Can you be a detective without being a cop?

In Fort Worth you don't just become a detective. You start out as a patrol officer and then can test to promote to Corporal/Detective. As a patrol officer you will do almost all of the investigation at the scene. Detectives rarely come to the scene of the crime, unless of course it is a serious crime, then they may come out. As the responding patrol officer you gather all of the information on the crime including interviewing witnesses, complainants and possibly suspects. You can assist in gathering evidence and statements. Detectives have the luxury of time to write warrants and have parties to the crime come to their office and make written statements or view a line up. Personally I enjoyed being on the scene of the crime, right after it occurred and gathering the information to help the detective solve the crime.

A good detective has lots of street experience. You must learn how to deal with people both during crisis and when things are calm.

You have good intentions and being a detective is very gratifying. Homicide, Robbery and Burglary detectives are always busy and have their work cut out for them.

There are a number of non-law enforcement investigator positions available. The federal government has an entire series dedicated to these positions. Search federal series 1810 and you can get an idea of what they offer. Child Welfare has investigators, I worked in one of these positions for a number of years, but they generally require that you have some type of degree such as psychology or social work. Insurance companies have fraud investigators, there are fire investigators in most local governments as well as a number of compliance investigators.

Hello Sarah!

I've been a police officer for nearly 30 years and have been a detective/investigator for about 25 of those. Investigative work is challenging and can be very rewarding for those who work hard and make a real effort. There are many avenues, other than the police department, that can get you into this area but most of them are rather specialized so you'll need to decide what kind of investigative work most interests you before deciding an a career path. As noted by others who responded to your question, Investigators are often employed (and well paid) by insurance companies, as well as other civil service agencies. I would also add that railroads and many private industries such as large scale retailers also employ investigators to protect their assets. You should also consider becoming a Private Investigator as this is an area in which you can truly be your own boss. best wishes now and for the future!

Insurance Fraud investigators. People make fraudulent insurance claims quite regularly.
An investigator for Child Protective Services, although, here in Texas, and I assume elsewhere, the turnover rate is quite high.
Arson investigator, but I think they go through both the police and fire academies.
Civil Rights/Fair Housing investigators. Investigate discriminatory leasing/sales practices. Texas Workforce commission has a Civil Rights Division.
EEOC investigator, investigating complaints of workplace discrimination, although, at least here in Texas, you pretty much need Veteran's preference points to get hired into a federal position.
Animal control/animal cruelty investigator. Not sure about how that works.

That's all I can think of off the top of my head!
good luck!

There are a lot of different types of investigators, however you want to be a criminal investigator and that requires you to go through a police academy and become a peace officer, after a few years as a patrolman you can promote to an investigative division within the agency.
I hope this was helpful. I was a police officer for 27 years I started out as a patrolman, promoted to a detective in child abuse, then full time as a swat officer for 5 years promoted to Sr Sergeant and spent 7 years as a motorcycle patrolman, good luck in your endeavor