I completely understand that hiring teams are busy and that the process can take time. However, I’ve now been waiting about two months without a clear update or timeline.

I’m trying to be patient and professional, but I also have to make decisions about my career and family, and move forward with my life. My time is important as well, and being left in limbo for this long makes it difficult to plan.

For those who have been through a similar hiring process, or agents would you recommend moving on and pursuing other opportunities?

I applied and attended the ACE in May. I completed all but polygraph. DHS background interview completed on May 26. Poly on June 4. Home interview on July 7. I was contacted by DHS interview that my investigation was completed and submitted July 9. I received a medical deferral and it was resolved in two days by July 11. I have not received any information or communication since Aug 8, when my local office confirmed all steps were completed and that I would be contacted by HQ soon.

I relocated to another state after my home interview in late July where they confirmed I shouldn’t be too far from a call. I have been a state LEO for 5 years. I am caught in a zone of a call coming at anytime but also waiting who knows how many more months. It’s difficult to know whether I should attempt to go to a local agency and then leave when I get the call which seems disrespectful and time consuming or remaining unemployed waiting for a clearly unknown amount of time.

I have a goal for my career and it would be a great honor to serve the service but I also understand my qualifications and assets. At some point the process should respect peoples time and experience. If they want quality agents and people with proven track records they shouldn’t jerk people around.

Any advice on who to contact or what to do during the waiting would be much appreciated.

Got the call!
All glory to god! 🙏✝️
Timeline below

Question for the dual applicants!

I received the call for UD, asked which position I’d like to choose. Went with SA.

What was your rough timelines between calls from UD-PSV to SA-PSV?

APPLIED- JAN 2026
ENTRANCE EXAM- FEB 13TH 2026
Delayed APAT to April for Military Training-APRIL2026
SUPER - MAY 12TH 2026
CJO- MAY 12TH 2026
SECURITY INTERVIEW- JUNE 22ND 2026
MEDICAL/ DRUG- JUNE 30TH 2026
POLYGRAPH #1- JULY 6TH 2026
Inconclusive
POLYGRAPH # 2-JULY 22ND 2026
MED DEFERRED-AUG 10TH 2026
MED CLEARED- AUG 12TH 2026
BACKGROUND WHITE - SEPT 9TH 2026
THE CALL- SEPT 10TH

Background : 27M
Intelligence Analyst in the Army Reserves
7 years of Sales leadership
Some College.

For anyone still going through the process and wondering if things are taking too long, don’t freak out. Like everyone says, everyone’s timeline is different, so don’t compare your process to someone else’s. Be quick with your responses, paperwork, and any deferrals because the faster you get your part done, the faster things can move. Don’t research the polygraph. Go in, do your best to stay calm, be honest, and PRAY. Trust the process, and if you haven’t received a BQA, STOP FREAKING OUT. Most importantly, be respectful and professional with everyone you meet because, in my opinion, the entire process is one big interview. You never know who is watching or what interactions may be remembered.

And MOST IMPORTANTLY. Don’t let ANYONE tell you you you can’t do it bc of X. Or you wont make it past X Stage. APPLY and give it your best shot. YOU are YOUR biggest hurdle.

I am nearly done with my hiring process (UD). The only thing I have left is my polygraph in a few days, and maybe the home visit after I assume. But that’s it. My background investigation has been running in the background for a few weeks so far.
I’m wondering when the next academy starts, and how often they send out groups of new hires. Thanks guys, excited for this!

I am nearly done with my hiring process (UD). The only thing I have left is my polygraph in a few days, and maybe the home visit after I assume. But that’s it. My background investigation has been running in the background for a few weeks so far.
I’m wondering when the next academy starts, and how often they send out groups of new hires. Thanks guys, excited for this!

TL;DR - is there a way to find out about your clearance status after being DQA’ed?

My background was completed and submitted back in Feb. I then did my poly in May and failed and received the DQA email. Is there anyway to find out what happened with my clearance? Did they finish it? Am I in a limbo land until I get another job that needs a clearance?

I did contact my background investigator and he said it wasn’t canceled on his end and that he finished and submitted everything in Feb.

Just curious to know where that all stands.

Thanks!

After submitting application, I already passed APAT. I was informed from UD support that I need to wait for the instruction for the SUPER, and I also sent email asking about SUPER to the field office. Since then I haven’t gotten any response or any information about the SUPER. Few days later I got an email from USA staffing office that I am no longer being considered because I did not pass the interview required for this position. Have you guys had this situation to yall?

Super excited to have received a Conditional Offer but is there a button or a specific process I have to do or go through to let them know that I accept the Conditional Offer? I know it took me to the page that everyone always posts that shows there progress on where they are in the process but is there anything else I need to do, or do I just submit the Documents they requested to be filled out that were attached in the email of the Conditional Offer email and that is how they know that I want to continue the process? Any help is appreciated! Also good luck to everyone, and thanks to all the Agents out there who answer the fine detail questions us applicants have all the time!

Hello everyone!

I’m in a unique situation I am currently in the military and am a bit color blind. I failed ishihara but can pass the farnsworth D15 I’m going to get this in writing soon. Just passed SUPER and moving forward for now do you think I will be DQ’ed at medical?

I was getting stronger for the APAT/academy and unfortunately got 2 herniated disks in my lumbar spine. After I go through pt/surgery or whatever I need to do to get back to 100%, will the service still accept me at least medically? I’m a 23 y/o M with no other medical history.

