, Congress, federal grantmaking and more. Over one-half also worked remotely, making the program more accessible to students outside the Washington, D.C., area.  

After participating in the program, 86% of our post-internship survey respondents indicated that they had a positive experience at their agency. Moreover, 93% indicated that they now know about federal opportunities for students and recent graduates, whereas only 56% did before participating in the program.  

Staying true to our mission  

This fall, our second roadshow is making a continued commitment to equity-centered recruitment and leveraging regional diversity to reach new groups. This time, we are visiting institutions in states like Oklahoma, North Dakota and New Mexico, which have large populations of Native American students who often lack equitable access to federal job opportunities.  

This work is core to our mission. To build a better government and a stronger democracy, we must help agencies build not only larger talent pipelines, but also more diverse talent pipelines that represent all Americans. Our Public Service Roadshow is helping to make this vision a reality.

To learn more, visit our Public Service Roadshow website.

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