Obtaining Security Clearance

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[ARCHIVED THREAD] - Obtaining Security Clearance

Posted: 11/22/2008 8:48:36 AM EDT

As I am about to join the ranks of the laid-off, I have started looking around for IT jobs again. I see there are lots of .gov jobs available but the all require TS or TS/SCI level clearance.

How does one from the private sector pursue and obtain such clearance?

Posted: 11/22/2008 8:49:18 AM EDT

[#1]

Get hired for a position that requires a clearance and then they do the background check on you.

Posted: 11/22/2008 8:51:33 AM EDT

[#2]

It's a catch-22 at times.

Some jobs require the clearance before you start.

Otherwise the company must have work for you to do for 1 year while the clearance is being processed.

Posted: 11/22/2008 8:57:01 AM EDT

[#3]

Get hired entry level at DIA, CIA, NSA or join the military and enter a field that requires a clearance. It is expensive for an initial so very few companies are going to fork over the dough on an unknown entity. They will want to see if you are worth the price first.

Posted: 11/22/2008 8:57:34 AM EDT

[#4]

Sometimes defense contractors like Boeing, Raytheon, or Lockheed Martin will sponsor the clearance. Sometimes you just have to have it already and they won't do it for you which makes it hard to get.

Posted: 11/22/2008 9:01:07 AM EDT

[#5]

Quoted:
As I am about to join the ranks of the laid-off, I have started looking around for IT jobs again. I see there are lots of .gov jobs available but the all require TS or TS/SCI level clearance.

How does one from the private sector pursue and obtain such clearance?

If you live in N.VA you are set, start applying with USIS, Omniplex as an Access Control Officer,(both USIS and Omni) and a Monitor with USIS. . Granted, the pay and hours will suck but once you get Cleared pop smoke and go to work for Northrop Grumman, General Dynamics, etc.

I started with Omni and as soon as I got cleared went with USIS as a courier. I am about to go with NG up in MD because the 110 mile a day commute is kicking my ass. The money we get paid is crazy for what little we really do.

Posted: 11/22/2008 9:05:36 AM EDT

[#6]

Also, in some instances, you will be granted an interim clearance and allow you to work on a limited capacity until your clearance is complete. It can take some time, especially at TS levels.

Posted: 11/22/2008 9:13:19 AM EDT

[#7]

Quoted:
Also, in some instances, you will be granted an interim clearance and allow you to work on a limited capacity until your clearance is complete. It can take some time, especially at TS levels.

Mainly depends on the B.I, Background Investigator. I got my TS granted to me in about 4 1/2 months from start of BI to being Cleared. But I made sure that I had all the info in my background packet up to date so that the B.I had an easy job.

Posted: 11/22/2008 10:16:14 AM EDT

[#8]

Don't forget that the employer who pays for the security clearance "owns" that security clearance.

Some employers will not transfer your security clearance until after a period of time.

In my case my clearance transfered from DOD to TekSystems when I was hired by TekSystems, when I was hired by EDS TekSystems would not transfer my clearance for 6 months.

Posted: 11/22/2008 10:50:03 AM EDT

[#9]

Quoted:
Don't forget that the employer who pays for the security clearance "owns" that security clearance.

Some employers will not transfer your security clearance until after a period of time.

In my case my clearance transfered from DOD to TekSystems when I was hired by TekSystems, when I was hired by EDS TekSystems would not transfer my clearance for 6 months.

If you are a Govt Contractor the Clearance belongs to whatever Govt entity did BI process. We all got that BS from Omniplex, how they paid for the Clearance, etc, etc. I will have to get my Clearance crossed over to the Govt entity that I will be a contractor for, but your employer ,UNLESS you are Govt, doesn't own the Clearance.

Posted: 11/22/2008 11:16:07 AM EDT

[#10]

Right now is a terrible time to try to get cleared. Right now the .gov is trying to get all the incoming cabinet and associated political clowns cleared. If you aren't a Senator or Congressman, you go to the bottom of the list for the next few months.

Posted: 11/22/2008 11:20:39 AM EDT

[#11]

Quoted:
Right now is a terrible time to try to get cleared. Right now the .gov is trying to get all the incoming cabinet and associated political clowns cleared. If you aren't a Senator or Congressman, you go to the bottom of the list for the next few months.

Most of them only hold a Secret.

Posted: 11/22/2008 12:27:58 PM EDT

[#12]

Whats the difference between Yankee white and Yankee fire?

