Cleared IT recruiting in San Diego, California
San Diego is the largest military market on the West Coast.
The San Diego Military Advisory Council counts 136,350 active-duty service members stationed in the region and 356,519 defense-related jobs, Naval Base San Diego is the principal homeport of the Pacific Fleet, Naval Base Point Loma houses the Navy's information warfare acquisition command and its Pacific research center, Naval Base Coronado includes the air station at North Island, and the Marine Corps installations run from Camp Pendleton in the north to Miramar and the recruit depot. General Atomics builds unmanned aircraft in Poway, and Qualcomm anchors a semiconductor and wireless industry. Requisitions run from Secret for shipbuilding and network work to TS/SCI at the information warfare commands.
The metro stretches from Oceanside to the border, and a requisition must state its base or neighborhood, because Interstate 5 and Interstate 15 decide whether a candidate in North County will accept a seat at Point Loma.
Installations, agencies and employers that shape hiring in San Diego
The organizations below shape the San Diego market. They are named as facts about the area; none is a client of the firm.
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The naval bases
Naval Base San Diego is the principal homeport of the Pacific Fleet, Naval Base Point Loma includes the submarine base, the Naval Information Warfare Systems Command and the Naval Information Warfare Center Pacific, whose workforce is largely in San Diego, and Naval Base Coronado includes Naval Air Station North Island, the homeport of aircraft carriers, and the Naval Amphibious Base.
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The Marine Corps installations
Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton in northern San Diego County is home to the I Marine Expeditionary Force and the 1st Marine Division, Marine Corps Air Station Miramar, about fourteen miles north of downtown, is home to the 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing, and Marine Corps Recruit Depot San Diego trains recruits from the western United States beside the airport.
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General Atomics
General Atomics lists its corporate headquarters at 3550 General Atomics Court in San Diego, and General Atomics Aeronautical Systems, the builder of the Predator series of unmanned aircraft, is at 14200 Kirkham Way in Poway.
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Qualcomm
Qualcomm's business address on file with the Securities and Exchange Commission is 5775 Morehouse Drive in San Diego, and its engineering organization draws the same embedded, RF and software talent the naval programs compete for.
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The regional defense economy
The San Diego Military Advisory Council states that one in six active-duty sailors and one in four active-duty Marines are stationed in San Diego and puts the military's economic impact in the region at 61.3 billion dollars.
Commuting and remote work around San Diego
San Diego MTS operates five Trolley light rail lines over 65 miles of rail and 62 stations, almost 100 fixed bus routes, and a fleet of more than 160 trolley cars and 750 buses, serving about 570 square miles and three million people with 250,000 trips each weekday. The North County Transit District's COASTER commuter train serves eight stations between Oceanside and downtown San Diego in about an hour, with 30 weekday trips.
Interstate 8 begins at the coast and runs 170.12 miles across California, according to the federal route log, and with Interstate 5, Interstate 15 and State Route 163 it defines the commutes to the bases and to Poway and Rancho Bernardo; a candidate in Oceanside faces a long daily drive to Point Loma or Coronado.
Shipboard, shipyard and command work is on site, and the information warfare commands' cleared engineering is in controlled facilities. Qualcomm and the commercial employers offer hybrid arrangements, and the contractors around the bases follow the program's policy; a requisition should state it.
Clearance levels commonly requested in San Diego
Shipbuilding, repair and installation support requisitions ask for Secret, program office and fleet command work asks for Top Secret, and the information warfare commands and their contractors ask for TS/SCI for much of their work. General Atomics' programs carry Secret and above with export control citizenship requirements, and Qualcomm and the commercial employers rarely require a clearance.
California's posting rules apply to every one of them: the pay scale in any posting by an employer with 15 or more employees, no salary history questions, and no conviction question before a conditional offer under the Fair Chance Act. Non-compete clauses are unlawful in the state.
Specialties in demand in San Diego
Industries hiring in San Diego
Nearby markets
Questions about hiring in San Diego
Which San Diego requisitions ask for TS/SCI?
Those supporting the information warfare commands at Point Loma and the fleet intelligence and command programs, and the contractor positions that support them. Shipyard, installation and most engineering support requisitions ask for Secret or Top Secret without SCI. The requisition summary should state the level.
Will North County candidates commute to the bases downtown?
Some will by COASTER or Interstate 5, but the daily drive from Oceanside or Carlsbad to Point Loma or Coronado rules out many, and Camp Pendleton requisitions are sourced from North County itself. Recruiters Workforce records where a candidate lives and the bases they will accept before submittal.