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Post by nylawyer on Jul 2, 2008 13:27:42 GMT -5
I haven't been here in a long time (since receiving my very disappointing score which made it clear I wasn't going to be interviewing any where). In fact, I had kind of put this out of mind, but just rediscovered the link when cleaning out my e-mail box. I am wondering what (if anything) I have missed. For example-
1) have they re-opened the register at all? If not, is there any way to change our geographical preferences?
2) was it ever determined exactly how many people made the register? And how many new hires there have been? Any chance that they will get to the bottom of the barrel before re-opening?
3) did anyone ever have any luck getting their score explained to them? I was very frustrated with my responses from OPM- I felt as though I did well on the written portion, and the oral left me bewildered that someone actually designed this as a hiring process. I am assuming that my low score was primarily a result of my lack of experience (I was suprised to make the register, to be honest- I have been an attorney just over 10 years, and have no administrative law experience)- but I would like to confirm that to decide if it ever makes sense to take the tests again. (I'd also like to know if the government was just wasting my time and money making me come down to DC twice last summer).
4) any other major developments?
Thanks for any and all responses.
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Post by nylawyer on Jul 2, 2008 17:27:53 GMT -5
notajudgeyet- thanks. Guess I have to hope that OPM takes it's sweet time re-opening the register. Although with my score and limited geographic preferences, I might be better off just forgetting about this again.
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Post by nylawyer on Jul 2, 2008 17:31:38 GMT -5
wow, talk about timing- I check in randomly and they just happen to announce that they are re-opening the register.
Sucks for me.
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Post by pm on Jul 2, 2008 19:28:08 GMT -5
Not necessarily. OPM will be in no hurry to compile the new register. ODAR may request another cert before the new register is complete.
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Post by nonamouse on Jul 3, 2008 0:46:09 GMT -5
Not necessarily. ODAR will be in no hurry to compile the new register. ODAR may request another cert before the new register is complete. ODAR (Office of Disability Adjudication & Review) does not manage the register, OPM (Office of Personnel Management) does. ODAR is the part of the Social Security Administration that conducts the hearings using ALJs. SSA is only one of the many agencies that request certificates from the register maintained by OPM. SSA asked OPM to reopen the application process which should allow all of those people who got denied for missing bar #s or other nonsense to reapply now. It should also give all of those people who applied but who did not get invited to test another shot because it has been more than one year since their rejection also. OPM has plenty of time to score and test a new crop of applicants before the next certificate is requested by ODAR since the end of the fiscal year is looming. Nothing of major importance gets done as the holidays approach because it is the time when government workers take lots of their vacations ("use or lose" leave situations cause some of this). The big wrench in the works for 2009 is that a change of administrations is coming in January. The whole federal government will be operating on a continuing resolution with no budget approval likely until at least March or April, as usual. This means no new hires for any agency because they won't have the money. It happens every 4 years like clockwork, so no surprises there. ODAR is currently trying to load up on employees in all types of jobs so that they won't fall too far in the hole with retirements, etc during that "no hiring" drought next year. |
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Post by carjack on Jul 3, 2008 11:12:38 GMT -5
It would seem, based on nonamouse's analysis, that ODAR would be motivated to try and get as many ALJ's on this year as possible, just in case there is a lag due to the new administration and budgets, etc. Maybe they should just make offers to everyone on the cert. If asked, I'll vouch for us as all well-qualified.
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Post by outtadodge on Jul 3, 2008 12:26:11 GMT -5
Thanks Carjack!
Your willingness to stand up for me and the rest of us is greatly appreciated!
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Post by mushroom on Jul 3, 2008 12:42:15 GMT -5
It would seem, based on nonamouse's analysis, that ODAR would be motivated to try and get as many ALJ's on this year as possible, just in case there is a lag due to the new administration and budgets, etc. Maybe they should just make offers to everyone on the cert. If asked, I'll vouch for us as all well-qualified. what a FINE idea, carjack! You should get crackin' on that!  |
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Post by pm on Jul 3, 2008 18:17:38 GMT -5
Not necessarily. ODAR will be in no hurry to compile the new register. ODAR may request another cert before the new register is complete. ODAR (Office of Disability Adjudication & Review) does not manage the register, OPM (Office of Personnel Management) does. ODAR is the part of the Social Security Administration that conducts the hearings using ALJs. SSA is only one of the many agencies that request certificates from the register maintained by OPM. SSA asked OPM to reopen the application process which should allow all of those people who got denied for missing bar #s or other nonsense to reapply now. It should also give all of those people who applied but who did not get invited to test another shot because it has been more than one year since their rejection also. OPM has plenty of time to score and test a new crop of applicants before the next certificate is requested by ODAR since the end of the fiscal year is looming. Nothing of major importance gets done as the holidays approach because it is the time when government workers take lots of their vacations ("use or lose" leave situations cause some of this). The big wrench in the works for 2009 is that a change of administrations is coming in January. The whole federal government will be operating on a continuing resolution with no budget approval likely until at least March or April, as usual. This means no new hires for any agency because they won't have the money. It happens every 4 years like clockwork, so no surprises there. ODAR is currently trying to load up on employees in all types of jobs so that they won't fall too far in the hole with retirements, etc during that "no hiring" drought next year. That analysis might also suggest that ODAR might try one more bite of the apple before the new fiscal year. |
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Post by pedaltone on Jul 4, 2008 9:44:38 GMT -5
That analysis might also suggest that ODAR might try one more bite of the apple before the new fiscal year. Perhaps but the small size of the June certificate suggests it won't. |
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Post by deltajudge on Jul 4, 2008 12:30:26 GMT -5
8-)It's really amazing to me as to the excitement on this board about taking the examination and getting on the register. If you are really interested in a career in law, ODAR is not your place. You are placing yourself into a lifetime of boredom and repetition. No challenge, no recognition of achievement, no nothing. Just get the cases out. Go out there and practice law, and forget being a "judge." which you really aren't. As far as ODAR is concerned, you are just another employee.
