The CIA’s mission is to provide timely and accurate information on foreign threats to the President and other top-level policymakers. Special agents also conduct counterintelligence activities to prevent enemies from obtaining secret information. Secrecy is a vital part of intelligence. Applicants for CIA jobs are even asked not to tell friends and neighbors that they are hoping to work for the CIA.
Special agents earn an annual salary of $74,872 to $155,500.
Requirements of Joining the CIA National Clandestine Service in Vermont
The National Clandestine Service of the CIA in Vermont offers two entry-level positions for individual’s interested Core Collector career: the Professional Trainee Program (PT) and the Clandestine Service Program (CST).
- PT Program: Requires candidates to have a minimum of a Bachelor’s degree. This program is for candidates who lack appropriate work experience and are between the ages of 21-25.
- CST Program: Requires candidates to have a minimum of a Bachelor’s degree with several years of work or military experience. Candidates for the CST are typically 26-35 years old with 35 being the max age for employment consideration.
The main differences between the programs are work experience and age requirements.
Scholastic Requirements
- Candidate holds a Bachelors or higher degree
- Candidates must have a GPA of 3.0 or higher during undergraduate studies
Preferred areas of study for candidates for the Core Collector position in Virginia include:
- Economics
- Nuclear or physical science
- Biological or chemical engineering
- Finance
- International business or relations
Required Job Skills
Ability to:
- Think “on their feet”
- Write and read precisely and clearly
- Work as part of a team or independently
Other required skills include:
- Strong interest in international affairs
- Solid interpersonal and communication skills
Foreign Language Experience and Foreign Residency
- Candidates are required to be fluent in a second language, preferably one of these: Russian, Somali, Turkish and Urdu Arabic, Korean, Kurdish, Chinese, Dari, Indonesian Pashto or Persian
- Candidates must have prior residency abroad or extensive knowledge of foreign countries and cross-cultural sensitivity
Becoming a CIA Special Agent Investigator in Vermont
A bachelor’s degree or better and three years of relevant experience are both basic requirements for CIA special agent candidates.
Persons with a master’s or doctoral degree have an edge over those with just a bachelor’s. Suggested majors include:
- Criminal Justice
- Law Enforcement
- Information Technology
- Computer Science
- Engineering
- Homeland Security
Vermont has six public and 14 private accredited four-year colleges and universities conveniently located across the state. Vermont residents can also earn their degree from several accredited online universities.
Internships are available for both undergraduate and graduate students. Applicants must have at least a 3.0 grade point average (GPA) and have completed one or more full years of college in an acceptable field. Internships involve full-time analytical work over a summer or one full semester. They are an excellent way for students to assess future employment opportunities.
Basic requirements for CIA jobs include:
- College degree as indicated above
- US citizen between the ages of 21 and 35
- Good health/Drug free
- Excellent physical condition
- Three years criminal investigation (or related) experience
- Able to pass a thorough background investigation, medical exam, polygraph test and psychological evaluation
- Successfully complete two interviews
Training requirements for CIA careers in Vermont:
It is highly desirable for applicants to have completed the Criminal Investigation Training Program at the Federal Law Enforcement Training Center in Glynco, GA before applying for employment with the CIA. Those who have not done so will be expected to complete it within the first year of employment.
Agents will receive additional specialized training periodically throughout their careers.
CIA Lecture Series in Vermont
On March 5, 2014, former CIA Chief of Counterterrorism Haviland Smith was the guest speaker at Rutland Free Library, as part of a Vermont Humanities Council lecture series. Smith spoke about such current concerns as terrorism, nuclear proliferation, drones and cyber warfare. He was educated at Dartmouth College where he majored in Russian Studies. Before becoming Chief of Counterterrorism Smith was a CIA operative in Prague, Berlin, Beirut and Tehran.
In October, 2013, retired CIA agent, John Lohman, was the speaker at St. Johnsbury Academy’s Colwell Center for Global Understanding in St. Johnsbury. He spoke about his service in the Soviet Union and the Middle East during the Cold War.