Anyone who doesn't know what CERN is should not send me their resume for any job, and certainly not for HFT.
Other Q's:
1.) Would firms hiring Algo Traders want to hire people who have worked at the NSA for the same reasons they like CERN people?
Yes though of course it would vary with what you did. They like signal processing , problem solving (a lot), good maths in general and programming skills. The particularly like poeple who don't need a formal specification, and who are comfortable working in an environment where the "specfication" is "exploit this".
It's hard to get into the NSA which also acts as a filter since employers like people who have shown they win in competitive environments.
2.) Would people from petroleum engineering backgrounds who have to model fluid flows and other things have a shot at HFT jobs?
Yes, though fluid flows are typically PDEs which favours classical Wilmott-style finance.