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Post by crazybroad on Jul 4, 2008 14:37:23 GMT -5
That analysis might also suggest that ODAR might try one more bite of the apple before the new fiscal year. Perhaps but the small size of the June certificate suggests it won't. There was no June Certificate - it came out in APril and that was way before the offered early out retirements to the judges so I beg to differ that there is no way there will be another cert before the end of the fiscal year, I'm praying for it. :) |
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Post by happy on Jul 5, 2008 9:02:09 GMT -5
There was no June Certificate - it came out in APril and that was way before the offered early out retirements to the judges so I beg to differ that there is no way there will be another cert before the end of the fiscal year, I'm praying for it. :) No, there was no "June Certificate" per se. What they are referring to is the June expansion of the April certificate. I don't think another certificate before the end of FY08 is out of the question. One would think that the Albuquerque NHC transferees may have created slots in cities that were not on the April certificate. ODAR therefore would not have been able to fill those slots through the June expansion. And yes, ALJs are apparently retiring rather left and right. |
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Post by nylawyer on Jul 6, 2008 12:21:52 GMT -5
could someone clarify this for me- are the people who were placed on the register last year eligible to re-apply? Or, are we at least allowed to change our geographic preferences?
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Post by pm on Jul 6, 2008 12:36:41 GMT -5
You can't reapply if the new application occurs within one year of being placed on the register.
You can change geographic preferences but I don't know exactly how or when you are allowed to do that. I imagine that when the actual reopening occurs, OPM wil explain how to change preferences, although I wonder if the change will be effectively immediately or not until the new register issues.
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Post by Propmaster on Jul 7, 2008 10:31:38 GMT -5
LWS:
I believe that means that if you do not do anything, you will stay on the register until that date. You can also reapply after a year has passed from your rating date. You can also reapply after a year has passed, and after that eligibility end date has passed.
That's my understanding. Could be wrong.
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Post by lawdog98 on Jul 7, 2008 10:41:04 GMT -5
From an e-mail from OPM dated October 30, 2007.
"II. Retaking the ALJ Examination: If you received a NOR with a final numerical rating, you may retake the examination after one year has passed from the date of the final NOR and the examination opens to the receipt of new applications."
So a year must have passed AND the examination must be open to new applications.
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Post by 24kgoldengirl on Jul 7, 2008 10:42:26 GMT -5
This is the first time I heard that the application was the most important or most heavily weighted portion of the process. My score still makes no sense to me but I think I could present a better application (I rushed to make sure I got in before the maximum applications were reached). However, if the process is open for new applicants before September 2008, am I barred from re-applying? Where can I get a definitive answer on this point?
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Post by Propmaster on Jul 7, 2008 10:42:58 GMT -5
8-)It's really amazing to me as to the excitement on this board about taking the examination and getting on the register. If you are really interested in a career in law, ODAR is not your place. You are placing yourself into a lifetime of boredom and repetition. No challenge, no recognition of achievement, no nothing. Just get the cases out. Go out there and practice law, and forget being a "judge." which you really aren't. As far as ODAR is concerned, you are just another employee. I will speak for myself, not others. I have been practicing Social Security law at a non-profit since I got out of law school. I pride myself on my expertise at the law. I'm much more of an appellate lawyer than a trial lawyer. When I look forward to what I want to do with the rest of my life, I don't have any desire to learn a whole bunch of new areas of law. After practicing confidently for years, I would hate to find myself in a state court with little idea of what I was doing. I have slightly more, but still very little, interest in being a judge who hears 8000 different causes of action. I want a job that 1) pays well, 2) lets me go home in the evenings to be with family, 3) allows me to use my knowledge of Social Security law, 4) allows me to avoid the frustration of other people making what I consider "wrong" decisions on my cases. SSA ALJ fits this bill exactly. Being an ALJ is literally (and possibly pathetically) the pinnacle of my ambition. It turns out I won't be one any time soon. But still, that's my motivation. Until then, I will continue to work long hours for middling pay while sometimes ignorant ALJs (no offense to anyone here, but I have had, for example, an ALJ reject my proffered regulations with highlights in an extremely complex case where I was trying to make it easy for him to find the rules - instead he announced how much he knew, and continued to make a decision based on the wrong part of the regulations - I call that ignorant) make decisions that upset me. Still, I guess one out of four ain't bad. |
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Post by chinook on Jul 7, 2008 11:16:05 GMT -5
Does anybody know what happens to your old score if you retake the exam? Do you get the better of the two scores (i.e. if you score lower do you keep the original score)? What about if you don't even make the register this time?
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