SECURITY CLEARANCE 101 GUIDE
As always, I’m speaking in generalities here, there is always the rare exception.
WHAT IS A U.S. SECURITY CLEARANCE?
I am specifically referring to a “United States Security Clearance” for individuals seeking to obtain security clearances to allow access to classified national security information.
Yes, I know it means way more than that, but I’m not about to write an essay on the intricacies and nuances of security clearances here.
WHAT IS THE BIG DEAL WITH HAVING A SECURITY CLEARANCE?
Nearly all overseas security contractor jobs require at least a U.S. Secret Security Clearance. There are rare exceptions, such as some UN contracts or situations where a company might sponsor a clearance for a highly qualified candidate if they can't find someone already cleared. Outside of that, having a U.S. Security Clearance is essential for these roles.
HAVING A SECURITY CLEARANCE IS MONEY IN THE BANK
By far, the best thing you can have on your resume, guaranteed to open a hundred doors in the overseas security industry, is a U.S. Security Clearance. If you don’t have one, it just adds another barrier to getting an overseas security job. Eccentaly if you do not have at least a Secret Security Clearance, you will go nowhere in this industry.
A CAREER NOT A JOB
The whole purpose of my writing these guides is to show you how to get an overseas security contractor job with an actual career path and upward mobility so you can someday retire comfortably.
That is why I consider a security clearance such an essential part of your future in this industry.
HOW DO YOU GET A SECURITY CLEARANCE?
THERE ARE ONLY THREE WAYS THAT I KNOW OF:
Join the Military
The Stateside Civilian Way
Get Lucky
1. THE MILITARY WAY
This is the best option if you want to work in the overseas security industry. Joining the military is a surefire way to get a security clearance and relevant experience at the same time. You will get a paycheck, three hots and a cot, the GI Bill, and so on.
HOW TO CHOOSE AN MOS* THAT WILL GET YOU A CLEARANCE
Do your research on which MOS will essentially guarantee you a security clearance. And ask around if you know some active-duty guys, vets, or on places like Reddit.
You probably don’t want to trust a recruiter if they say something like, “Every soldier in the chow hall gets a Top Secret.”
CLEARANCE + MILITARY EXPERIENCE = OVERSEAS SECURITY JOB
Not only will you have a security clearance when fighting for a job in a highly competitive field like overseas security, but you will also have several years of consistent relevant employment, a bunch of training, and certs.
When you get out, you will be sent straight to the front of the hiring line past everyone else, along with all the other vets. It’s a win-win-win situation for you on day one of your overseas security career job search.
DONT GO ALL RAMBO IF YOU DON’T WANT TO
Many of you will want to become a Ranger or some other combat MOS; that will be a much longer contract, and you may get shot in your wee-wee by an RPG.
Remember, the end goal here is not to get in on the 4th invasion of Iraq; it’s to put you in a position to become highly employable in the overseas security job market—and to serve your country, of course.
SUGGESTED MOS’s
FIRST CHOICE: I would suggest Security Forces in the Air Force because you’ll get related experience, and there’s a good chance of obtaining a much higher clearance like Top Secret TS/SCI.
Each clearance upgrade opens a hundred more doors when you get out. The only reason I suggest the Air Force over an Army MP is that the Air Force has better everything, from bunks to food.
SECOND CHOICE: If you want infantry training but still want the opportunity to be in a position to get a higher clearance, I’d recommend Marine Corps Law Enforcement.
*Military occupational specialty
2. THE STATESIDE CIVILIAN WAY
I’ve written a comprehensive article about how to do this, so for the sake of not repeating myself, read this step-by-step guide on how to get a clearance stateside:
-PART 1: HOW TO GET A PRIVATE SECURITY CONTRACTOR JOB WITHOUT MILITARY EXPERIENCE
-PART 2: HOW TO GET A PRIVATE SECURITY CONTRACTOR JOB WITHOUT MILITARY EXPERIENCE
3. GET LUCKY
You could get lucky and get on a contract overseas without a security clearance in hand, or on one that doesn’t even require it. Or not. Honestly, things are so wishy-washy in this industry you just never know.
There are a lot of maybes and “what-ifs” involved with getting hired for an overseas security job without a U.S. security clearance already on your resume. That’s why it’s called Getting Lucky.
WHO GETS SPONSORD FOR SECURITY CLEARANCES?
FIRST ROUND: MILITARY VETERANS
It doesn’t matter if someone was peeling potatoes at the DFAC or doing laundry; ex-military guys are always the first choice out of the non-security clearance pool of resumes. This is just the way it is.
