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ArmyIntelligenceRank #15 of 101 by 4-year cost
35N

Signals Intelligence Analyst

52-week pipeline · BCT + AIT + NSA Certification · Fort Meade, MD / Goodfellow AFB, TX
Training Pipeline
$118K
52 weeks
Annual MILPERS
$79K
E-5, 4 years service
Equipment Burden
$5K
per year (amortized)
4-Year Total Cost
$453K
DoD investment
4-Year Cost Breakdown
Training Pipeline
$118K26%
Military Personnel (MILPERS × 4yr)
$315K70%
Equipment Burden (× 4yr)
$20K4%
Training: 26% · MILPERS: 70% · Equipment: 4%= $453K
By the Numbers

35N graduates hold the most sensitive clearances in the Army and access collection systems that remain classified decades after use. Their $118K training pipeline produces analysts the NSA and CIA compete to hire on separation.

Training Pipeline
Duration
52 weeks
Type
BCT + AIT + NSA Certification
Location
Fort Meade, MD / Goodfellow AFB, TX
Pipeline Cost
$118K

35N training includes NSA-certified SIGINT analysis courses unavailable to any civilian. The full pipeline takes a year and produces analysts who can access the most sensitive collection systems in the U.S. intelligence community.

Equipment & Annual Burden
Assigned Equipment
  • ·Classified SIGINT Collection Equipment
  • ·NSA-Certified Workstations
  • ·JWICS Terminal
  • ·Classified Processing Systems
Annual Equipment Burden
$5K/yr
Classified equipment allocation — estimate for unclassified disclosure
Military Personnel Cost (Annual)
Grade BenchmarkE-5, 4 years service
Base MILPERS$73K/yr
Specialty Pay(SIGINT Special Duty Pay, Foreign Language Proficiency Pay (if applicable))+$5K/yr
Total Annual MILPERS$79K/yr
Specialty pays account for $5K annually (7% of total compensation).
Force Structure Context
Annual Accessions~800
Avg Career Length8 years
Annual Training Bill$94.4M
Total Force 4yr Cost$362.5M
Read 35N Reviews →← All MOS ProfilesAverage Per-Soldier Cost →
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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.