IB to FBI Special Agent
I am currently a first-year analyst at a boutique M&A IB shop but have the opportunity to become an FBI Special Agent (recruited and pretty far in the process). The process would come with a conditional offer then roughly a 6-12 month background check. The only thing holding me back is the pay. The pay varies by location you are placed in, but you could expect roughly $85k in a city like LA, Chicago, or NY all in for your first year. The minimum number of hours you must work is 50 and they will be a rather inconsistent 50 hours. The most you could theoretically make as an agent is probably $150-165k which is years down the road. The shop I work at currently (not a long term fit, will lateral to FP&A) I work closer to 60-70 hours and make closer to $115-140k. FP&A positions I have interviewed in are about $100k all in. Being an Agent would most likely be a way more exciting lifestyle but the monetary portion scares me.
All in all, sacrifice salary for a badass career or grind it out up the corporate ladder?
Interesting question. Reminds me of a movie
I may sound stupid, but what movie is that?
Are you sure its $85k? I was offered much lower than that for DC. In any case, it was tough to give up banking pay for that so rejected my offer.
As of Jan 2021 - if we took DC as an example, after graduating Quantico you would be a Grade 10 Step 1 which is $66,216 then you multiple that by 1.25 (get a 25% salary bonus for projected 50 hours) that brings you to $82,770 then you get roughly a $5-6k bonus per year. So yes, right around that mark for DC.
I think only you can answer that. I kind of went in reverse order of what you're considering (but Army as you can tell from username) and chose IB over moving a different DoD agency. I do miss the importance of the work I was doing in the Army which I think you'd find similar in the FBI. On the other hand, bureaucracy can be stifling and infuriating, and sometimes it feels more like you're just following rules than doing work of any substance.
??? Y’all can just be posting online that you’re a potential FBI agent who ty put getting any flack? Lmao just seems like it’s easy to figure out who you are with all the provided detail
Many many people go through the FBI recruiting process, and if I did accept the offer it would not be public for another 12+ months. Good luck figuring that out.
What would your job be as an agent? Might be a stupid question but curious.
It differs based on which branch you end up joining, but here are some generic things:
The main branches are:
That's pretty cool. How exactly would you combat all this? Do you act like a police officer where your life is in danger or more like a white collar worker? Really curious about what this would look like.
Did you have prior experience before your analyst stint? I'm also a first year interested in possibly applying for to be a Special Agent but I don't have the 2 years of work experience yet. Trying to figure out whether I should grind out another year of IB or find another job I can do until I have enough experience to apply.
Yes - I worked another Financial Services gig before lateraling in rather untraditionally. How do you justify the large pay cut? That seems do be the biggest concern for me, especially as I hope to have a family and children one day.
Honestly I'm living with my parents right now and have put every single paycheck so far towards my student loans. I'll be debt free in 2 months and then I'm planning on adding my bonus to pay off my car / add to a fund I have set up to save for a house. I've also been investing in crypto for years and have made a ton this year, so financial security isn't necessarily a worry for me right now. IMO the pay cut is worth it because I can actually see how that job helps people and I'll be able to have a much better WLB. Also just not sure how much longer I can convince myself that the money's worth it when all I do is stay up at ungodly hours and do things a middle schooler could do.
is it like boring fbi or fun fbi
I would be a Special Agent - not the BS accounting or finance gigs, the in the weeds doing the investigation work etc. I am sure there is a bit of desk work involved as you need to fill out reports etc. See comment above about day-to-day and different branches.
you probably already know what you want to do, just go with your gut
If you are contemplating FBI vs FP&A, I would definitely say FBI. If you had the itch to get back into Finance later on, you could always go back and get your MBA. The FBI has sabbatical/leave without pay/education programs and you could work out the timing to go to school and stay in the Bureau.
Two questions that stem from that: 1) Is that an interesting profile for an M7 school? 2) Where can I read more about the educational programs they offer. Do you know if the Bureau helps finance an MBA?
1.) I'm not qualified to answer this, hopefully someone else can. I would think T15 is possible.
2.) Best way to find out would be to reach out to someone who is currently in or reach out to your local recruitment office. I think the cap is 60k on reimbursement spread throughout 5 or 6 years.
Take-home pay might not be super exciting, but the pension isn't bad and is about as safe as they come.
Not related to your question, but are you allowed to put FBI Special Agent on your CV for future job applications? just curious
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I actually went through the internship recruitment process for the CIA, FBI, and NSA and got offers from all three. I think you need to talk to some people who've actually work in the field. The public sector pay is low and the work can be very boring as everything moves very slowly due to bureaucracy and red tape. Having said that, I ultimately didn't take the offers so I can't give you any anecdotal advice but the fact that you think it's gonna be "badass" and "exciting" is a bit of a red flag.
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