Washington DC is the location of both the national headquarters of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and one of the bureau’s 56 field offices. The nation’s prime law enforcement/domestic intelligence agency is currently looking for a new site to replace the 38-year-old J. Edgar Hoover Building.
The new national headquarters will have roughly 2.1 million square feet of office space to accommodate more than 11,000 employees responsible for organizing, directing and coordinating FBI activities around the world. These dedicated professionals determine the FBI’s priorities/policies, provide intelligence for the fight against terrorism, support field offices in the U.S. and overseas, and lead operations in times of national crisis or emergency.
FBI jobs at the DC headquarters are organized into five branches:
- National Security – includes counterterrorism/counterintelligence divisions; directorate of intelligence; and the weapons of mass destruction directorate.
- Criminal, Cyber, Response and Services – consists of crime investigative, cyber and internal operations divisions; critical incident response groups; and the office of law enforcement coordination.
- Human Resources – includes training and human resource divisions.
- Science and Technology – incorporates criminal justice information services; laboratory & operational technology divisions; and the office of special technologies and applications.
- Information Technology – houses information services, management & engineering divisions as well as offices of the Deputy Chief of Information, Chief Technology Officer and Chief Knowledge Officer.
Requirements for Becoming an FBI Agent in Washington, DC
Basic qualifications needed to be considered for the position of special agent are:
- Citizen of the U.S.
- Between 23-36 years of age
- Bachelor’s degree or better
- Minimum two years professional experience
The FBI is seeking bright, talented men and women who want to fight crime and terrorism as part of a “family-like” government agency dedicated to public service. New recruits are needed to fill both agent and non-agent positions from scientists to accountants. Interested persons should go to the FBI Jobs website that lists open positions/requirements. Career opportunities include positions as:
- Intelligence analysts
- Cyber experts/Information Technologists
- Translators, linguists
- Engineers
- FBI police Officers
- Business/finance managers
Volunteer internships are available at FBI headquarters for students/graduates. The 10-week program runs from June 3 to August 9 and offers a unique opportunity to explore career options from within the FBI.
DC Field Office Duties and Jobs
The Washington DC field office, the second largest in the nation, is headed by an assistant director because of its size. The office is responsible for carrying out investigations, evaluating local/regional threats, and working with partners on cases and operations. In addition to a multitude of special agents, the DC field office is comprised of 40 evidence recovery/processing experts; a 12-member underwater search & recovery team; a 42-member SWAT team; bomb recovery analysts; crisis negotiators, a 27-member hazardous materials response team; a 100+-member language squad and an extraordinary mobile command center vehicle..
Agents from the DC field office recently worked closely with the Secret Service, Capitol Police and the U.S. Park Police to ensure safety and security at the 2013 presidential inauguration. In January 2013, committed members of the DC field office also launched a national website dedicated to identifying bank robbers.