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It’s important to understand exactly who and what determine
clearance statuses in the United States. The short answer is the Bureau
of Human Resources. While those working in the Department of
State are the ones who primarily need security clearances, it’s the
Bureau of Human Resources that assigns them. How do they do this?
CONFIDENTIAL,
SECRET, TOP SECRET
Information (SCI), which is sometimes
considered its own security level. To obtain
this level of clearance, individuals must go
through a Single Scope Background Inves-
tigation (SSBI). TS clearance can take up to
18 months to receive. They must undergo
another check every five years.
These three levels of security clear-
ances are the standard within government
jobs. However, there are additional levels
and clearances that people handling highly
specialized and unique information can
gain. For example, government professionals
working with NATO countries can earn a
NATO Secret (NS) clearance level, allowing
them to protect sensitive information con-
cerning the interests of NATO.
Each clearance level becomes more ex-
tensive, requiring more advanced background
checks, and gives the person more responsi-
bility within their role. Having a better un-
derstanding of the U.S. clearance levels can
lend a stronger comprehension of the roles in
national security and how they operate.
References
Retrieved on April 25, 2017, from state.gov/m/ds/
clearances/c10977.htm#1
Retrieved on April 25, 2017, from state.gov/m/ds/
clearances/c10978.htm
Retrieved on April 25, 2017, from state.gov/m/ds/
clearances/c10977.htm#1
Retrieved on April 25, 2017, from
how_to_apply/next_steps/security_clearance.php
Retrieved on April 25, 2017, from
how_to_apply/next_steps/security_clearance.php
Retrieved on April 25, 2017, from news.clearancejobs.
com/2015/02/06/security-clearance-levels-access/
Retrieved on April 25, 2017, from news.clearancejobs.
com/2015/02/06/security-clearance-levels-access/
First, an investigation of the applicant’s
background is conducted by the Bu-
reau of Human Resources. As you might
imagine, this is not your typical background
check. It encompasses far more than crimi-
nal history and ultimately determines if the
person is trustworthy with confidential and
sensitive materials, holds no relationships
that would put the government in jeopardy
and is loyal beyond any doubt to the U.S.
As for the level of clearance that’s as-
signed, the person’s job function determines
the corresponding access they will be given.
It’s also important to note that there are
three levels of security clearance in the U.S:
Confidential, Secret and Top Secret. Each
level provides personnel with the minimum
amount of information they need to fulfill
their job responsibilities:
• CONFIDENTIAL
This is the lowest tier of security clearance. It of-
fers those with this clearance the ability to han-
dle sensitive information and materials that may
contain national security information, though
they must be reinvestigated every 15 years.
• SECRET
As the middle tier of security clearances, the Se-
cret level allows people to deal with information
that is vital to U.S. national security. As a result,
those who’ve been granted access must undergo
another background check every 10 years.
• TOP SECRET (TS)
As the highest level of security clearance,
Top Secret access requires people to be
able to handle Sensitive Compartmented
If you found this interesting, consider earning
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.
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