Job search having been denied interim

Hi all,

I have posted here before regarding my situation and was hoping to get some more insight from you all as I prepare to continue my job hunt.

A DoD contractor hired me nearly 3 months ago and allowed me to start before receiving clearance. I was told my employment would be terminated if I were to be denied interim clearance, and recently I discovered I received an “eligibility pending” status in regards to my clearance. This determination came a little over a month ago, and while I have not yet been terminated, I am expecting to be soon, so I had some questions about my impending job search.

1.) What exactly happens to the clearance process in this situation? My investigation was opened a month ago. Will my investigation be cancelled altogether? Can a future sponsor pick up where I was left off? Or would I have to start the process all over again?
2.) Having been denied an interim, but at least still entered into the process, am I at any kind of advantage or disadvantage over non-cleared applicants? Should I still seek jobs requiring clearance or avoid them? I am entirely confident that I can receive a final clearance.
3.) If you feel I should let prospective employers know that I have begun the clearance process, should I include this on a resume? If so, what kind of wording would you use on the resume itself?

Of course, I hope that my current job decides to see the entire process out and hang onto me, but honestly I don’t have much reason to believe this will happen, so I want to be prepared. I realize I am asking a lot of of questions and I thank you in advance for bearing with me and trying to help. This forum has been very helpful through this entire process and I look forward to your comments.

I think that a lot of this has been addressed in your other posts . . .

  1. We can’t tell Your current company can continue the investigation or they could stop it. Yes, another company can pick up your investigation where is. For a while anyway.
  2. I don’t think you are really at any advantage because it doesn’t mean that will GET the clearance. In fact, you may be at a disadvantage because you have been denied an interim so companies know that you will not get that.
  3. I wouldn’t put it on my resume, but you should let them know that the process has been started.
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@hdub Did your FSO or management finally say you have been denied an interim and you will be terminated? If not, you are worrying for no reason. Perhaps you should talk to your manager about your concerns and to figure out your career direction in this regard.

  1. If you switch employers, the new employer can pick up the “sponsorship” and continue the process. It probably depends on the amount of gap time in between though.

  2. There are a variety of jobs. Some require full clearances and more to start, some only require an interim to start, some don’t require anything to start, but require you to eventually get a clearance. You probably fit into the third category like many others.

  3. Nope, but during the interview you can say you are in process.

Again, these are discussions you should have with your FSO and your management.

Hello,

I have expressed my concerns to my supervisor who then told me if my interim were to be denied, my employment will be terminated due to the backlog. My FSO told me that my status in JPAS is Eligibility Pending as of 5/15/18, although he has not told me, nor do I feel that he understands that this is a denial. This surprises me, as he is a very experienced as an FSO. My supervisor also knows this information, who has also informed me that they can realistically wait another week or two before they begin to worry about the situation. I appreciate your responses. I’m just gonna wait it out and see what happens from here, but will be prepared for any scenario.

Start looking NOW . . . Don’t wait to be out of work unless you really don’t need a job and you are just doing this for fun.

Your current employer may be willing to continue your sponsorship even if they let you go.

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Does it continue to cost the sponsoring company after the investigation is started? I guess what I’m asking is for what reasons do companies choose to discontinue the investigation once the employee is no longer needed? I can imagine this must happen quite often.

I expect that the primary reason involves record keeping. But, technically, companies are not supposed to be sponsoring those for whom they do not have a slot. This is one of the things clogging the works and causing the backlog.

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Because the government won’t process it anymore.