Security Specialist

[DA-SKELL]

I AM FAIRLY NEW TO THIS WEB SITE AND I COULD NOT FIND MUCH ON PRIOR THREADS ON THIS TOPIC.

WHILE SEARCHING MY AREA FOR LAW ENFORCEMENT JOBS I CAME ACCROSS A POSTING FOR A SECURITY SPECIALIST GS-0080-9/9 FOR THE DEPARTMENT OF THE ARMY (DOD). THE DESCRIPTION WAS INTERESTING HOWEVER:

1- IT APPEARS THAT IT IS NOT A LAW ENFORCEMENT JOB.

2- IT SEEMS GEARED TOWARD PRIOR MILITARY. ALTHOUGH DOES NOT SAY SO.

3-ALTHOUGH NOT LAW ENFORCEMENT (NO CARRY) THIS JOB REQUIRES WEEKENDS, HOLIDAYS AND NIGHTS?

DOES ANYONE CURRENTLY HOLD ONE OF THESE JOBS?
WHAT IS THE WORK LIKE?
DOES 20 YEARS OF LAW ENFORCEMENT MAKE IT THROUGH THE RESUMIX PROCESS? OR DO YOU WIND UP IN THE DEAD RESUME PILE?

PAY IS NOT THAT GREAT (NO LE STIPEND) SO I WONT BE HEARTBROKEN IF I DONT GET IT.

ANY INFO WOULD BE GREAT
THANKS

[irishlad]

From what I have heard it is almost nothing to do with LE on a military post and or working other DOD agencies, like Dept of Agriculture, etc. I believe it has something to do with over-seeing the polices and procedures put forth with nothing to do with Law Enforcement itself. Now if you are looking to stay in LE, when they post Supervisor Police Officer positions or Force Protection positions on Military posts or other places, those would have to deal with LE, not a Security Specialist. Although the money is good. Most require you to have some type (s) of a degree(s), etc. Most list the qualifications on the websites. Hope this helps some and just some advice and no harm meant towards you, but loosen up on the all caps, makes it very hard to read a post. Good luck to ya.:)

[nsedet]

Security Specialist work varies greatly from position to position. Within DOD and the military branches, a Security Specialist position can involve anything from managing the security clearance and classification process for an installation, to managing a base police department, to conducting assessments and implementing anti-terrorism measures for a given program. The position CAN be authorized to carry a weapon on-duty depending on the duties and with approval from the commanding officer. Most are unarmed, non-sworn positions, but I've worked with some DoD 0080's who carried guns since they were involved in law enforcement related functions (either conducting investigations or serving as the equivalent of a police chief/commissioner). Hours and shifts will depend on the position, most Security Specialists work day shift M-F, but they are subject to OT or rotating shifts in the event of a national emergency or similar situation, or when conducting security inspections (some of which may have to be done at night). Prior military service can be an advantage, but there are a lot of retired state/local cops filling these positions as well. The important thing is to be very detailed about your experience, because the electronic resume system is based on whether or not your resume contains the key words they are looking for, so be detailed in describing what you've done and how it relates to the position you are applying for.

[DA-SKELL]

sorry about the whole cap-locks thing. its a bad habit from doing reports at work.

thanks for the info.

[DA-SKELL]

Do security specialists receive any training or is it just on the job training to supplement the skills that the applicant already has?

thanks

[nsedet]

Do security specialists receive any training or is it just on the job training to supplement the skills that the applicant already has?

Short answer: it depends. There are a variety of good training programs available within DoD that relate to physical security, Anti-Terrorism/Force Protection, OpSec, etc., and most commands are fairly supportive of training requests as long as the budget is there for it. Many times it's just a matter of doing legwork yourself to find out where the training is being offered. There is no standard training requirement for most 080 positions, but you will probably be able to get what you need sooner or later if you keep asking for it.

