Ask A Spook! Cryptologic Questions

[mb11g]

Originally Posted by CTT1(SW)Griffin

Investigations: Yes, get that information if at all possible. An SSBI goes back 10 years, so if it falls in that scope, just go ahead and get it. If they end up not wanting it, then whatever, but it's waaay harder to get it after the fact. So just make it easier on yourself now and get it. As for medical history, no; the SSBI isn't concerned with your medical history outside of things like mental issues that might cause a security concern. IE if you had high blood pressure or something, nobody cares. Things we would care about would be histories of drug abuse, mental issues, suicidal tenancies, that kind of stuff that would make being in this job a no-go. Also of note is that they don't go digging up medical records or anything; this would come into play if someone they were interviewing about you brought it up. Then obviously they would need to follow up. But as a whole they don't go digging for your old doctors visits.

Wedding: During your training at A-school you won't be allowed to miss any training days. If this event falls on a weekend and you can prove that you'll be back on time then they might consider it, but being gone during a work day is going to be a hard no. As it comes up, speak with your chain of command and if there's some wiggle room they might be able to work with you. Staying on the side of caution though, if you're at a training command then just expect to be unavailable for things that don't involve training. It sucks but it's just part of life. If they let you go it'll be an exception and not the norm.

Loans: Debt is the single biggest issue in obtaining a clearance. The vast majority of espionage cases involved debt in money-for-secrets kind of deals. HOWEVER, things like student loans, car loans, etc, are considered normal things and don't raise big red flags if you're staying on top of them. If you've got records for your payments and have a solid payment plan in place then I wouldn't expect any issues from that. Just be mature and responsible with paying them and you'll be just fine. The debt that gets people in trouble is like gambling debt or just a craaaap ton of debt that you reasonably shouldn't have gotten into in the first place. Ya dig?


On mb11g's comment: Being top of your class at Corry Station won't have much if any bearing on your selection of orders. First tour Sailors are typically what we call "needs of the Navy" and are assigned where they are needed. CT's especially because there are so few of us and so many places we're needed, we just don't have the luxury to let the new guys cherry pick what they want. So expect your orders to be assigned to you versus being able to pick. Don't listen to what people in other rates have to say on the subject, as they have nothing to do with what happens in the CT community. (Not knocking you mb11, just speaking in general terms)

/r
CTT1

No worries! It was different for us!