Job Assistance: Wait on Clearance or take upon other offers??

Wondering if anyone from the forums can offer me some insight. I am 23 Years old and graduated college last may. Since then I have not been able to find a full time IT related job. Recently I was offered a contingent offer in order for them to undergo a Top Secret Clearance Investigation. I was told I could come on board with an interim which I recently found out is not the case.

I have had a few different companies contact me requiring a Secret Clearance. Therefore they would sponsor me in JPAS for a secret and put a hold on my TS. What I am looking for is some advice; Should I wave my TS and go ahead and take these offers? Wait on my TS as it will help me down the road, or being young in the job market should I not care about the TS because I will receive one in the future.

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Comments

LeifAlire

Wait and see about the TS, more money and opportunity in a TS than a S.

scaredoftests

Wait and see. Top secret clearance is the way to go!

jvrlopez

Stay with it. Trust me, it's way worth it.

puertorico1985

TS is the one to prefer, however, a TS can take a very long time. If you already received an offer, and can hold out a few months for the TS, I would do just that.

jvrlopez

I know someone recently who was put in for their first security clearance (TS) and got it in 3 months. It just depends on how much background and baggage you have.

jthunderbird

jvrlopez wrote: »

I know someone recently who was put in for their first security clearance (TS) and got it in 3 months. It just depends on how much background and baggage you have.

I am in the TS world and have never heard of such a thing. I received mine fastest in my office (out of about 2

and it took 8 months.

OP, whats to say you have to "wait"? Sign on with the job willing to sponsor a TS and get another job in the mean time. Once the TS goes through, your pay scale will jump quite a bit until you reach higher levels. Engineer levels closing in on 6 figures is pretty much the same using or not using a TS in my experience.

higherho

It got mine in 3 and a half months. Jvriopez is correct and commonly new SSBI investigations go first rather than renewal's as well. My SCI only took 4 months (granted all they do is re look at your SSBI investigation and do some basic checks unless they find something they need to look into further).

You can wait but honestly if you take another position your investigation is still going on and you will still get your TS unless they find something. They don't put a "hold" on your investigation. At least never did with me. You can also use this as a bargaining chip.

gilly225

I appreciate all the feedback. I am counting on my investigation to go through rather quickly as I do not even own a passport.

It looks like from the feedback I should try to survive as long as I can until my TS goes through, part-time jobs etc.

gilly225

higherho wrote: »

It got mine in 3 and a half months. Jvriopez is correct and commonly new SSBI investigations go first rather than renewal's as well. My SCI only took 4 months (granted all they do is re look at your SSBI investigation and do some basic checks unless they find something they need to look into further).

You can wait but honestly if you take another position your investigation is still going on and you will still get your TS unless they find something. They don't put a "hold" on your investigation. At least never did with me. You can also use this as a bargaining chip.

So basically my investigation will be on going no matter what? I'm guessing the only way the would find out is if I put in for a job that required me a different clearance, as you can not have 2 investigations going at once?

higherho

@gilly225

Basically what happens is this. Your SSBI goes on as long as your clearance is sponsored in JPAS by a contractor or government employer (granted the people who put you through the TS put in that extra cash for it to happen, TS's typically cost over 10k from what I heard). For example, I was waiting for my SCI to be adjudicated for one position while working for another. I did not take the position that was putting me through my SCI but I had my FSO check JPAS for me and I took notice that I could be read on and obtain my SCI even though I took a different position. This also happened to me when I was first starting out. I had my interim secret and left the people who put me in for my TS but my investigation was still going by the time I left. I was picked up by HP and sponsored my clearance and my adjudicated was already finished at this point.

Now can your security investigator put a hold on your investigation? or I should say process before adjudication? Yes, if they find anything wrong during the investigation or if something else major happened.

Respectfully,
H

zidian

Secrets and Top Secrets can still take a while. My secret clearance took around 4 to 5 months, I'm sure a TS for me would take a year. I grew up as a military brat and pretty much kept that moving lifestyle afterwards. I've moved houses every two years or less since I was in diapers. That definitely makes the process take longer. If you've been stationary without a lot of work history, I'd guess it would go much quicker.

gilly225

zidian wrote: »

Secrets and Top Secrets can still take a while. My secret clearance took around 4 to 5 months, I'm sure a TS for me would take a year. I grew up as a military brat and pretty much kept that moving lifestyle afterwards. I've moved houses every two years or less since I was in diapers. That definitely makes the process take longer. If you've been stationary without a lot of work history, I'd guess it would go much quicker.

Same house for 20 Years, only other housing was during college, and never been out of U.S.
Hoping it will go as quickly as possible. I have had contact with an employer today which did not require a Clearance. But they seem suspicious I would leave upon my TS being Granted (More than likely

)