The Biden Administration launched the U.S. Digital Corps, a two-year fellowship that will recruit early-career technologists to advance the Federal government’s tech workforce.
For the program, which launched today, the Biden administration is working with the General Services Administration (GSA), the White House Office of Management and Budget, the Office of Personnel Management, the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency, and the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy.
The Digital Corps will launch this fall with 30 fellows expected to begin work in FY2022 at more than five agencies across the Federal government. GSA confirmed that initial host agencies include GSA, Veterans Affairs, Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, and the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau.
In a press release, GSA said the early-career technologists will be recruited to “contribute to high-impact efforts across the Federal government.” Specifically, the Biden administration said the program will work to advance the White House’s priorities of COVID-19 response, economic recovery, cybersecurity, and streamlining government services.
“Technology enables mission delivery across government. To provide best-in-class service delivery, agencies must have the right combination of workforce talent in place as their existing personnel accelerates towards retirement,” Federal CIO Clare Martorana said. “The U.S. Digital Corps is a forward-looking solution that will build a deep bench for technology modernization and digital transformation across the Federal government and meet the Biden administration’s goals of advancing Federal IT and cybersecurity.”
The program will recruit Americans with skill sets in software engineering, data science, design, cybersecurity, and other critical technology fields to kickstart their Federal government careers. The U.S. Digital Corps will be housed within GSA’s Technology Transformation Services. GSA said the program is intended to complement existing fellowships and limited-term roles, including the Presidential Innovation Fellows, Presidential Management Fellows, and the U.S. Digital Service.
“One of my priorities is building a pipeline of diverse talent to GSA and recruiting the next generation of public servants,” GSA Administrator Robin Carnahan said. “The Digital Corps fellowship offers technologists just starting out in their career the opportunity to work on some of the most pressing challenges that we face and develop innovative solutions that make government work better for the American people.”
