See more, including starting and mid-career salaries for these fields in the full article.

The U.S. federal government will hire 300,000 to 400,000 new workers in the next few years. "Fiscal year 2011's budget reflects the intent to hire more federal employees as soon as possible," writes Bridget Mintz Testa on Workforce.com. Testa also notes the government plans "dramatic changes in recruiting practices," such as eliminating lengthy "knowledge, skills, abilities" (KSA) essays early in the application process. Read the full article here (registration required).

You might just find it pays to read job ads/postings very carefully. Entrepreneur Mike Michalowicz describes the "special filtering technique" he has used for years to avoid getting inundated with resumes from unqualified candidates. In the job posting, Michalowicz writes, "I tell the applicants, 'To prove that you're meticulous, you have to include the following sentence when you send your resume: 'It is with my utmost respect I hereto surrender my curriculum vitae for your consideration.'" He then conducts a search of that sentence in the resumes he receives and eliminates up to 80 percent of the resumes -- because they don't contain the sentence. Here are Michalowicz's reasons for employing this technique:

"1. Including the sentence shows the applicant has read the entire ad and knows what the job entails and if they're qualified to fill it.

"2. Many people today are blasting resumes (batch responding) to everyone and their mother. They don't care what the job is; they're just looking for a paycheck.

"3. Using the sentence shows they pay attention to detail.

"4. Most important, business owners want employees who will do as they're told. If they've used the sentence, it shows they're more inclined to explicitly follow directions and do what you expect of them."

While this qualifier might seem like the obscure technique of a lone employer, he has written an article on the Wall Street Journal's site, so other hiring managers might jump on the bandwagon.

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
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