Is secret clearance a big deal?

The highest levels of clearance can lead to even higher salaries. The Human Resource Association of the National Capital Area also reported that employees with top secret security clearance could earn up to 60% more than those without top secret clearance in certain jobs.

Is it worth getting security clearance?

A security clearance is a valuable job market commodity.

The cost of an employee's security clearance is covered by an employer, so when a company doesn't have to make this investment, those dollars often go back into a new hire's salary.

How much money can you make with a secret clearance?

While ZipRecruiter is seeing annual salaries as high as $167,500 and as low as $30,000, the majority of Secret Clearance salaries currently range between $68,000 (25th percentile) to $125,500 (75th percentile) with top earners (90th percentile) making $150,000 annually across the United States.

Does a secret clearance help get a job?

Having a security clearance is similar to having a special certification or degree on your résumé. It makes you more marketable, helping you stand out from other candidates and increasing your job prospects. An active or current clearance may also increase your earning potential.

What is the benefit of secret clearance?

Doubles your worth and ability to get jobs in certain sectors that non-cleared personnel could not get. Since employers do not have to pay for your clearance application, the money saved often goes back into the employee's salary.

3 Common Myths About Security Clearances

Can you tell someone you have a secret clearance?

The fact that you have a security clearance is not classified, so there's no reason you can't tell someone you have a security clearance. In fact, the State Department and other government agencies advise applicants who have a clearance to include this information on their resumes.

What disqualifies you from secret clearance?

You were dishonorably discharged from the military. You are currently involved in illegal drug use. You have been judged as mentally incompetent or mentally incapacitated by a mental health professional. You have had a clearance revoked for security reasons.

Is getting a secret clearance hard?

Those who have gone through the security clearance process understand the significant headaches involved in both the initial background investigation as well as periodic reinvestigations. Obtaining a security clearance is no easy task, and not everyone who applies will be granted access.

Should I put secret clearance on my resume?

While it's perfectly acceptable to list your security clearance, polygraph, and issuing agency, you shouldn't list specific Special Access Programs you were a part of, your supervisors in those programs, specific software or tools that were a part of the classified position, or any sensitive or proprietary information.

How many years is a secret clearance good for?

How often is a security clearance renewed? An individual is normally subject to reinvestigation approximately every five years for a Secret or Top Secret clearance.

Is a secret clearance good for 10 years?

Periodic reinvestigations for Top Secret Page 2 2 security clearances are due every 5 years and Secret security clearances periodic reinvestigations are due every 10 years. 3.

Do people with clearances get paid more?

Based on survey data, on average, a security clearance generates 10-20% salary premium with higher clearances commanding the largest increases.

What jobs can you get with top secret clearance?

What percentage of people fail security clearance?

myth #1: Many security clearances are denied.

Less than 1% of security clearances investigations result in denial. Individuals may not be eligible for an interim clearance, and they may have significant issues that need to be mitigated.

Do they tell you why you fail security clearance?

Presidential Executive Order 12968 requires that denied applicants be provided with a written explanation of their denial and a chance to request a review.

What are the 5 levels of security clearance?

How often are secret clearances denied?

You may even wonder if you should continue with the process, particularly if you're not getting a paycheck while you wait. But don't lose heart – 20-30% of all interim security clearances are denied, but that is vastly different than the figure of final clearance denials, which hovers around 1%.

What are red flags for security clearance?

A criminal arrest, financial bankruptcy, unreported foreign travel, drug abuse, mishandling of classified information, serious mental health disease, etc., could result in removal from access, if the government knew.

Do you get polygraphed for a secret clearance?

Polygraph tests accompany some Top Secret or TS/SCI clearances; however, they are not required to obtain either type of clearance and are not part of the clearance background investigation.

Does credit score affect secret clearance?

Imperfect financial circumstances, such as bad credit scores, can have a negative influence on your application and potentially cause your security clearance to be denied. In fact, financial issues comprise a large percentage of security clearance denials.

How much debt is too much for a security clearance?

Is There a Debt Limit to Obtain a Security Clearance? No branch of the military has a set amount of debt that is the breaking point for security clearance. You could owe $5,000 or $50,000 and be granted or denied clearance. It's all a matter of how you deal with the debt.

Can family members affect security clearance?

Hardly. Previous questions have included if a spouse being listed on the sex offender registry for a decade-old arrest or if a jail stint would affect the applicant's security clearance. Those issues would likely only be an issue of the applicant was involved in some way.

What gets investigated for secret clearance?

The security clearance process typically includes a FBI reference check of former employers, coworkers, friends, neighbors, landlords, and schools along with a review of credit, tax, and police records.

What happens if you lie on secret clearance?

We frequently warn of the importance of security clearance applicants being honest on government forms, including the SF-86 security clearance application. Falsifying information on the SF-86 is a felony that can result in fines or five years in prison.

Is there a security clearance higher than Top Secret?

Information "above Top Secret," a phrase used by the media, means either Sensitive Compartmented Information (SCI) or Special Access Program (SAP). It is not truly "above" Top Secret, since there is no clearance higher than Top Secret.