Modernizing and Reforming the Assessment and Hiring of Federal Job Candidates
Federal Hiring Reforms Prioritize Skills Over College Degrees
What it does
Agencies must adopt skills- and competency-based assessments while the Office of Personnel Management revises job standards and publishes changes within 120 days.
Real-world impact
- Expands hiring paths for applicants without college degrees.
- Requires agencies to use assessments beyond self-evaluations for job candidates.
- Office of Personnel Management must publish revised standards within 120 days.
Topics
Summary
This order directs a shift from degree-based hiring to skills- and competency-based hiring across the federal competitive service. The Office of Personnel Management will review and revise job classification and qualification standards and make those changes public within 120 days and effective within 180 days.
Federal departments and agencies must assess candidates using methods that do not rely solely on education or on applicants' self-evaluations. The order aims to expand opportunities, reduce unnecessary education barriers, and better match candidates' skills to job needs.
Questions, answered
Ask questions about this executive order and its implications. Try:
- “What agencies are affected by this order?”
- “How does this order change existing policy?”
- “What are the practical implications of this order?”