Defense Intelligence Agency Job Opportunities – Explore Careers at this Lesser-Known Agency

As one of the five major U.S. national intelligence agencies (the others being the CIA, NSA, NRO, and NGIA), the Defense Intelligence Agency (DIA) is one of the more secretive ones and is not often mentioned in news media or public opinion. Their headquarters is located at Joint Base Anacostia-Bolling in Washington, D.C. (with elements located at the new Intelligence Community Campus- Bethesda) and it is estimated that they employ over 16,500 personnel all across the world. First established in 1961 by Secretary of Defense Robert McNamara, their mission today has evolved from just being responsible for policy and management over all DoD intelligence resources and functions to now overseeing operations that include human intelligence collection (HUMINT), measurement and signature intelligence (MASINT), open-source intelligence (OSINT), and counterintelligence (CI), as well as operating the Armed Forces Medical Intelligence Center at Ft. Detrick and the Missile and Space Intelligence Center at Redstone Arsenal.

The DIA mission areas where potential job-seekers might look for an employment opportunity are in HUMINT collection, intelligence analysis, operational support, information systems, linguistics, and field operations. There are a number of internship and other educational opportunities for those still in college or the military to get experience with the DIA. As you might expect, the pre-screening and security clearance process is very in-depth and thorough. A condition of employment with the DIA requires eligibility for a Top Secret clearance and SCI access, as well as be able to pass a CI polygraph. If there are any concerns regarding anything in your background you should probably take whatever steps you can to provide mitigation prior to applying for a job with the DIA.