Posted: 11/22/2008 12:44:10 PM EDT

[#13]

Quoted:
Whats the difference between Yankee white and Yankee fire?

I've never heard of Yankee Fire, below is the description of Yankee White.

Yankee White is a security clearance given in the United States for personnel working with the President. Obtaining such clearance requires, in part, a Single Scope Background Investigation (SSBI) by the Department of Defense. Contrary to popular lore, the Yankee White clearance given to personnel who work directly with the President is not a classification, but rather a type of background check.

Individuals having Yankee White clearances undergo extensive background investigation. Yankee White cleared personnel are granted access to any information for which they have a need-to-know, regardless of which organization classified it or at what level. The Yankee White clearance includes a requirement for absolute absence of any foreign influence on the individual. This means they must be a natural-born citizen of the United States, not be married or have been married to a person of foreign descent, or have traveled (save while in government employ and at the instructions of the United States) to countries that are considered to be unfriendly to the United States.[1]

Posted: 11/22/2008 12:51:07 PM EDT

[#14]

Quoted:
As I am about to join the ranks of the laid-off, I have started looking around for IT jobs again. I see there are lots of .gov jobs available but the all require TS or TS/SCI level clearance.

How does one from the private sector pursue and obtain such clearance?

You can't obtain one on your own.

You need to be hired by an employer (public or private-sector) that is going to sponsor your clearance. That organization has personnel who process and manage the sercurity clearances of the employees.
Getting clearance takes a couple of months.

Good luck.

Posted: 11/22/2008 12:57:55 PM EDT

[#15]

What sort of clearance would be given to someone who would work with/around technology that does not exist?

Posted: 11/22/2008 1:04:26 PM EDT

[#16]

I don't think you can get one on your own because you have no need for it.

Quoted:
Right now is a terrible time to try to get cleared. Right now the .gov is trying to get all the incoming cabinet and associated political clowns cleared. If you aren't a Senator or Congressman, you go to the bottom of the list for the next few months.

I know someone who finished his application on Tuesday, was finger-printed on Wednesday, and given his Interim TS on Thursday. But that's just interim I guess.

Posted: 11/22/2008 1:05:21 PM EDT

[#17]

I applied to DHS, they are taking care of the rest.

Mine is only a Secret level, though.

Posted: 11/22/2008 1:14:22 PM EDT

[#18]

Quoted:
I don't think you can get one on your own because you have no need for it.

Quoted:
Right now is a terrible time to try to get cleared. Right now the .gov is trying to get all the incoming cabinet and associated political clowns cleared. If you aren't a Senator or Congressman, you go to the bottom of the list for the next few months.

I know someone who finished his application on Tuesday, was finger-printed on Wednesday, and given his Interim TS on Thursday. But that's just interim I guess.

It depends on who you are going to be working for and just how bad they need you.

My advice to anyone applying is when you get the SF-86 make sure to contact everyone you are going to list as a reference, both business and personal, and let them know that they will be contacted. Tell them that if ANY of their contact info changes to let you know ASAP!! I listed as many phone #'s for my personal references as possible. The key is to make the background investigation as easy as possible for the investigator, if not they can hold up the process. I worked with one young guy, 23 years old, who was cleared, TS/SSBI full scope poly in less then 3 months.

Posted: 11/22/2008 4:24:01 PM EDT

[#19]

Quoted:
I don't think you can get one on your own because you have no need for it.

Quoted:
Right now is a terrible time to try to get cleared. Right now the .gov is trying to get all the incoming cabinet and associated political clowns cleared. If you aren't a Senator or Congressman, you go to the bottom of the list for the next few months.

I know someone who finished his application on Tuesday, was finger-printed on Wednesday, and given his Interim TS on Thursday. But that's just interim I guess.

Yeah, interim will let you do a lot of things, but to get briefed into most SCI stuff you need to hold a fully adjudicated clearance. Same thing goes for working in some areas, an interim TS won't cut the mustard.

Posted: 11/22/2008 10:17:15 PM EDT

[#20]

Does anyone know anything about the COSMIC clearance?

Posted: 11/23/2008 2:23:01 AM EDT

[#21]

Quoted:

Quoted:
I don't think you can get one on your own because you have no need for it.

Quoted:
Right now is a terrible time to try to get cleared. Right now the .gov is trying to get all the incoming cabinet and associated political clowns cleared. If you aren't a Senator or Congressman, you go to the bottom of the list for the next few months.

I know someone who finished his application on Tuesday, was finger-printed on Wednesday, and given his Interim TS on Thursday. But that's just interim I guess.

