Military intelligence background

[imj345]

Hello all,

Just curious about how you think a Marine Corps intelligence background (2 deployments to Iraq and 1 to Afghanistan) to include a Top Secret/SCI clearance would benefit me in the law world?  I have 9 more months in my contract and then hope to go to law school at UCLA, USC, or USD (they'll all be free for me -- thank you tax payers! [GI Bill])

I'd imagine that national security and defense firms (Boeing, Booz Allen Hamilton, etc) hire lawyers and that they would benefit from having a TS/SCI clearance and military intelligence background.  Do you all think that my imagination deceives me?  Any other opportunities that I may not anticipate?

Clearly, Im not anticipating my background to be a huge sticking point, but rather a nice strong breeze to help push me over the fence when Im stuck. Of course, this wouldnt be entirely due to my intelligence and TS/SCI background, but also because of the leadership, service, yada yada crap that comes along with a military background.

Thanks for any input!

imj

[zojirushi]

Your clearance level should not be included on any applications save those where it is directly pertinent to the position at hand.  That means it should not be on any law school application.  You should contact your security officer for guidance on resumes if you are not familiar with this.  You should also ask him/her on the Corps' stance on posting your clearance level on public internet forums.

[Tom Jones]

It does not matter much beyond the government contract practice, and even then is limited to a handful of firms that deal in "black" contracts.  Service background, rather than the clearance, will be more important.  TS/SCI just doesn't really matter in the legal world.  And it certainly doesn't matter for law school, no one knows and no one cares.

[husky10]

It does not matter much beyond the government contract practice, and even then is limited to a handful of firms that deal in "black" contracts.  Service background, rather than the clearance, will be more important.  TS/SCI just doesn't really matter in the legal world.  And it certainly doesn't matter for law school, no one knows and no one cares.

S/he speaks the truth.

[gallagheria]

Already having a security clearance is great for small companies who do not want to fork up the money to get you one. But the companies you named regularly hire people without clearance and then get them the clearance just like the military did for you when you joined.

 

[petermharrington]

having a TS/SCI clearance is a big deal. i don't understand why it wouldn't be pertinent enough to include on a law school application. it demonstrates your trustworthiness and credibility.

don't listen to some of these people on here. i know from living in DC that a TS clearance is an incredible asset to getting a job

[Tom Jones]

TS/SCI is very valuable for non-legal jobs in DC, but it is much less important for the legal world.  Look at the big DC firms and see where they mention having TS-cleared people.  Most of them don't. Knowing people who work in the GC offices at some of the big defense contractors, their legal problems usually do not involve classified issues, as most of the work can be done at the unclass level.

And FWIW, I listed having an active TS/SCI on my resume, and in 25 OCI interviews and 9 callbacks with DC firms, it came up twice. And it was not relevant in getting hired. 

[Jorden]

What are the issues with a person posting their qualifications and status in military on a forum for discussion? Sorry I do not know what the issue is. Going into law I would figure this is something I could benefit from knowing.

[cooleylawstudent]

I mentioned my military experience on mine and I am proud of it.
Were you 96B or one of the other intell MOS's?

[cooleylawstudent]

Besides briefing intell to the CO is almost identical to "legal briefs" trust me thats an advantage to have as a 1L.