Latest / The Career Change Podcast with Fexingo: Switching Fields, Bootcamps, and Reskilling / How Bootcamp Grads Can Land Government Tech Jobs
Transcript
- Lucas: So we talk a lot on this show about breaking into big tech, startups, even remote-first companies. But there's a massive employer that most bootcamp grads completely overlook. Luna: Let me guess — government? Lucas: Exactly. Federal, state, local — the public sector is desperate for tech talent, and they're hiring bootcamp grads in ways they weren't even five years ago. Luna: I think the stereotype is that government work is all slow, outdated tech, and bureaucratic red tape. Is that still true? Lucas: Parts of it, sure. But there's been a real push to modernize. Think about the U.S. Digital Service — USDS — which was set up after the Healthcare.gov disaster. They brought in engineers from Google, from startups, and started rebuilding how the federal government builds software. Luna: And that's trickled down to states and cities too, right? I know 18F, the General Services Administration's digital consultancy, has done similar work. Lucas: Right. And many of those teams explicitly hire people with bootcamp backgrounds because they value practical skills over a four-year CS degree. One program I looked at — the California Department of Technology — recently hired a junior developer who had a 12-week bootcamp certificate and zero prior tech experience. She was a retail manager before. Luna: What did she end up making? Lucas: Eighty-five thousand dollars a year to start, plus full benefits and a pension. That's not Silicon Valley money, but for someone coming from retail management, it's a huge jump. And the work-life balance is real — 40-hour weeks, no on-call, job security that private tech just can't match. Luna: So what's the catch? Because it sounds like a dream for a lot of career changers. Lucas: The catch is the hiring process. It's slow, it's bureaucratic, and the main portal — USAJOBS.gov — is famously painful to navigate. You can't just submit a resume. You have to use their specific format, answer questionnaires, sometimes include a narrative about your experience. Luna: I've heard that getting past the keyword screening is the hardest part. They use an automated system that looks for very specific phrases. Lucas: Exactly. If the job description says 'experience with agile development' and you write 'used scrum' — the system might not connect them. You have to mirror the language. It's frustrating, but learnable. There are whole communities online dedicated to cracking the USAJOBS code. Luna: Do bootcamps actually help with that? Or is it something you have to figure out on your own? Lucas: It's mostly on your own. Most bootcamps focus on private-sector hiring. They'll prep you for technical interviews, help you polish a GitHub profile. But they don't teach you how to navigate a federal job application. So if this is a path you're interested in, you have to be proactive. Luna: What about the technical interview itself? Is it different from a faang style whiteboarding session? Lucas: Generally, yes. Government tech interviews are often less about algorithmic puzzles and more about practical problem-solving. They might ask you to walk through a project you built, explain your design choices, or do a take-home assignment. Some agencies do pair programming over video call. Luna: That sounds more accessible for bootcamp grads who maybe didn't study computer science theory. Lucas: Absolutely. And the tech stack is often more modern than people assume. The U.S. Digital Service uses React, Python, AWS. The California Department of Technology runs on cloud infrastructure. They're not asking you to maintain a COBOL mainframe. Luna: I'm thinking about the stability angle too. In a downturn, government jobs don't disappear the way startup roles do. That's a real selling point for career changers who maybe have a family or a mortgage. Lucas: Exactly. And the pension — even though it's rarer now — some state governments still offer defined-benefit pensions. That's almost unheard of in private tech. Plus, you get public service loan forgiveness if you have student debt. Luna: So for someone listening right now who's thinking, 'I want to make a career change, but I'm worried about job security' — this feels like a really solid option. Lucas: It really is. And I think the biggest hurdle is just awareness. Most bootcamp grads don't even consider it. They think government is too slow, or that they're not qualified. But agencies are actively recruiting from nontraditional backgrounds. Luna: Speaking of awareness and support — Lucas, you and I have been doing this show for a while now, and we've talked about a lot of career strategies. And honestly, the reason we can keep doing it ad-free is because of listener support. Lucas: Yeah, it's true. A couple of dollars a month — it genuinely makes a difference. It covers hosting costs, keeps the lights on, and lets us keep digging into these topics without having to chase sponsors. Luna: If you've gotten something out of the show — maybe you landed a job, or you're thinking more clearly about your next move — consider tossing a few bucks our way at buy me a coffee dot com slash fexingo. Lucas: No pressure at all. We're grateful for every listener, whether you chip in or not. But if you do, it helps us keep doing episodes exactly like this one. Luna: Alright, back to government tech. So what's the first step for someone who wants to pursue this? Lucas: First, create a profile on USAJOBS.gov. Spend an afternoon filling it out properly — use the resume builder, don't just upload a PDF. Then search for job series 2210 — that's the IT specialist series — and filter by grade level. GS-9 or GS-11 is typically entry-level for someone with a bootcamp and a few projects. Luna: And for state or local jobs, is there a similar portal? Lucas: Most states have their own hiring websites. California has CalCareers. New York has the State Jobs site. And cities like San Francisco, Austin, Denver — they all have tech-specific hiring pages. Some even have 'digital service' teams modeled after USDS. Austin's Digital Services team, for example, specifically recruits from bootcamps. Luna: So it's not just a federal thing. There are opportunities at every level. Lucas: Exactly. And one more thing: don't discount the impact. Working on a project that helps citizens file taxes more easily, or that modernizes a veterans' benefits portal — that's meaningful work. It's not just a paycheck. Luna: There's also the networking angle. Are there meetups or conferences for gov-tech folks? Lucas: Absolutely. There's the Code for America Brigade network — volunteer groups in cities across the U.S. that work on civic tech projects. Great way to build a portfolio and make contacts. Also, the Digital Services Coalition — that's a group of agencies that share best practices. And they often have hiring events. Luna: So if I'm a bootcamp grad with a portfolio of three or four projects, what's the realistic timeline from starting to apply to getting an offer? Lucas: Federal jobs can take three to six months — sometimes longer. State and local can be faster, maybe two to four months. But the key is to apply early and often. Don't put all your eggs in one basket. Apply to ten, twenty positions. Luna: And the salary — is it negotiable? In government, I imagine there's less wiggle room. Lucas: Less, but not zero. For federal roles, the grade level determines the pay band. So you can't negotiate beyond that band, but you can ask for a higher step within the grade. For state and local, there's often more flexibility, especially if you have competing offers or relevant experience. Luna: All right, I'm starting to see why this could be a smart move. It's not glamorous, but it's solid. Lucas: And for a lot of career changers, solid is exactly what they need. A stable platform to build on, without the fear of layoffs every quarter. Luna: Thanks, Lucas. I think we've given our listeners a lot to think about. Lucas: Yeah, for sure. Next time, we'll talk about another overlooked path — maybe nonprofit tech, or working for a university. There's a whole world outside of Silicon Valley that's hungry for talent.