I’m in the investigation process for a clearance with DoS. My BI told me I was being investigated for a TS clearance, the security assistant for the security clearance contract company is saying secret, and the sponsoring agency won’t answer me. This is for an internship position.
Does anyone have any idea where I can receive the correct information?
My DoS internship (2013) was at the secret level.
Thank you! According to this pdf, the bureau I was selected for says TS but this is from 2013. Maybe the clearance level changed. https://careers.state.gov/uploads/dd/ed/dded53753df70409565b519d425f992c/Student-Internship-Brochure-Sept-2014.pdf
Your investigation tier is based on your position’s designated sensitivity level (, and not necessarily the clearance level required for the position.
Tier 3 (Non-Critical Sensitive) is the minimum investigation required for a Secret and Tier 5 (Critical Sensitive or Special Sensitive) is required for Top Secret.
However, it is possible to have a Tier 5 investigation and only get a Secret clearance. If your position is designated as “Critical Sensitive”, a Tier 5 will be required even if only a Secret clearance is required. So in your case, maybe it’s a Critical Sensitive position that only requires a Secret clearance, hence the Tier 5 (“TS”) investigation.