2 answers
Lyla
Student
3
Questions
Asked
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What is the success rate of a criminal psychologist?
I am a sophomore in high school interested in majoring in criminology and minoring in psychology. I'm curious about whether or not people actually make good livings in this field and if it's worth it to get into.
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2 answers
Chinyere Okafor
Educationist and Counseling Psychologist
445
Answers
Port Harcourt, Rivers, Nigeria
Updated
Chinyere’s Answer
Hello Lyla,
Criminal psychology can be a rewarding career, but its success depends on several factors, including education, specialization, and location.
1. Job Demand: Criminal psychologists are in demand, especially in areas like law enforcement, corrections, and mental health. Specializing in forensic psychology or criminal profiling can open doors to high-level positions in agencies like the FBI or private practice.
2. Salary Potential: Salaries vary, but criminal psychologists generally earn a comfortable living. The average salary ranges from $60,000 to $100,000 per year, with experienced professionals earning even more, especially in high-demand regions or with advanced degrees.
3. Career Opportunities: There are various paths in this field, including working with law enforcement, courts, or correctional facilities, providing assessments, therapy, and profiling. The field is broad enough to offer different types of work depending on your interests.
4. Worth It?: It can be a fulfilling career if you are passionate about understanding criminal behavior and helping the legal system. However, it requires dedication, as you will need a master's or doctoral degree to reach advanced positions. It can be worth it for those passionate about psychology and criminology.
Please also research internships or volunteer opportunities in your area to better understand what working in the field is like before committing to this career path.
Best wishes!
Criminal psychology can be a rewarding career, but its success depends on several factors, including education, specialization, and location.
1. Job Demand: Criminal psychologists are in demand, especially in areas like law enforcement, corrections, and mental health. Specializing in forensic psychology or criminal profiling can open doors to high-level positions in agencies like the FBI or private practice.
2. Salary Potential: Salaries vary, but criminal psychologists generally earn a comfortable living. The average salary ranges from $60,000 to $100,000 per year, with experienced professionals earning even more, especially in high-demand regions or with advanced degrees.
3. Career Opportunities: There are various paths in this field, including working with law enforcement, courts, or correctional facilities, providing assessments, therapy, and profiling. The field is broad enough to offer different types of work depending on your interests.
4. Worth It?: It can be a fulfilling career if you are passionate about understanding criminal behavior and helping the legal system. However, it requires dedication, as you will need a master's or doctoral degree to reach advanced positions. It can be worth it for those passionate about psychology and criminology.
Please also research internships or volunteer opportunities in your area to better understand what working in the field is like before committing to this career path.
Best wishes!
Mary Marrs
Social Work
5
Answers
Seattle, Washington
Updated
Mary’s Answer
Hey Lyla
I have a degree in Criminology with a minor in psychology, so let me see if I can help you with this question. The first question you need to ask yourself is what part of criminology interests you? Criminology can include being a police officer or a forensic investigator or a private investigator or a corrections officer or a parole officer or 9-1-1 dispatcher....... so the field is wide with a lot of options. The minor in psychology is there to help you understand the human mind and how people think and the logic of people's actions.
My suggestions would be this: Go to your local agencies and see if you can "shadow" or "ride along" for a couple of hours. See what they actually do. You will find areas that you absolutely don't want to do and others that you find very interesting. When you find the very interesting jobs, then you start researching them in your area, how much do they make in income, what are the work lifestyle like, what are the good things and the not so good things, what is the promotion options, etc? Spend some time asking employees of those jobs questions. Make up a list of questions that are important to you for your future and do interviews of these employees. That will help you decide. Different cities and states have different incomes for different jobs. And some jobs are better or worse in different places.
Then, after you have narrowed down what path you think you want to take, find out what education and internships and volunteer-work you can to do to make yourself ready to be getting hired. Also, when you do internships and volunteer work, you make contacts in those jobs, they become your references, the people who will tell your hiring panel that you should be hired.
Careers in criminalogy can make good money, if you find the path that you want to follow.
Does this help?
Mary
I have a degree in Criminology with a minor in psychology, so let me see if I can help you with this question. The first question you need to ask yourself is what part of criminology interests you? Criminology can include being a police officer or a forensic investigator or a private investigator or a corrections officer or a parole officer or 9-1-1 dispatcher....... so the field is wide with a lot of options. The minor in psychology is there to help you understand the human mind and how people think and the logic of people's actions.
My suggestions would be this: Go to your local agencies and see if you can "shadow" or "ride along" for a couple of hours. See what they actually do. You will find areas that you absolutely don't want to do and others that you find very interesting. When you find the very interesting jobs, then you start researching them in your area, how much do they make in income, what are the work lifestyle like, what are the good things and the not so good things, what is the promotion options, etc? Spend some time asking employees of those jobs questions. Make up a list of questions that are important to you for your future and do interviews of these employees. That will help you decide. Different cities and states have different incomes for different jobs. And some jobs are better or worse in different places.
Then, after you have narrowed down what path you think you want to take, find out what education and internships and volunteer-work you can to do to make yourself ready to be getting hired. Also, when you do internships and volunteer work, you make contacts in those jobs, they become your references, the people who will tell your hiring panel that you should be hired.
Careers in criminalogy can make good money, if you find the path that you want to follow.
Does this help?
Mary
Yes, this helps so much! Thank you!
Lyla