The Basics Of A Criminal Justice Career: 5 Options For Improving The World

In their Occupational Outlook Handbook, the Bureau of Labor Statistics projects that over the next seven years, continued demand for public safety will lead to new openings for police officers in local departments. This is just one example of why a wide range of careers in criminal justice are generally classified as being extremely stable.

Although stability is a very appealing trait for any career, it’s actually not even the primary reason most people consider a career in this specific field. Instead, the most common motivation for entering criminal justice is because people want to have a job where they know they can make a real difference. Since this field gives you the opportunity to directly help people on a daily basis, you may be considering it for the exact same reason.

If that’s the case, let’s go over five different career options within the broader field that you’ll want to take into consideration:

Paralegal

This may not be the first position that comes to mind when people think about the field of criminal justice. However, because paralegals work with attorneys who are directly responsible for bringing wrongdoers to justice or protecting the rights of those who are wrongly accused, it’s definitely a career option that’s worth mentioning.

Not only does this line of work provide the opportunity to have an impact, but it also offers the advantage of providing lots of variety. Helping lawyers determine how to strategically proceed, investigating claims and providing research assistance are just a few examples of the type of work that a paralegal may perform over the course of a week.

Patrol Officer

This position is a great fit for anyone who wants to be a visible part of their community. Given the fact that patrol officers are the professionals who are out keeping the streets of their communities safe, it’s easy to see why they can feel the direct impact they’ve having on a daily basis. Although working in this type of position does come with plenty of challenges, most officers agree that they wouldn’t change the role they’re able to play for anything else.

Probation or Correctional Treatment Specialist

The reason we put both of these positions together is of all the ones we’re covering on our list, these are the two that are most commonly confused with each other. A probation officer is someone who provides direct supervision for individuals who are either on parole or probation. A correctional treatment specialist is a professional that develops rehab plans for newly released convicts or parolees.

Although the jobs are actually different from each other, it’s worth noting that in addition to having a direct impact on people by aiding in giving them a second chance, both are expected to remain in significant demand for the foreseeable future.

Criminal Investigator

While this may not be where someone starts their career within the criminal justice field, it doesn’t have to take an excessive amount of time to reach this position. One of the great things about working as a criminal investigator is not only do you get to help society by bringing those who do wrong to justice, but you also get to work as a leader. That gives you an opportunity to help other people get on the path of crafting the type of impactful career they want for themselves.

How to Get Started

If you’ve decided that you want to have a positive impact on society by entering the field of criminal justice, you may be wondering what you need to do to get started. Although there are different ways you can go about entering this line of work, one proven option is obtaining your bachelors in criminal justice from a reputable educational institution.

Some people’s initial reaction to that piece of advice is they don’t need to worry about obtaining any type of higher education. Even though that may be technically true for certain jobs, getting a quality education in the field of criminal justice provides plenty of concrete benefits. One is that you’ll have a much deeper understanding of how the entire legal system works.

Another significant benefit is you’ll be able to take much of what you learn throughout the program and apply it directly to your daily work. You’ll also greatly benefit from having a well-rounded set of knowledge in this field. The combination of those benefits will give you the confidence to go out and secure the job that you truly want!

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• License: Image author owned

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This entry was posted on Monday, September 30th, 2013 at 8:42 am and is filed under Career, Education, Job Search, Specialization. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.