Education · 1 of 5
The path
There is no license. There is a hiring standard, a long security check and two academies.
- 1
High school
Grade 12
Keep your record clean. The background check will look at your driving, your credit, your school records and the people who know you.
- 2
A degree or real experience
1 to 4 years
A bachelor's degree with good grades, or a year of graduate study, or a year of investigative or protective work. You must be at least 21 to apply.
- 3
Apply and pass the first phase
A few months
Posted on the federal jobs site. A written entrance exam, a fitness test, an interview and a hiring panel, then a conditional job offer.
- 4
The security phase
6 to 9 months
A security interview, credit checks, a polygraph (lie detector) exam, a medical exam and a full background check for a Top Secret clearance.
- 5
Two academies
About 7 months
About 12 weeks of investigator training in Glynco, Georgia, then an 18-week Secret Service course at its own academy outside Washington.