What are the prerequisites for federal jobs?

What kinds of jobs can I get at the Federal Reserve branch banks with MA in Applied Economics?

• I am planning to apply for MA in Applied Economics at Johns Hopkins University. My ideal job would be a research economist at one of the Federal Reserve branch banks. However, my quick research online indicates that Federal Reserve banks mostly hire PhDs for research. Does anyone know if they also offer research positions for MA holders on a regular basis? Only on special occasions? Seldom? Quite often but they don't stand out as much? Also, if they do hire MA economists, what kind of work do they do, in comparison to the PhD economists?

• Answer:

  Unfortunately, having a PhD is a typical prerequisite.  There are positions such as junior/assistant Economist at the Federal Reserve Bank of New York that do not require PhDs; however, they are more akin to an analyst role - you will work on research projects for publication, maybe even get a few working papers, but you will not have the luxury of dictating your own research agenda. It is a well-known fact in the Federal Reserve that a PhD is the bare minimum for being able to conduct any form of academic-quality (e.g., long-term research).  I have seen people from select groups at the New York Fed, which are an exception to this, as they tend to be more willing to hire non-PhDs within some of their groups, particularly their Markets group, which is actually a very desirable group to be in, in terms of its overall impact.  However, there is a general bias against individuals who join research sections without a PhD at the Board of Governors. I have seen some PhD dropouts and ABDs who go on to join these sections, but they are unable to attain the title "Economist" at least at the Board of Governors.  They are able to do some of the "grunt" work of Economists, which is primarily fact-checking and proof-reading - not exactly the "research" that you might be looking for.  More often, these individuals typically work as very senior analysts, which can be very interesting work in its own way. The Reserve Banks that spring to mind that might be best suited for non-PhDs would likely be Chicago, New York, Boston and, possibly, Atlanta.