Criminologist Salary

In order to prevent crime, there is a crucial need for studying criminal behavior and the reasons why crimes happen. And for doing so, there are professionals appointed known as criminologists. These are experts who perform thorough research on all aspects of crime such as types of crimes, criminal behavior, behavior disorders of convicts, and other criminal analysis.

Job Description

Their primary task is to determine the reasons why people get into committing illegal activities. They also study the adverse effects that crime, corruption, and illegal acts have on the society. They study as many cases as possible, and use the results to formulate theories which can in turn be useful in preventing crimes in the future. They work with different agencies and try to find out the methods of criminal rehabilitation. These professionals generally provide their services in government organizations, but can also work in private agencies. They work along with law enforcement agencies to contribute in the prevention of crime. Some criminologists may even choose to teach criminology studies in universities and law schools.

How to Become a Criminologist

The first step you need to take is to do a bachelors in fields such as sociology, psychology, or criminology. This might not fetch you a full-fledged job, but will certainly help you in gaining an assistant's position under the supervision of a criminologist. And working as an assistant to a criminologist will really give you good work experience to excel in this field. You also have to possess a master's degree. Some professionals even have a doctorate in criminology, which is why their pay scale is so high.

Average Salary Range

If you are a fresher in criminology, you can get a salary ranging from approximately $29,000 to $40,000 per annum. For professionals with work experience of one to four years, the pay increases from $41,000 to $49,000 yearly. Likewise, the yearly pay keeps on increasing with the work experience in criminology. If you are employed in a state or local government agency, the salary range would be around $31,000 to $41,000. Criminologists providing their services to the federal government may have a pay scale of about $43,000 to $61,000.

The salary also differs a lot depending on the state of employment. The top paying state for criminologists is New Jersey with the maximum pay reaching $105,750 per annum. The second highest paying state is District of Columbia at the rate of $90,000 per year. Virginia, Illinois, and New York follow with a per annum pay of about $87,000, $80,000, and $76,000 respectively. Those who work in teaching jobs as professors in universities and other institutes may expect an annual medium pay of around $76,000. The salary depends on many other factors such as city of employment, service criteria of private employers, etc.

For a criminologist with a master's degree, getting a research degree will certainly improve his remuneration prospects in the future.