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DEA Agent

Spike TV's "DEA" show includes titles such as "Marijuana Grow House" and "Heroin Kingpin." If the action of those shows is appealing, you might want to become a DEA agent.

DEA officer work
As a U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) officer, you would enforce drug laws and regulations, investigating drug crimes and making arrests. DEA officers work throughout the United States and mobility is a requirement.

You must be 21 years old, but not older than 36 years at the time of your appointment as a DEA agent. The hiring process includes a physical activities test, background check and drug test; it can take a year to land the job.

DEA officers are college graduates
You must have a bachelor's or master's degree. Special consideration is given if you have specialized in:
  • Criminal justice or police science.
  • Finance, accounting or economics.
  • Foreign languages of Spanish, Russian, Hebrew, Arabic, dialects of Nigerian languages, Chinese or Japanese.
  • Computer science or information systems.
  • Telecommunications or electrical or mechanical engineering.
Once accepted, you will attend the DEA Training Academy. The 16-week course includes instruction in partaking in undercover activities, surveillance and arrests and in writing the requisite reports. It also includes intense physical training.

DEA officer pay
After graduation from the training academy, you would be eligible for annual salary of about $49,746 to $55,483, according to the DEA's website. After four years, a special agent can advance to a pay scale of about $92,592 or more per year.
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