Obtaining Security Clearance

We get clearance-related questions in almost all threads on this site, so we thought we’d occasionally create a separate Q&A thread. Here, you can ask questions about clearance investigations, how to get a clearance, reinvestigations, adjudications, or any topic you are looking for an answer to.

We’ve had a lot of threads here where people have briefly discussed how they obtained their clearance. Let’s make it official.. Tell us: When you received your clearance How long it took Which agency issued it Whether you received it as a contractor or Federal worker Any other interesting details

Only a year? See security clearance. I know a lot of job seekers that would be very happy with only a year wait. The average time we’ve recorded over the past 12 months to obtain a clearance from beginning the final award is 14-18 months. What about you?

In yesterday’s USA Today, a report titled “White House looks for faster top secret clearances” details the positive efforts of Office of Management and Budget deputy director Clay Johnson to reduce the security clearance backlog. The idea, is that extensive background checks, specifically interviewing a clearance applicant’s friends and neighbors