Internships in the Intelligence Community/International Affairs

Career Opportunities & Internships
1

I’m majoring in International Politics with a concentration in National Security at Penn State. I’ll be a junior starting this Fall with about 2 more years to complete (Bachelor’s). I’m looking to apply for Summer 2018 internships at intelligence agencies. I am well aware of how “difficult” it is to be selected for an internship in the intelligence community, and that’s why I want to figure out exactly what I can do to maximize my chances of success in the future.

I’m changed my major 3 times in college…I began as a Physics major, changed it to Political Science after 1 semester, stuck with that for almost 2 years, then changed it back to Physics and then changed it to International Politics - National Security after 1 month. Therefore, I’m fine, because most of the classes I have taken have been political/economic/history/etc, which fit the International Relations major. All my gen eds are done; I just have core classes like Criminology, Risk Analysis, and high-level political science courses left to take.

Basically I want to know what I should do to maximize my chances when applying for internships with the CIA, NSA, FBI, State Department, etc. The thing that I am scared about is my lack of experience and very shallow achievements on paper. I attended a small branch campus of Penn State for the first couple years, so there really weren’t many opportunities. I’m also worried about my GPA…it’s a 3.2/4.0. The only reason it’s that low is because I failed a class and got a D in two others. I had horrible professors for those (not making excuses; it’s the truth, these 2 professors were absolutely terrible and should not be teaching for a living) and basically conceded those classes in order to do excellent in others; I’ve gotten mostly As and a couple Bs in all my other classes.

But I know there are people applying for internships who have nearly perfect GPAs, lots of volunteer and relative experience, etc. But I come from a family that couldn’t help me at all financially with college, so I’ve had to work a lot. I’ve held the same job since I was in high school and have been forced to work to save up money in order to afford things. So I haven’t had the time or connections to get direct experience like others may have.

I know how capable I am and I have high confidence in my skills, especially being analytic and being able to work really well under high pressure and stress. I have great awareness and determination. I’ve proved this to myself many times in the past. Back when my major was still Political Science, my one professor took me to meet a campus business leader who had connections to local representatives. We talked about my interests and career goals and I stated that I would possibly be interested in locating and starting an internship in the “next few months.” He gave me this weird look and said, “How about next week?” …because he was so impressed with my knowledge, communication skills, and confidence. Things happened and I wasn’t able to do the internship because it wasn’t paid and I wouldn’t have had a source of income, so I wasn’t able to do it at that point in my life. My boss since high school, who is extremely tough and demanding, has told me that I am a fantastic worker and “always have a job there.” It’s these things that confirm to me that I am a very hard-working and serious person. I have also taken a real IQ test and scored a 134, and only 2% of the population has an IQ at 134 or above.

But when intelligence agencies go to look at my record and transcript, I’m probably going to look like a very average student and they won’t have any reason to have high interest in me. I know if I can just get them to interview me or contact me that I can demonstrate my capabilities, but it’s just about getting to that level…

I honestly have no idea what to do to prepare for internships/jobs in the intelligence community. Should I memorize world nations and capitals? Memorize what languages are spoken in what regions? The poorest and richest nations in the world?
What are they going to ask me?

Thank you for the help in advance, I really appreciate it.

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@MrElculver2424

Look into 2-year ROTC (this would also help you with your financial situation). Honestly, that 3.2 GPA is the major killer (especially in a liberal arts major). Internships at the 3 letter agencies are very hard to come by (the kids I know getting scholarships/internships with the state department and various agencies are very high performing). If you had 4 years as a military officer under your belt, that would be a major boost to your profile. Being a military officer (especially in intelligence, cyber or civil affairs) would put you ahead of your competition when it comes to places like the NSA or CIA).

It’s either that or try to go for a master’s degree (and try to get a high GPA while you are at it there).

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@RMNiMiTz Thank you for the response. Unfortunately, the military is not an interest of mine and not something I want to do directly. I do have an interest in continuing on for a Masters degree…if I can afford it.

If you don’t ever get to intern with an intelligence agency, that doesn’t totally rule you out for being hired for a full time job after graduating college, right?

In the meantime, are there any suggestions to other places I should apply for internships with my major? I plan on applying to the CIA, NSA, FBI, State Department. I understand those are incredibly difficult to get. I really would like to work for a government intelligence agency one day, but if not, I’ll need to find somewhere else to put my major to use. United Nations? I’m sure that’s difficult too, but there must be something out there.

I wonder how many people have degrees in National Security/Intelligence studies and do not have jobs in that field…

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Just a note that I want to add: there were three classes early in college that I received an F, a D, and a D for. I have since retaken all of these classes and received an A, C+, and A respectively. Technically the original courses are still on my transcript and do factor into my GPA. But just for more information, without those three original grades my overall GPA is 3.51. I’ve heard of some colleges removing original grades if you retake the class, but Penn State doesn’t seem to do that.

