How to prepare for Fed interview Forum

[Anonymous User]

Have an interview for an attorney position in a federal agency, think FTC, DOJ, SEC, CFTC.

What should I expect from the whole process? Is there typically a substantive skills round of interviews?

Would appreciate any perspective from anyone who went through this process. Thanks!

[Anonymous User]

I don’t think anyone can answer “typical” when you’ve listed 4 different agencies each with a bunch of totally different kinds of jobs. But definitely be able to answer why government, why this agency, what skills/experiences do you have that make you a good candidate for this position. Beyond that, people seem to assume that everyone in all parts of the federal government hires in exactly the same way and it’s not at all true.

[Anonymous User]

I don’t think anyone can answer “typical” when you’ve listed 4 different agencies each with a bunch of totally different kinds of jobs. But definitely be able to answer why government, why this agency, what skills/experiences do you have that make you a good candidate for this position. Beyond that, people seem to assume that everyone in all parts of the federal government hires in exactly the same way and it’s not at all true.

OP here. Thank you. And I realize my vagueness is unhelpful. Which agency did you interview for and was there a substantive skills portion?

[Anonymous User]

I don’t think anyone can answer “typical” when you’ve listed 4 different agencies each with a bunch of totally different kinds of jobs. But definitely be able to answer why government, why this agency, what skills/experiences do you have that make you a good candidate for this position. Beyond that, people seem to assume that everyone in all parts of the federal government hires in exactly the same way and it’s not at all true.

OP here. Thank you. And I realize my vagueness is unhelpful. Which agency did you interview for and was there a substantive skills portion?

DOJ. For one job there were hypos, for two others there weren’t. I think the likelihood of it also depends a lot on what the job is (like a friend of mine had to do a mock opening or closing, I forget which, but obviously an attorney adviser won’t be asked to do that).

[Anonymous User]

Having worked in bigfed (not one of the agencies you mentioned) fed interviews are really idiosyncratic, even within the same agency. People in different offices could take completely different approaches. Try to talk to someone in the office you're interviewing to get a sense of what you'll have to do in your interview.

[Anonymous User]

I don’t think anyone can answer “typical” when you’ve listed 4 different agencies each with a bunch of totally different kinds of jobs. But definitely be able to answer why government, why this agency, what skills/experiences do you have that make you a good candidate for this position. Beyond that, people seem to assume that everyone in all parts of the federal government hires in exactly the same way and it’s not at all true.

OP here. Thank you. And I realize my vagueness is unhelpful. Which agency did you interview for and was there a substantive skills portion?

DOJ. For one job there were hypos, for two others there weren’t. I think the likelihood of it also depends a lot on what the job is (like a friend of mine had to do a mock opening or closing, I forget which, but obviously an attorney adviser won’t be asked to do that).

What kind of hypo were you asked to do for DOJ?

[Anonymous User]

I interviewed in the last few years with DOJ ATR and FTC BC. DOJ was one panel interview with 3 lawyers. FTC was 4-5 panel interviews with 2-3 lawyers each, and a follow up interview. Some interviewers had more substantive legal questions, but nothing skills-based like a mock argument. However, as others have said, YMMV - it wouldn't surprise me if different shops within each agency had different processes.

[Anonymous User]

Anyone interview with the SEC? What did that consist of?

[Anonymous User]

I don’t think anyone can answer “typical” when you’ve listed 4 different agencies each with a bunch of totally different kinds of jobs. But definitely be able to answer why government, why this agency, what skills/experiences do you have that make you a good candidate for this position. Beyond that, people seem to assume that everyone in all parts of the federal government hires in exactly the same way and it’s not at all true.

OP here. Thank you. And I realize my vagueness is unhelpful. Which agency did you interview for and was there a substantive skills portion?

DOJ. For one job there were hypos, for two others there weren’t. I think the likelihood of it also depends a lot on what the job is (like a friend of mine had to do a mock opening or closing, I forget which, but obviously an attorney adviser won’t be asked to do that).

What kind of hypo were you asked to do for DOJ?

Ethical hypos related to the specific position.

[Anonymous User]

Has anyone interviewed with a criminal section of main justice and had to do hypos as part of that process? Any advice on how to prepare?

[Anonymous User]

Has anyone interviewed with a criminal section of main justice and had to do hypos as part of that process? Any advice on how to prepare?

Not sure if this is the type of hypo you’re thinking but I did and had a question about how I would be able to work with investigators.