Odds of Getting In
Becoming a criminal investigator for the IRS is no easy task. First and foremost, you've got to be recruited—which usually means you've got to be in college, because that's where the recruiting happens. Once selected, you go through a very simple, completely non-intrusive application process, which includes (but is not limited to):
- online assessment tests
- written assessments
- oral interviews
- job situation simulations
- psychological exam
- medical screening
- drug test
- personal tax audit
That's right—when you join an agency as detail-oriented and law-focused as the IRS, you can bet your sweet bippy that the first person getting investigated in your career is you.
Finally, you've got to make it through training at the Federal Law Enforcement Training Center in Glynco, GA (source). There, you'll spend months learning about laws, practicing enforcement techniques, developing critical thinking skills, from some of the brightest minds the U.S. Government employs. If you can hack all of that, then (and only then) will you be able to call yourself special agent.