Getting In The Door

David Herbert has an exceedingly depressing dispatch up at NationalJournal.com about how the security clearance process is preventing interns from even starting their jobs at the State Department. This is disastrous for several reasons. First and most obviously, internships are a great way to find motivated candidates for permanent jobs, and if interns never get to start their internships, the State Department never gets to know them, and I can't imagine those interns will ever want to apply for permanent jobs at State. Second, the clearance process is a different part of a job application that most people won't experience but they go job hunting. But the perception that going through clearance requires an extraordinary amount of effort makes it harder to convince potential interns that it's worth even getting in the game. Herbert writes:

"It requires constant checking up and babysitting," said Buniewicz, who recently graduated from Johns Hopkins' School of Advanced International Studies. While the State Department doesn't keep statistics on how many of its 1,000 summer interns experience delays, the department certainly accounts for it. Laura Tischler, a State Department spokeswoman, said bureaus accept more interns than they need, expecting that some won't survive the process.

Security clearances are important, there's no question about that. But the simple process of going through one shouldn't be a deciding factor about whether someone can make it into a job or an internship. State--and the federal government as a whole--need to develop resources commensurate to the clearance process's importance so the job can get done.