"In this profile of the public service profession, Paul C. Light examines two decades of change in the career patterns and motivations of America's top public servants.

Drawing upon interviews with graduates of the nation's top public policy and administration graduate schools, Light argues that the nation's young professionals have changed little in their basic desire to make a difference through public service, but they no longer imagine thirty-year careers in government as the only way to have an impact on national and local issues.

They are just as likely to start their public service careers in the nonprofit or private sectors, and intend to switch back and forth during their careers."--BOOK JACKET. "By letting top graduates speak in their own voices, this book offers a clear agenda that can help government make its invitation to service more meaningful and more attractive."--BOOK JACKET.