Modernizing and Reforming the Assessment and Hiring of Federal Job Candidates
Directs the Office of Personnel Management to overhaul federal job qualification standards so that skills and demonstrated competencies — not college degrees — become the primary basis for hiring into the competitive civil service.
Establishes that education requirements can only be imposed when a law specifically mandates them, pushing federal hiring practices closer to the skills-based model already used by many private employers.
What this order does
What it orders
The order directs the OPM Director, in consultation with OMB, the Domestic Policy Council, and agency heads, to review and revise all job classification and qualification standards for competitive-service positions. Changes must be made publicly available within 120 days and take effect within 180 days of signing. It restricts agencies from imposing minimum educational requirements unless state or local law legally requires that education to perform the job, and it limits using education as a qualification factor to cases where coursework directly reflects the needed competencies. It also requires all agencies, within 180 days, to assess candidates using methods that go beyond educational attainment and prohibits relying solely on candidates' self-reported skill evaluations.
The order applies only to the competitive service and does not alter existing statutory minimum education requirements embedded in law. It contains standard severability language and explicitly states it creates no enforceable rights against the federal government.
Who it affects
Anyone applying for federal competitive-service jobs — particularly those without four-year degrees — as well as federal agencies responsible for writing job postings and evaluating applicants, and OPM, which must rewrite qualification standards government-wide.
Why it matters
Job seekers applying for federal positions will face fewer automatic degree-based screening barriers, broadening access especially for workers who have relevant skills through experience or vocational training. Agencies must build or adopt new assessment tools, changing how they screen and rank applicants.
What must happen and when
How the order is supposed to work
OPM leads the reform: it revises qualification standards in consultation with OMB and agency heads, publishes them within 120 days, and the new standards take effect at 180 days. Separately, each agency must concurrently develop or identify assessment practices that evaluate skills beyond educational attainment by the same 180-day mark. Agencies may not rely solely on self-evaluations; candidates must pass independent assessment hurdles. No dedicated enforcement mechanism is specified, but all changes must comply with applicable appropriations and existing law.
Actions and deadlines
- Make all revised job classification and qualification standards publicly available
- Put revised qualification standards into effect across the competitive service
- Ensure agencies assess candidates using methods that do not rely solely on educational attainment
- Develop or identify assessment practices for evaluating knowledge, skills, competencies, and abilities
- Continually evaluate effectiveness of different assessment strategies to protect hiring quality and integrity