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Become a Fingerprint Specialist: Help Catch Bad Guys and Keep the Streets SafeBoth police officers and forensic scientists can choose to specialize in a particular area such as fingerprints. A fingerprint specialist lifts, examines, classifies, analyzes, interprets, and identifies fingerprints through both manual and automated identification systems. They visit crime scenes, work in a lab, and testify in court.Fingerprint Specialist Training Different states have different classifications and requirements, but in most cases when you first start out you work under the close supervision of an experienced fingerprint specialist. You only perform the most basic tasks until you have mastered them and can advance to the next level. Yet to reach even this entry-level point, you generally need an associate degree. Courses in criminal justice, police science, criminology or other legal areas can give you the requisite understanding of law enforcement and procedures. This is particularly important since fingerprint specialists must be able to give expert testimony in court about their findings and techniques. If you haven't adhered strictly to proper legal procedure, your findings could get challenged by the opposing side and even thrown out. If you want to become a forensic science technician who specializes in fingerprints, then you need a further two years of education to earn your bachelor's degree. Fingerprint Specialist Salary Police officers and forensic science technicians both earn similar salaries, with average annual wages of $52,810 and $52,960 respectively. Once you specialize and become an expert fingerprint specialist, however, your skills become in greater demand, meaning you can earn even more. |
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