Yeah, interim will let you do a lot of things, but to get briefed into most SCI stuff you need to hold a fully adjudicated clearance. Same thing goes for working in some areas, an interim TS won't cut the mustard.

I "know a guy" who got an interim TS/SCI along with some other letters very quickly, since you needed SCI to even enter a workspace and a TS alone would have been worthless.

Posted: 11/23/2008 2:26:43 AM EDT

[#22]

Good luck.

I got one when I worked at GD, but they are impossible to get on your own.

You need to apply for a job that requires one. That's the primary way.

Unless you have some kind of super technical skills they need right now, it's very difficult to get one quickly.

Posted: 11/23/2008 2:46:48 AM EDT

[#23]

Quoted:
Does anyone know anything about the COSMIC clearance?

COSMIC is a NATO clearance.

Posted: 11/23/2008 3:50:32 AM EDT

[#24]

Quoted:
Good luck.

I got one when I worked at GD, but they are impossible to get on your own.

You need to apply for a job that requires one. That's the primary way.

Unless you have some kind of super technical skills they need right now, it's very difficult to get one quickly.

You hit the nail on the head, I have heard of some computer geeks getting pushed through the pipeline in several days, this was for a TS/SCI, not an interim one.

Posted: 11/23/2008 4:01:59 AM EDT

[#25]

What they said, and god help you if you have a USIS background investigator running you.

Posted: 11/23/2008 4:14:12 AM EDT

[#26]

Quoted:
What they said, and god help you if you have a USIS background investigator running you.

Hey, Hey, I work for USIS, or as we refer to them, USELESS!!

I can not WAIT to turn my 2 weeks into them and go to work for Northrop Grumman.

Posted: 11/23/2008 4:21:04 AM EDT

[#27]

Hey, I didn't say USIS sucks, or is a group of incompetents wildly overcharging for non-performance of routine duties, or that most employees are escapees from various mental institutions, or that the management structure actually harms our national defense.

Now, I'll back any one of those statements...

Did you get your USIS hand sanitizer a month ago?

Posted: 11/23/2008 4:29:40 AM EDT

[#28]

When I was in the Army I had a NSA TS clearance.

When I went to work for Martin Marietta (Lockheed Martin) I had to get a Secret clearance and the the fact I had a NSA clearance didn't mean anything. I had to start from scratch.

When I was assigned to a DOE contract in the Nuclear Weapons Complex I was required to get a "Q" Clearance. The fact that I previously had a TS and a S clearance didn't mean anything and I had to start over from scratch.

Posted: 11/23/2008 4:45:00 AM EDT

[#29]

Quoted:
It's a catch-22 at times.

Some jobs require the clearance before you start.

Otherwise the company must have work for you to do for 1 year while the clearance is being processed.

We have to get waivers for our people to even let them in the building while they are awaiting the clearances.

Posted: 11/23/2008 4:51:36 AM EDT

[#30]

Quoted:
Hey, I didn't say USIS sucks, or is a group of incompetents wildly overcharging for non-performance of routine duties, or that most employees are escapees from various mental institutions, or that the management structure actually harms our national defense.

Now, I'll back any one of those statements...

Did you get your USIS hand sanitizer a month ago?

I was just kidding, I agree, we have been on our contract for 2 1/2 years and are on our 3rd PM!! We are supposed to get a $5,000 bonus for referring a cleared person, well they screwed me out of two bonus!!!!!!

Hand sanitizer, you must be kidding? I've applied for positions on their site only to find out that they lost the contract!!!

Posted: 11/23/2008 4:53:54 AM EDT

[#31]

I'm in IT and just went through this ...I gave up actually its such a pain . I started the forms and I just couldn't answer it all and if you don't have an answer then you can't go any further on the forms online. do you remember the address of where you lived for the last 10 years? do you remember the names of the people that lived next to you during those times? phone numbers? do you have the address and phone # of 15 friends for the last 10 years .. on and on. anyway I just didn't keep those kind of records so I called Teksystems , national IT recruiter and they hooked me up in a few weeks.

Posted: 11/23/2008 4:59:52 AM EDT

[#32]

Quoted:
I'm in IT and just went through this ...I gave up actually its such a pain . I started the forms and I just couldn't answer it all and if you don't have an answer then you can't go any further on the forms online. do you remember the address of where you lived for the last 10 years? do you remember the names of the people that lived next to you during those times? phone numbers? do you have the address and phone # of 15 friends for the last 10 years .. on and on. anyway I just didn't keep those kind of records so I called Teksystems , national IT recruiter and they hooked me up in a few weeks.

