<p>Hoping, </p>
<p>You’re right that I sound a little too confident right now. For me, its about logic. Why have us fill out 28 pages of additional paperwork to be rejected at this phase? Asking us to fill out a National Security Questionnaire leads me to believe we have been accepted. We haven’t gotten the you’ve been accepted because they have to do the FBI Background checks first, and, legally, the forms we filled out were full of disclaimers, making me think of promissory estoppel. You’re right that our emails said “This is not an acceptance.” But, still though, one can’t help but feel like we are on on the right track. </p>
<p>Denver </p>
<p>P.S. This is on the top of one of the forms, “To be completed by all persons tentatively selected as an intern.” </p>
<p>P.P.S. Where are you in the process Hoping?</p>
<p>WHbfAustin, do you know if your classmate filled them out prior to being accepted or after being accepted?</p>
<p>Prior to any notice of acceptance. Got his in late feb and was offered a position the first week of April.</p>
<p>Remember that these forums are misleading, sometimes people who get accepted erase their posts, so all that is left is other peoples congratulations, asking how a person was notified, etc. The earliest acceptances last year was prof 100’s daughter on Monday March 13th and user12345’s friend who was accepted Wednesday March 15th. Not crazy to think this week is the week!</p>
<p>Haha I hope you’re right Denver! I think it depends on the office you are being considered for. Undergrads are usually sent to offices that involve standardized intern work (dealing with mail, communications, and other purely administrative tasks) while graduate and law students are sent to those with a bit more depth/skill requirements (policy analysis, speech/memo writing, and also their fair share of administrative work).</p>
<p>My guess is the undergrads will hear first, as there are more slots for them across the offices than grad/law students. The office I’m hoping for only has three slots (all for grad/law), and I’d imagine their selection process is a bit more arduous than those accepting 15-20 interns.</p>
<p>Austin, </p>
<p>I think it also depends on what office you interviewed with/applied for and how quickly they talked to the internship office about their decision.</p>
<p>Austin,</p>
<p>I’m guessing they finish doing the background checks in a month from your friend’s experience? That would be an amazing and fast-turnaround time.</p>
<p>You’re right Bio, that is very quick. Most background checkers allot 90 days to turn everything around. My guess is they either don’t do the full background checks, or they do them without placing a lot of weight in their results. If my memory serves, about a half dozen of the administration’s cabinet secretary or senior adviser appointees have had serious tax issues that were only uncovered during their Senate confirmation hearings (or even after). I doubt any of us have something that serious to dig up, so I’d imagine it’s to screen out anyone with a violent offense or serious fraud issue. Either way, they’d probably only catch something after you arrive in DC so hopefully you disclosed anything remotely troublesome so they can make a confident decision about offering a position without poring over all the details of our background checks. Otherwise, you may end up in DC for the summer without a position.</p>
<p>And yes Denver I think you are correct. Each office has their own timeline for forwarding names along to the central internship coordinator, who probably also has their own process for sorting and approving/altering the incoming class. I won’t be getting overly anxious about hearing from the WH until the end of the month. If I don’t hear by the first week of April, I’ll have to decline anyway and accept another position I’ve been offered.</p>
<p>Yeah, I think end of March/early April will be our next notification from the WH internship office then. Hopefully it will say “conditional acceptance” in the email header! :)</p>
<p>Also, I think it depends on what type of clearance we’re getting…I’m assuming it’s secret or top secret.</p>
<p>Really? I would assume secret at most…</p>
<p>Yep. I think anything more than secret requires extensive interviews with references, which I doubt they do for this.</p>
<p>[Courtney</a> Spicer shares her experiences as a White House Intern | The Docket](<a href=“http://law.gsu.edu/thedocket/node/57]Courtney”>http://law.gsu.edu/thedocket/node/57)</p>
<p>“Q: What kind of background checks and security clearance did you have to go through before your internship?
A: I had to fill out an FBI background check form, which is about a half an inch thick. The form asks everything from prior criminal convictions to conduct that would constitute criminal behavior such as drug use, solicitation, etc. After you fill out the form, your references are contacted, but it does not stop there. They will ask your references to provide additional references, and then those people will be contacted and asked for additional references and so on. Through this process, they are able to build a complete background of you.”</p>
<p>Sounds like top secret clearance to me lol</p>
<p>From the always reliable Wikipedia: </p>
<p>Confidential
Also known as a “public trust” clearance, this is the simplest security clearance to get. This level typically requires a few weeks to a few months of investigation. A Confidential clearance requires a NACLC investigation which dates back 7 years on the person’s record and must be renewed (with another investigation) every 15 years. Applicants are required to complete federal Standard Form 85P ([8])</p>
<p>Secret
A Secret clearance, also known as Collateral Secret or Ordinary Secret, requires a few months to a year to fully investigate, depending on the individual’s background. Some instances wherein individuals would take longer than normal to be investigated are many past residences, having residences in foreign countries, having relatives outside the United States, or significant ties with non-US citizens. Unpaid bills as well as criminal charges will more than likely disqualify an applicant for approval. However, a Bankruptcy will be evaluated on a case-by-case basis and is not an automatic disqualifier. Poor financial history is the number-one cause of rejection, and foreign activities and criminal record are also common causes for disqualification. A Secret clearance requires a NACLC, and a Credit investigation; it must also be re-investigated every 10 years.[9] Investigative requirements for DoD clearances, which apply to most civilian contractor situations, are contained in the Personnel Security Program issuance known as DoD Regulation 5200-R, at part C3.4.2</p>
<p>Top Secret
Top Secret is a more stringent clearance. A Top Secret, or “TS”, clearance, is often given as the result of a Single Scope Background Investigation, or SSBI. Top Secret clearances, in general, afford one access to data that affects national security, counterterrorism/counterintelligence, or other highly sensitive data. There are far fewer individuals with TS clearances than Secret clearances.[citation needed] A TS clearance can take as few as 3–6 months to obtain, but more often takes 6–18 months, while sometimes taking up to 3 years to obtain. The SSBI must be renewed every 5 years.[10] Also, in order to receive clearance, all initial TS candidates must pass an oral interview. This is conducted by the investigating agent. Typically a DSS or OPM employee.[citation needed]</p>
<p>Looks like Confidential to me…</p>
<p>Have any of your references been contacted yet? As far as I know mine have not…</p>
<p>No one on this side either…</p>
<p>I have noticed some of the White House staff creeping on my social media accounts, though that isn’t exactly a formal background check.</p>
<p>How have you done that?</p>
<p>Sent you a PM Denver.</p>
<p>My references that I listed on my SF86 have not contacted either. But if we get a confidential clearance as you think we’re getting Denver, maybe they won’t get contacted…</p>