 Del.icio.us |  Digg This |  Print
Forensic Science Careers
Related Topics: Science Career Zone
While it's not quite as glamorous as it's portrayed on the many television shows and movies, a career in forensic science can provide a fascinating and satisfying career.
|
Degree and Coursework
There is no one route to a career in forensic science. To prepare for a career in crime scene technology, a science background would be helpful, especially if there is some forensic science in it. A degree in Forensic Science can be especially beneficial. Since not all colleges offer degrees in Forensic Science, it is advised that individuals seriously considering a career in the forensic sciences pursue a degree in chemistry or biology.
A strong grounding in the sciences, including biology, chemistry, physics and physiology is the key to beginning your career in forensic science. These courses will give you a firm grounding in laboratory techniques. They will also provide you with the analytical skills required for a career in forensic science.
|
|
|
Experience Requirements
If you have any issues with DUI, drugs, a criminal record, etc., a career in forensic science or any aspect of law enforcement is unlikely. Many forensic science professionals begin their career as a police officer and then receive specialized training from their department.
Training and certification programs generally take only two years to complete. There are many different disciplines within the forensic science field which provide interesting and exciting careers. You may work in a crime lab as a forensic science assistant or you could take the route to becoming a reporting officer.
Whichever route you choose, a career in forensic science consists of a great deal of analysis and interpretation of data. Therefore, individuals interested in a career in forensic science should develop critical thinking skills. In addition, to keep up with the many advances in science, forensic scientists should expect to complete continuing education courses throughout their career.
Since most forensic science degree courses incorporate a large amount of analytical science, this opens opportunities in a wide range of science-based careers. For example, forensic scientists are suitably qualified to enter careers in forensic science laboratories, IT and teaching.
Like most fields, a career in forensic science can offer you options. If you have dedication, perseverance, and are a critical thinker you should consider a career in forensic science.
Types of Forensic Science Careers
At its most basic, forensic science is where science meets legal proceedings. That is: Forensic science is the application of science to help in the proceedings of a court case. Forensic science careers are usually broken into technical and academic assistance, medical examiner, crime scene examiner, crime laboratory analyst, and forensic examiner.
Technical and Academic Assistance
It’s quite obvious that this branch of forensic science careers deals with assisting with something. It actually deals with gathering and analyzing data. Some examples would be a polygraph test, a composite drawing, psychological profiling, and collecting and analyzing a variety of statistics.
Medical Examiner
This is the highest paid of all the forensic science careers, but there is good reason for the high pay. A medical examiner is saddled with the major responsibility of determining the cause of death for deceased people. This includes collecting evidence in and on the body (including cause of death, trauma, etc.) that will be used in a murder case.
Another reason this is the highest paid of all the forensic science careers is because it requires the most education. A medical degree is usually required to be a medical examiner.
Crime Scene Examiner
A crime scene examiner does just what the title describes – goes to the crime scene and examine it.
The crime scene examiner must go to the scene of crime anytime day or night under just about any type of conditions. The job of the crime scene examiner is to gather evidence and analyze the crime scene so that the gathered information can be used as a criminal case is built.
While this position can require the examiners to work under bad conditions, and it doesn’t pay extremely well, most crime scene examiners are happy with their job. The challenge it brings is very exciting and rewarding.
Crime Laboratory Analyst
Once again, this title describes what the position entails – analyzing in a crime laboratory.
This job pays pretty well and has decent work conditions – usually the hours are set and the lab is clean. However, this line of work is often monotonous and can become boring. Yet a crime laboratory analyst is under pressure to do the job perfectly every single time since the results that are arrived at will play a major role in whether a case is successful or not and/or if a person is innocent or guilty..
Forensic Engineer
This job requires an engineering degree. It pays very well and has decent working conditions (for the most part).
A forensic engineer mostly deals with wrongful injury cases. Often this means the forensic engineer is investigating a car accident or a fire.
There are many different jobs that can be performed when a person decides to take on a career in forensic science. Forensic science careers can be broken down into five categories: technical and academic assistance, medical examiner, crime scene examiner, crime laboratory analyst, and forensic examiner. All of these careers have their unique pros and cons. However, they are all very challenging careers that help to determine what happened in some type of accident or crime.
Related Science Career Articles:
|
