St. Louis Cardinals' Stephen Piscotty, right, scores past Milwaukee Brewers catcher Martin Maldonado on a double by Matt Holliday during the second inning of a baseball game on Saturday, Sept. 26, 2015, in St. Louis.
Secret Service agents go through rigorous training to perform their job effectively. All agents must go through about 7 months worth of training when they are initially hired. Once an agent has gone through the initial training, if they want to be on a protection detail, they must work in a field office for six to eight years. After spending six to eight years in the field, agents will then be transferred to work on a protection detail for three to five years.
A secret security clearance involves a federal records check and criminal history and credit, and a top secret security clearance also involves a 10-year background investigation as described above.