Career
Detectives and criminal investigators
Investigate crimes and build the case.
$93,790
Median pay
+0.2%
Job growth, 2025–35
7,800
Openings a year
High school diploma or equivalent
Typical education
None required
Typical time after high school
Here's what you actually need to know.
The work
What people in this job do
- Prepare reports that detail investigation findings.
- Obtain and verify evidence by interviewing and observing suspects and witnesses or by analyzing records.
- Preserve, process, and analyze items of evidence obtained from crime scenes and suspects, placing them in proper containers and destroying evidence no longer needed.
- Obtain facts or statements from complainants, witnesses, and accused persons and record interviews, using recording device.
- Record progress of investigation, maintain informational files on suspects, and submit reports to commanding officer or magistrate to authorize warrants.
The outlook
How the forecast changed this year
The deeper question
What kind of person does this path ask you to become?
What this work centers on
O*NET interest profile, scored 1–7.
The work
Do you want most of your days spent on ideas & analysis, then information & systems?
Responsibility
Are you willing to be the one responsible for this?
“Prepare reports that detail investigation findings.”
Development
What would you need to build over the next 5–10 years?
Active Listening, Speaking, Critical Thinking, Social Perceptiveness.
Trade-offs
What does it ask of you in exchange?
No degree beyond high school, though moderate-term on-the-job training is typical, for a median of $93,790 a year and 7,800 openings nationally each year.
Paths in
Degrees that lead here
- Criminal JusticeSee the degree →
- Environmental/Natural Resources Law Enforcement and Protective ServicesCIP 03.0208
- Signal/Geospatial IntelligenceCIP 29.0203
- Criminal Justice and Corrections, GeneralCIP 43.0100
- Criminal Justice/Police ScienceCIP 43.0107
- Law Enforcement Investigation and InterviewingCIP 43.0114
Paths across
Careers that use similar skills
- Private Detectives and Investigators$51,220 · +5.5%
- Police and Sheriff's Patrol Officers$76,210 · +3.5%
- Police Identification and Records Officers
- First-Line Supervisors of Police and Detectives$106,040 · +3.3%
- Intelligence Analysts
Ask anything about this career.
“Would this make sense if I don't want to sit at a desk all day?” Answers will come from the sources on this page, with citations. Coming soon.
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Sources
- BLS Employment Projections, 2025–35, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Retrieved 2026-10-01.
- BLS Employment Projections, 2024–34 (archived), U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Retrieved 2026-10-01.
- O*NET 31.0 Database (August 2026), National Center for O*NET Development / U.S. Department of Labor. Retrieved 2026-10-01.
- CIP 2020 to SOC 2018 Crosswalk, NCES and BLS. Retrieved 2026-10-01.