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Answer the Call to Public Service, Become an Administrative Law Judge

March 28, 2016 • By

Reading Time: 2 Minutes

Last Updated: August 19, 2021

a picture of glasses on an administrative law legal bookBecoming an Administrative Law Judge gives you the opportunity to improve the lives of others by ensuring everyone is treated fairly, impartially, and compassionately.

An Administrative Law Judge (ALJ) serves as an impartial judge at regulatory and benefits-granting agencies. There are approximately 1700 federal ALJs nationwide, and the Social Security Administration (SSA) employs about 1500 of them.

At SSA, we need dedicated individuals looking to make a difference in someone’s life by becoming Administrative Law Judges. It is a family friendly work environment with a flexible schedule.

Our ALJs work with a nationwide support team in over 162 Hearing Offices across the country. We need ALJs in many states, including rural locations. We also need ALJs, bilingual in Spanish, in New York and Puerto Rico.

To become an Administrative Law Judge:

  • You must be licensed and authorized to practice law;
  • You must have seven years of experience in litigation or administrative law as a licensed attorney; and
  • You must apply directly to a posting on the Office of Personnel Management’s USAJOBS website once available.

Sound interesting? If so, make sure you create your USAJOBS account and set notifications to alert you when OPM announces new Administrative Law Judge vacancies. You will also need to create a Federal Resume.

IMPORTANTthe announcement opened on March 29, 2016 and you must submit an application package by April 8, 2016. Apply directly to this posting on the Office of Personnel Management’s USAJOBS website.

Click here for ALJ Examination notification: ALJ Announcement on USA JOBS

By becoming an Administrative Law Judge, you serve the public by ruling on cases that have a profound impact on people’s lives. Join our group of dedicated and committed professionals. Visit OPM’s Qualification Standards for Administrative Law Judge Positions or our SSA ALJ Recruitment Site for more information today!

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About the Author

Doug Walker, Deputy Commissioner, Communications

Deputy Commissioner, Office of Communications

Comments

  1. mr m.

    Very Cool blog and the great article about on Law Judge. Thanks author your Awesome topic and helpful information. Truly I have no words to Explain my feelings about your post. Concord DUI lawyers

  2. richmond J.

    I am interested in becoming an ICE administrative law judge. I am licensed to practice law in Oklahoma and have 19 years’ experience in representing plaintiffs before the Social Security Administration.
    Please enroll me in the next class for creating a federal resume and send me the application forms.

    • V.V.

      Hi there. You must apply directly to a posting on the Office of Personnel Management’s USAJOBS website once available.

      Make sure you create your USAJOBS account and set notifications to alert you when OPM announces new Administrative Law Judge vacancies.

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  4. Leeanne K.

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  6. Cydnie

    ___123___Answer the Call to Public Service, Become an Administrative Law Judge | Social Security Matterss___123___

  7. Babbette

    ___123___Answer the Call to Public Service, Become an Administrative Law Judge | Social Security Matterss___123___

  8. Lets g.

    While there is a lot of criticism of ALJs, I respect them. It is a difficult job and, frankly, someone has to make a decision. There are over a million disability cases pending for a hearing. While it would be great to pay everyone, the reality is Social Security is bankrupt. There are a lot of people who what a free handout, game the system, and claim disability but drive new SUVs. I know that there are a lot of people that are truly disabled, meaning they are physically or mentally unable to perform any work. However, there are twice as many people that think they are disabled but could work if they wanted to. Lets face it, as we get older we all have back pain, headaches, depression, knee pain, arthritis and fatigue. But there are a lot of hard working Americans that get up every day and go to work despite having a headache, backache or feeling depressed. They pay taxes, they pay into the social security system and they are contributing to society. What happened to the American Spirit? What happened to taking care of your neighbor? Why do expect the government, who we all hate and view with conspirator suspicion, to give out free money that was earned and paid into the system by hardworking Americans? I am all for truly helping the disabled but for every disabled person, there are 3 others that just want a hand out. Lets get back to making America Great.

  9. Tina

    This is the pecrfet post for me to find at this time

  10. Jon

    I am thinking about going into the field of disability law, but am not sure I am cut out for law school. I might make a good paralegal or non-attorney representative. Either way I want to go back to school. I’m looking at 2 programs:The University of Pittsburgh Law School offers a specialized Masters of Legal Studies with a concentration in disability law; the other is a Masters in paralegal studies that is more broad in scope and is offered online or on campus through the George Washington University school of professional studies. If there is anyone already working at ODAR or elsewhere in the field of disability law who can weigh in and let me know which program makes more sense, it would be much appreciated.

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