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How You Can Keep Pharmaceutical Drugs Safe and Legal as a Diversion Investigator

A diversion investigator (DI) is a specialist within the Drug Enforcement Administration who focuses on legal pharmaceutical drugs that get diverted into illegal channels. DI's work with the pharmaceutical and chemical industries to ensure they comply with all the relevant laws, international treaties, and conventions. When a problem arises, the diversion investigator must determine the source of the diversion and put a stop to it.

Required Education for a Diversion Investigator
You must have at least a bachelor's degree, and also have to meet one of the following qualifications:
  • A 2.95 grade point average for all undergraduate courses in the last two years of study
  • A 3.5 GPA for all courses in your major
  • An academic rank in the upper third of your class
  • Obtain membership in a recognized national honor society
  • One year of graduate level education or an advanced degree
Since the DEA only employs 500 some diversion investigators to serve in 80 different offices around the world, competition for jobs can be intense. Fluency of a foreign language, prior investigative work, or experience in accounting, chemistry and pharmacology can help give you an edge over other applicants. Excellent computer skills can also prove beneficial, especially as patrolling the Internet becomes a larger part of a diversion investigator's job.

Diversion Investigator Salaries
A criminal investigator for the federal government averages $72,850 annually, however your starting salary may be far less than this. Fortunately, promotions can come rapidly, and with them comes an increase in salary. You also get paid holidays, medical and life insurance, and a competitive retirement package.
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