I am helping a family member apply for a position at a VA hospital and one of the required documents is the SF-50 form. The job description states that this form may not be required for all applicants and we assumed that since she has never been a federal employee (and thus has never had a SF-50 Form) that there would be no SF-50 requirement. The problem is that her application is marked as "Incomplete" because she hasn't submitted this non-existent form and there isn't any obvious way to complete the application without it..

Does this mean that they are only hiring previous federal employees? Or does she need to submit a form with "N/A" in every box except for her name & address? Or is there something else that this online application will accept in lieu of an actual SF-50 form?

We're paranoid about this because I was once declared ineligible for a high 5-figure position with another federal agency because I didn't submit my drivers license information (they didn't ask for it - they only asked if I was licensed but not for the actual documentation). I assumed that I could provide that at any time they requested it or at an interview, but that was enough to trash my application. So now I assume nothing when it comes to an online government application...

Call HR of that specific VA location for clarification and how to proceed. When I was hired at VA there were numerous documents that I needed help completing properly, and the local HR helped me along the way.

Thanks for the reply! I just checked and the deadline for that one particular job is over a week out so she has time to maneuver through a telephone maze. The other jobs where the application was accepted have a Wednesday deadline.

Are you by any chance at the Dallas VA?

Not at Dallas. Usually there is a contact phone number on the USAjobs listing to help. Call them on Tuesday (Monday=holiday). Or just call up Dallas va and ask for HR.

I used to work at the Dallas VA (not in HR). Hopefully your friend likes chaos! When she calls HR, ask for the direct number of the assigned person for that service. The receptionist may or may not give it to you, but it's worth asking for. Each department has an assigned HR person who handles a service's job postings. And expect to call back several times. That person may handle more than one service, and HR is pretty busy anyway. Don't call before 8, during lunch, or after 430.

Check the USA jobs posting under "who can apply" to make sure this position is not only limited to current federal employees. Read the entire posting very closely for any required documents and formatting. Make the resume as long as possible using the key words in the job posting. Also, if your friend has ANY experience with a KSA (can say something about it in an interview), mark the highest qualified option. She is not a current or former fed, but is she a disabled vet or military spouse? If not, those KSA answers will be even more important to get a higher score. The VA screens every application and document for qualified applicants, then assigns a score. Depending on the number of qualified applicants, the service may want to see all of the applications or select a cutoff score and only consider those. If it's a gs-12 position, good luck. Those positions are few and far between at the VA, so expect a lot of competition.

I did not enjoy working at the Dallas VA, but the experience is very dependent on which service you're in, who you work with, and your own attitude. There are employees there who truly love their work and are very good at it. Good, bad, and awful in everything. However the benefits cannot be beat. Good luck to your friend!