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will I need to become a police officer before I can become a forensic psychologist?

I've seen a few places that mention I might need to become a police officer to then advance to a forensic psychologist and I was wondering if that was accurate. #psychologist #psychology #forensics #police

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Ryan’s Answer

In becoming a forensic psychologist you do not need to be a police officer. You need to first obtain your bachelors in psychology you will then be able to choose a specific psychology education route. After you complete this degree you can become a forensic psychologist. All that in consideration if you have time and the motivation, being a police officer and having this degree would set you leaps and bounds ahead of others applying for the same position. Having a working background in crime scenes and evidence preservation will be a transferable and useful skill in this career.
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Jeff’s Answer

No. Forensic psychology has nothing to do with law enforcement. You would not consult on police investigations with that degree. Only police officers with years of training. There is a lot of misinformation out there about forensic careers as it pertains to police work.
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Linda Ann’s Answer

In order to become a forensic psychologist, you need a doctorate in the discipline of psychology with specialization in forensics. In other words, admission to a PhD program where there are faculty members who are currently forensic psychologists who can provide the mentorship and experiences needed to succeed in this demanding specialty area.

Frankly, I have never heard of an organization that requires you to be a police officer first....getting into a doctoral level program is not easy. Becoming a police officer doesn't even require a college degree in many USA jurisdictions.
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Pete’s Answer

You do not need to be a police officer to be a forensic psychologist. Instead, you will need a doctorate degree to practice with that title. You will learn lots of legal precedents and and study law, criminal behavior, and human motivations in your coursework at a much deeper level than expected of police officers. Some forensic psychologists do go on to work closely with police in their career, but this is not at all required. Most work in the legal system in other ways either during trials or post-conviction, consult and advise, or perform research.
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