Conditional Job Offer? Defer or Go?

[Kevin1990]

I was given a conditional job offer at a government agency as part of a Schedule C/political appointment role at the beginning of the summer. However, it has to go through a complicated administration approval and a security clearance process. None of which has been initiated by the administration (and it looks like it won't be anytime soon tbh).

I was admitted to a 1 year master's program in IR at the beginning of the year and I have been planning as if I'm going to that. Everyone I know both professional and personal are pushing me to go, and I do see the benefits of going. However, I don't want to let this conditional offer slide by. As I'm afraid there is a high risk my future employers will get back to me as soon as I start, but then again I feel like I am in for a very long wait that would make doing something highly productive worth it in the meantime.

I was wondering what I should do? 

 

[Sigaba]

4 minutes ago, Kevin1990 said:

I was given a conditional job offer at a government agency as part of a Schedule C/political appointment role at the beginning of the summer. However, it has to go through a complicated administration approval and a security clearance process. None of which has been initiated by the administration (and it looks like it won't be anytime soon tbh).

I was admitted to a 1 year master's program in IR at the beginning of the year and I have been planning as if I'm going to that. Everyone I know both professional and personal are pushing me to go, and I do see the benefits of going. However, I don't want to let this conditional offer slide by. As I'm afraid there is a high risk my future employers will get back to me as soon as I start, but then again I feel like I am in for a very long wait that would make doing something highly productive worth it in the meantime.

I was wondering what I should do? 

 

If this job means that you'd be working for the EXE of the GOV with this job, I recommend going to school. I think POTUS is trying to "drain the swamp" through radioactive decay. 

[fuzzylogician]

So you have a conditional offer for a job that requires several months of vetting before you start, and you don't know when the vetting process will start? And you have been admitted to a one-year program starting very soon, I would assume? It seems to me that you need to go to the Masters program, since that's actually happening, as opposed to being a vague promise without a concrete start date. If/when the vetting process starts, I'm sure you can find ways to delay the process (can't make it to the first scheduled date to be fingerprinted/interviewed, etc). The whole thing should take long enough that you could then negotiate a start date that won't cause too much trouble. This is not even mentioning the complication that you depend on the approval of an administration that is having a hard time holding one opinion from morning to evening.. So, I personally wouldn't count on that too much. 

[Kevin1990]

22 hours ago, Sigaba said:

If this job means that you'd be working for the EXE of the GOV with this job, I recommend going to school. I think POTUS is trying to "drain the swamp" through radioactive decay. 

Yes I would be working in the EXEC. Mind you one of the agencies though not in the WH it's self.

20 hours ago, fuzzylogician said:

So you have a conditional offer for a job that requires several months of vetting before you start, and you don't know when the vetting process will start? And you have been admitted to a one-year program starting very soon, I would assume? It seems to me that you need to go to the Masters program, since that's actually happening, as opposed to being a vague promise without a concrete start date. If/when the vetting process starts, I'm sure you can find ways to delay the process (can't make it to the first scheduled date to be fingerprinted/interviewed, etc). The whole thing should take long enough that you could then negotiate a start date that won't cause too much trouble. This is not even mentioning the complication that you depend on the approval of an administration that is having a hard time holding one opinion from morning to evening.. So, I personally wouldn't count on that too much. 

They mentioned starting me on an interim clearance in the meantime(whenever they get the final go ahead) so that's another aspect figuring into this for me as well. 

[went_away]

Dude, this process could take more than a year. Forget about the government job and live your life. 

[Sigaba]

4 hours ago, Kevin1990 said:

Yes I would be working in the EXEC. Mind you one of the agencies though not in the WH it's self.

I would strongly advise you to go to school. If you look at the org charts of departments in the executive branch, you'll see a lot of unfilled positions along with incumbents who are "acting as." To me, that information, along with published journalistic accounts, suggests that there's a lot of work to be done and not enough people to do it. That's leadership setting people up to fail. You definitely deserve better.