You are tentatively eligible for this series/grade but not referred

[Anonymous]

So we do have somewhat of an update, but no real answers yet. She was told that she was eligible for the position, but they had multiple spouses apply and they do not forward any applications to the hiring manager that would result in a new appointment to the federal government, because spouse applications blocked all new appointments. The only problem is, my wife claimed a 10 point preference due to being the spouse of a 100% disabled veteran which is also included in the same category as military spouses. So we really have no answers yet as they closed the case we opened with that one response.

[Anonymous]

I have nothing helpful to add what PPs have written, just commiseration, OP. I hope this gets sorted out to your and your wife's satisfaction.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:This is...intense. I understand that your wife’s career has an impact on you and your family, but why are you so involved? “We” got a resume service, “our” fault, “we” made a FOIA request...are you applying for jobs on your wife’s behalf?

To further answer your question, we often use each other to proof read our work and provide a 2nd set of eyes to anything we do, especially something like a federal job application as it is very intense and requires a lot of attention to detail. Even then you will likely miss something. The entire process is designed this way to make it easier for them to hire who they want. Several questions on the questionnaire if you notice, are contradictory, and you can easily disqualify yourself by simply clicking a no instead of a yes on a question, even though you already answered a similar question with a yes. Some of these yes or no questions are large paragraphs that won't include your category until the very end, and you can't select yes to more than one category. Like an "click all that applies" option, which would make more sense. The application doesn't check itself for inconsistencies and you can easily miss something that was buried in a 12 sentence paragraph that was meant for you. She missed out on another job a while back by doing this very thing. One no answer where it should have been a yes and they didn't even look at the rest of the application. She meant to click yes but got confused in the wording. In short, I type faster and often have a better way with words. My wife is also quick to just get discourage and not fight for something even if she is in the right. Im not that way and will do the fighting for her if needed. Its called being a family.

[Anonymous]

I work on FOIA and we wouldn't release any of the information that you're looking for. Applicants and ranking scores are never released. We only release the name/resume of the hired person.

I would focus on talking to HR instead. HR can help you more than FOIA.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Thanks for the reply, but just to add a little extra info, the position my wife is applying for is an HR position. It is in the Intel community and she is actually working the position now which they are turning into a GS position. The exact same position in other building across the same compound using the exact same resume was referred not 1 month prior. That particular position though we knew was going to be more competitive simply because of the in house applicants. This position she IS the in house applicant and is using the same resume. The hiring manager, her boss, loves her, so she has a great chance of getting hired if her resume gets through. I always hear people trying to defend the system as not being shady, yet every person I know who has one of these jobs admits as much if you know them. No way her resume makes it through for a duplicate job but not this one. The position is literally designed around her qualifications because she IS the SME. We have worked extremely hard to get her resume to show her experience and qualifications and have it ensure it matches the job posting. That work paid off on the duplicate job across the compound. We are just scratching our heads as to why it didn't seem to be enough for this announcement.

Something happened, because I don't see that many people applying for this specialized position to out score her to the point of her not even being referred. I guess we will see soon. We aren't going to just let this one slide like we have the others with a, "well that's just how it is" answer. I was more curious if anyone has experience with this sort of reply from USAJOBS. Tentatively eligible but then not referred. What does that even mean? I seems they come up with new and creative ways to deny people all of the time.

Sorry you are so frustrated, but your statement in bold shows you don’t understand how the federal hiring process works. It is a different posting, so no telling how many candidates applied, what the cutoff for the cert is (99/100? 95/100?) PP explained some of this. There are literally dozens of “ways” in which this posting is different from any other. Your best bet is to contact HR for the position in which she was not referred, see if they will reconsider or at least provide an explanation. It is necessarily something nefarious going on here.

Its the exact same job. EXACT same job. Different building. Prior to listing these jobs they have a PD that is created that determines what points apply to what position. Both positions were the same. When you work in HR you are often a part of the planning committees for these newly created positions so you know what goes into creating them. Thanks though for your input, although I'm not sure what you were trying to accomplish.

Again, it is a DIFFERENT POSTING. Doesn’t matter if it is the same job in the SAME building reporting to the SAME manager. Why is this so difficult for you to understand? This new posting, even for the “same” job, could have received 3x as many applications- just one example of how circumstances can be vastly different. I have accomplished an attempt to provide advice which you sought by posting to this forum. Just because you are dissatisfied with the answer doesn’t make this any less true how the process is likely playing out in your case.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:This is...intense. I understand that your wife’s career has an impact on you and your family, but why are you so involved? “We” got a resume service, “our” fault, “we” made a FOIA request...are you applying for jobs on your wife’s behalf?

To further answer your question, we often use each other to proof read our work and provide a 2nd set of eyes to anything we do, especially something like a federal job application as it is very intense and requires a lot of attention to detail. Even then you will likely miss something. The entire process is designed this way to make it easier for them to hire who they want. Several questions on the questionnaire if you notice, are contradictory, and you can easily disqualify yourself by simply clicking a no instead of a yes on a question, even though you already answered a similar question with a yes. Some of these yes or no questions are large paragraphs that won't include your category until the very end, and you can't select yes to more than one category. Like an "click all that applies" option, which would make more sense. The application doesn't check itself for inconsistencies and you can easily miss something that was buried in a 12 sentence paragraph that was meant for you. She missed out on another job a while back by doing this very thing. One no answer where it should have been a yes and they didn't even look at the rest of the application. She meant to click yes but got confused in the wording. In short, I type faster and often have a better way with words. My wife is also quick to just get discourage and not fight for something even if she is in the right. Im not that way and will do the fighting for her if needed. Its called being a family.

