Civil Service System At A Glance

The United States Civil Service System can be said to be classified into two general types, the Competitive service and the Excepted service. The Competitive service entails all of the civil service jobs and positions in the executive branch, for the exception of those specifically exempted by law, those appointed by the Senate, and those considered to be in Senior Executive Service. In this particular civil service system, all applicants are considered to be in competition with other applicants under the merit system.

Most jobs and careers in the civil service system will prove to be considered to be in the Competitive service, however, there are exceptions to certain positions falling under such category. The Excepted service is one that falls under this particular category, though it still will operate on a merit basis system.

However, Excepted service careers and jobs will have their own criteria and hiring requirements in place. Some agencies that fall into this definition are the Central Intelligence Agency and the Federal Bureau of Investigations. Individuals that are in certain Diplomatic positions will also be considered to be within the Excepted service category.

The Civil Service System in the United States is comprised of fifteen executive departments, though there are also various independent agencies that are also considered to be in the civil service. Among the various executive departments, some include the State Department, Justice Department, Department of the Interior, Education Department, and Agriculture Department. Among the independent agencies are the United States Postal Service, NASA, and the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation.