Working for the FBI

Working for the FBI

As of March 24, 2010, the FBI had a total of 33,590 employees. That includes 13,514 special agents and 20,076 support professionals such as intelligence analysts, language specialists, information technology specialists, and other professionals. As of March 2010, our workforce included 15,135 women, 8,110 minorities, and 1,201 persons with disabilities.

Due to the FBI’s responsibilities in criminal law enforcement and in the intelligence community, all FBI employees must qualify for a Top Secret security clearance before they can begin their service. This qualification includes an extensive background investigation. The FBI does not make a final decision to hire an individual until all the information gathered during the background investigation is assessed. Once hired, all FBI employees must maintain their eligibility for a Top Secret security clearance, undergo a limited background check every five years, and submit to random drug tests throughout their careers.

Some positions within the FBI also require a medical examination, and some require employees to sign an agreement stating their willingness to be assigned anywhere in the world.

FBI Employee Statistics

as of 3/24/2010

*11 individuals unknown

Special Agents

Requirements

FBI special agents are specially trained personnel chosen from an extensive pool of applicants because they possess specific areas of expertise. In 2010, 21,669 applicants applied to become agents, and only a select few were chosen.

To be an FBI special agent, an individual must:

• be a United States citizen;
• be at least 23 and not yet have reached his/her 37th birthday on appointment;
• have at least a bachelor’s degree from an accredited, four-year resident program at a college or university;
• pass a written examination;
• complete several in-person interviews; and
• pass a comprehensive medical examination, including vision and hearing tests.

Applicants with these qualifications will be chosen if they have specific experience or expertise needed by the FBI. The criteria changes according to the FBI’s current priorities. Traditionally, the FBI seeks applicants with backgrounds in law enforcement, law, or accounting. Today, the FBI also seeks expertise in intelligence, languages, computers, and the sciences. For information on what specific skills the FBI is looking for today, check: http://www.fbijobs.gov.

Once they are selected and complete their background check, new agents are pre-designated into one of five career paths: intelligence, counterterrorism, counterintelligence, cyber, or criminal investigations. These designations are based on each individual’s background, preferences, and the needs of the Bureau.

Agents begin their career with an intensive, 20-week training program at the FBI Academy in Quantico, Virginia. This training program teaches new special agents the basic skills they will need to collect intelligence within our constitutional framework and to conduct effective investigations in all the FBI’s investigative programs.

Courses cover topics such as:

• The intelligence cycle;
• Counterterrorism;
• Counterintelligence;
• Weapons of mass destruction;
• Cyber fraud and intrusions;
• Computer search and seizure;
• Ethics, with practical law enforcement applications;
• Human behavior;
• Communications and interviewing;
• Constitutional criminal procedure;
• Informant development;
• Physical fitness and defensive tactics;
• Evidence collection and handling;
• Firearms;
• Equal opportunity employment and cultural sensitivity; and
• Practical problems.

As part of their initial training at the FBI Academy, all new special agents must visit the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum to see firsthand what can happen when law enforcement fails to protect individuals.

Agent Career Path

Upon completion of their training at Quantico, agents report to their first office. The FBI’s current staffing needs and investigative priorities determine to which office a new agent will be assigned.

Most special agents will spend the early part of their careers in small or medium-sized field offices before transferring to large offices. There, they will spend three years rotating through a variety of assignments. Although special agents are expected to develop specialized expertise in their designated career path, it is also important for them to develop a common baseline knowledge of multiple programs.

At the end of the third year, they will receive additional career path-specific training and on-the-job experiences. The goal is to ensure a structured progression from broad-based field experience to specialized skills in handling complex investigative, intelligence, and national security responsibilities.

During their careers, special agents are required to relocate to other offices in order to meet the FBI’s needs.

Agents may apply for a management position after three years of investigative experience. Upon selection for a management position, agents receive additional training to develop their management skills. Developmental plans incorporate both required and elective developmental opportunities at each stage of an agent's career.

Agents may also choose to obtain special certification as a special agent bomb technician, a technically trained agent, or a member of the elite Hostage Rescue Team.

Federal law requires that special agents retire by age 57. In rare circumstances, the FBI Director may grant one-year extensions, up to age 60, for a particular special agent.

