How to Determine the Salary for CSI Professionals

By eHow Careers & Work Editor

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As with all careers, CSI professionals are paid according to a number of factors. Education, experience, specialty and hours will all be taken into consideration when determining the salary for a CSI career. Those who are traditionally paid the most have a desire for continued education and work hard to climb the CSI career ladder. Following are helpful tips for determining the salary for CSI careers.

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Instructions

Difficulty: Easy

Type of Agency

Step1

Consider the types of agencies that employ CSI professionals. A CSI career with the FBI will pay more than one with a small police department.

Step2

Remember that many government agencies go through monetary shortages from time to time, which might influence the pay rate for CSI professionals.

Step3

Consider that many law enforcement agencies also experience personnel shortages, which could mean overtime for qualified CSIs. In New York, for example, many CSI professionals earn an excess of $140,000 per year in overtime.

Education

Step1

Realize that a CSI professional will be paid up to $30.00 more per hour if they have a master's degree or Ph.D. Educated CSI professionals have larger earning potential.

Step2

Gaining special certifications, such as toxicology certification through the National Registry in Clinical Chemistry, can greatly influence CSI career salaries.

Step3

Seeking memberships to CSI associations that offer continued education courses, such as the American Board of Criminalists, will also have a positive impact on a CSI career salary.

Specialty

Step1

Understand that some CSI specialties are in higher demand than others. For example, document examiners are difficult to find, so they may be paid more than forensic engineers.

Step2

Realize also that CSI professionals who have gained the title of Lab Director will earn approximately 30 percent more than regular CSIs.

Tips & Warnings

Choose a CSI specialty that is in high demand, such as forensic entomology (the study of evidence related to body decay, time of death and insect larvae). This will give you a bargaining chip for a higher salary.
Join as many forensic associations as possible and take any recommended certification to increase the demand for your services.

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Comments

Erika said

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on 11/8/2006 "In New York, for example, many CSI professionals earn an excess of $140,000 per year in overtime. " ... That's a lot of hours at the office.