By Police1 Staff
In honor of Veterans Day, the Federal Bureau of Investigation held a live video feed interview on their Facebook page with two special agents who have prior military service.
One of the agents spent four years as a naval officer on active duty, and then another four years in the active reserves before applying to the FBI at the age of 30.
The other agent spent three years in the Army after participating in ROTC in college, and applied to the FBI at the age of 27 after meeting with an FBI recruiter at a job fair.
Both men discussed how the military is instrumental in preparing potential applicants for a job as a special agent, based on the similar structure of both organizations and the coordinated efforts to complete a mission.
They also said the overall mission of the FBI is similar to that of the military, in that both organizations exist to protect and follow the U.S. Constitution and mitigate threats to the country.
One agent mentioned when the FBI and the military show up at a crisis, they are both looked to as leaders, another attribute that makes the FBI a great post-military career due to the similarities.
They also discussed how the FBI provides more private, off-duty time than the military, and how your time is more your own, as opposed to the military’s 24/7 service member standard. Any overseas missions are normally on a volunteer basis with the FBI, in contrast with the military’s mandatory deployments that often come like clockwork.
Several commenters asked questions during the interview, including if the maximum age requirement could be waived with years of military service (yes), and if disabled veterans were eligible to apply to be a special agent (yes).
For more in-depth answers, interested applicants were directed to the FBI’s website at http://www.fbijobs.gov/veterans.