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Backgrounds that move you up the pile

• Certified public accountant

  An accounting license plus investigative interest is close to a golden ticket for financial crime work.

• Military or police service

  Counts as professional experience, and veterans get an exception to the upper age limit.

• A law degree

  Useful for complex white-collar and public corruption cases, and a route into legal roles at the Bureau.

• Fluency in a hard language

  Tested formally, and it can attach you to work nobody else can do.

• A pilot certificate

  Federal agencies run their own aircraft and hire agents who can fly them.