Training and Education of a Criminal Profiler
There's no single education path that qualifies someone to be a criminal profiler. The requirements vary by agency, and profilers who work as independent consultants may have less formal education and training than those who work for a law enforcement agency. Many agencies don't even employ criminal profilers as a separate position; instead, investigators and agents take on that responsibility. However, if you're interested in criminal profiling, you can prepare by learning about what drives a person to commit crimes, and how investigators track down suspects.
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Psychology Degree
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Criminal profilers create psychological profiles of unknown offenders to help investigators narrow their search for suspects. To accomplish this, they need an in-depth understanding of how the mind works and what motivates and influences people. For example, profilers often look at the degree of violence involved in a crime, and use that to estimate everything from how well the offender knew the victim to why the offender chose to channel his aggression or frustration onto other people. Profilers don't always work in the field and may not be agents. Instead, many have at least a master's degree in psychology, although many law enforcement agencies prefer a doctoral degree. In the case of independent consultants, for example, they may spend their time at a desk reviewing case files.
Forensics and Criminal Justice Education
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Few universities offer degree programs in criminal profiling, but criminal profiler Pat Brown says many students choose degrees in forensics or criminal justice as a substitute. Furthermore, she adds, they may focus on one aspect, such as psychology, for their undergraduate degree, and then enhance that education by focusing on criminal justice or forensics for their master's or doctoral degree. Forensics centers around applying scientific fields, such as psychiatry or psychology, to the legal system. Criminal justice teaches students about the legal system, including codes of ethics, forms of punishment and the process used to convict someone of a crime.
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Law Enforcement Education
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Profilers often work in the field just as other agents do, and need the same law enforcement training as other police officers and criminal investigators. In fact, many criminal profilers don't hold the title of criminal profiler, but instead start out as police officers or federal field agents, later earning the responsibility of profiling suspects. Since many agencies assign profiling duties to their agents, rather than recruiting criminal profilers, attending the police academy or FBI academy may offer a more direct route into the field. It also provides the necessary understanding of criminal investigation procedures, helping profilers to determine what information about a suspect will best help investigators identify and capture offenders.
Training in the Field
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Law enforcement experience is just as important as training in psychology and criminal investigation. At the FBI, for example, applicants cannot apply for the job of criminal profiler. Instead, they must first apply for the position of special agent. Only after three years in that position may they apply to the bureau's National Center for the Analysis of Violent Crime, which handles many of the duties associated with criminal profiling.
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References
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