Lol ok

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:This is...intense. I understand that your wife’s career has an impact on you and your family, but why are you so involved? “We” got a resume service, “our” fault, “we” made a FOIA request...are you applying for jobs on your wife’s behalf?

What? Why am I so involved? Its my wife, and yes it does have a huge impact on all of us. Its a joint effort. I'm not applying for a job, SHE IS. I'm simply doing my due diligence on her behalf to help find out what is going on. We are a military family. Those terms like We/our are common terminology because everyone in our household is affected by our careers.

My husband has never called my employer asking why I wasn’t selected for a job but you do you. I’m sure they’re eager to work with you.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:So we do have somewhat of an update, but no real answers yet. She was told that she was eligible for the position, but they had multiple spouses apply and they do not forward any applications to the hiring manager that would result in a new appointment to the federal government, because spouse applications blocked all new appointments. The only problem is, my wife claimed a 10 point preference due to being the spouse of a 100% disabled veteran which is also included in the same category as military spouses. So we really have no answers yet as they closed the case we opened with that one response.

Are you overseas at an embassy?

[Anonymous]

Merry Christmas. first person to respond. I think you should take a step back and break from this thread. Then go back and read everything that was posted and take to heart some of the common themes in these responses.

Very unclear about not referring to hire someone because a cert full of qualified spouse preference applicants means they have to hire a new positions.

I don't know all the details of the position, your spouse's expertise and work, how it is being captured on the resume, or how she is answering any of the responses to the questionnaire. But i will reiterate the vacancy announcement can be exactly the same, and depending upon who applies and what they submit, provide in their resume, or status (maybe an ICTAP HR Specialist applied who is being displaced from their job that is moving somewhere else), the process of the screening and cert selection with all the laws and regs applied can give a different result of who is referred.

No matter how much the hiring manager says he/she likes your spouse's work and implies she would love to have her working as a civilian for her, a good civilian HR Specialist knows to never promise anyone a job - because anything can happen (and it's a prohibited personnel practice - HR Specialists who can see what is happening and the electronic paper trail are the ones who typically report to OSC).

Empower your spouse through advice and encouragement to fight her own battles.

Wishing you the best.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:So we do have somewhat of an update, but no real answers yet. She was told that she was eligible for the position, but they had multiple spouses apply and they do not forward any applications to the hiring manager that would result in a new appointment to the federal government, because spouse applications blocked all new appointments. The only problem is, my wife claimed a 10 point preference due to being the spouse of a 100% disabled veteran which is also included in the same category as military spouses. So we really have no answers yet as they closed the case we opened with that one response.

So... you tried to game the system, but you’re mad that somebody out-gamed you? Thats what happened here. LULZ.

[Anonymous]

OP, you might want to consider that some of us who have commented actually work in federal HR ourselves and this is why we are giving such insight. I know you think you know it all and your wife was not referred solely due to the incompetence of others, but like someone else said you might want to take a step back.

[Anonymous]

Serious question: Given that people here have told you that you'd only get the hired person's resume with a FOIA request, do you plan to proceed with the FOIA? Say the hired person has what you consider to be less experience than your wife, what's your next move?

You sound combative in a way that may backfire on your wife. Occupying a position currently does not mean someone is the most qualified. And blaming others' intentions for your wife making mistakes on the multiple choice part of the application seems ... not helpful.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I work on FOIA and we wouldn't release any of the information that you're looking for. Applicants and ranking scores are never released. We only release the name/resume of the hired person.

I would focus on talking to HR instead. HR can help you more than FOIA.

Thats fine, I don't think I ever asked for ranking scores or anything. We want to know why someone else was referred over my wife. Its easy enough to look at a resume and know if they score above you.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP, you might want to consider that some of us who have commented actually work in federal HR ourselves and this is why we are giving such insight. I know you think you know it all and your wife was not referred solely due to the incompetence of others, but like someone else said you might want to take a step back.

Thats great and all, and I don't know everything, which is why I am here. But so far a lot of people aren't offering any advice, you are essentially saying HR never messes this up, and if you weren't referred then try harder next time.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Serious question: Given that people here have told you that you'd only get the hired person's resume with a FOIA request, do you plan to proceed with the FOIA? Say the hired person has what you consider to be less experience than your wife, what's your next move?

You sound combative in a way that may backfire on your wife. Occupying a position currently does not mean someone is the most qualified. And blaming others' intentions for your wife making mistakes on the multiple choice part of the application seems ... not helpful.

Im starting to really question why it is that you are so concerned about FOIA requests. What exactly do you think people use those requests for? Why would it bother you so much? You do realize that everything in life isn't peaches and unicorns right. Some people make mistakes and some people even purposely do things to benefit themselves or their friends.