Federal prison FAQ

# Work and programs

You will be assigned a job whether or not you find one first. Which ones are worth having, and why programming is not really optional.

The job

## What you will be doing all day

### Do I have to work?

You will be assigned a job if you do not get one yourself. Whether the job involves doing anything varies — some are ghost jobs, some are shoveling snow.

Which is the argument for picking one early rather than being handed one.

### What's a detail?

Your work assignment. Food service detail, orderly detail, landscape detail, whatever they have you on.

The word does double duty: it is the job and it is the crew you do it with, so “who's on your detail” is asking who you spend your day next to.

### What's the best job?

Kitchen.

Not because the work is good. Because food is the compound's second currency and the people who touch it first have a position. [The economy](/going-in/while-youre-in/the-economy) explains why that is worth more than the pay is.

### How do I get into UNICOR?

I do not know the mechanism. I do know there is a line.

What I can tell you is that UNICOR (the better-paying prison work program) pays multiples of every other job in the building, that people wait a long time for it, and that being in refusal status on [IFRP](/going-in/faq/money#refusing-ifrp) disqualifies you outright.

Programming

## Classes, credits, and what they are worth

### Do I have to do programming?

Just about, yes. And you want to, because that is what accrues your credits.

Programming is the mechanism FSA credits (time off earned through programming) run on, and those credits are the difference between the sentence imposed and the time served. Treat the class schedule as your release date, because it is.

### Can I take real classes? Can I get a degree?

Yes, on a facility-by-facility basis.

This varies more than almost anything else, so it is a fair question to ask a support group for your specific institution before you assume either way. [They are listed here](/resources/support-groups).

### Can I get a certification that's worth something outside?

Not really.

Do the programming anyway, for the credits. Just do not build a release plan on the certificate. [Work, after](/going-in/getting-out/work) covers what actually gets people hired.

### Can I run a business from inside?

No.

It is a prohibited act, it is one the Bureau takes unusually seriously, and the fact that you can technically do it through a spouse does not make it a good idea for either of you.

Next section — part 15 of 16

### [Identity and difference](/going-in/faq/identity-and-difference)

Being the only one of something in the building. Age, language, religion, disability, and the citizenship question that changes everything.

For your people

## Hand the rest of this site to your family

You will not be able to look things up once you're inside. They can, and this is where: [everything written for the one waiting](/for-families) — a twelve-part guide to mail, visiting, money, and your release date, plus their own FAQ and checklist. Alongside it, a [guide to every facility](/resources/facilities) with [email alerts when visiting stops](/lockdown-alerts/subscribe), the [support group directory](/resources/support-groups), calculators for your release math, and [free answers](/contact) when they have questions.

Send them the link before you report, not after they can't reach you.

**Need help with this? Just ask.**

These pages cover the general rules. Your situation has details they don't. Email me a question. **Answers are free** , and "you don't need to pay anyone for this" is my most common answer.

[josh@federalprisondude.com](mailto:josh@federalprisondude.com?subject=FAQ%20question)

I answer in the order received, usually within a couple of days. I have a day job. If your situation genuinely needs more than an email, I take a limited number of consults, so say so and we'll work it out.