Hey CC, I have a bit of an obstacle ahead of me. I am a recent grad, and graduated last year. I’ve been applying for jobs and a bunch require security clearance. I have an old juvenile record that I hoped I could overcome with a BS.EE, also I love engineering. My offense is 11 years old, happened when I was 13 I think, now I’m 24. The offense was possession of a weapon (knuckles), it was then dismissed, and I think it’s considered a Class A misdemeanor. I’m wondering if there are any success stories for anyone here with records but got clearance anyways. On plenty of applications, I see it asks for in the past seven years, so I think I’m okay in that respect. But is it even possible for a security clearance job?
Also I notice at certain hiring events they fingerprint you before allowing you on site. I’m wondering if they’re looking for warrants(which i have none), or just a general check right then and there.
You should be able to get at least a secret clearance. I’ll guess about 10%-15% of the people in my Air Force squadron had some kind of juvenile or criminal record, and everyone in the squadron had a security clearance. A few people I worked with at aerospace companies had clearances with minor criminal records, too.
I can’t think of anyone I knew who got a top secret clearance with a criminal record, but maybe its just that nobody told me. The people I knew with top secrets all seemed like pretty straight arrows.
I’d be very surprised if any of the companies you visited for hiring events could run an immediate query for warrants. They’re probably just storing the fingerprints in case anything happens.
I know someone who has a top secret clearance and a criminal record. OP should have no problem so long as they disclose the offense. Seriously, a screw up at 13 means nothing.
@Anonthrowaway, it is important to understand that your employer does not see your investigation for your clearance. It is old enough that for the vast majority of employers you will not need to disclose it. The security clearance is done by DSS, and all they tell your employer is “yes” or “no”. But DSS expects full disclosure, they will tell you what you need to tell them, and I am not even sure they will want to know, given how old it was.
From a security standpoint, your background can be viewed as something that can be used against you. If were were someone with an exceptionally shady past, but never got caught, that could be a problem because you could be coerced into revealing info because someone threatened to expose you. That’s part of why background checks are done. The FBI is very good at this stuff.
The form you fill out provides a lot of info on what they look at.