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Planning and Analysis

Planning and Analysis | Security / Defense Intelligence Analyst

Security / Defense Intelligence Analyst

What Does a Professional in this Career Do?

A Security or Defense Intelligence Analyst gathers and analyzes information needed to anticipate and prevent organized criminal activities that may threaten national security.

Job Outlook

There were 967 Security / Defense Intelligence Analyst job postings in North Carolina in the past year and 33599 in the United States.

In combination with other careers in the Security / Defense Intelligence Analyst industry, which includes the Security / Defense Intelligence Analyst career, the following graph shows the number of people employed for each year since 2015:

Salary

Many new Security / Defense Intelligence Analyst jobs have salaries estimated to be in the following ranges, based on the requirements and responsibilities listed in job postings from the past year.

National

The average estimated salary in the United States for this career, based on job postings in the past year, is $84,508.

State

The average estimated salary in North Carolina for this career, based on job postings in the past year, is $83,337.

Percentiles represent the percentage that is lower than the value. For example, 25% of estimated salaries for Security / Defense Intelligence Analyst postings in the United States in the past year were lower than $75,513.

Education and Experience

Posted Security / Defense Intelligence Analyst jobs typically require the following level of education. The numbers below are based on job postings in the United States from the past year. Not all job postings list education requirements.

Education LevelPercentage
Associate's Degree4.89%
Bachelor's Degree75.24%
Master's Degree30.38%
Doctoral Degree3.63%
Other7.85%

Posted Security / Defense Intelligence Analyst jobs typically require the following number of years of experience. The numbers below are based on job postings in the United States from the past year. Not all job postings list experience requirements.

Years of ExperiencePercentage
0 to 2 years34.46%
3 to 5 years40.82%
6 to 8 years12.1%
9+ years12.62%

Skills

Below are listings of the most common general and specialized skills Security / Defense Intelligence Analyst positions expect applicants to have as well as the most common skills that distinguish individuals from their peers. The percentage of job postings that specifically mention each skill is also listed.

Baseline Skills

A skill that is required across a broad range of occupations, including this one.

  • Physical Fitness (31.76%)
  • Operations (31.56%)
  • Research (26.02%)
  • Communication (25.85%)
  • Leadership (21.24%)
  • Management (20.79%)
  • Writing (15.6%)
  • Investigation (14.53%)
  • Planning (12.23%)
  • Information Technology (11.85%)

Defining Skills

A core skill for this occupation, it occurs frequently in job postings.

  • All-Source Intelligence (6.98%)
  • Intelligence Analysis (17.96%)
  • Search Warrant (36.24%)
  • Signals Intelligence (7.3%)

Necessary Skills

A skill that is requested frequently in this occupation but isn’t specific to it.

  • Microsoft Azure (2.31%)
  • Risk Analysis (5.25%)
  • Vulnerability (10.73%)
  • Linux (3.42%)
  • Operating Systems (4.01%)
  • Incident Response (6.5%)
  • Security Information And Event Management (SIEM) (5.41%)
  • Finance (10.26%)
  • Firewall (4.54%)
  • Cyber Security (24.75%)
  • IT Security (4.45%)
  • Security Controls (3.29%)
  • Cyber Threat Intelligence (8.38%)
  • Computer Science (16.11%)
  • Data Analysis (8.24%)
  • Auditing (6.38%)
  • Python (Programming Language) (4.65%)
  • Triage (3.16%)

Distinguishing Skills

A skill that may distinguish a subset of the occupation.

  • Counter-Terrorism (3.64%)
  • Organized Crime Investigation (8.16%)
  • Forensic Accounting (7.94%)
  • Open Source Intelligence (4.93%)
  • Cyber Threat Hunting (1.29%)
  • Human Intelligence (6.29%)
  • Geospatial Intelligence (5.42%)

Salary Boosting Skills

A professional who wishes to excel in this career path may consider developing the following highly valued skills. The percentage of job postings that specifically mention each skill is listed.

  • Cyber Threat Hunting (3.4%)
  • Forensic Accounting (20.97%)
  • Search Warrant (95.68%)

Alternative Job Titles

Sometimes employers post jobs with Security / Defense Intelligence Analyst skills but a different job title. Some common alternative job titles include:

  • Background Specialist
  • Security Analyst
  • Intelligence Analyst
  • Law Enforcement Specialist
  • Special Agent
  • IT Security Analyst
  • All Source Analyst
  • Soc Analyst
  • All Source Intelligence Analyst
  • Counterintelligence Analyst

Similar Occupations

If you are interested in exploring occupations with similar skills, you may want to research the following job titles. Note that we only list occupations that have at least one corresponding NC State Online and Distance Education program.

Common Employers

Here are the employers that have posted the most Security / Defense Intelligence Analyst jobs in the past year along with how many they have posted.

United States

  • Federal Bureau of Investigation (11204)
  • Leidos (824)
  • CACI International (434)
  • Amentum (410)
  • SAIC (391)
  • Booz Allen Hamilton (371)
  • Jacobs Engineering Group (344)
  • Peraton (335)
  • Northrop Grumman (312)
  • Elevance Health (311)

North Carolina

  • Federal Bureau of Investigation (97)
  • Cherokee Nation (58)
  • Aevex Aerospace (37)
  • CACI International (31)
  • Jacobs Engineering Group (22)
  • Amentum (22)
  • Metis Solutions (21)
  • Allied Universal (20)
  • Quick Services Llc (Qsl) (15)
  • SAIC (14)

NC State Programs Relevant to this Career

If you are interested in preparing for a career in this field, the following NC State Online and Distance Education programs offer a great place to start!