Becoming a Private Investigator or Private Detective

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Private Investigator Education, Training and Experience Requirements

Private Investigator Job Description

Private Investigator Salary and Employment Information

Television shows including Magnum PI, Miami Vice and Remington Steele have highlighted the profession of private investigator (PI) or private detective, yet the truth is that most PIs don't wear trench coats, or spend their days spying on cheating spouses. Individuals, attorneys, insurance companies, and businesses retain private investigators to work on their behalf.

Private Investigator Education, Training and Experience Requirements

Most states require a private investigator to be licensed. While many PIs have a criminal justice degree or background in law enforcement, there are actually no formal education requirements to become a private investigator, but every state requires certain training and experience prerequisites, including a written exam in some cases.

Chris Reynolds, who operates Reynolds Investigations in Santa Rosa, Calif., began apprenticing at a law firm while still in high school. After completing 6,000 hours of investigative work, which is required in California to obtain a PI license, Reynolds passed the state's written exam and has been working in the field for the past 30 years.

"One of the things I love most about this job is that every day is different," says Reynolds who focuses on criminal and civil litigation for law firms. After building a solid reputation in the field, Reynolds now secures all of his clients through referrals. A sample case might involve being retained by a defense attorney to investigate allegations that his client committed murder.

"My job is to review all of the existing evidence and to meet with potential witnesses," Reynolds says. "Whereas the police might conduct a 10-minute interview, I might talk with a witness for an hour to determine their credibility and ask additional questions."

In order to be a successful PI, Reynolds says job candidates should have a lot of patience, good interviewing and listening skills and the ability to not prejudge potential clients. "Everything isn't just black and white, there's a lot of gray in this business," he says. "A good investigator gathers the facts and presents their findings to the client."

State Requirements Vary

In California, where Reynolds practices, private investigators must be at least 18 years old, have three years of compensated experience totaling not less than 6,000 hours in investigative work, while employed by law enforcement agencies, collection agencies, insurance agencies, banks, courts, and other private investigation agencies. A college degree in criminal law, criminal justice or police science can be substituted for part of the experience. Candidates must also pass a written exam and undergo a background check.

Each state has different background, education and experience requirements that may vary from simply attending a state-approved training course to pre-licensing education, exams, and years of work experience. PI magazine, the leading periodical for the profession provides a directory of links to licensing requirements by state, but many of the links need to be updated. It does provide a link to contact the PI magazine editors though if a link you need is not working.

Private Investigator Job Description

According to the Council for International Investigators, PIs come in a variety of specialties. Fraud examiners, surveillance specialists, criminologists, computer experts, skip tracers, genealogists, covert photographers, accident investigators, and process servers are only a handful of the talents offered by private investigators. And while some PIs work in large investigation agencies, others choose to be self-employed.

Duties include gathering information for clients, locating missing persons, conducting surveillance, and doing background investigations for court cases.

When considering a job as a private investigator or private detective, keep in mind that the job entails:

• Long and/or irregular working hours
• Travel
• Courtroom testimony as requested
• The ability to write accurate and detailed reports
• People skills, including strengths in interviewing and listening
• Good judgment

Private Investigator Salary and Employment Information

According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), employment of private detectives and investigators is expected to grow 18% over the 2006 to 2016 decade. The BLS reports the median annual earnings of salaried private detectives and investigators were $33,750 in May 2006. Earnings of private detectives and investigators vary greatly by employer, specialty, and geographic area. Approximately 30% of PIs are self-employed.

If you want to learn more about the PI field, here are some additional resources that may interest you:

• The book The Private Investigator's Guide, by John Krause, is a how-to-guide for both beginning and seasoned PIs focusing on everything from basic administrative tasks and report writing to surveillance techniques.
• The website, einvestigator.com, offers resources for those interested in the field and already working as a PI. You'll discover books, a PI agency directory, information on surveillance equipment, and more.
• The book The Complete Idiot's Guide to Private Investigating, by Steven Kerry Brown, gives information on skip tracing, due diligence services and using the Internet to obtain information for your investigation.

If you are considering an online education program to become a PI, check with the U.S. Department of Education and the Distance Education and Training Council to determine if the online college or university is accredited. This is important since many schools and courses offered on the Internet may not be legitimate.

About the author: Linda Childers is a California-based writer who toyed with the idea of becoming a PI after reading "The Spellman Files" by Lisa Lutz. Instead, she uses her investigative skills to conduct interviews of interesting people. Her stories have appeared in Redbook, Pregnancy, Monster.com, and many other national magazines.