Careers in Criminal JusticeCorrectional OfficerCorrectional officers are responsible for supervising individuals who have been detained and are awaiting trial. They are also responsible for individuals who have actually been convicted of a crime and sentenced to serve time in a jail, reformatory, or penitentiary. Correctional officers maintain security and inmate accountability to prevent conflict, assaults, or escapes. Officers have no law enforcement tasks outside the institution where they work. Most correctional officers are employed in large jails or State and Federal prisons, watching over the approximately one million offenders who are imprisoned at any given time. Police and sheriffs' departments in county and municipal jails also employ many correctional officers, also known as detention officers. Job opportunities for correctional officers are expected to be excellent in the coming years. There is a growing need to replace officers who transfer to other occupations, retire, or leave the labor force. These facts together with rising employment demand, will generate thousands of job openings each year. The median expected salary for a typical Correctional officer in the United States is $35,000. Court ReporterCourt reporters typically take verbatim reports of speeches, conversations, legal proceedings, meetings, and other events when written accounts of spoken words are necessary for correspondence, records, or legal proof. Court proceedings are documented by using a stenotype machine. Court reporters play a critical role not only in judicial proceedings, but at every business meeting where the spoken word must be preserved as a written transcript. They are responsible for ensuring an accurate and secure legal record. Court reporters also assist judges and trial attorneys in a variety of ways, such as organizing and searching for information in the official record or making suggestions to judges and attorneys regarding courtroom administration and procedure. Increasingly, court reporters are also providing closed-captioning and real-time translating services to the deaf and hard-of-hearing community. The median expected salary for a typical Court Reporter in the United States is $44,873. Parole OfficerProbation officers manage offenders on probation or parole through personal contact with the offenders and their families. Instead of requiring offenders to meet parole officers in their offices, many officers meet offenders in their homes and/or at their places of employment or therapy. Parole agencies also use the assistance of community organizations, such as religious institutions, neighborhood groups, and local residents, to monitor the actions and behavior of many of the offenders under their case load. Parole officers may arrange for offenders to get substance abuse rehabilitation or job training to help them reenter the workforce. Probation officers typically work with either adults or juveniles exclusively. Probation officers also spend much of their time working with the courts. They investigate the background of offenders brought before the court, write pre-sentence reports, and make sentencing recommendations. The median expected salary for a typical Parole Officer in the United States is $40,000. Homeland SecurityHomeland security jobs include entry-level, internship and contract opportunities. The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) is divided into the following divisions:
However, homeland security jobs are not just within the government or only within the DHS and its divisions. Several other government agencies, including both Federal, state, and private-sector employers, especially those with government contracts, are involved in homeland security to some degree, and are implementing such measures of their own. Therefore many of these employers are actively seeking homeland security professionals with security clearances. Salary InformationThe earnings of Criminal Justice graduates vary greatly depending on their career choice, experience, skill level, and location. According to a 2003 salary survey, most starting Correctional Officer positions ranged from $30,000 to $35,000 annually depending on their responsibilities. Highly skilled positions like a Court Reporter might earn up to and over $45,000 annually. Median earnings for Parole Officer in the United States are just over $40,000. Homeland Security positions are also in wide demand and salaries are expected to increase as the need becomes greater. |