Job seekers often face the “Catch-22,” the seemingly impossible, no-win problem. The term comes from the satirical war novel Catch-22 by author Joseph Heller, in which it is determined that “crazy pilots” could be excused from flying, but any pilot who asks to stop flying shows he has a clear, healthy mind, and therefore must keep flying.
In the job search world, many applicants lack the experience that comes with previous employment.
It could seem that some in the intelligence community (IC) seeking to advance their careers in the cleared workforce could now face a similar dilemma.
Enter ICJobs
Earlier this summer, the Office of the Director of National Intelligence (ODNI) launched ICJobs, a shared, classified job and resume-matching portal operating on Top Secret/Sensitive Compartmented Information (TS/SCI) networks. It was announced publicly this month, the Federal News Network first reported.
“ICJobs is a platform like USAJobs, but on the high side, on the TS/SCI network, to where we can have our staff get their resumes out there in a classified manner, and our job posts can go also go out in a classified manner, so we can match the right people to the right job,” explained Doug Cossa, chief information officer at the ODNI, during a Monday keynote address at the 2026 DoDIIS Worldwide Conference in Tampa, FL.
The National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency (NGIA) and the National Reconnaissance Office (NRO) are the first agencies in the IC to be up and running on the platform.
In essence, ICJobs is a classified version of USAJobs, the official employment site for the United States federal government and operated by the U.S. Office of Personnel Management (OPM). USAJobs remains the centralized portal where job seekers can search, view, and apply for civil service jobs across hundreds of federal agencies worldwide.
Unlike USAJobs, which anyone can browse, ICJobs is a closed platform and is restricted to those who already hold an active TS/SCI security clearance. It also operates entirely on a secure, classified network that is meant to protect both applicant data and sensitive job listings, but was also designed to streamline talent sharing, recruitment, and career transitions across different agencies within the U.S. IC.
What Types of Jobs?
It isn’t likely that it is the place to apply for “spy” jobs that require an understanding of games of chance, aggressive driving, and a need for a license to kill. Rather, ICJobs serves as a gateway for those already within the IC to find new opportunities in artificial intelligence, cyber, and data analytics.
There has been a significant turnover within the IC during the second Trump administration, and some officials have also sought to downsize ODNI. Much of the workforce could return to their “home intelligence agencies,” but some may opt to seek new opportunities.
ICJobs also comes as the U.S. continues to pivot to great power competition, notably with China, and deals with emerging technologies including AI.
“Finding the right people with the right talent for the right work,” Cossa said. “If you look at the AI race right now, particularly with China, our biggest risk is acquiring the right talent to get us where we need to go.”
Still Different From IntelligenceCareers.gov
ICJobs likely isn’t meant to replace the legacy IntelligenceCareers.gov site that was launched in late March 2016. That platform was built to educate the general public job seekers about opportunities in the IC, but doesn’t require any clearance for access.
Instead, it provides non-classified pathways, application processes, and career profiles across the 18 member agencies of the U.S. IC. It also outlines the extensive federal background investigation and security clearance requirements needed for service.
