The world of government contract jobs is incredibly complex. Here are the basics.

• The government signed four million new contracts in 2023 and there are many ways to enter the field.
• Some large companies regularly sign contracts with the government and many roles require clearances.
• You can also bid on your own contracts and make deals directly with the government. 

The US is the nation’s largest employer, according to the Department of Labor — and it needs a lot of goods and services. From supplying employees with basic needs like toilet paper to renovating government buildings or supplying weapons to the military.

The government can’t do everything itself, so it hires contractors to help out. This lets the government tackle specific jobs and projects quickly without all the steps of regular government hiring and bureaucratic obstacles.

The White House has said that the US government signs 4 million new contracts and orders each year.

While pay is sometimes considered a drawback of public sector work, government contracting opportunities can offer better pay than federal roles, while still providing stability and other perks like flexible scheduling.

Even though the industry is vast and the pathway to enter isn’t always clear, there’s a lot of opportunity in the field. The federal government awarded about $765 billion in contracts in 2023, according to government market intelligence platform HigherGov.

To help make sense of the complex field, BI spoke to recruiters and individual contractors about how the system works and best practices to enter the field. We broke it down below to demystify the process.

You can work for a larger government contracting company

There are a wide range of large government contracting companies that the government regularly makes deals with.

Defense contractors are a good example of some of the biggest players in the space who secure massive government contracts regularly, such as Lockheed Martin, Boeing, Raytheon, and Northrop Grumman. These are public companies that also sign contracts with the government.

There are also smaller to midsize companies that help serve the government’s needs directly, such as helping with development and policy work in other countries.

Opportunities in tech and data are especially in demand. The Judge Group, a recruiting agency, told BI it has seen a 15% increase in opportunities in government aerospace and defense positions over the last couple of years.

Many government contractor roles require some level of clearance, which costs money and can take time to attain. Some of the larger companies may sponsor your clearance, though, so it can be a good place to secure a first job, according to Lauren Irizarry, a senior talent acquisition partner at A2 Federal.

Many companies favor those who have worked in the military or at a government agency previously, but you can still get a job without that background if you have the skills and clearances needed.

You can find many of these opportunities on Clearancejobs.com, a platform for jobs with security clearance. Even if you don’t have a clearance, the site has thousands of jobs listed, contact info for recruiters, and a career fair page with upcoming events to meet employers.

If you’re breaking into the field, you may want to browse through positions you’re interested in and see what kind of clearance they require before applying.

While these opportunities are sometimes difficult to find, once you have experience under your belt it’s easier to find work.

John Breth, 40, worked in government contracting roles for 12 years before starting his own contracting company. He said the perk to working for a large company is there are often other contracts that you can transition to when you finish the project you’re working on.

You can establish your own contracting business

If you’re interested in selling services to the government, you can start by registering your entity or getting a unique entity ID at Sam.Gov. To get a sense of available opportunities, you can search for different needs or supplies in “contract opportunities,” which lists notices from federal contracting offices.

Once you find an opportunity, the next step is to bid on the contract. This involves submitting a proposal that outlines how you plan to meet the government’s needs.

If awarded the contract, you have to meet specific requirements set by the government, which may involve getting clearances or certifications.

Kevin Jennings has been in the business for 15 years. He started out providing the government with commodities like toner ink, pencils, office furniture, and medical supplies. Once he got his foot in the door, he moved to construction.

“I could make as much money as I wanted to make or as little as I wanted to make,” Jennings said. “I could find projects that fit what I wanted to do at the time.”

He said he chose government contracting over private sector work because the government is consistent and pays on time.

The US Small Business Administration also has a small business program that reserves 23% of prime government contracts for small businesses. This may give some business owners an advantage in selling goods and services over other industries.

While some people manage the whole process themselves, others work solely in the bidding process. There are many different roles and nuances within the field, and you can go to sba.gov to learn more and receive free training online.

There’s value in understanding the industry

The US government has client-contractor relationships like many other industries, but with government contracting, the client is the government. This brings unique requirements to the deals and complexities of getting paid.

You can explore help topics on Sam.gov or browse through different posts on FindRFP to find out more information about the industry at large.

If you research a specific sector, you’ll have a better sense of the industry-specific requirements, pay scales, and other distinctions that add layers of complexity to the career path. Once you understand the landscape better, you’ll be able to recognize which jobs you qualify for and define your path forward.

Are you a government contractor with an interesting story to share? Reach out to the reporter from a non-work device and email at aaltchek@businessinsider.com.