Criminal Justice Career Earnings

Are you thinking about pursuing a degree in criminal justice? Being a wide encompassing field of study, there are many careers to choose from upon graduation, depending on your criminal justice degree specialization such as law enforcement or forensic psychology, juvenile justice etc. The first job that comes to mind is to join the police force, federal agency or national security positions. Although these justice jobs can be dangerous at times, the renumeration is pretty good and you can expect a rather high starting salary compared to your peers fresh from the college. Careers in criminal justice are not narrow ended and as you earn more experience and academic qualifications, you can progress up the corporate scale and increase earning potential. There is also many opportunities for mid career changes.

According to the US Department of Labor and US Department of Justice, the median annual earnings in 2006 for law enforcement officers such as police and sheriff is around $50,330 at the local level and $55,780 at the state level. The median annual earnings for new FBI agents is $60,199 with overtime. Nonsupervisory FBI positions are paid around $94,268 while management and executive positions are paid about $131,033 per year with overtime. Note that federal law provides a special 25% law enforcement availability pay (LEAP) for special agents and inspectors because of the large amount of overtime work expected from them.

Mediators with a Juris Doctor degree can earn between $82,780 and $109,490. New paralegals are paid a yearly median salary of $50,000 including bonuses while senior paralegals can expect $80,000. Legal secretaries earned a median yearly salary of $40,550. Private detectives and investigators are paid a median salary of $42,660. Forensic criminologists, scientists and psychologists earn a median annual salary of between $45,781 and $78,000. Correctional officers earn a median salary of $42,500 per year while those in managerial positions earn $56,510.

Note that geographic location will influence the career renumeration due to differences in the cost of living. The salaries will be slightly higher in certain states and larger cities. Competition will also be stiffer for criminal justice jobs with state or federal agencies and police departments as these tend to pay more compared to equivalent jobs at the local government level or in the private sector.