Read Careers in Local Government Management to receive answers to questions such as What is the Local Government Management Profession?, What Course of Study Will Best Prepare Me For This Career?, and What are the Employment Opportunities? Breaking into Local Government as another useful resource. Both are available for download at https://icma.org/career-guides.
Check out the CitiesSpeak blog (https://www.nlc.org/citiesspeak) and "CitiesSpeak" podcast (https://www.nlc.org/news-insights/citiesspeak-podcast) to learn more about the issues city officials face on a daily basis. Other useful resources include the International City/County Management Association Blog (https://icma.org/blog-posts) and the organization's "Voices in Local Government" podcast (https://icma.org/podcasts).
Depending on the size of your city or county, you can probably become involved with your local government at a young age. Your council members and other government officials should be more accessible to you than state and federal officials, so take advantage of that. Visit the county court house and volunteer in whatever capacity you can with county-organized programs, such as tutoring in a literacy program or leading children's reading groups at the public library.
You can also become involved with local elections. Many candidates for local and state offices welcome young people to assist with campaigns. As a volunteer, you may make calls, post signs, and get to see a candidate at work. You will also have the opportunity to meet others who have an interest in government, and the experience will help you to gain a more prominent role in later campaigns.
Another way to learn about government is to become involved in an issue that interests you. Maybe there's an old building in your neighborhood you'd like to save from destruction, or maybe you have some ideas for youth programs or programs for senior citizens. Research what's being done about your concerns and come up with solutions to offer to local officials.
- Ambassadors
- Aviation Safety Inspectors
- Bailiffs
- Bank Examiners
- Border Patrol Agents
- Campaign Workers
- Citizenship Reclamation Specialists
- City Managers
- Civil Engineers
- Congressional Aides
- Construction Inspectors
- Cryptographic Technicians
- Customs Officials
- Demographers
- Deputy U.S. Marshals
- Economists
- Emergency Management Directors
- Environmental Lobbyists
- Environmental Planners
- EPA Special Agents
- FBI Agents
- Federal and State Officials
- Fish and Game Wardens
- Foreign Service Officers
- Fraud Examiners, Investigators, and Analysts
- Futurists
- Health and Regulatory Inspectors
- Intelligence Officers
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- Land Acquisition Professionals
- Land Trust or Preserve Managers
- Lobbyists
- Military Recruiters
- Military Workers, Enlisted
- National Park Service Employees
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- Park Rangers
- Policy Analysts
- Political Columnists and Writers
- Political Consultants
- Political Reporters
- Political Scientists
- Political Speechwriters
- Press Secretaries
- Public Opinion Researchers
- Recycling Coordinators
- Secret Service Special Agents
- Statisticians
- Traffic Engineers
- Translators
- Transportation Planners
- Urban and Regional Planners