Want to stand out when applying for California state jobs? Your guide to these departments

Securing a job with the state of California can be a tricky process to navigate if you haven’t done it before.

Samantha Villegas, a member of the recruitment and outreach staff for the California Energy Commission, said applying to a state job isn’t “one of those things where you can kind of just submit a bunch of applications and hope and pray you’re going to get a phone call.”

There are steps you can take to help you better position yourself as a candidate.

The Bee spoke with several departments about the application process and how to stand out. Here’s what they said:

How to get started

CalCareers, the official job search portal, is where most people’s state career hunt begins. There you can search jobs and filter by department, location, salary and more.

The website can seem “clunky,” said Lanaya Trejo, statewide career strategy manager for the California Department of Human Resources. But she said it’s a necessary step for anyone that applies to the state.

The process, according to the CalCareers website, is broken down into three steps: search, exam, apply. The second step, the assessment portion, is where Trejo said she thinks “a lot of our public is confused.”

“Truly what it is, is an assessment of your skills and your qualifications and so it’s making sure we’re matching you with the correct classification,” she said.

During the assessment portion, a prospective job candidate is evaluated based on their education, experience, abilities and more, according to CalCareers. This portion of the state job process can look different, including an exam or interview, depending on the job.

Once a candidate passes the assessment, they can apply for the job.

To help, Trejo said people should start by creating a CalCareers profile. There you can manage applications and set alerts when new jobs are posted.

Once secured, state jobs are known for offering great benefits and enrollment in the nation’s largest state public pension plan.

“There’s a lot of passion in the state of California,” Trejo said. “And a lot of people really love what they do and that’s what we want to penetrate out there...we want to you to love what you do.”

Advice from recruiters

To help you navigate the state job process, The Bee asked several state departments including the Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation, the Department of Transportation, California Highway Patrol, California Energy Commission and the Office of the Inspector General the same question: how does someone put themselves in the best position to land a job in your department?

And while there was an overarching theme of how to get any state job, including submit a complete application free of grammatical errors and meet the minimum requirements for the job posting, here’s what each department said will make an applicant stand out:

CALIFORNIA DEPARTMENT OF CORRECTIONS AND REHABILITATION

The California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation has around 65,000 employees. And with jobs ranging from correctional officers to food services workers, the department said it’s the hub of entry-level work.

Within the department, jobs are broken down into custody and non-custody positions. Jobs usually filled within the custody sector include:

• Correctional Officer
• Correctional Counselor
• K-9 Officer
• Parole Agent
• Internal Affairs Special Agent
• Office of Correctional Safety Special Agent

To break through the Corrections and Rehabilitation custody sector, a candidate must go through a written exam, physical fitness test, background investigation and a medical and psychological screening before being placed on the hiring list.

“We’re attracting people that want to make a difference, want to enjoy helping others,” said Rosanna Rodriguez, a staff services manager for peace officer selection.

And with the goal to hire more than 2,000 entry-level correctional officers this year, here’s some advice from the department: Be honest about your past.

“It’s better for us to have the candidate tell us about their issues than discover them through obtaining their DMV records or obtaining their arrest records from a local law enforcement agency,” said Steve Stone, assistant chief of the peace officer selection. “There’s a lot of issues that can be mitigated in the process. But if they lie about them or deceive then it really can’t be mitigated.”

NON-CUSTODY SECTOR

The hiring process looks completely different within the non-custody sector. Typical jobs within the non-custody side include:

• Education
• Fleet management
• Food service
• Health care
• Information technology
• Plant operations
• Religious services

Once you’ve found the job you’re interested in and pass the eligibility exam, your application is what matters.

Natalie Miller, chief of talent acquisition and career services, said the non-custody job sector is looking for a few things: people who want to expand their knowledge in their field and an accurate and complete application free of misspellings.

“There’s just a wide variety of opportunities and upward mobility as well...very different as say smaller agencies that don’t have as many opportunities,” Miller said. “And I think that’s our big selling point.”

“We, on both sides of the house, are more than happy to help guide folks through this process because it can seem daunting to outsiders who haven’t gone through it,” Miller said.

CALIFORNIA HIGHWAY PATROL

California Highway Patrol, a state law enforcement agency with roughly 11,000 employees, monitors all California highways, roads and streets outside city limits, according to its website.