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@MrElculver2424

If you don’t get an internship in an intelligence/government agency, you can still get hired at a full-time job, just most likely not one in the matching field (and much lower paying).

The issue with international politics as a major is that it really restricts you. If you can’t land a job with the government, you are kinda screwed.

Rich people or those with good connections can get spots at (or even start) think tanks, but it would be extremely hard for you in your situation to be able to get a job like that.

I think your issue was getting the degree first, without having the job lined up. I know a kid who is getting paid by the state department to get an undergrad with a double major in International Politics and a foreign language. He has the scholarship and the internship, which pretty much guarantees him a job.

If you can’t get a job in the national security field and you aren’t willing to join the military, the only choices left aren’t pretty.

6

First, a 3.2 is a low GPA especially with all the grade inflation at colleges. You need to get that up. Second, try to narrow down what you want to do. Being a FBI special agent, a NSA techie, or a State FSO are all entirely different jobs. Third, being fluent in a foreign language would be an asset in most intelligence jobs. Fourth, do you think you could pass a security clearance?

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@RMNiMiTz Right…the Political Science major is probably much less restricting, but since I have decided that I would rather work for a government agency (which is more secure and stable) rather than political campaigns and movements, my advisors and I decided International Relations - National Security would highlight me more. Though I totally get what you’re saying…then it’s kind of government agency or nothing.

That’s why I am trying to come up with an idea for what I have to do going forward to land a job in the intelligence community/government agency. I know my talent level and how capable I am and I can prove that to anyone who meets me. I’ve been called an overachiever and perfectionist all throughout my life. But sometimes being like that carries some flaws, including giving up on classes entirely when you aren’t doing well in them (like the 3 early classes I did bad in). My record on paper will show nothing special. But if you talk to me and learn about me, I have extremely high confidence in my ability to land a job in the government. It’s just about getting them to talk to me, which I need help achieving.

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@roethlisburger I know a 3.2 isn’t that high but what is this “grade inflation” exactly that you mention?

As I said earlier, it’s only that low because I got those bad grades in those 3 classes. I’m not trying to make any excuses…if I was smarter back then I would have really gave more of an effort to do better…but the professors were literally awful and 2 of them have since been let go, partially due to poor student ratings. 2 of those classes that I retook were taught by new professors and I got an As in both of them.

Places that I apply for internships/jobs look at my entire transcript, right? Not just my GPA…because I think there is a difference between a student who gets all Bs and Cs in nearly all his classes and one who gets almost all As except for one F and two Ds. The latter’s record clearly suggests high intelligence and capability, but some sort of situation where things went wrong in just a couple classes for unusual reasons.

My GPA will go up. I have two years left and have no doubt I can get it around a 3.5 or above by the time I’m done with undergrad. But if I’m applying to internships for next summer (which is really the last summer internship opportunity left before I graduate), they’ll be looking at my record now…

I will look into narrowing down my desired job, although I still don’t know exactly what I want to do yet. I do NOT have any special technical/computer skills (I’m very smart with technology but what I mean is I do not know any programming, etc.). I really just have knowledge about world events/affairs/relationships/intelligence/security, etc. I do also have expertise in statistics as I’ve taken a few statistics classes (analyzing data to determine things, etc.), so I consider that to be a skill of mine.

I took a couple semesters of Spanish in high school and college, but that’s useless now. I have scheduled to take an Arabic class starting this Fall. My advisor told me that maybe even knowing a little Arabic might help, even if I’m not fluent in it. Do you agree with that idea? I might as well just go with it at this point…there isn’t really any other language worth learning for my goals…

Security clearance…absolutely. Flawless record and I do not engage in any behavior that would put me at risk of being denied one.

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@MrElculver2424

Not having technical skills can really hurt you, along with the fact that you don’t speak many languages, especially in the intelligence/national security field. Learning Arabic will help, but I don’t think learning it for only about a year or so will get you at the level the agencies want.

10

What area of intelligence work are you looking to get into?

PM’ing you.

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@rmn2195 Well what exactly is considered a “skill”? I’m not majoring in computer science or anything clearly (not everyone does who applies to the intelligence community), but I think I’m very good with technology…

If I start Arabic this fall, I could take at least 4 semesters of it before graduation. I’ve also seen on the CIA website that they can continue to teach you language once you are on the job, too.

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@MrElculver2424 Sent you a PM

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I think a 3.2 is a 3.2. There’s way less overanalyzing of the transcript than you’re imagining. Imagine HR gets hundreds of apps for X slots, which then might get narrowed down to dozens of apps for each hiring manager. Even if you don’t get the best person, the summer intern is going to be gone by the end of the summer anyway. How much time do you think each of those people are going to spend reading each transcript?

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@MrElculver2424

@roethlisburger does have a point, they are probably not going to overanalyze your transcript. When it comes down to the raw scores, that 3.2 is really going to hurt you.