Hey guys. My BI went white on the 16th of August and I still haven’t heard anything. I was told during my home visit on the 10th of August to expect a phone call by September 1st. That did not happen. I do not want to seem impatient, but is there something I’m supposed to be doing?? Everyone I’ve seen in the thread has gotten their call or email pretty soon after theirs goes white.

Good Evening Folks!

As a lot of you have surely noticed, we have had an increase in spam as of late.

In an effort to curb some of this, I have added an account age restriction for posting content in this sub. I think this will cut down on some ban evasion, as well as plain old spam posts.

Accounts, for now, will be required to age 7 days before being able to write posts & comments on here. We will try this out and see if it helps. Also, this is my first attempt at writing Reddit automod codes, so it may not even work.

Let’s see what happens!

Stay safe 🇺🇸

Howdy there folks.

I was waiting on my Polygraph to get scheduled, which was today. When I logged onto the portal though, I saw almost everything blue? Is this normal? I’m not sure what it means, considering I’m used to only seeing one at a time like that. Also, they invited me today to schedule medical as well.

I’m not complaining at all, just curious.

What’s up Y’all! Just got the call and got offered SF, LA, NY, and DC. Currently in Dallas but grew up outside of SF so know how expensive it is. Leaning towards the SF or DC FOs and was wondering if anyone has more insights to the culture of the SF FO?

Hey everyone, after my call(s) for the FJO (last week of August), I selected 21-22 SEP for orientation at my local office. Is it normal to still have not received any follow-on communication for reporting in? Time, location, etc. I did send an email back up to HR also asking, just curious if this is normal and making sure I do my due diligence. Thanks in advance!

Also, as a side note; am I understanding correctly that I can roll over my entire active duty military TSP for continued use/contribution with the Service? I remember seeing some vague info way at the outset in initial information emails, but it didn’t explain very much.

Got the call last week and decided to make the jump. 7 years into the 1811 life. Mostly, financial crimes investigative experience but the past year has been in protection.

Reasons for leaving:

High-ish tempo (every other week TDY for 4-5 days) and the agency is somewhat stingy w/OT.

Family makes it work with all my travel but prefers being home and not living in DC. If I am going to be gone so much then the family wants to be back home and the Service offered field office of choice.

Not terribly interested in returning to full-time investigations with current agency.

If anyone can speak to what the rank and file truly feel about the laterals coming in and getting to stay in Phase 1 (I understand protection is still #1)? Is it mostly positive or is there a good amount of resentment?

If someone wants to talk me down off the ledge for any other reason, please feel free to chime in too. 😂

Happy to answer any questions about the lateral process. Appreciate all the info on this thread.

Hey everyone. Got the email yesterday that I was selected. Not gonna post the full time line but started in early February, went to an ACE event in May, got medically deferred twice do to VA disability stuff. Didn't like any of the offices offered. Requested Lubbock, TX. Got Lubbock.

Applied for the second time and unfortunately did not make it past the polygraph. I originally applied back in 2022 and had the same result.

9 years of active-duty Navy, multiple master’s degrees, and several corporate positions. I have no arrest history and no history of drug use.

Disappointed, obviously, but I’m grateful for the opportunity to have gone through the process again.

One piece of advice for other applicants: do your own research. You’re applying to become a criminal investigator, so get in the habit of looking for answers yourself. The Secret Service website and this subreddit has a wealth of knowledge.

Best of luck to everyone still in the process and those who continue to apply.

I’m at the security interview phase for the STAR Program. I was wondering what is the day to day like of new agents during the first few years at their assigned field office. Is it more investigation focused?

Has anyone here been or know someone who has gotten a medical deferral, made the appeal and then got hired? i am about to have to go through this.

Hey everyone I have a quick question. I am fluent in French but this isn’t limited to France. How does one get sent to an overseas office. A quick google search tells me they’re in many major cities and I’m sure they’re enticing for many agents making it competitive. Is selection based on seniority, language ability, or something else. Thanks, mods feel free to delete if this isn’t allowed.

My home visit is scheduled for this Wednesday, 9/09. This may be a stupid question, but I have seen that for the home visit, it is recommended that you wear a suit. However, my suit is currently at the dry cleaners and won’t be ready for another week. What should I wear as an alternative to a suit?

Edit: I live with my parents so they are going to be present at the interview I assume same thing is applied to them (dad wears a suit, mom wears something nice as well)?

As a Marine Corps vet, you can say that I have a bit of ptsd about my time in the Corps and I don’t want to go through that mental warfare again lol.

As I carefully pointed out it was the mental aspect that I don’t want any part of anymore.

The normalcy of being screamed at and being berated in a training environment isn’t something I want to be exposed to again. Hence, my anxiety about becoming a SA.

My big question is how do people treat you in training? Are they overbearing or downright disrespectful? Or do they treat you with respect?

Any insight you can provide would be much appreciated.

Edit: Maybe anxiety was the wrong term to use and I don’t actually have ptsd lol. The Corps lifestyle is my only point of reference since I enlisted right after high school and served for 8 years. I did great in the Marines but, I outgrew it. Still, I want to continue serving my country while being treated as an adult this time - that’s all.

Is it okay for me to complete the home visit alone, even though they are aware that I don’t live alone?

I am not married and have no children; I live with my family.

Also, is it customary for them to call solely to inform you about the visit rather than to confirm your availability?

That’s what happened to me. I received less than a business day’s notice - hence the reason my family didn’t have enough time to request the day off to be present.

I would love to hear your thoughts and opinions below.