For more than 35 years, the Presidential Management Fellows (PMF) program has been the government’s premiere initiative for recruiting and developing top talent from graduate schools across the country. How do participants’ first impressions of the program and their federal agencies compare to how they felt at the conclusion of the two-year fellowship? Are the fellows still committed to public service? What changes need to be made to ensure the program remains a critical pathway to federal service for high-achieving individuals?

In the Partnership’s new issue brief, we surveyed, with assistance from the Office of Personnel Management (OPM), members of the PMF class of 2011 after completing their two-year fellowships to assess the program’s strengths and weaknesses as well as participants’ satisfaction with their supervisors and rotational and work assignments. In 2011, we surveyed the same group about their initial impressions of the PMF program and their agencies. The findings reveal some positive aspects of the program and some areas of improvement for agencies and OPM.