[H. Schoolboy]

A while back I applied to the continuos NAVY security specialist/officer opening. The annoucement didn't really detail training or actual duties, just general security and info protection. I was surprised though that it used "officer" in its title. It was also an 080 position.

[nsedet]

A while back I applied to the continuos NAVY security specialist/officer opening. The annoucement didn't really detail training or actual duties, just general security and info protection. I was surprised though that it used "officer" in its title. It was also an 080 position.

At the Federal level, particularly on the military side, a Security Officer is a person responsible for management of a security program, or a portion thereof. They are classified as 0080 Security Specialists, but the Security Officer title is used as a working title because it is interchangeable with military personnel assigned to the same type of work. Other agencies use Security Officer as a working title (e.g., CIA classifies its security specialists as "Multi-Disciplined Security Officer", or MDSO, even though they then operate within specific specialties such as Investigator and Polygraph Examiner), and a few use the working title of Special Agent (e.g., some or all of the 0080's in Commerce's Office of Security are credentialed as Special Agents). "Security Officer" in this context is not interchangeable with "Security Guard," which would be the 0085 classification.

Also, the Navy announcement you are referring to are kept intentionally vague by HR. The reason is that they use these announcements to create an applicant pool that allows them to generate a cert list anytime one is requested by a selecting official. Since they don't know what positions will be filled during the lifespan of those announcements, they keep the wording vague enough to cover a whole range of positions so that they do not have to open up specific announcements for every single vacancy (unless requested by the selecting official). Whether or not this approach meets civil service requirements for public vacancy announcements is a matter of opinion.

[H. Schoolboy]

At the Federal level, particularly on the military side, a Security Officer is a person responsible for management of a security program, or a portion thereof. They are classified as 0080 Security Specialists, but the Security Officer title is used as a working title because it is interchangeable with military personnel assigned to the same type of work. Other agencies use Security Officer as a working title (e.g., CIA classifies its security specialists as "Multi-Disciplined Security Officer", or MDSO, even though they then operate within specific specialties such as Investigator and Polygraph Examiner), and a few use the working title of Special Agent (e.g., some or all of the 0080's in Commerce's Office of Security are credentialed as Special Agents). "Security Officer" in this context is not interchangeable with "Security Guard," which would be the 0085 classification.

Also, the Navy announcement you are referring to are kept intentionally vague by HR. The reason is that they use these announcements to create an applicant pool that allows them to generate a cert list anytime one is requested by a selecting official. Since they don't know what positions will be filled during the lifespan of those announcements, they keep the wording vague enough to cover a whole range of positions so that they do not have to open up specific announcements for every single vacancy (unless requested by the selecting official). Whether or not this approach meets civil service requirements for public vacancy announcements is a matter of opinion.

Now that is some great info! Thanks so much.

[emck]

I just got a call for an interview for this Friday 6/17/05. Just wanted to see if anyone could provide any insight on the interview process and what they are looking for???undefined

[nsedet]

I just got a call for an interview for this Friday 6/17/05. Just wanted to see if anyone could provide any insight on the interview process and what they are looking for???undefined

emck,
Not much standardization that I ever saw, it will vary a lot depending on the hiring organization. If it's a security specialist within NCIS, it will probably be a hiring panel with fairly standard questions about you and your background. If it's with another command, it could vary from the above standard format to a fairly informal interview with the selecting official. Good idea to do the standard prep work, from figuring how you will answer the standard "tell us about yourself" sort of questions to studying up on the position description, the base where the job is located, the particular command, etc. Most commands have decent public website that will provide a basic overview, you can also find more information by searching google or yahoo...no reason to try to come across as an expert, but basic preparation can go a long way in some situations.

As for what they are looking for...odds are if they are calling you that you have the basic background they want to see for that particular position. Higher grades tend to require pretty specialized experience, but entry and mid-level positions usually require a basic skill set (e.g., communication skills, writing skills, computer proficiency, etc.) and the rest is learned on the job. Just go in prepared for a standard interview, you should do fine.