Personnel Security Specialist-Mid HSV

Amentum is a global leader in advanced engineering and innovative technology solutions, trusted by the United States and its allies to address their most significant and complex challenges in science, security, and sustainability. Our people apply undaunted curiosity, relentless ambition, and boundless imagination to challenge convention and drive progress.

About the role

The Personnel Security Specialist (PSS) provides support for security assessment investigations, including background investigations, periodic reinvestigations, and security clearances. This role involves employment suitability determinations and continuous evaluation of employees to ensure eligibility for employment. The PSS conducts supporting research and analysis into complex problems, serves as an expert on project teams, and provides critical thinking for written documentation and oral presentations.

Responsibilities

• Review and analyze requests for investigations concerning security clearances, reciprocity, requirements, violations, and assessments for on-board employees, contract/access applicants, and other personnel requiring security clearances or access to FBI facilities.
• Examine and analyze FBI investigative files and related material to extract identifying information, matching records, and areas of investigative consideration that could impact an individual’s reliability, trustworthiness, and loyalty.
• Analyze material to identify deliberate misrepresentation of facts, criminal or immoral conduct, signs of mentally disabling illness, sympathetic associations with hostile entities, or other indicators of potential security risks.
• Conduct Personnel Security Investigations (PSIs) and prepare detailed analyses of findings, including recommendations for further investigation or remedial actions to meet security standards.
• Ensure all relevant information and justification are developed and considered in accordance with security policies and FBI regulations.
• Conduct security briefings, including Security Awareness and Hostile Threat, and revise briefings based on specific issues and requirements.
• Assist in preliminary and final reviews of statements of personal history and related data prior to initiating background investigation procedures.
• Conduct Background Investigations (BIs) for individuals requiring suitability determinations or access to classified information, and prepare reports based on interviews conducted during BIs.
• Draft summary sheets on investigation results and, in cases of derogatory information, prepare detailed evaluations of adverse findings.
• Recommend follow-up investigative questions when information is insufficient for a disposition recommendation.
• Assist in making recommendations for adjudication of personal background investigations for FBI employment or security clearance issuance.
• Review Personnel Security Questionnaires (SF-86 and SF-85P) and verify submitted information.
• Contact subjects via approved methods to complete background investigation forms.
• Input data from MAC applications and retrieve data from credit bureaus, request Local Agency Checks, and review reports for criminal records or traffic violations.
• Prioritize assignments and create schedules to meet deadlines.
• Use advanced interview skills to gather in-depth details about subjects’ backgrounds.
• Conduct peer reviews as required.
• Perform database searches related to personnel security matters and maintain security of program data and materials.
• Process security clearance and BI documentation in preparation for adjudication and prepare documentation for government agencies and customers.
• Perform administrative tasks, including database queries, filing, processing mail, and conducting audits.

Requirements

• Active Top Secret U.S. Government Clearance (U.S. citizenship is required to maintain this clearance).
• Bachelor’s Degree with seven (7) years of experience or Associate’s Degree with nine (9) years of experience in the personnel security investigative or investigative analyst field.
• Experience interpreting governmental and commercial database checks to identify areas of concern during investigations.
• Experience analyzing investigative reports and other information sources to identify security vulnerabilities, develop investigative leads, and propose recommendations for approval, denial, or revocation of access to national security information.
• Proficient computer skills, including working knowledge of Microsoft Office (Word, Excel, Outlook, PowerPoint) and use of the Internet for research and open-source checks.
• Experience with Federal Law Enforcement (LE) and Intelligence Community (IC) IT systems for automated record checks.
• Knowledge of and experience with applicable commercial and Federal Government database systems.
• Experience performing database searches for personnel security matters and processing security clearance documentation.
• Excellent oral and written communication skills.
• Demonstrated knowledge and experience conducting Federal Government standards for investigations, BIs, and security investigations relating to suitability and security standards.

Qualifications

• Knowledge of DOJ and FBI regulations regarding the personnel security process.
• Experience conducting interviews and security briefings, and preparing written communications with analyses and recommendations.
• Thorough knowledge of indices systems, record check systems, and file review processes to extract accurate and complete information.
• Demonstrated understanding of security-related/investigative guidelines, including:
  • Federal Investigative Standards (FIS)
  • Security Executive Agent Directives (SEADs)
  • Executive Orders (EOs)
  • U.S. Code of Federal Regulations (US CFR)

Work Environment

This position is performed in a traditional office environment. The employee may occasionally be required to stand, walk, handle or feel objects, and write. The role involves the ability to bend, reach, lift, and carry up to 15 pounds.

Pay

$70,000–$80,000 per year. Actual compensation may vary based on factors such as job responsibilities, education, experience, skills, internal equity, market data, and applicable laws.

Benefits

• Health, dental, and vision insurance
• Paid time off and holidays
• Retirement benefits (including 401(k) matching)
• Educational reimbursement
• Parental leave
• Employee stock purchase plan
• Tax-saving options
• Disability and life insurance
• Pet insurance

Note: Benefits may vary based on employment type, location, and applicable agreements. Positions governed by a Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA), the McNamara-O’Hara Service Contract Act (SCA), or other employment contracts may include different provisions.