Former feds turn to tailored job search resources to continue service-oriented work

As the Trump administration last year pushed hundreds of thousands of employees out of the federal government, many organizations and programs, often started by former civil servants, sprang up to help impacted workers land on their feet. 

Many feds have taken advantage of these resources, often finding new roles that enable them to continue serving the public despite no longer working for the federal government. 

Civic Match 

After Trump largely ended remote work and telework flexibility for the federal workforce, Austin Holland, who served in the Housing and Urban Development Department’s Office of General Counsel, was forced to live during the week in the basement of a friend from the Washington, D.C., area. 

Holland and his family live in Lancaster, Pennsylvania. Before Trump, he was required to report to HUD’s D.C. headquarters two days out of every two-week pay period, which he said was manageable. 

Despite his living situation, Holland said he didn’t want to leave HUD. About 10 years ago, he switched careers to go to law school with the goal of entering public service, specifically at a federal agency. 

“I'm an optimist. I thought I would be able to find a path to continue my work at HUD, because I really loved my work,” he said. “But when it seemed like there was no option other than being in the office every day, I eventually took the [deferred resignation program].” 

Under DRP, participants generally received pay and benefits through Sept. 30, 2025, if they agreed to leave government service. 

Holland said he looked for new jobs on a platform from Work for America, a nonprofit that helps state and local governments recruit and retain staff. The organization in November 2024 set up Civic Match, a free network for federal employees, government contractors and campaign staffers to connect with state and local hiring managers. 

Through Civic Match, Holland met representatives from the Pennsylvania Housing and Finance Agency. In May 2025, he started there as an assistant counsel. 

“I'm proud of former federal employees who through whatever means have had to leave the federal government but have found a way to continue their work for the public good,” he said. “I’m also proud of those career civil servants that continue to be in the federal government and continue to do what they can, day in and day out, to serve the American people.”

Work for America on Monday announced that 187 individuals to date have used Civic Match to find roles in state and local government. Of those hires, nearly two-thirds have eight or more years of public sector experience and one in three have relocated to a different state. 

Georgetown University 

Lindsy Miles said she enjoyed her role at the Education Department’s Office of General Counsel working on grants for English language learners and Native American students and teachers. But she lost that job following reductions in force at the Education Department, which the Trump administration has sought to eliminate. 

After “spending a lot of time on the internet” looking for resources, Miles said she discovered that Georgetown Law School was offering tuition discounts for former feds to participate in LLM, or Master of Laws, degree programs, a graduate qualification for specialized areas of law. 

Miles said she was interested in the tax program based on her experience in education and immigration law. 

“Both of those areas of law can be both wide and deep and sometimes intimidating for folks. So I thought ‘If I liked both of those, I'm probably going to like tax,’” she said. “I learned from my work in the Office of General Counsel that I like statutes and regulations and living in administrative law land.” 

Miles graduates in May and said that she would be willing to work for the federal government again, specifically at the IRS. 

Georgetown reported that about 25 former federal attorneys enrolled under the tuition reductions. Beginning in fall 2026, the law school is again offering a 30% discount to individuals impacted by government workforce reductions. 

“I would recommend to anyone thinking about it to really consider Georgetown or anything similar — a one-time offer for help, or in Georgetown's case, a two-time offer — because it does feel good to get a fresh start and it does feel good to be supported, which I think is harder and harder the further you are in your career,” Miles said. 

FedsForward 

Despite holding several positions in the private sector, Lois Collins said that she always felt called back to work for the government. She first worked for the federal government as a Defense Department nurse in Okinawa, Japan, where her husband was deployed and found ways to continue contributing to the federal mission as a contractor. 

Still, she decided to leave her federal contract job in April 2025 due to fears that her position would be eliminated. In addition to reducing government workers, the Trump administration, especially through the Department of Government Efficiency, also axed many federal contracts. 

While looking for a new job, Collins saw a LinkedIn post about an organization looking to hire someone with a health care background. That post was shared by Karen Lee, a former coworker of Collins and a co-founder of FedsForward — a nonprofit with several free artificial intelligence-powered tools to help civil servants navigate the private sector job search. 

Despite initially being concerned that she wasn’t a good fit for the position, Collins said that Lee showed her how her time working for the government was relevant for the role. Additionally, Lee facilitated the first meeting between Collins and the hiring manager and provided guidance during the salary negotiation process.  

“She translated for me, at times, how I really did have the skills, the insights and the experience necessary to do something that's a little bit different,” Collins said. 

While Lee and Collins are professional acquaintances, Lee said by email that all FedsForward participants receive personalized support from volunteers who are former feds themselves. 

Collins did end up getting her “dream job” and is now the chief operation and experience officer at a women’s health care medical practice. 

“The role makes a difference to somebody every day, whether it be patients that I’m serving or staff that I’m leading,” she said. 

Collins encouraged former feds to get out of the “planes, pockets, boxes and buckets” they’re used to. 

“For federal employees that are transitioning, they shouldn't fail to translate their experience into new languages and to reach out to people that can help them do that,” she said. “Anyone who is mission-driven and ready to make a difference is immediately a value-add to almost any organization. That desire to create change and have an impact — and leave an organization or those it’s serving better off than they were before you got there — not everyone has that.”