Welcome to the third installment in our blog series taking a look at the future of some the occupational fields you’ll find here at South University Online Programs. Today, we’re going to be looking at some trends and career outlooks in Criminal Justice.
Criminal Justice is an area that covers a very broad range of fields – from Law Enforcement to Corrections to Homeland Security to Cyber Crime and beyond. So, what is the area that’s right for you? How are these specializations or even the broader field of Criminal Justice looking into the future?
One way to tell you how many variations there are within the field of Criminal Justice is that the Bureau of Labor Statistics doesn’t have just one page on a career outlook dedicated to this industry. They do cover 3 main areas:
"Employment of police and detectives is expected to grow 10 percent over the 2008–18 decade, about as fast as the average for all occupations. Population growth is the main source of demand for police services.
"Overall opportunities in local police departments will be favorable for individuals who meet the psychological, personal, and physical qualifications. In addition to openings from employment growth, many openings will be created by the need to replace workers who retire and those who leave local agencies for Federal jobs and private-sector security jobs."
"Employment of probation officers and correctional treatment specialists is projected to grow faster than the average for all occupations through 2018. Job opportunities are expected to be excellent.
"In addition to openings due to growth, many openings will be created by replacement needs, especially openings due to the large number of these workers who are expected to retire. This occupation is not attractive to some potential entrants due to relatively low earnings, heavy workloads, and high stress. For these reasons, job opportunities are expected to be excellent"
Private Detectives and Investigators
"Employment of private detectives and investigators is expected to grow 22 percent over the 2008–18 decade, much faster than the average for all occupations. Increased demand for private detectives and investigators will result from heightened security concerns, increased litigation, and the need to protect confidential information and property of all kinds.
"Keen competition is expected for most jobs because private detective and investigator careers attract many qualified people, including relatively young retirees from law enforcement and military careers. The best opportunities for new jobseekers will be in entry-level jobs in detective agencies. Opportunities are expected to be favorable for qualified computer forensic investigators."
And that’s just the tip of the iceberg! For example, at South University, in our Bachelor of Science in Criminal Justice degree program, we offer 5 specializations:
- Corrections
- Crime Scene Investigation
- Cyber Crime
- Law Enforcement
- Juvenile Justice
While our Master of Science in Criminal Justice degree program offers specializations in:
- Homeland Security
- Corrections
- Cyber Crime
- Public Administration
While some of these areas are covered above, you can see the diversity of opportunities available to individuals seeking to pursue a career in Criminal Justice. So, where can you look for even more information on this field? Doing some research on your own to find a field that interests you would be a good first step.
You can also check out this useful resource guide compiled by the National Criminal Justice Association, with links to many federal and local agencies where you can learn more about what different Criminal Justice organizations do.
We hope this post has been helpful to you, stay tuned for part 3 of our blog post series as we look at the future of Business careers.
