Aug. 24, 2007 — The Central Intelligence Agency came to the University of the Virgin Islands’ St. Croix campus Friday looking for new recruits.
In 2004, President George W. Bush directed the CIA to quickly increase the number of fully qualified intelligence analysts by 50 percent. Bush also ordered the agency to double the number of employees in the agency's directorate of operations (which is responsible for gathering intelligence), the number of officers proficient in mission-critical languages and the number of officers responsible for research and development to counter the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction.
The agency is hiring covert agents, intelligence analysts, translators and the sorts of personnel generally thought of as doing, well, spy work. But the CIA also seeks an array of support personnel, from engineers, computer programmers and paralegals to nurses, building superintendents and warehouse operators. All employees must pass a background check and receive a top-secret clearance — a feat which is, perhaps surprisingly, very attainable for most people, according to CIA officials. Employees must be willing to relocate at least to Langley, Va., where the CIA is headquartered, and for some positions to anywhere in the world.
“Please, could you not take pictures?” asked Ruth M. Norfleet, a recruiter with the agency’s Clandestine Services Hiring Division. The reason became clear a few minutes later.
“Today I am not using my true name,” said a man from (at some point in time) Langley. He gave a PowerPoint presentation about what kinds of jobs are available, what the requirements are and how to go about applying. He is himself covert, as he said analysts, agents and many in the agency are, regardless of the sort of work they do on a daily basis.
Salaries for analysts range from $46,000 to $74,000, the man from Langley said. A very high premium is set on applicants who can speak or write a dozen or more languages used in the Middle East and Asia, particularly dialects of Arabic, Urdu, Pashtu, Dari, Kurdish and others connected to the lands in which the U.S. is currently embroiled. But any and all foreign-language abilities are considered an asset.
Students came and went from the UVI Cafetorium, where the recruiting table with pamphlets and free CIA ballpoint pens and lapel pins was set up. A few appeared particularly interested, getting more information after the presentation. Norfleet minded the table and kept watch for cameras while the covert agent spoke.
“You don’t have to be perfect,” the man from Langley said. “We want you to have good character, and we ask your friends and neighbors what they think of you. But just because you’ve been in some minor trouble does not disqualify you.”
Later, he elaborated that felony convictions and drug use within the past year were show stoppers for working at the CIA. Employees can drink, but a history of excessive drinking would be a problem. Lesser legal problems and older, minor drug use won’t necessarily count an applicant out, he said.
Applicants take a polygraph test and the CIA checks them out financially, academically and medically. From start to finish, the whole process will take close to a year, the agent said.
On Monday the CIA recruiters will be at UVI’s St. Thomas campus. Applications are taken online at the agency’s website, which includes details on the job requirements, pay scales and application requirements.
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