Okay I want to be a secret agent

[Bandera]

What's the best way to apply to the CIA? Any ideas?

[PT-The Italian Commie]

Okay, what kind of Secret Agend you'd want to be if you don't even realize WHERE to look out to become one?

http://www.cia.gov/employment/index.html
http://www.cia.gov/employment/faq.html

http://www.cia.gov/employment/images...NewJan1006.pdf

Remember: Google is your friend...

[Bandera]

I figured the apply on line bit was a bunch of crap they have up for the wannabes to use. There must be some other way for serious people to get a foot in the door.

[Kthulhu]

You could join the DEA and continue this pathetic war on drugs. Probably more action in that than in the CIA these days.

[UZI4U]

First off, I'd advise against joining the CIA these days, some major shake-ups are around the corner in that group.

Second, you probably won't be a secret agent even if you get in. Human intel is fairly small these days and mostly done by proxy.

But if you really want to give it a try, the best thing you can do is get great scores in college. Degrees in history or military history/global security will help you. Degrees in foreign culture and such crap were popular at the farm back in the Clintoon days. Foreign language skills, especially Arabic, Persian Farsi, Chinese and Korean will almost guarantee you a job as an interpreter/comint specialist.

Frankly, the DIA and NSA are where all the action is at, and much more stable and less PC than the CIA.

[Kthulhu]

And what's the joy in being a secret agent? Sounds like a load of stress, to me.

[TJ]

First - get your head examined.
Second - If the first shows everything okay, get a second opinion.

[UZI4U]

Originally Posted by Darla

I am of the opinion that the entire organization should be razed to the ground then rebuilt brick by brick.

That statement could be applied to 90% of the federal government these days...

I agree with you on all points, our only real hope for human intel in the Middle East comes from the Israelis. Even they aren't as good at it as they used to be.

"But who needs humint, we've got satellites!!!1!1!!1one1!"

[PT-The Italian Commie]

If you want to serve your Country, couldn't you just join more USEFUL organizations like your local Law Enforcement? People around you will appreciate.

[JCoyote]

I know a few people who on joining the military and other groups the Agency found them. Test scores that stand out in one way or another help.

However, they didn't take any of the jobs offered from those agencies (CIA, NSA, FBI) because in a lot of ways they are jobs that aren't easy to leave. You could be retired 15 years and if anything you had much connection with becomes important, you can be back in in the blink of an eye.

I know of a couple people in the CIA, but it's true that it is mostly desk work these days. Granted, I think that's whats going to be the ruin of the CIA; they anticipated no need for significant field resources anymore and then the war on terror made that obviously a load of crap. Terrorist groups are pretty hard to use spy satellites and electronic eavesdropping on when they are based on small groups and informal networks. So there is a restructuring in the wings; when the CIA is mostly used for intelligence interpretation and not much actual gathering... and can't even get that interpretation right so many times...

Then again, it's Washington. We know what restructuring is like there... eliminate an agency and then give everyone from it the exact same job with a different name in a "new" department with a different name.