FBI employees are responsible for protecting and defending the United States against terrorists and spies; upholding and enforcing the criminal laws of the United States; and providing leadership and criminal justice services to our international, federal, state, and local partners. If these missions appeal to you, then you should consider joining the FBI team.
The FBI recruits at all levels (undergraduate, graduate, experienced professionals) and hires individuals with a wide variety of educational and professional backgrounds. In addition to our current job postings for full-time professionals, we offer paid Honors Internship Program as well as a non-paid Volunteer Internship Program.
Other student internship opportunities include the Laboratory Division's Visiting Science Program. Students with backgrounds in science, engineering, or technology disciplines are invited to apply.
The FBI often participates in career fairs and other recruiting events where interested candidates have a chance to meet an FBI employee and learn more about job opportunities at the FBI.
Program Overview
The FBI's Cyber Internship Program is a great first step to a cyber career. The program offers undergraduate (Junior or Senior), graduate or post-doctorate students throughout the nation, an opportunity to assist in preventing and investigating the most sophisticated computer threats around the globe. Cyber interns will have the opportunity to assist experts in the collecting and analyzing of information pertinent to computer intrusion investigations, assisting in the computer forensic laboratory, incident handling, and assisting with software assurance.
The FBI's Cyber Internship Program allows students to work at select FBI Field Office locations and at Headquarters in Washington, D.C. Participants who come on-board during the summer months will spend at least 10 weeks working side-by-side with other FBI professional staff employees and FBI special agents. After completing the summer internship, opportunities are also available throughout the school year at selected offices. Travel cost from the office selected will be on the sole responsibility of the student.
The majority of interns will be assigned to field offices, and others will be assigned to FBI Headquarters in Washington, DC, the FBI Academy in Quantico, Virginia; or other off-sites.
Pay & Work Schedule
- Students are paid a salary commensurate with their education level
- Students will receive annual leave, sick leave, and paid federal holidays
- Students must be willing to participate for a term of at least 10 weeks or longer, 40 hours per week (during the summer only.)
- Continuance during the school year for a minimum of 16 hours per month requires a satisfactory rating from supervisor at the end of the 10 week summer program and space available with the Headquarters Division, Field Office, or resident agency.
- All travel costs will be sole responsibility of the student.
Qualifications
- Must be a U.S. citizen
- Must be enrolled and attending a, college, or university, full-time, that is accredited by one of the regional or national institutional associations recognized by the United States Secretary Education
- Must be an Undergraduate (Junior or Senior), Graduate, or Post-Doctorate Student at the time of hire. (A participant cannot be graduating before the program begins.)
- Must have and maintain a minimum cumulative grade point average (GPA) for a college student of 3.0 GPA or above on a 4.0 GPA scale, and be in good academic standing.
- Must meet FBI employment suitability standards, including policies regarding current and prior usage of illegal drugs, and must be able to pass a comprehensive background check, polygraph test, drug test, and personnel security interview (PSI) to obtain a Top-Secret clearance.
- For students transferring from a 2-year institution to a 4-year institution:
- Submit a copy of your acceptance letter which states that you are enrolled and will be attending full-time
- Must submit all requested documentation by the appropriate deadlines
Educational Disciplines
Cyber Internship Program will only be considering candidates, who are pursuing a degree in one or more of the following areas:
Applied & Computational Mathematics, Computer & Digital Investigations, Computer & Information Security, Computer Forensics and/or Digital Investigations, Computer Information Systems, Computer Information Technology Education, Computer Security, Computer Science, Computer Engineering, Cyber Security, Database Development, Digital Investigations Management, Electrical Engineering, Enterprise Computing, Information Assurance and Security, Information Science, Information Management, Information Security, Information Technology Management, Management Information Systems, Mathematics, Network and Telecommunications Management, Networking, Programming, Software Engineering, Web Development.
Selection Process
The FBI's Cyber Internship Program is highly competitive. As part of the selection process, FBI representatives from each field office will arrange interviews with the most competitive candidates. Each field office will then nominate a designated number of candidates to the Headquarters Internship Team. Selections are based on academic achievement, area of study, life/work experiences, and the needs of the FBI. Students must be classified by their educational institution with the appropriate classification to be hired for this program.
Final decisions will be made by February. Selected candidates will receive a conditional job offer soon thereafter. The initial offer is conditional because candidates selected must undergo and pass an extensive FBI Background Investigation and receive an FBI Top Secret clearance to be eligible to participate in the program.