The role of a field representative is an exciting and rewarding job, if you enjoy meeting people and appreciate flexibility in your work schedule. However, the job is not always easy. As a field representative, your job is to interview households or persons at addresses scientifically selected in advance. Some people selected for the survey sample may not wish to participate and it is the job of the field representative to help them to understand the importance of their participation. The Census Bureau employs thousands of field representatives in selected areas throughout the United States to collect social and economic data needed by the federal government, American business and industry, and public and private interest groups. We hope you watched our video about the Field Representative position.

Although field representatives do part of their work from their home, such as make phone calls to set up appointments and route planning, the majority of their work is conducting interviews at respondents' homes.

Field representatives are hourly employees, and the pay rate is set based on Office of Personnel Management (OPM) locality pay tables. Please see the job announcement for more specific details. Each payroll is a 2-week period and payment is issued biweekly.

Field representatives are reimbursed for authorized work expenses, such as mileage and tolls, and are paid expense allowances for authorized overnight travel.

You will work in and around the areas where you live. To collect data, you may need to travel to areas you are less familiar with and, in more rural areas, you may be required to drive long distances.

Field representatives' hours vary and there is flexibility in their schedule; however, you are expected to work the hours needed to complete your caseload in the most efficient way. Generally, this involves working evening and weekend hours when people are usually home and available for interview. 

The number of hours you work each week may vary from 4 to 30 or more depending on the workload in an assignment area. The irregular hours may mean that it is difficult to hold a full-time job or to carry a heavy class load as a student in addition to Census Bureau work.

Federal civilian retirees (retired from a federal civilian job) or postal service retirees must have their salaries reduced by the amount of their annuities and may not find it financially beneficial to work as a field representative.

An individual may have more than one federal appointment, but may receive pay from more than one civilian job only when: the jobs total no more than 40 hours of work a week, Sunday to Saturday (excluding overtime). The irregular week to week hours of the field representative position make it difficult some weeks to stay within the 40 hour limit.

Protecting the health and safety of our employees and the public is the top priority for the Census Bureau. Our work continues regardless of what the weather conditions are at the time. Because field representatives are familiar with the area where their work will be and are aware of local weather forecasts, planning and communication is key to completing the assignment on time. Stay in touch with your supervisor for guidance in that situation.

Field representatives should be comfortable carrying and using a laptop and e-mail. When working, field representatives will receive their weekly workload and collect survey data via a Census Bureau issued laptop computer. Laptops are carried by the field representatives while they are working.

Field representative announcements are on posted on the USAJOBS.GOV website. If you already have an account sign into your USAJOBS.GOV account.

If you do not have a USAJOBS.GOV account you will need to create one. When creating a USA JOBS account for the first time you will need create a profile before you can apply for any jobs on the site. For more information on creating your USA Jobs profile click here.

Click here to apply to the Field Representative Announcement. If you are not logged into your USAJOBS account you will need to log in. Read the announcement in full before you apply for the position.

Apply to the Field Representative (FR) announcement that contains the state abbreviation that you physically reside in. Please note, if you speak another language, we encourage you to apply to the Field Representative (Bilingual) announcement. This will ensure if you speak a language we require, you will be considered for that specific need.

See table below:

If you do not provide the information noted as required, you will not be able to submit your application.

In the "How You Will be Evaluated" section of the job announcement there is a link to preview questions. To preview the questions click on the link.

Once you answer the application and assessment questions as well as attach the appropriate documentation you will be prompted to review and submit your application package. You must click the "Submit" button for the application package to be sent for review. You will be taken to application status screen where your status will be updated.

See figure below:

You will be notified of your application status through USAJOBS at four points during the hiring process, as applicable. You can check the status of your application by accessing the USAJOBS website at http://usajobs.gov and clicking on "Applications." The status will be visible next to the corresponding positions. The four points of notification are:

1. Application Received or Application Incomplete;
2. Minimum Qualification Requirement Met or Minimum Qualification Requirement Not Met;
3. Referred or Not Referred; and
4. Selected or Not Selected.

Vacancy announcements are open for several months. We are continuously accepting applications from applicants and make selections as vacancies occur. If you are not selected under the job announcement you can reapply under the new announcement.

Whether you’re a current federal employee or new to the federal government, your resume is the primary way for you to communicate your education, skills and experience.

Focus on the following sections to determine if you possess the skills required to carryout the duties listed in the announcement.

Duties and Qualifications

How to Apply (including a preview of the assessment questionnaire, if applicable)

How You Will Be Evaluated

Make sure you have the required experience and/or education before you apply. Hiring agencies use the job announcement to describe the job and the required qualifications, including:

• Level and amount of experience
• Education
• Training

Federal jobs often require that you have experience in a particular type of work for a certain period of time. You must show how your skills and experiences meet the qualifications and requirements listed in the job announcement to be considered for the job.

Include Important Contact Information

Don’t forget to add current contact information. Most job applications require this information:

• Address
• Email
• Phone number

Read the job opportunity carefully to make sure you have included all required contact information.

Include Dates, Hours, Level of Experience and Examples for Each Work Experience

For each work experience you list, make sure you include:

• Start and end dates (including the month and year).
• The number of hours you worked per week.
• The level and amount of experience—for instance, whether you served as a project manager or a team member helps to illustrate your level of experience.
• Examples of relevant experiences and accomplishments that prove you can perform the tasks at the level required for the job as stated in the job announcement.
  • Your experience needs to address every required qualification.
  • Example:
    Program Analyst GS-343-11
    January 2009 - Present
    40 Hours/Week
    $63,000/Year
    Experience/Accomplishment
    Experience/Accomplishment

Include volunteer work and roles in community organizations. Don’t limit yourself to only including paid work experience. Include relevant volunteer work or community organizations roles that demonstrate your ability to do the job.

Use Numbers To Highlight Your Accomplishments

Use numbers, percentages or dollars to highlight your accomplishments—you can find this information in things like your performance reviews, previous job descriptions, awards and letters of recommendation.

When explaining your accomplishments:

• Include examples of how you saved money, earned money or managed money.
  
• Include examples of how you saved or managed time.
  • Examples:
    “Improved efficiency of document processing by 25 percent over the previous year."
    “Wrote 25 news releases in a three-week period under daily deadlines."
    “Managed a student organization budget of more than $7,000."
    “Wrote prospect letter that has brought in more than $25,000 in donations to date."
    These statements show in concrete terms what you accomplished.
• Include language spoken if applicable.

For additional tips on what to include in your resume visit: https://www.usajobs.gov/Help/faq/application/documents/resume/what-to-include/