Becoming a Criminalist via Online Education?
At the very least, online education can help you lay a foundation and/or open up alternate career paths.
Ashford University, one of the highest ranking online
schools,
is a US school (accredited) offering criminal justice courses to train individuals
to become top-notch
criminal justice administrators,
public prosecutors,
public defenders,
judges,
probation officers,
juvenile prosecutors,
juvenile defenders,
criminal justice professionals, etc.
Currently, according to the US Bureau of Labor Statistics there are 12,870 people employed as
forensic science technicians alone in America, and their average annual salary is
$55,070.
Colleges and universities like Ashford University that provide online education are successfully launching workers into
this
field.
Typical Work Locations for a Criminalist
- Police stations
- Law Offices
- Insurance Companies
- Forensic Laboratories
- Counseling Centers
- Colleges
- Chemistry Labs
- Law Enforcement Offices
- Crime Scenes
- Forensic Offices
Potential Advantages and Benefits of Working as a Criminalist
- Constant gathering of information gathering
- Impressive school training
- Ability to solve problem identification
- Opportunity to take on new jobs and responsibilities
- Public safety and security
- Using inductive reasoning
- Analyzing information using logic
- Helping and providing services to others
- Decision-making freedom
- Assessing the value, importance, or quality of things or people
Potential Drawbacks
- Communicating and working with a lot of different people
- Well-paid profession
- Job-oriented training required
- Rests on evaluating and predicting the foundations of behavior based on incomplete information.
- Less experience in forensic science
- Employed by law-enforcement agencies
- Must know how to design and construct sound research projects
- Written examinations are often required
- Criminology mainly relies upon quantitative methods
- Takes a large amount of dedication to one case
Related Professions to Consider
- Criminalist
- Senior Criminalist
- Police Communications Technician
- Psychologist
- School Safety Agent
- Traffic Enforcement Agent
- Crime Scene Technician
- Crime Scene Examiner
- Crime Laboratory Analyst
- Detectives
Possible Interview Questions When Applying to be a Criminalist
- Have you ever used illicit drugs?
- How do you handle the stress?
- What paperwork have you filled out?
- How do I get an interviewer to offer the job?
- Why should we hire you over other candidates?
- How do you see yourself from 5 yrs from now?
- Tell us something about the roles and responsibilities that you have taken in your previous job?
- What are your strengths?
- What are some of the aspects that you like about the job?
- Of all the candidates that we have interviewed why should we select only you for this position?
Common Collaborating Professions
- Criminalist Supervisor
- Senior Criminalist
- Criminalist Supervisor
- Criminalist/Firearms Examiner
- Forensic Criminalist
- Senior Forensic Criminalist
- Manager Criminalists
- DNA Criminalist
- Jail Supervisor
- Justice Professor
Criminalist Training books
Criminalist (More) Popular books
Potential Companies to Work For
Common College Majors
- Criminological Theory
- Deviance
- Homicide
- Introductory to Sociology
- Juvenile Delinquency
- Policing Society
- Punishment
- Social Research
- The U.S. Criminal Justice System
- Women and Crime
Criminalist Salary Information
Category: Forensic science technicians
| Total # Employed in the US |
12,870 |
| Average Hourly Wage: |
$26.47/hr |
| Hourly Wage Range |
| PERCENTILE |
| 10% | 25% | 50% | 75% | 90% |
| $15.59 |
$19.39 |
$24.75 |
$31.84 |
$40.51 |
|
| Average Yearly Salary |
$55,070 |
| Yearly Salary Range |
| PERCENTILE |
| 10% | 25% | 50% | 75% | 90% |
| $32,420 |
$40,340 |
$51,480 |
$66,240 |
$84,260 |
|
| Employment Demographics |
| % OF WORKERS WITH |
| < High School Diploma |
High School Diploma |
Some College |
Associate Degree |
Bachelor Degree |
Master Degree |
Doctoral Degree |
| 2.6% |
17.5% |
23.9% |
12.6% |
29.7% |
9.4% |
4.2% |
|
Forensic science technicians — WAGES BY STATE, SORTED BY SALARY
| STATE | Average Hourly Wage | Average Annual Salary |
|---|
| Missouri |
$39.4/hr
|
$81,950
|
| Maine |
$35.3/hr
|
$73,430
|
| Florida |
$33.59/hr
|
$69,870
|
| Kansas |
$32.86/hr
|
$68,350
|
| Colorado |
$32.06/hr
|
$66,690
|
| Massachusetts |
$29.6/hr
|
$61,570
|
| Mississippi |
$28.81/hr
|
$59,920
|
| Montana |
$27.07/hr
|
$56,300
|
| Connecticut |
$26.96/hr
|
$56,080
|
| South Carolina |
$26.47/hr
|
$55,060
|
| Indiana |
$26.41/hr
|
$54,940
|
| Tennessee |
$26.23/hr
|
$54,560
|
| New Jersey |
$25.95/hr
|
$53,970
|
| Arkansas |
$25.78/hr
|
$53,620
|
| Alabama |
$25.71/hr
|
$53,490
|
| Ohio |
$25.64/hr
|
$53,340
|
| South Dakota |
$25.01/hr
|
$52,030
|
| Iowa |
$24.66/hr
|
$51,290
|
| Idaho |
$24.51/hr
|
$50,980
|
| North Dakota |
$24.23/hr
|
$50,390
|
| Kentucky |
$23.08/hr
|
$48,010
|
| Wyoming |
$22.35/hr
|
$46,490
|
| Guam |
$22.16/hr
|
$46,090
|
| Wisconsin |
$22.08/hr
|
$45,920
|
| New Hampshire |
$21.74/hr
|
$45,210
|
| Hawaii |
$21.59/hr
|
$44,910
|
| Oregon |
$21.17/hr
|
$44,030
|
| Maryland |
$20.18/hr
|
$41,970
|
| New Mexico |
$19.76/hr
|
$41,090
|
| Washington |
$19.52/hr
|
$40,600
|
| California |
$18.89/hr
|
$39,280
|
Category: Police Identification and Records Officers
| Total # Employed in the US |
110,380 |
| Average Hourly Wage: |
$31.66/hr |
| Hourly Wage Range |
| PERCENTILE |
| 10% | 25% | 50% | 75% | 90% |
| $18.25 |
$22.63 |
$29.86 |
$40.22 |
$48.07 |
|
| Average Yearly Salary |
$65,860 |
| Yearly Salary Range |
| PERCENTILE |
| 10% | 25% | 50% | 75% | 90% |
| $37,960 |
$47,070 |
$62,110 |
$83,650 |
$99,980 |
|
| Employment Demographics |
| % OF WORKERS WITH |
| < High School Diploma |
High School Diploma |
Some College |
Associate Degree |
Bachelor Degree |
Master Degree |
Doctoral Degree |
| 0.5% |
10.0% |
25.9% |
12.1% |
40.2% |
9.6% |
1.8% |
|
