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CIA Labs

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Re: CIA Labs

#51

Post by cameldrv »

throwaway894345 wrote: post #40
jdm2212 wrote: post #25

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> You get paid an excellent defense sector salary unconditionally I would imagine CIA officers get a regular civil service salary, which is emphatically not the high salaries that contractors earn.

> I would imagine CIA officers get a regular civil service salary What is a "regular civil service salary"? Presumably CIA officers are better paid than the clerk behind the DMV counter? Perhaps a CIA officer salary is still "excellent" if not on par with defense contractors?

It would be on the GS scale [1]. The GS scale has a set of levels and steps. If you're promoted, you generally go up a GS level. You go up steps with more time in service. There are a number of adjustments, including an adjustment for cost of living. Generally if you only have a bachelor's, you're limited to GS-9.

Of course, the federal government provides excellent job security and good benefits, but the salary is not competitive for a software person.

The main problem is that the GS system essentially assumes that all PhDs and all Master's degrees are equally valuable, but the private market does not agree.

[1] https://www.federalpay.org/gs/2020

Re: CIA Labs

#52

Post by dgacmu »

AWildC182 wrote: post #32
thoughtstheseus wrote: post #28

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Clearance for one.

If you think that's a perk you don't belong doing that work. It's not the james bond life you think it is and the people who think of it that way are insufferable. Try living in a windowless box for 8 hours a day and having no resume.

Everyone who deals with company confidential information (hopefully!) understands the 'pause' you experience when having a conversation about related topics with someone outside the company. ("hm, what am I allowed to say here?"). Now imagine it where you have to have the same question even with many people inside your company, and if you f* it up, you can go to jail. And unlike most corporate information, some or most of it will remain classified through the end of your life, and your obligation to keep it confidential never ends.

It's a burden.

Re: CIA Labs

#54

Post by thelean12 »

JackFr wrote: post #50
thelean12 wrote: post #42

Earlier quoted context omitted.

You say "equivalent salary" but compared to what? You mentioned FAANG above so I assume that? Unless you're ignoring total compensation, that's not right. You're going to have a much lower base compensation at CIA labs than FAANG. The $150k extra might only match FAANG, and would probably take years of effort to get it at the CIA. I imagine if you're talented enough to work at CIA labs you could land a much more lucr…

I assume they're gonna scoop up all the Palantir guys after the IPO.

How are they going to get the Palantir people? Doesn't Palantir pay extremely well?

I don't think people in this thread understand: The starting salary range for a "Technical Developer" is $60k-$150k according to their website. I imagine it's similar for CIA labs. That won't get any FAANG or Palantir developers out of bed in the morning unless they think being in the CIA super cool or something.

Re: CIA Labs

#56

Post by jdm2212 »

throwaway894345 wrote: post #40
jdm2212 wrote: post #25

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> You get paid an excellent defense sector salary unconditionally I would imagine CIA officers get a regular civil service salary, which is emphatically not the high salaries that contractors earn.

> I would imagine CIA officers get a regular civil service salary What is a "regular civil service salary"? Presumably CIA officers are better paid than the clerk behind the DMV counter? Perhaps a CIA officer salary is still "excellent" if not on par with defense contractors?

Federal civil service is all on the same scale, and it tops out below what new grad engineers typically make at defense contractors, to say nothing of FAANG.

Re: CIA Labs

#58

Post by jdm2212 »

daniel-cussen wrote: post #47
balls187 wrote: post #14

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> ...with all the defense sector benefits, some very exclusive. Could you elaborate on that?

The federal government pays a comfortable six figures (if I were offered this kind of job without being told the salary, I would value that opportunity estimating the salary to be $150,000). Plus you retire really early (I'm not certain whether CIA lets you retire after 20 years, but many fed roles do, with full salary), plus you have access to really hard to find information (valuable from the point of view of sheer…

> The federal government pays a comfortable six figures

Nope, it doesn't. Cracking 100k in the civil service requires being very very senior (equivalent of at least a colonel in the military).

It is a cool opportunity, but it does not pay well. Even the civil service salary PLUS the maximum $150k patent royalties is less than what a 27 year old at a FAANG earns.

Re: CIA Labs

#59

Post by content_sesh »

AWildC182 wrote: post #32
thoughtstheseus wrote: post #28

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Clearance for one.

If you think that's a perk you don't belong doing that work. It's not the james bond life you think it is and the people who think of it that way are insufferable. Try living in a windowless box for 8 hours a day and having no resume.

I was told that an active clearance with SSBI can add $30-50k (or something, this was years ago) to your salary. These days that doesn't seem like anything super special given tech salaries in major metros. But it probably goes a real long way in Huntsville, AL or wherever.

I remember being emotionally exhausted after a particularly rough week at work, and not being able to talk about it to my wife beyond the barest "yeah, it's been a tough one". It isn't cool or sexy, at best its a layer of inconvenience and red tape over your day-to-day work life. Looking back, it was by far my least favorite job I've ever held

Re: CIA Labs

#60

Post by [deleted] »

AWildC182 wrote: post #32
thoughtstheseus wrote: post #28

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Clearance for one.

If you think that's a perk you don't belong doing that work. It's not the james bond life you think it is and the people who think of it that way are insufferable. Try living in a windowless box for 8 hours a day and having no resume.

[deleted]
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