Office of Security, Central Intelligence Agency

Organization and Career Opportunities

The Directorate of Administration was reorganized as of June 4, 2001, and separated into five areas: information technology, finance, security, global support, and human resources. Each area chief sits on the CIA's executive board and has equal stature with the directorate administrators. This restructuring was undertaken to allow support personnel to work more closely with the CIA operatives (Directorate of Operations), the CIA analysts (Directorate of Intelligence), and the CIA scientists (Directorate of Science and Technology). The changes have played a role in each of the career paths within the Office of Security, which is divided into a number of law enforcement positions.

All Office of Security employees and their spouses must be U.S. citizens. Applicants must undergo a number of medical and security clearances, must be psychologically tested and evaluated, and must pass a polygraph examination. Applicants need not have a law enforcement background; current areas of specialization that are sought include business, computer science, computer security, criminal justice, economics, English, finance, human resources, journalism, languages, psychology, sociology, and systems analysis.

The Office of Security has professional and para-professional positions. Professional personnel, who must have a four-year college degree for consideration, may be assigned within the United States or overseas. CIA policy emphasizes rotation of job assignments, requiring employees to move frequently during the course of their careers. Professional positions include security officer generalist, polygraph examiner, electrical engineer, and computer security specialist. Requirements for each position differ. Many applicants for the security officer generalist positions have previous military or investigative experience in addition to education in the social sciences.

Polygraph examiner applicants must have at least two years of experience and certification from the American Polygraph Association or an accredited polygraph school in addition to a bachelor degree. Electrical engineer applicants must have a BSEE degree. Both experienced electrical engineers and recent graduates may apply; however, the beginning salary will match the applicant's ability and experience. The position involves developing technical solutions in the areas of technical surveillance countermeasures, communications, and computer security.

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