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Has anyone had a background check for an internship through the DOJ recently that could comment on how long it took? I've heard the process is faster due to the hiring freeze / budget constraints. Specifically I am wondering about a background check for the Criminal Division.

Plan for 4-6 weeks but 2 or so seems to be average now.

4-6 weeks

kalvano wrote:Plan for 4-6 weeks but 2 or so seems to be average now.

Unfortunately I am passed the planning stage. Long story short, the division I'll be with and I both were under the impression I wouldn't need another background check. Turns out the USAO I interned at last summer didn't actually do a background check on me. Now I'm hoping it gets done in time for me to get credit for this internship.

This is silly. No one can give you an answer unless you tell us what kind of background check is being run. Is it for a public trust position? A security clearance?

Without this information people in this thread will just be throwing out numbers that may not even apply to your situation.

Cogburn87 wrote:This is silly. No one can give you an answer unless you tell us what kind of background check is being run. Is it for a public trust position? A security clearance?

Without this information people in this thread will just be throwing out numbers that may not even apply to your situation.

If you don't know what kind of background check the Criminal Division or any USAO gives for interns, then you probably haven't had a recent one yourself. Silly...

They told me background checks for non-sensitive position (USAO internship) should run about 2.5 weeks.

Torvon wrote:

Cogburn87 wrote:This is silly. No one can give you an answer unless you tell us what kind of background check is being run. Is it for a public trust position? A security clearance?

Without this information people in this thread will just be throwing out numbers that may not even apply to your situation.

If you don't know what kind of background check the Criminal Division or any USAO gives for interns, then you probably haven't had a recent one yourself. Silly...

This. OP was specific enough.

Figure 4 weeks if no hiccups occur. I had a holdup because of something (erroneous) on my credit report, of all things.

Torvon wrote:

Cogburn87 wrote:This is silly. No one can give you an answer unless you tell us what kind of background check is being run. Is it for a public trust position? A security clearance?

Without this information people in this thread will just be throwing out numbers that may not even apply to your situation.

If you don't know what kind of background check the Criminal Division or any USAO gives for interns, then you probably haven't had a recent one yourself. Silly...

No need for the snark, especially since you came here asking for information. Also, since you seem to care, I have had two checks completed for DOJ positions in the last two years.

All federal agencies tell OPM what level of investigation they want. For a DOJ internship, this will usually be an MBI or an SSBI. Furthermore, you seem to be under the impression that "any USAO" will request the same check. Different USAOs will request different levels depending on the sensitivity of matters an intern will be exposed to. An intern working in the civil division of a USAO in flyover country will almost certainly fill out an SF-85 and get an MBI. An intern working at an office that has a lot of high profile matters such as terror prosecutions might need to fill out an SF-86 for a SSBI and a clearance. The difference between these two checks in terms of thoroughness and the time required for completion is night and day.