Free two-page federal resume template
A USAJOBS resume that fits the two-page limit, laid out the way OPM’s guidance asks: series, grade, month/year dates and hours per week on every job, education with GPA, then the optional details that matter. Download the Word template, replace the prompts in square brackets, save it as a PDF. No sign-up.
- Word and PDF
- US Letter, two pages
- No sign-up, no watermark
What’s in it, in order
- Name, email, phone and city, with citizenship and any hiring eligibility
- A short summary you can cut first if you need the space
- Work experience: title, employer, series and grade, MM/YYYY dates, hours per week
- Education: school, completion date, degree and cumulative GPA
- Certifications and job-related training, with dates
- Skills, then a security clearance and other details when relevant
The blank template
Template (Word)
Also available: the example as a Word file.
Already have a resume?
See your resume in the federal format
Upload your resume or paste it. In about 20 seconds you see it in this template: US Letter, OPM’s section order, month/year dates, every page as it prints, and whether it stays within the two pages USAJOBS accepts. Your words are copied as written, never rewritten. Save it to download as PDF or Word, and add series, grade and hours per week where they’re missing.
Federal resume format
How the template follows OPM’s rules
Each part of the layout answers something in OPM’s two-page guidance. Sources are listed below.
A heading line under every job. Under each title and employer sits one short line: the series and grade for a federal job, then the hours a week, with the dates on the right as numbers. Reviewers find the facts they screen for in the same place on every job, and nothing has to be repeated in the bullets.
Room for what qualifies you. There are no fields for a supervisor’s phone number, salary or references, which the two-page guidance doesn’t ask for. Older templates spent a third of a page on them.
Sized for two pages at USAJOBS’ recommended text size. Lato at 10 points with tight but readable spacing on US Letter. The filled-in example carries three jobs, two degrees and certifications in exactly two pages, so you can see how much fits before you start cutting.
Optional details at the end. A clearance, training, languages or special hiring eligibility go in the last sections, where they’re easy to remove when an announcement doesn’t need them.
Not sure what to keep? Read how to write a federal resume under the two-page limit, or see examples for program analysts, IT specialists and HR specialists.
Or build it online
A federal resume that stays at two pages
In CandidThread each job on your resume has fields for series, grade and hours per week, printed in every template, and the editor warns you the moment a federal resume runs past two pages. For each announcement it shows which qualifications your resume proves, and helps you cut and reword using only what you’ve really done.
Already have a resume? Run it through the free federal resume checker: page count, dates, hours, series and grade, and the announcement’s qualifications. No account needed.
Questions
About the federal resume template
Sources: OPM: Applicant guidance on the two-page resume limit; OPM: Agency guidance on the two-page limit on resume length.
How long can a federal resume be?
Two pages. Since September 27, 2025, USAJOBS restricts resumes to two pages for jobs under Title 5, whether you upload one or use the resume builder. If the only resume an agency receives is longer, the applicant is not considered further.
What does every job on a federal resume need?
OPM asks for the job title and employer (with series and grade for federal jobs), start and end dates as month and year, such as 05/2019 to 08/2022, and the number of hours you worked per week. Then a short description showing you can do the work at the level the announcement asks for.
Do I still need my supervisor’s name and phone number, or my salary?
OPM’s two-page guidance doesn’t ask for them. Many older templates still include them; with only two pages, leave them out unless the job announcement asks for them.
What font and margins should I use?
The USAJOBS Help Center recommends a sans-serif font such as Lato, Calibri, Arial or Helvetica, 0.5-inch margins, 14-point titles and 10-point text. This template uses Lato at 10 points on US Letter paper.
Word or PDF?
USAJOBS recommends uploading a PDF, so the formatting and the page count stay exactly as you made them. Edit the Word template, then save it as a PDF and check it’s still two pages.
What if the job asks for a CV?
Positions that need a curriculum vitae, typically in medical and research fields, may ask for one as an “other document”. The announcement says what to send.
Is the template really free?
Yes. Download it directly, with no account, no email and no watermark.