I'm a current military linguist and it's been an absolutely fantastic career choice for me. For just a bit of background info, I graduated from A&M in '08 and had absolutely no idea what I wanted to do. I spent literally an entire year working a really pointless job while I researched what kind of options I had in order to start a career in the Intelligence Community. In 2010 I enlisted as a Cryptologic Language Analyst in the Air Force.
So the reason why I'm posting this is to provide a little bit of general information to any one else who has ever been interested in working an Intel job or learning a foreign language but not really known a good path to get into that type of work.
Here are the main pros of the job
- The pay is awesome, especially if you graduated as a Liberal Arts major like myself. My salary is comprised of many different parts that all add up to somewhere between 60-70k per year now that I'm in my 4th year in. (If you are single when you join your compensation will be slightly less and you will spend 1.5 years or more in dorms)
- You're going to learn a language that you otherwise would have no shot at learning on your own. I can't get into specifics of languages on an open forum but just watch the news and you'll have a good idea of what languages you have a chance of learning based on current hot spots. Additionally you get to learn that new language in Monterey, California which is one of the most beautiful places in the country. Meaning that if you enlist for 6 years about 1/3 of your enlistment will be spent as a student working M-F 8-4 hours in Monterey, California.
- You will get a TS/SCI clearance and you will work directly with the civilian Intelligence Community making the kind of contacts needed to make this a civilian career after your military career is over.
- The benefits, GI Bill, Tuition Assistance AND the Hazlewood Act provide the means for additional education for either you or your children. (there are some specifics for transferring benefits)
-There is the opportunity for stability in terms of where you live. My career can really only route me through 3 duty locations and I can choose to stay at them for a long time. There are people who have spent 10+ years at the main cryptologic centers which has provided stability for their spouses and children which isn't the case for some other military jobs. Also, for ground linguists (1N3's) deployments are mostly by volunteer, meaning again more stability and control over your life.
Cons of the Job
- The actual work can be very difficult and the work hours can/probably/sometimes are long and correspond with different time zones than the one you live in.
- You have to be in the military. For some this is the ultimate con, and I understand that. I was very hesitant to join the military for this reason.
By posting this I'm not trying to actively recruit linguists (the AF recruits plenty without my help) but rather to put some information out there on a career field that offers some pretty interesting training and experience. If anyone has any questions I'll do my best to answer them.
So the reason why I'm posting this is to provide a little bit of general information to any one else who has ever been interested in working an Intel job or learning a foreign language but not really known a good path to get into that type of work.
Here are the main pros of the job
- The pay is awesome, especially if you graduated as a Liberal Arts major like myself. My salary is comprised of many different parts that all add up to somewhere between 60-70k per year now that I'm in my 4th year in. (If you are single when you join your compensation will be slightly less and you will spend 1.5 years or more in dorms)
- You're going to learn a language that you otherwise would have no shot at learning on your own. I can't get into specifics of languages on an open forum but just watch the news and you'll have a good idea of what languages you have a chance of learning based on current hot spots. Additionally you get to learn that new language in Monterey, California which is one of the most beautiful places in the country. Meaning that if you enlist for 6 years about 1/3 of your enlistment will be spent as a student working M-F 8-4 hours in Monterey, California.
- You will get a TS/SCI clearance and you will work directly with the civilian Intelligence Community making the kind of contacts needed to make this a civilian career after your military career is over.
- The benefits, GI Bill, Tuition Assistance AND the Hazlewood Act provide the means for additional education for either you or your children. (there are some specifics for transferring benefits)
-There is the opportunity for stability in terms of where you live. My career can really only route me through 3 duty locations and I can choose to stay at them for a long time. There are people who have spent 10+ years at the main cryptologic centers which has provided stability for their spouses and children which isn't the case for some other military jobs. Also, for ground linguists (1N3's) deployments are mostly by volunteer, meaning again more stability and control over your life.
Cons of the Job
- The actual work can be very difficult and the work hours can/probably/sometimes are long and correspond with different time zones than the one you live in.
- You have to be in the military. For some this is the ultimate con, and I understand that. I was very hesitant to join the military for this reason.
By posting this I'm not trying to actively recruit linguists (the AF recruits plenty without my help) but rather to put some information out there on a career field that offers some pretty interesting training and experience. If anyone has any questions I'll do my best to answer them.