FBI agent speaks about the job

FBI Agent Robert Gomez said he always knew he wanted to pursue a career in law enforcement. But when he entered college, he majored in something quite different -- nursing.\nGomez, an agent stationed in Bloomington, was invited by the IU Criminal Justice Student Association to share his experiences from the FBI. He spoke to a crowd of about 50 students Wednesday night in Ballantine Hall.\nGomez began the evening by relating to the crowd his memories from his college years at Indiana State University. He said he finally decided to switch his major from nursing to criminal justice during the middle of his senior year.\nCJSA President Sonya Lucki said the group invited an FBI agent because many criminal justice students are interested in a career with the FBI. She said she thought a chance to hear real experiences would be beneficial for students. \nGomez, an East Chicago, Ind. native, first conveyed the difficulties of getting into "the bureau." \n"I didn't make it into the bureau my first time trying because my Spanish wasn't good enough," he said.\nGomez said the FBI will hire personnel solely based on their immediate needs. He said Harvard University and Yale University graduate attorneys are currently being turned away by the FBI because their needs are mainly for accountants and language specialists.\n"It's definitely good to know how to speak a second language," he said. \nGomez said while Spanish, Arabic, Russian and Slavic languages are popular right now, the FBI's needs are constantly changing.\nThe best advice Gomez said he could give to aspiring students is to stay focused. Gomez said during his 18 years with the FBI he has witnessed many agents "cross over" to the other side -- joining the criminals.\nGomez described his job as fun and unpredictable.\n"The fun parts are doing a good job and having people thank you for it," he said. "On any given day, you don't know what will happen."\nCJSA Vice President Robert Nunemacher said they originally asked for a recruiting agent from Indianapolis, but were referred to their Bloomington office instead.\nCJSA President Sonya Lucki said she thought Gomez's speech went well.\n"We had a decent turnout," she said. "A lot of criminal justice students showed up, but so did a lot of people interested in other areas. It was pretty diverse."\n-- Contact staff writer Christina Galoozis at cgaloozi@indiana.edu.