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  1. Employee Resources
  2. My Benefits
  3. Career Development

Career Development

DHS offers a variety of opportunities to employees, including academic programs, leader development, career development, and technical skills training. DHS employees should visit their Learning and Development program office for more information about any of the opportunities listed below.

Academic Programs cultivate creative homeland security strategic analysis and decision-making skills through high quality, fully accredited graduate degree programs at Department of Defense Senior Service Schools and other academic institutions.

The DHS Leader Development Program helps ensure that leaders at all levels throughout the department are exposed to a core set of developmental experiences and leadership principles. The program offers development and training resources for non-supervisors, supervisors, and executives across the Department. In addition, it offers programs that supports identifying and preparing leaders for the next leadership level under the Leadership Bridges Strategy. This strategy helps build leadership talent capacity and succession pipelines at every leader level to help prepare employees for success as they progress in their career.

The Homeland Security Rotation Program provides developmental assignments that give DHS employees opportunities to broaden their skills, gain organizational knowledge, and enhance their personal and professional growth.

The Department offers a number of formal and informal mentoring programs in all components and across all occupational functions. The DHS Mentoring Programs are formal programs that provide enriching experiences through reciprocal relationships and opportunities for personal and professional growth while sharing knowledge, leveraging skills and cultivating talent. The programs provide a series of developmental experiences for matched mentoring pairs. Through the mentoring relationship, mentors have the opportunity to guide and share experiences, knowledge, and skills that will contribute to the mentee’s growth. Mentoring relationships require time, commitment, and clear plans of action.

The DHS Senior Executive Service Candidate Development Program prepares high-performing individuals for positions in DHS’s Senior Executive Service (SES) through an intensive 12-18 month leadership development program.

The DHS Joint Duty Program is an intra- and inter-departmental program which offers civilian personnel professional and developmental opportunities. Joint duty assignments enhance operations and mission execution through unity of effort and collaboration. For more information about the DHS Joint Duty Program, eligibility requirements for federal employees, and current Joint Duty Assignment opportunities, please visit the DHS Joint Duty Program.

DHS achievements are the result of the collective effort of dedicated DHS employees. The DHS Secretary's Awards Program celebrates excellence across the Department. Each year, the Secretary honors individuals and teams from across DHS whose hard work and exemplary accomplishments have personified the very best of the Department with two awards: the Secretary’s Annual Employee Awards and the Secretary’s Honorary Awards.

Employee Assistance Programs (EAPs) provide DHS employees and their family members a variety of free resources--financial consultation, legal aid, elder care and child care support, and more! Visit the Employee Assistance Programs page to learn more.

Last Updated: 11/03/2023
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