Although they ask about neighbors if you do not recall names just put that down. I have lived in the same house now for over 13 years on a court and I know the names of 3 families on the court.

It is a pain in the ass but the pay off comes when you get that TS. I worked armed security while waiting for my clearance to come through and we had one older man from Burma that took 2 1/2 years to get cleared!!

Posted: 11/23/2008 5:12:13 AM EDT

[#33]

Quoted:
Don't forget that the employer who pays for the security clearance "owns" that security clearance.

Some employers will not transfer your security clearance until after a period of time.

In my case my clearance transfered from DOD to TekSystems when I was hired by TekSystems, when I was hired by EDS TekSystems would not transfer my clearance for 6 months.

No, they don't "Own" your clearance, they just have to release it. all they have to do is log into JPAS and press a button. AFAIK it can be "forced" away from them if need be.

Posted: 11/23/2008 5:56:22 AM EDT

[#34]

Quoted:

Quoted:
Don't forget that the employer who pays for the security clearance "owns" that security clearance.

Some employers will not transfer your security clearance until after a period of time.

In my case my clearance transfered from DOD to TekSystems when I was hired by TekSystems, when I was hired by EDS TekSystems would not transfer my clearance for 6 months.

No, they don't "Own" your clearance, they just have to release it. all they have to do is log into JPAS and press a button. AFAIK it can be "forced" away from them if need be.

Confirm

Posted: 11/23/2008 6:07:31 AM EDT

[#35]

Quoted:

Quoted:
Don't forget that the employer who pays for the security clearance "owns" that security clearance.

Some employers will not transfer your security clearance until after a period of time.

In my case my clearance transfered from DOD to TekSystems when I was hired by TekSystems, when I was hired by EDS TekSystems would not transfer my clearance for 6 months.

No, they don't "Own" your clearance, they just have to release it. all they have to do is log into JPAS and press a button. AFAIK it can be "forced" away from them if need be.

Confirm

When I left Omniplex for USIS it took 1 day to cross my clearance over. Now when I leave USIS for NG it may take up to 2 weeks since I will be going to work for another Govt entity.

Posted: 11/23/2008 7:52:41 AM EDT

[#36]

When I left Omniplex for USIS it took 1 day to cross my clearance over. Now when I leave USIS for NG it may take up to 2 weeks since I will be going to work for another Govt entity.

That is because the designated 'security manager' with USIS is dragging his/her feet. Such a delay is on the part of USIS, and should not occur. If you were to contact your new security manager on this regard, you may obtain a better response.

Posted: 11/23/2008 8:00:56 AM EDT

[#37]

Quoted:
When I left Omniplex for USIS it took 1 day to cross my clearance over. Now when I leave USIS for NG it may take up to 2 weeks since I will be going to work for another Govt entity.

That is because the designated 'security manager' with USIS is dragging his/her feet. Such a delay is on the part of USIS, and should not occur. If you were to contact your new security manager on this regard, you may obtain a better response.

My Clearance is crossing to a NEW Govt entity, so that is what may take time. The security manager for NG already got me vetted in 2 days.

Posted: 11/23/2008 2:28:18 PM EDT

[#38]

Quoted:
Hey, I didn't say USIS sucks, or is a group of incompetents wildly overcharging for non-performance of routine duties, or that most employees are escapees from various mental institutions, or that the management structure actually harms our national defense.

Now, I'll back any one of those statements...

Did you get your USIS hand sanitizer a month ago?

IM sent to you.

Posted: 11/23/2008 2:39:28 PM EDT

[#39]

Quoted:
As I am about to join the ranks of the laid-off, I have started looking around for IT jobs again. I see there are lots of .gov jobs available but the all require TS or TS/SCI level clearance.

How does one from the private sector pursue and obtain such clearance?

One doesn't, not unless one has very, very good connections.

It's expensive and time-consuming to sponsor someone for a clearance. So, if you don't already have one, they'll pass on you. They'd rather have amediocre guy who already has a clearance than a guru who doesn't.

Posted: 11/23/2008 2:51:28 PM EDT

[#40]

since you are in NoVA, you should look at http://www.chenegatechnology.com/ they have lots of IT listings in NoVA

Posted: 11/23/2008 2:53:36 PM EDT

[#41]

I'm done having any job that requires a rectal exam of any sort.

[ARCHIVED THREAD] - Obtaining Security Clearance

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