Also called: Personnel Security Specialist
Decides whether people can be trusted with access to classified secrets.
Adjudicators review background investigation files, looking at debts, drug use, foreign contacts, and honesty, then decide whether to grant a security clearance. Millions of Americans hold clearances, so this hidden job is everywhere.
Federal GS or agency pay scale; DC-area locality pay is higher.
Approximate: anchored on Bureau of Labor Statistics data for a broader job group.
Bachelor's degree (4-year), about 4 years after high school. Bachelor's degree; federal adjudicator training.
Ways in: 4-year college, On-the-job training. Training cost: $15k – $60k.
Majors to look at: Criminal Justice, Psychology, Political Science.
Growing about average. Approximate.
Medium risk in 5 years, high in 10. AI continuous-vetting tools sort routine cases; humans decide the hard calls, but fewer adjudicators are needed.
Classes: AP Psychology, AP Government, English.
Official data: O*NET occupation 13-1041.
Career Universe is an early version. Pay, training and AI-risk figures are estimates to start your own research, not verified facts. The research was written with AI research assistants, checked by validation scripts and spot-checked by hand. Check anything important with schools, employers and official sources. How the numbers work.