SECOND ROUND: FORMER SWARN LAW ENFORCEMENT (or Adjacent)
Ex-cops are also in the first-round pool, even if they weren’t patrol officers. Heck, just being a corrections officer in Mayberry, North Carolina, for a couple of years will suffice. This is another “it is just the way it is” thing in this industry, don’t try to make sense of it.
THIRD ROUND: NOT EX-ANYTHING
If they’re looking for the best candidates who do not have a security clearance, they should choose you, right?
Negative.
It seems counterintuitive not to pick the guy with a good resume in the security industry over someone who worked at a jail for a few years or was a plumber in the Army for a security contractor job.
Welcome to the world of Security Contracting, this will be one of hundreds of things that won’t make sense.
GET ONE FIRST AND YOU CAN SKIP THE LINE TOO
The flip side of this stupid coin is if you have an active security clearance, you will get chosen no matter what is on a non-security clearance person’s resume.
Even if you have a mediocre resume, it will not matter. The guy with an active security clearance is the guy who gets hired.
HOW DOES THE SECURITY CLEARANCE PROCESS GO?
THE SF-86
This is a questionnaire where you tell the government everything you have ever done, you have ever known, liver, everything.
This monster of a form is 127 pages long, and if you mess up and fill out a single question wrong, it will get kicked right back to you.
YOU WILL HAVE TO KNOW THE FOLLOWING INFORMATION BEFORE YOU START:
Every employer you have ever worked for
With current contact information
The names of people you worked for every job you have had
With current contact information
Every address you have had since birth
Your neighbors’ names and current contact information.
You get the idea
YOUR PAST BETTER BE AS CLEAN AS A PREACHER’S SHEETS
THEY WILL:
Check your credit
Make sure you are who you say you are
Confirm that you are a U.S. citizen
Go over your military record if you previously served
Confirm you have no criminal record (including juvenile)
Verify you don’t get sued regularly
Validate everything else
YOU MAY HAVE A FACE-TO-FACE INTERVIEW (is rare for a Secret)
Occasionally, federal agents will randomly call people from your past or go out and talk to them face-to-face. But that’s usually reserved for when they find inconsistencies or for higher security clearance levels.
DO NOT LIE
STRAIGHT TO JAIL!
You may have gotten away with a lie on a Denny’s application, but If you lie on your SF-86 it is a felony which may result in fines and/or up to five (5)years imprisonment.
Needless to say, if you lie on your SF-86 start practicing how to pick up a bar of soap without bending over.
LIYING ON YOUR SF-86 IS A TICKING TIME BOMB
Maybe they won’t catch it initially, but when it comes up for renewal, or when you change jobs and another company becomes the sponsor, even a random audit. Someone will eventually spot it.
HOW LONG WILL IT TAKE FOR YOUR SECURITY CLEARANCE TO GO THROUGH?
ENSURE YOU ACCURATELY FILL OUT YOUR SF-86
It’s common to make mistakes, if you didn’t fill out something correctly on one of the 127 pages, they’ll kick it back to you. When you send it back, it goes to the back of the line again.
My first clearance got kicked back four times because by then, I was already 30 and had so much to recall by memory that I kept getting dates wrong and forgetting stuff.
After your 100% error-free and 100% omission-free SF-86 is submitted, it will take anywhere between 6 to 12 months to get your clearance approved and active.
Some security contractors have pull and can expedite clearances, otherwise you should count on it taking at least 9 months.
APPLICATION AUDITS
Sometimes you’ll just have bad luck, and your SF-86 gets randomly tagged for an audit, adding another six months or more.
JUST BAD TIMING
Also, if you have bad timing, your submission could hit the system at the same time as Lockheed Martin and Northrop Grumman are awarded a monster contract and need to clear hundreds of people.
THE GOOD NEWS
The one beam of light in a dark sky here is that as long as you have submitted your SF-86, you can start working as soon as your Imtern Clearance goes through. This can happen as fast as 1 month.
WHAT IF YOUR CLEARANCE IS DENIED?
THROW $$$$ AT IT
If your clearance is denied, the only thing you can do at that point is hire a lawyer who specializes in security clearance appeals. Expect to spend thousands of dollars doing this.
Only do it if you are positive the government made a mistake, not because you lied on your SF-86 and got caught.
The government messing up is the only time hiring a lawyer to appeal a clearance denial ever works.
The good news is that I know some people who were denied, hired a lawyer, and a year later, they won and got their clearance.
If you’re already working on a security job overseas and this happens, expect to be on the next thing smoking out of the country.
THAT’S IT
I think I’ve pretty much covered it all. If you have any questions, feel free to ask in the comments below. We check and respond to them daily.
GOOD LUCK!