Intelligence Analysts

Intelligence analysts at FBI Headquarters and in all 56 field offices play a critical role. They help identify the most critical threats and vulnerabilities in each city and region, enabling managers to move resources to where they will do the most good. Analysts help each office prioritize competing demands for intelligence collection. They work within investigative squads to guide collection strategies and provide subject matter expertise. They analyze data and look for patterns. They produce and disseminate intelligence reports for use by other FBI divisions, state and local law enforcement, other intelligence community agencies, and policymakers at the highest levels of government.

Approximately 30 percent of intelligence analysts hired by the FBI join the Bureau mid-career and bring a range of experience from other agencies. The other 70 percent are hired at the entry level and grow and develop their career within the Bureau.

Like special agents, the FBI’s intelligence analysts must agree to be assigned anywhere in the world. They begin their FBI career with an 11-week training program at the FBI Academy.

Following this training, analysts will spend two years at FBI Headquarters or the New York, Los Angeles, or Washington Field Office. During this time, they will rotate through a range of work roles and will spend six months on a temporary assignment to another office.

Linguists

FBI language specialists play a vital role in the translation, transcription, reporting, and analysis of recordings or documents. They participate in witness and source interviews, and many also serve as experts on particular countries or cultures. They are both intelligence collectors and analysts and work in every program area: counterterrorism, foreign counterintelligence, organized crime, air piracy, interstate criminal activity, public corruption, financial crime, bribery, civil rights violations, kidnapping, and drug trafficking, among others.

Other Career Opportunities

The FBI’s highly professional workforce includes personnel from a wide range of disciplines. Some FBI positions require only that an applicant be 16 years old and possess a high school diploma or GED; many others require college degrees or even advanced degrees and specific work experience. All FBI employees must complete the same application and go through the same background investigation process as special agents, but are not generally required to pass a written entrance exam or have a medical examination. There is no mandatory retirement age for most positions.

The FBI offers some unique career opportunities, including:

• Scientists and engineers from all applied science disciplines, who work at the FBI Laboratory and are supported by field office evidence technicians and photographers;
• Legal advisors, electronics technicians, surveillance experts, writers, and accountants, who FBI Headquarters and field offices rely on for their expertise and to complete investigative tasks;
• Computer specialists, policy and management analysts, and other subject-matter experts who handle the technical, administrative, and program-oversight responsibilities critical to FBI operations;
• Firearms experts;
• Fingerprint examiners;
• Security specialists and technical experts from all security disciplines, including personnel, physical, information, training, as well as information assurance and information systems security, who staff the FBI Security Division;
• Specially trained police professionals; and
• Well-qualified clerical workers and experienced craft, trade, and maintenance personnel.

For more information on FBI employment, including a list of current vacancies and employment applications, go to http://www.fbijobs.gov.

FBI National Training Plan

FBI professionals are actively encouraged, and in many cases required, to pursue career-enhancing training opportunities. Learning is viewed as a lifelong process. Training courses are constantly updated and created to respond to investigative and intelligence demands. Currently, the National Training Plan incorporates counterterrorism, counterintelligence, and cyber investigation matters into basic investigative courses so special agents and others are better able to recognize and address these intertwined threats. For example, training in financial crimes shows agents how certain acts should be closely reviewed for possible money laundering activities by terrorist groups.

FBI support personnel also enjoy a variety of training opportunities throughout their careers, including classroom training, distance learning via satellite, and courses offered through the “Virtual Academy” on the FBI’s intranet.

Joint Duty Requirements

As a result of a directive published by the Office of the Director of National Intelligence in 2006, FBI special agents, intelligence analysts, and other professional staff are encouraged to participate in permanent appointments or temporary details to joint duty positions across the U.S. Intelligence Community. The purpose of this effort is to encourage cooperation and provide valuable intelligence experience. It is now a requirement and a condition of promotion to certain positions within the intelligence community.

The FBI currently has personnel working with other intelligence community partners at many locations including the National Counterterrorism Center, the National Counterproliferation Center, the Central Intelligence Agency, and others. In addition, the FBI has personnel from other intelligence agencies working within its divisions.