Interest in FBI / CIA?

[Anonymous]

So much misinformation on this thread. Y’all read too many spy novels. Military academy is overkill, and the only reason you go to a military academy is because you want to be a military officer. For the intelligence community, a language, overseas experience, and technical or regional expertise in a substantive area. And being a data scientist is also really desired.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It’s odd you would group these together. The FBI is about policing. The CIA is intelligence gathering. CIA is not what I think about when I think of law and order.

They're both about public service and protecting the country. Both in different ways, but still with a purpose.

But so is the foreign service corps, usaid personnel, the military and ton of other stuff. The grouping suggests that the OP doesn’t really know what they are looking for

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Can anyone recommend an accessible book or two that would help someone in their late teens / early 20s understand the modern CIA and/or NSA and the range of roles and groups within these agencies?

Not looking for a history of the CIA or NSA or a moment of time / incident in the past, but rather something more current but still broad enough to get a sense of the range of these agencies. (Obv they’re not all spies trying to recruit assets in foreign countries …. )

Fiction would work, assuming it’s not grounded in reality rather than speculative trash. Thx.

I don't know that I can. Anything written by someone that left just a few years in isn't going to tell you much, and modern is what's going on as we speak and not 5, 10, or even 1 year ago.

Start with the public websites. Then branch out into current interviews with the principal and public senior officials. That ought to tell you a lot about what priorities are and what skills are currently valued. Paul Nakasone just gave exit interviews to several news outlets.

My kid said that CIA came to their high school to talk about careers. If you're in the area ask your HS. And all of these agencies have college programs, which is probably the best way to get a foot in the door and allow you child to gauge whether it's really a career they want to pursue. If an IC career is a priority for your child then they should ask their chosen schools if the IC recruits there and how many grads go into the IC.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I have a close friend who was a CIA agent briefly (she learned quickly that the job was not for her). She was a history major.

One of my friends in law school applied to the agency. She comes from a semi-famous family and there’s tons of info on them if you do a google search. I could see why the CIA would not want to hire someone with this profile.

FBI is in the business of law enforcement. They need to be law abiding citizens. CIA on the other hand, is beyond this level. They are the type that goes overseas to "take out" enemies. No sense in talking about law and order here.

The CIA is filled with lawyers. Every agency, including IC agencies, produces memos to justify actions. In the case of most agencies, lawyers actually try to make sure agency action is lawful. In the case of the IC, they just pretend knowing their assessments will likely never be released.

The CIA is lawless. No point in arguing. They have conducted sickening experiments on US citizens. They also knew of and/or assisted in the assassination of JFK.

Nutter alert. Normal people, please disregard.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Can anyone recommend an accessible book or two that would help someone in their late teens / early 20s understand the modern CIA and/or NSA and the range of roles and groups within these agencies?

Not looking for a history of the CIA or NSA or a moment of time / incident in the past, but rather something more current but still broad enough to get a sense of the range of these agencies. (Obv they’re not all spies trying to recruit assets in foreign countries …. )

Fiction would work, assuming it’s not grounded in reality rather than speculative trash. Thx.

I don't know that I can. Anything written by someone that left just a few years in isn't going to tell you much, and modern is what's going on as we speak and not 5, 10, or even 1 year ago.

Start with the public websites. Then branch out into current interviews with the principal and public senior officials. That ought to tell you a lot about what priorities are and what skills are currently valued. Paul Nakasone just gave exit interviews to several news outlets.

My kid said that CIA came to their high school to talk about careers. If you're in the area ask your HS. And all of these agencies have college programs, which is probably the best way to get a foot in the door and allow you child to gauge whether it's really a career they want to pursue. If an IC career is a priority for your child then they should ask their chosen schools if the IC recruits there and how many grads go into the IC.

+1 The website has a lot of information and explains a bit about different careers. Start there.

[Anonymous]

Georgetown, JHU SAIS… knew plenty who were recruited from both

[Anonymous]

Lots of misinformation on this thread. You do not need to go to a service academy.

There are many different jobs within agencies. There is no specific school that is going to get you a job there faster.

Start with their websites.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Make sure your kid isn’t experimenting with drugs, including weed. Check out the websites. They have a lot of information on different job types. Apply for the internships they are a foot in the door.

Weed has been our biggest disqualifier.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Accounting, forensic accounting. I’ve heard the same as your #4, OP.

Yes. I was a finalist for FBI internship in grad school, but they told me I didn't get it because they wanted someone with accounting background. This was a whike ago, though. I would think accounting is still big but maybe add cybersecurity.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Make sure your kid isn’t experimenting with drugs, including weed. Check out the websites. They have a lot of information on different job types. Apply for the internships they are a foot in the door.

Weed has been our biggest disqualifier.

EVER used or positive test?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The idea that all FBI employees have to endure FBI academy training is laughable. Special agents, absolutely, but no one else at the FBI is going through the academy in the same way agents do. I work in a related agency (and have spent time at the FBI academy), know many FBI employees, including attorneys, and not a one of them has been through the academy.

A lot of suspect info in this whole thread.

Of course they don’t, but if you really want to go places at FBI you need to be an agent. There’s a definite hierarchy. Either you’re an agent or you’re “support”.

[Anonymous]

All of these agencies have websites with sections for recruitment. Recommend you and your child look at them to see what kinds of jobs are available and what backgrounds they are looking for.

[Anonymous]

I have a DC who is in college and working towards an FBI career. He didn't go in with that intent, but after meeting with a recruiter at a career fair at his school, it became his focus.

There are a lot of different areas of study the FBI and CIA look for. And you don't have to go to a particular college, my son is at a medium-size private school in the midwest. Not a Top 25 or anything school.

Definitely check their websites to get an idea of what areas of study they're looking for. And have your DC keep in mind that the majority of the positions are not super-exciting covert/agent positions that you see on TV. For example, CIA analysts (different from officers) are sitting in a cubicle day after day, pouring over material that they send up to a supervisor where it's mostly ignored.

#1: keep a clean record. No drugs, not even weed which despite being legal in many states, still isn't legal at the Federal level. Keep social media boring and nothing controversial.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Make sure your kid isn’t experimenting with drugs, including weed. Check out the websites. They have a lot of information on different job types. Apply for the internships they are a foot in the door.

Weed has been our biggest disqualifier.

EVER used or positive test?

If they’re interested, stop doing weed now. “Experimentation” in high school would be okay, but not if they are currently/recently using whenever they go through the process.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Korean and tax law

dang it, I knew I should've kept up with my Korean.

-Korean American