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ArmyTechnical / CyberRank #13 of 101 by 4-year cost
17C

Cyber Operations Specialist

52-week pipeline · BCT + AIT + Advanced Cyber Training · Fort Eisenhower, GA + NSA/USCYBERCOM
Training Pipeline
$110K
52 weeks
Annual MILPERS
$85K
E-5, 3 years service (typically accessed as higher-tier)
Equipment Burden
$5K
per year (amortized)
4-Year Total Cost
$472K
DoD investment
4-Year Cost Breakdown
Training Pipeline
$110K23%
Military Personnel (MILPERS × 4yr)
$342K72%
Equipment Burden (× 4yr)
$20K4%
Training: 23% · MILPERS: 72% · Equipment: 4%= $472K
By the Numbers

$110K to train a cyber soldier who earns $45K in base pay, while comparable civilians earn $120K–$180K. The Army loses 17Cs to tech industry at alarming rates — each departure represents a six-figure training write-off.

A FAANG software engineer earns $200K+ with far less stress and no TS/SCI requirement. The Army competes for the same talent pool.

Training Pipeline
Duration
52 weeks
Type
BCT + AIT + Advanced Cyber Training
Location
Fort Eisenhower, GA + NSA/USCYBERCOM
Pipeline Cost
$110K

17C is one of the Army's newest MOS, created in 2016 specifically to staff Cyber Mission Force teams. Graduates hold TS/SCI clearances and operate classified offensive and defensive cyber tools — a training investment comparable to a university computer science degree, plus clearance costs.

Equipment & Annual Burden
Assigned Equipment
  • ·Classified Cyber Workstations
  • ·Offensive Cyber Tools (classified)
  • ·SIPR/JWICS Access
  • ·NSA-Approved Crypto Hardware
Annual Equipment Burden
$5K/yr
Classified toolset + hardware — estimate for unclassified disclosure
Military Personnel Cost (Annual)
Grade BenchmarkE-5, 3 years service (typically accessed as higher-tier)
Base MILPERS$73K/yr
Specialty Pay(Cyber Special Duty Pay, Retention Incentive Bonus (Cyber))+$12K/yr
Total Annual MILPERS$85K/yr
Specialty pays account for $12K annually (14% of total compensation).
Force Structure Context
Annual Accessions~700
Avg Career Length6 years
Annual Training Bill$77.0M
Total Force 4yr Cost$330.1M
Read 17C Reviews →← All MOS ProfilesAverage Per-Soldier Cost →
Other Army Profiles
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Special Forces Candidate → 18 Series
$1.1M
4-year total
153A
Rotary Wing Aviator (Warrant Officer)
$825K
4-year total
89D
Explosive Ordnance Disposal Specialist
$617K
4-year total

Cost estimates derived from DoD Comptroller per-soldier analysis, RAND Corporation military personnel studies, CBO military compensation reports, service-specific training cost testimony, and published equipment unit costs. Error margin ±15%. Individual costs vary by duty station, assignment, and deployment tempo. This is Phase 3 of the Honest MOS DoD Budget Intelligence Roadmap.