Program Management

What the Numbers Say About Program Management

Federal agencies employ 19,350 people in the Program Management occupation (OPM code 340), accounting for 0.8% of the total federal civilian workforce of 2,289,472 for the March 2025 reporting window. Headcount in this occupation moved down by -0.6% versus the prior period, a useful gauge for job seekers on USAJOBS trying to assess whether this role is expanding government-wide or contracting under hiring freezes and attrition.

Average tenure in Program Management runs 18.2 years, a long average tenure, typical of career federal roles where employees stay through much of a full career before retirement. Pay averages $171,330 per year, 55.9% above the $109,869 federal civilian average and up 2.5% from the prior period, a broad shift as locality pay tables and grade-level adjustments moved through the workforce.

Code 3, the General Administrative, Clerical, and Office Services Group family, is where the federal government classifies Program Management alongside 27 related occupations. Candidates browsing USAJOBS for Program Management postings should also review these sibling occupations, since federal hiring managers often cross-post positions across closely related codes when recruitment is difficult. All figures here come directly from OPM FedScope Employment Cubes, the same official source referenced in federal workforce planning, budget justifications, and GAO reports.

Within the General Administrative, Clerical, and Office Services Group family, Program Management ranks #5 of 28 by headcount, accounting for 5.7% of the family's combined 339,466 employees. Its average salary ranks in the top half (96th percentile) of pay among General Administrative, Clerical, and Office Services Group occupations.