About Careertakes

👉 Important disclosure: Careertakes is a third-party recruiting platform supporting this hiring process. If selected, you will be employed directly by our client, Federal law enforcement (border security & public safety).

Applicants for this role may also receive access to additional matched opportunities through the Careertakes platform.

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Overview

Confidential Client is recruiting full-time, entry-level Border Patrol Agents (BPA) at GL-5 / GL-7 grade levels for duty in and around Jacksonville, FL and mission-critical locations nationwide. This is a federal law enforcement career with academy training, a clear promotion ladder, and the potential for significant recruitment and retention incentives.

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Salary & Benefits

• Annual base salary range for newly appointed BPAs (GL-5 / GL-7): $51,632 – $92,912 per year.
• Eligible for federal benefits including health and dental insurance, generous annual and sick leave, and participation in the Thrift Savings Plan (a retirement/401(k)-style plan).
• Recruitment incentive: up to $20,000 (first $10,000 after academy; remaining $10,000 for accepting a prioritized location).
• Retention incentives: may qualify for up to $40,000 distributed over the first four years.
• Fully trained BPAs may be eligible for locality and law-enforcement pay adjustments (up to ~25% additional in some locations).

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Duty Locations & Assignment Notes

• Duty assignments are determined by operational needs at time of offer and may include the Southwest Border and other prioritized locations. Relocation may be required.
• Candidates will be asked to select preferred mission locations; actual assignment may differ based on operational requirements.
• This is a career-ladder role (GL-5 → GL-7 → GL-9 → GS-11 → GS-12) with eligibility for promotion after meeting time-in-grade requirements.

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What You’ll Do

As a Border Patrol Agent, you will be part of a team that protects national borders and public safety. Typical duties include:

• Detecting, questioning, and inspecting people and property to determine citizenship or violations of immigration and customs laws.
• Preventing and apprehending unauthorized entrants and smugglers through surveillance and interdiction operations.
• Interpreting tracks, marks, and other physical evidence of illegal entry.
• Conducting farm checks, building checks, traffic checks, city patrols, and transportation screenings.
• Patrolling boundaries and waterways using vehicles, ATVs, watercraft, horses, motorcycles, and other assets.

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Qualifications

You may qualify at GL-5 if you have one of the following:

• One (1) year of general work experience demonstrating the ability to take charge, make sound decisions under stress, learn procedures via classroom or on-the-job training, and gather concise information through questioning and observation; OR
• A bachelor’s degree (four-year) from an accredited institution; OR
• A combination of general experience and college education (evaluated from resume/transcripts).

You may qualify at GL-7 if you have one of the following:

• One (1) year of specialized experience showing ability to make sound firearms judgments, deal tactfully with people on law-enforcement matters, analyze information rapidly, and perform arrests after required training; OR
• A bachelor’s degree with superior academic achievement (class standing, GPA ≥ 3.0, or honor society) or one year of graduate-level study in a related field (criminal justice, homeland security, forensic tech, etc.); OR
• A combination of specialized experience and education (evaluated from resume/transcripts).

Note: Candidates with certain prior law enforcement or military police experience may qualify at higher grade levels (GL-9 / GS-11). Provide transcripts and supporting documents with your application for experience/education credit.

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Other Requirements

• U.S. citizenship required.
• Must have had primary U.S. residency for at least 3 of the last 5 years.
• Age limit: Candidates generally must be referred before their 40th birthday under law enforcement retirement provisions; exceptions may apply for certain prior federal law-enforcement service or Veterans’ Preference eligibilities.
• Veterans may be eligible for excepted service appointments that affect age restrictions.
• Successful candidates will attend approximately six (6) months of intensive training at the Border Patrol Academy (Artesia, NM) covering law, operations, driver training, physical techniques, firearms, and more.
• Spanish language proficiency is helpful; language training is provided at the Academy to reach required competency.

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Training & Career Path

• Academy training followed by assignment to a duty station.
• Career-ladder progression with time-in-grade promotions available.
• Opportunities for specialized assignments, overtime, and skill development across federal law enforcement missions.

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Equal Opportunity & Hiring Transparency

Careertakes and our client are Equal Opportunity Employers committed to building a diverse and inclusive workforce. We prohibit discrimination or harassment of any kind. To support a fair and efficient hiring process, AI tools may be used to assist with application review or resume screening. These tools do not replace human decision-making. Final hiring decisions are made by people.

If you have questions about how your data is used, please contact us directly.