Fellows Program
Together we work to accelerate the design, development, and delivery of customer-centric services, as well as enable stakeholders to easily access USDA resources and programs across the country. In 2024, we announced our Digital Service Fellows Program within the USDA Office of the Chief Information Officer (OCIO) and authorized by the USDA Office of the Secretary (OSEC).
USDA DS’s goals with this program include:
- To create a community of collaborative, highly skilled technical talent that can be deployed across the agency to meet key challenges
- To serve as a catalyst for USDA to meet its missions to support American agriculture
In order to meet these goals, selected fellows will be comprised of experts across a variety of disciplines such as engineering, product, design, customer experience, computer science, and others. The importance of this program and the work encompassed by the program will be critical to helping achieve the mission and vision of the Department.
Key Details about USDA Digital Service Fellowship Positions
Term Appointments
The USDA Digital Service Fellows Program operates on a tour-of-service model where Fellows are appointed for term of a minimum of two years on a full-time basis, with the potential option to serve a total of four years. Service under this time-limited appointment confers no rights to further Federal employment in either the competitive or excepted service upon expiration of appointment. Further, Fellows cannot be converted to another appointment if a total of four years under this Program has been served.
Candidates may be eligible for workplace flexibilities as determined by their supervisor and consistent with agency policy.
If you have additional questions, please reach out to the DS team at usdadigitalservice@usda.gov
Compensation and Benefits
Currently all positions available are at the GS-15 level. You can look up the total salary amount based on grade level and locality pay by going to the Office of Personnel Management’s official website on the General Schedule: https://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/pay-leave/salaries-wages/2023/general-schedule/. For example, if a Fellow was appointed in the Washington DC area in 2023, the salary range would be between $155,700 to $183,500, not exceed an annual rate of $183,500.
All USDA Digital Service Fellowship positions are eligible for a variety of additional benefits, including health insurance. Learn more by going to the OPM resource page on Benefits.
Evaluation Process
Once the agency Re-employed Priority List (RPL) is reviewed and cleared, candidates will be evaluated using the following steps:
- Subject Matter Expert (SME) Resume Qualifications Review
- SME Structured Interview
Candidates who advance from the resume qualifications review will receive notification and preparation instructions for their structured interview, which will be conducted by phone. If needed, DS team members will be ready to assist in providing further support prior to a candidate’s scheduled interview.
After a final recommendation is made, candidates selected will move onto the job offer process with our USDA Office of Human Resources Management (OHRM). If you aren’t selected to join the USDA Digital Service Fellows Program, you can apply again after one year.