The agency is made up of officers, dispatchers, commercial vehicle inspection specialists, motor carrier specialists and more — experienced and entry-level professionals.

Depending on the position, Officer Matthew Butler, a California Highway Patrol recruiter, said there’s opportunity to fit experience from a non-state job into a career within the agency.

“For many positions that we offer, say for instance auto technician, you can have the experience of a maintenance worker for a year and that would qualify you to take the exam to become an auto technician,” Butler said.

No previous experience is needed to secure a job as an officer.

“All they need to do is meet our four-minimum requirements, be successful in our hiring process and then that’s what our 24-week living academy is all about,” Butler said.

“It trains that individual from all walks of life” to become an officer, he said.

Dispatchers are also put through a department training academy.

For officer candidates specifically, Butler said the department is looking for someone with a heart for service, history of good judgment and good moral values.

The department offers recruitment resources and a breakdown of each job within the department on its career webpage.

CALIFORNIA DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

California Department of Transportation has around 22,000 employees.

The department, also known as CalTrans, manages more than 50,000 miles of the state’s highway and freeway lanes, provides rail services, authorizes more than 400 public airports and special-use hospital heliports and more, according to the department’s about page.

CalTrans hires warehouse workers, toll collectors, technical support, right of way agents, maintenance, engineers, drawbridge operators, seasonal cooks, dispatchers, attorneys and more.

Here’s a few tips to help prepare for an interview, according to CalTrans’ website:

Print the job posting – Print the job posting and any of its attachments (duty statement, job descriptions requirements and contact information) because the posting disappears after the filing deadline.

Do your research – Before entering an interview, have an understanding of the duties, tasks and minimum qualifications.

“When appropriate, incorporate departmental alignment into your interview responses,” said Will Arnold, Caltrans’ media relations manager, in an email to The Bee. “Ask thoughtful questions.”

Caltrans’ provides more employment information on its website.

CALIFORNIA ENERGY COMMISSION

California Energy Commission, the state’s primary energy policy agency, is made up of about 600 employees.

And while some job listings may require a certain level of experience, not all of the positions require an energy background — but rather an energy focus. The department is looking for passionate candidates interested in a better and more sustainable future.

“I think the misconstruction is that you need an energy-experienced candidate for every single position,” said Jessica Gee, member of the recruitment and outreach staff with the California Energy Commission.

Samantha Villegas, a member of the recruitment and outreach staff for California Energy Commission, gave another piece of advice: make sure your resume matches the job you’re going after and make a LinkedIn profile to research state job departments and make yourself noticeable to them.

“It’s a resource for us to be able to connect with individuals who are interested in working for the state...they can connect with individuals and ask questions and sort of network in that regard,” Villegas said.

If you’re looking for employment information, the department asks you email Careers@energy.ca.gov or call 916-776-0697.

OFFICE OF THE INSPECTOR GENERAL

With roughly 140 employees, the Office of the Inspector General oversees and reports several aspects of the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation.

This isn’t an entry-level agency — for the most part.

Shaun Spillane, public information officer for the department, said the bulk of the agency’s positions consists of highly-experienced professionals including attorneys, investigators, auditors, doctors and nurses. Those looking for an entry-level position will find them on the administrative level: office technicians, personal and information technology staff.

“We monitor the state prison system so we have to have some developed expertise in an area to really kind of assess how the department is doing,” he said. “We need those experienced people, people that have been doctors and nurses for five to 10 years or attorneys and investigators for several years before they can really come work here.”

When asked what type of job candidates usually stick, Spillane said the people that took the time to educate themselves on the agency and have the experience and qualifications to back it up.

“That really helps us know who really want to work for our agency as compared to who just wants a job,” he said.

The Office of the Inspector General monitors, evaluates and reviews several aspects of the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation including its investigations, critical incidents, inmate grievances, adult institutions’ medical care and more.

“You’re not actually doing the investigations, you’re not providing the care, but you’re reviewing the care being provided and the work being done by others,” Spillane said. “I think it’s a good fit for people who want to transition from a hands-on approach.”

A list of open positions can be found on the department’s website.

This story was originally published April 19, 2022 at 5:00 AM with the headline "Want to stand out when applying for California state jobs? Your guide to these departments."