All federal jobs are categorized into job categories called occupational series. Knowing what occupational series you qualify for will help you search the thousands of job announcements posted online. There are two overall kinds of positions in the federal government: white collar, or General Schedule (GS), and traditional blue collar positions, or Wage Grade (WG). The main occupational group headings for GS and WG positions are indicated in the list below; within each group are the individual occupational series found within each category.
GS Occupational Families
0000 – Miscellaneous Occupations Group
0100 – Social Science, Psychology, and Welfare Group
0200 – Human Resources Management Group
0300 – General Administrative, Clerical, and Office Services Group
0400 – Biological Sciences Group
0500 – Accounting And Budget Group
0600 – Medical, Hospital, Dental, and Public Health Group
0700 – Veterinary Medical Science Group
0800 – Engineering and Architecture
0900 – Legal and Kindred Group
1000 – Information and Arts Group
1100 – Business and Industry Group
1200 – Copyright, Patent and Trademark Group
1300 – Physician Sciences Group
1400 – Library and Archives Group
1500 – Mathematics and Statistics Group
1600 – Equipment, Facilities, and Services Group
1700 – Education Group
1800 – Investigation Group
1900 – Quality Assurance, Inspection, and Grading Group
2000 – Supply Groups
2100 – Transportation Group
2200 – Information Technology Group Wage Grade (WG) Occupational Families
WG-2500 — Wire Communications Equipment Installation and Maintenance
WG-2600 — Electronic Equipment Installation and Maintenance
WG-2800 — Electrical Installation and Maintenance
WG-3100 — Fabric and Leather Work
WG-3300 — Instrument Work
WG-3400 — Machine Tool Work
WG-3500 — General Services and Support Work
WG-3600 — Structural and Finishing Work
WG-3700 — Metal Processing
WG-3800 — Metal Work
WG-3900 — Motion Picture, Radio, Television, and Sound Equipment Operating
WG-4000 — Lens and Crystal Work
WG-4100 — Painting and Paper
WG-4200 — Plumbing and Pipefitting
WG-4300 — Pliable Materials Work
WG-4400 — Printing
WG-4600 — Wood Work
WG-4700 — General Maintenance and Operations Work
WG-4800 — General Equipment Maintenance
WG-5000 — Plant And Animal Work
WG-5200 — Miscellaneous Occupations
WG-5300 — Industrial Equipment Maintenance
WG-5400 — Industrial Equipment Operating
WG-5700 — Transportation/Mobile Equipment Operation
WG-5800 — Transportation/Mobile Equipment Maintenance
WG-6500 — Ammunition, Explosives, and Toxic Materials Work
WG-6600 — Armament Work
WG-6900 — Warehousing and Stock Handling
WG-7000 — Packing and Processing
WG-7300 — Laundry, Dry Cleaning, and Pressing
WG-7400 — Food Preparation and Serving
WG-7600 — Personal Services
WG-8200 — Fluid Systems Maintenance
WG-8600 — Engine Overhaul
WG-8800 — Aircraft Overhaul
WG-9000 — Film Processing
Additional information on occupational series and their classification (a description of the specific work that is typical for each occupation) can be found at https://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/classification-qualifications/classifying-general-schedule-positions/occupationalhandbook.pdf.
Each occupational series has its own minimum requirements. These can include education or minimum experience, or a combination of both.
The full set of qualifications standards can be found at http://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/classification-qualifications/general-schedule-qualification-standards/. A similar
set of qualifications can be found for Wage Grade (blue collar) positions: http://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/classification-qualifications/federal-wage-system-qualifications/.