Damp, Dennis V.

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Damp, Dennis V.

PERSONAL:

Male.

ADDRESSES:

Home—Pittsburgh, PA. Office—Bookhaven Press, 249 Field Club Cir., McKees Rocks, PA 15136. E-mail—[email protected].

CAREER:

Career development and training consultant; Federal Aviation Administration, management position; Bookhaven Press, McKees Rocks, PA (originally Moon Township, PA), founder, publisher; America Online Career Center, associate director. Military service: Served with the U.S. Air Force.

WRITINGS:

Dollars and Sense: Safe Investment Strategies, Bookhaven Press (McKees Rocks, PA), 1989.

The Book of U.S. Government Jobs: Where They Are, What's Available, and How to Get One, D-Amp Publications (Coraopolis, PA), 1991, 10th revised edition, Bookhaven Press (McKees Rocks, PA), 2007.

Health Care Job Explosion! Careers in the 90's, D-Amp Publications (Coraopolis, PA), 1993, 4th revised edition published as Health Care Job Explosion! High Growth Health Care Careers and Job Locator, Bookhaven Press (McKees Rocks, PA), 2006.

How to Get a Job with the United States Postal Service, Bookhaven Press (Moon Township, PA), 1995, 4th edition published as Post Office Jobs: Explore and Find Jobs, Prepare for the 473 Postal Exam, and Locate All Job Opportunities, 2003.

Take Charge of Your Federal Career: A Practical, Action-Oriented Career Management Workbook for Federal Employees, Federal Employees News Digest (Reston, VA), 1998.

Writes a column for federal employees. Editor of and contributor to Web sites, including Federal Jobs Net, Federal Employee's Retirement Guide and Estate Planning Assistance, Health Care Jobs, Post Office Jobs, and Federal Government Career Development Center.

SIDELIGHTS:

Dennis V. Damp is a career consultant with particular expertise in the areas of health care and federal employment. He is a retired federal employee with thirty-five years of service who has written several books that have been revised and reprinted over the years, including The Book of U.S. Government Jobs: Where They Are, What's Available, and How to Get One. An Internet Bookwatch contributor who reviewed the ninth edition called it a "handy and easy-to-use resource." The eighth edition is especially relevant to the way in which government jobs have changed post 9/11, and more than half of the information was updated. "If ever a book's title described its content, this one does," wrote Stanley P. Hodge in Library Journal. As with earlier editions, in the ninth Damp discusses requirements, the application process, and other specifics for various agencies, including the post office and law enforcement, as well as for overseas jobs with the government. He also addresses opportunities for the disabled, and each edition updates telephone numbers and other contact information and notes the increased use of online application availability.

The fourth revised edition of Health Care Job Explosion! Careers in the 90's was published as Health Care Job Explosion! High Growth Health Care Careers and Job Locator. In this volume Damp notes that the Bureau of Labor Statistics projects that one of every five new jobs created by 2014 will be in health services. He guides those who would find work in this field, suggesting how to approach the application and interview processes. His resources include Web sites, job fairs, other books, and associations. He notes the employment opportunities, working conditions, and earnings that can be expected in such areas as nursing, social services, home health care, pharmacy, and technician services. Nancy Larrabee described this resource "as a great starting point for someone considering a field where there is an ever-increasing demand for personnel."

Beginning with the fourth revised edition, How to Get a Job with the United States Postal Service was published as Post Office Jobs: Explore and Find Jobs, Prepare for the 473 Postal Exam, and Locate All Job Opportunities. This basic primer includes an employment guide to help the reader find job vacancies, locate exam test dates, prepare for testing, and apply for jobs. The fourth edition was reviewed by a Bookwatch contributor, who wrote that it is "the definitive guide" to becoming a postal worker.

BIOGRAPHICAL AND CRITICAL SOURCES:

PERIODICALS

Booklist, May 1, 1996, David Rouse, review of The Book of U.S. Government Jobs: Where They Are, What's Available, and How to Get One, 6th edition, p. 1476.

Bookwatch, August 1, 2005, review of Post Office Jobs: Explore and Find Jobs, Prepare for the 473 Postal Exam, and Locate All Job Opportunities, 4th edition.

Internet Bookwatch, February 1, 2005, review of The Book of U.S. Government Jobs, 9th edition.

Library Journal, April 1, 2000, Stanley P. Hodge, review of Post Office Jobs: How to Get a Job with the U.S. Postal Service, 2nd edition, p. 88; April 1, 2000, Stanley P. Hodge, review of The Book of U.S. Government Jobs, 7th edition, p. 88; September 1, 2002, Stanley P. Hodge, review of The Book of U.S. Government Jobs, 8th edition, p. 162; August 1, 2003, Susan Hurst, review of Post Office Jobs, 3rd edition, p. 98; October 1, 2006, Nancy Larrabee, review of Health Care Job Explosion! High Growth Health Care Careers and Job Locator, 4th edition, p. 87.

Reference & Research Book News, August 1, 2005, review of Post Office Jobs, 4th edition, p. 114.

SciTech Book News, September 1, 2006, review of Health Care Job Explosion!, 4th edition.

Small Press Bookwatch, August 1, 2005, review of Post Office Jobs, 4th edition; August 1, 2006, review of Health Care Job Explosion!, 4th edition.

ONLINE

Bookhaven Press Web site,http://www.bookhavenpress.com/ (June 7, 2007).