How to Apply for Canadian Federal Government Jobs

Finding a job in the federal government in Canada can be a frustrating experience for many people; the process is long and convoluted, and can be very confusing if you don't know the tricks to making sure you get "screened in". Getting screened in means getting through the initial electronic sorting process and making sure your CV or résumé actually gets seen by the people who are doing the hiring; the truth is that most CVs sent in for government jobs get screened out and discarded by the computer system before human eyes ever even see them!

Part of the problem, and a major cause of application frustration, is that applying for a public service job in the Canadian federal government is inherently different from applying for a job in the private sector. In the private sector, there are fewer rules governing how hiring is done. Generally speaking, a private sector company can hire whom they want, when they want, and they don't, for the most part, have to justify their choices to any other bureaucratic body. In the federal government, hiring is affected by several pieces of legislation, and by a number of governmental departments that exercise control over all the other departments. This nasty combination means that any hiring process, in any federal department, is hampered by the need to document everything at every step (the infamous "C.Y.A." principle), and to make very sure that every possible piece of legislation that could affect the process is carefully adhered to so that if anyone files a complaint about the hiring process, their "A"s are "C"d. What this means for you is that you have to be very thorough in the application process for any job for which you want to apply.

To begin your job search, you need to go to the Public Service Resourcing System (PSRS) web site maintained by the Public Service Commission of Canada; this is the web site where all Canadian federal government departments post their job advertisements. Here you will find a searchable database of all the job postings, all across the country, within the Canadian civil service.

When you look at a public service job posting on the PSRS, you will see that it consists of both the main job poster and an associated Statement of Merit Criteria (SoM). Whether you are applying for an internal job posting or an open-to-the-public posting, the absolute most important thing to work with is this SoM; this is the critical document that you need to understand if you are to be successful in your public service job search. The SoM is composed of several standard sections:

Language Proficiency

This section will provide a language rating (e.g BBB/BBB imperative, CBC/CBC non-imperative, PPP/BBC imperative) describing the bilingual proficiency required for the position. Owing to the Official Languages Act, most positions in the Canadian government now appear to be, at minimum, rated BBB/BBB imperative, with many requiring a CBC/CBC imperative rating (for more information on what these ratings mean, please see the PSRS's Overview of Language Requirements page. In short, you pretty much need to be fully bilingual in order to get a job in the Canadian government these days. There are still some positions available that are English Essential, but they seem to be few and far between. In any case, if you have never undergone language testing for a federal government job before, these Second Language Evaluation tests will be scheduled by the department as part of the assessment process for the competition; make sure you study for them as you do need to make sure you achieve the ratings listed on the job poster in order to get the job.

Essential Qualifications

This section will provide a list of the criteria you must meet in order to be screened in. These criteria could include certain educational credentials (e.g. a university degree in a particular field) or professional / trade certifications (e.g an operating engineer certificate, electrician's license, or bar certification, etc.), and a list of required experience factors. This section usually also has lists of "knowledge", "ability" and "personal suitability" requirements.

Be absolutely certain to cover each element of the essential requirements in your CV. It is blatantly stated on the job posters that the onus is on the applicant to show how he or she meets the requirements of the job. If you don't follow those instructions to the letter and carefully show how you meet each of the essential criteria, you risk being screened out. Remember that even if you meet all the requirements and the job looks like it was made for you, if you don't show it obviously on your CV, you don't qualify, plain and simple. Some job postings have made it easier to clearly show that you meet the requirements by including online questionnaires for you to fill out when you apply for the job. For example, you may have an Essential Qualification requirement that says: "Extensive recent experience applying administrative procedures and policies in an office setting" for which you will get a questionnaire item that asks: "Do you have recent experience applying administrative policies and procedures in an office setting? If so, in 200 words or less, provide concrete examples of how you gained this experience." If the job you are applying for has a questionnaire, be thankful because it means you can clearly show how you meet each mandatory factor, and be certain to answer the questions carefully so that you do highlight your achievements under each factor.

Asset Qualifications or Other Merit Criteria

The asset qualifications section is a relatively recent addition to the federal hiring process. Asset qualifications "can" be used in the screening and interview process, but they don't "have" to be. In other words, the people doing the hiring may use these elements to screen you out if they want to, but they aren't necessarily required to screen you out if you don't have them (whereas they must screen you out if you don't meet one or more of the Essential Qualifications criteria). If you have any of these asset qualifications, it would be wise to put them in your CV.

Organizational Needs

This is an optional section that won't always be listed. It is usually a blurb about the organization's commitment to employment equity hiring practices that states that people of whatever targeted equity group (usually visible minorities, persons with disabilities, or women) will be given special consideration. Note that if this section is listed but you don't fit in any of the listed equity groups, you can still apply for the job - it just means that if individuals fitting any of the listed groups apply and have the same qualifications as you, they will get preferential status for hiring.

Conditions of Employment

These are any special conditions required for the particular job; for example: being eligible for a particular level of security clearance, or passing a medical, or agreeing to work shifts or to travel, or being willing and able to work overtime, etc.

Once you've finished your application, be sure to go over everything again before you hit the "send now" button and ensure that you have clearly addressed all of the required elements listed in the SoM. Also assume that, for a clerical position, for example, they will get about a thousand applications through the online system, out of which anywhere from three to six hundred applicants will get through the initial electronic screening. Those three to six hundred people will then have to go through a series of tests, all of which are designed to whittle the number of "screened in" applicants down further. If you get to the testing stage, you will most likely get an email telling you what test you will be writing and when and where you need to go in order to write it, so make sure the email address you used when you applied for the position is valid, and that it is one that you actually check on a regular basis! There are a whole slew of official tests that the government can use to assess applicants during a competition process and if you would like further information about, or would like to see example questions from many of these tests, be sure to visit the Public Service Commission's Personnel Psychology Centre web site .

In addition, another thing to keep in mind is that all of the above guidelines still apply if you are already a member of the Canadian public service and are applying for another federal government job. Don't fall into the trap of thinking that you don't need a proper CV just because you are already a part of the government. There seems to be a myth out there that says: "I don't need a résumé / CV. I've worked for this department for twenty years - they know who I am!" Even if you are applying for a different job within the department you already work for, don't assume that the person screening the applications knows who you are. The average federal government department has thousands of employees and a small fleet of over-worked human resource and pay and benefits people desperately trying to keep those thousands afloat. Unless you work directly with one of those specialists, they don't know you from any of the other thousands of people in your department, so you still need to make sure your application clearly shows your experience and how you meet all of the Essential Criteria.

Finally, remember that the federal government in Canada moves slowly - very slowly. It is quite common to apply for a job posting, and then to not hear anything at all until months, or even a year or more, later. So if you need to find something fast, it's best to sign up with a temp agency while you wait, or go find a job with the private sector!