by Garrett Anderson

Created on: January 19, 2009   Last Updated: March 01, 2009

There are literally hundreds and thousands of careers in the criminal justice arena. It is a broad and vast array of occupations from law enforcement to the judiciary, lawyers and judges. There are jobs up and down the federal, state, county, and local government ladders.There are unique and specialty job like the Forest Service or Harbor Police. At a time when other occupations are contracting, criminal justice occupations and jobs tend to expand. Finding the right job takes a little time and effort.

As a young man, I had always wanted to be a police officer. I didn't know where to begin. Eventually, I enrolled in a university program that allowed me to challenge the Peace Officer Standards and Training tests in my home state, both written and physical. That particular program lasted a year in the classroom. The second half of the year was sprinkled with volunteer and on the job training with a few different police departments. After successfully completing the course I was hired within a month.

So obtaining certification or a college degree is one entry method. In fact, most federal level jobs require a degree, some of them specialized. At one point, years ago, the F.B.I. only hired people with law or accounting degrees. It pays to contact the agency you are interested in prior to crafting a curriculum in college. Applying for jobs within the Secret Service, Immigration, F.B.I. or D.E.A. are very time consuming and arduous. It is not uncommon for applicants to wait over a year. Most applicants for those jobs springboard from local agencies where waiting times are significantly shorter.

State, county, and city police departments generally have more lenient requirements. Typically, all agencies require a high school diploma or at least a General Equivalence Diploma or G.E.D. Most do not ask for prior experience. Although it varies, once they receive your application, you may be asked to an oral board for an interview, submit to a background investigation, submit to drug and alcohol screening, a polygraph examination to determine honesty and fitness for hire, psychological testing to determine mental fitness, and physical agility testing for the rigors of the job. Once you have completed some or all of those steps, qualified applicants are ranked and placed into a pool of eligible people and they are selected as openings become available.

The best way to pursue a career in criminal justice is to find a job that you would like to do and then find someone actually doing that job. Ask them how they went about obtaining the qualifications for the job and how they got hired. There is nobody better suited for helping you pursue a career in criminal justice than someone who already is working in a field that you find interesting. Finding the career you want takes a little work and some initiative but in the end, it will be time well spent.

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