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Field investigator education requirements
Updated January 8, 2025
4 min read
There are several educational requirements to become a field investigator. Field investigators usually study criminal justice, business, or political science. 64% of field investigators hold a bachelor's degree, and 16% hold an associate degree. We analyzed 1,721 real field investigator resumes to see exactly what field investigator education sections show.
The most common colleges for field investigators are the University of Phoenix and the University of Phoenix.
There are also many online field investigator courses to help get the education required to be a field investigator.
There are certain field investigator certifications that you should consider. These field investigator certifications include Professional Certified Investigator (PCI) and Certified Legal Investigator (CLI).
What education do you need to become a field investigator?
What degree do you need to be a field investigator?
- Bachelor's, 64%
- Associate, 16%
- Master's, 10%
- High School Diploma, 5%
- Other Degrees, 5%
What should I major in to become a field investigator?
- Criminal Justice, 46%
- Business, 14%
- Psychology, 5%
- Other Majors, 30%
Most common colleges for field investigators
| Field investigator common college | Percentages |
|---|---|
| University of Phoenix | 11.11% |
| John Jay College of Criminal Justice of the City University of New York | 7.14% |
| Pennsylvania State University | 6.35% |
| Indiana University of Pennsylvania | 6.35% |
| New York University | 5.56% |
Best majors for field investigators
| Rank | Major | Percentages |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Criminal Justice | 45.6% |
| 2 | Business | 13.6% |
| 3 | Political Science | 5.4% |
| 4 | Psychology | 5.1% |
| 5 | Sociology | 3.1% |
Best colleges for field investigators
The best colleges for field investigators are Boston University, Stanford University, and Northwestern University.
A field investigator with advanced education typically earns a higher salary and has access to better jobs. That's why Zippia looked into the best colleges for field investigators. We based this list on several metrics: admissions rate, retention rate, mean earnings of graduates, the ratio of working vs. non-working students ten years after admission, the average cost of attendance, and median debt for graduates who become field investigators.
1. California State University - Bakersfield
Bakersfield, CA • Private
In-state tuition
$7,309
Enrollment
9,142
2. SUNY at Binghamton
Vestal, NY • Private
In-state tuition
$9,808
Enrollment
13,990
3. San Diego State University
San Diego, CA • Private
In-state tuition
$7,488
Enrollment
30,018
4. SUNY Farmingdale
Farmingdale, NY • Private
In-state tuition
$8,306
Enrollment
9,394
5. Boston University
Boston, MA • Private
In-state tuition
$53,948
Enrollment
17,238
6. Howard University
Washington, DC • Private
In-state tuition
$26,756
Enrollment
6,166
7. SUNY at Albany
Albany, NY • Private
In-state tuition
$10,011
Enrollment
13,434
8. Western Carolina University
Cullowhee, NC • Private
In-state tuition
$3,926
Enrollment
9,835
9. SUNY College at Plattsburgh
Plattsburgh, NY • Private
In-state tuition
$8,369
Enrollment
5,229
10. SUNY College at Oswego
Oswego, NY • Private
In-state tuition
$8,440
Enrollment
7,039
20 best online courses for field investigators
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-- About the Course -- From the Nuremberg trial to the case against Saddam Hussein, from the prosecution of Al-Qaeda terrorists to the trial of Somali pirates – no area of law is as important to world peace and security as international criminal law. Taught by one of the world’s leading experts in the field, this course will educate students about the fundamentals of international criminal law and policy. We will explore the contours of international crimes such as genocide, war crimes,...
3. Investigative Journalism
How to find hidden sources. How to look for documents and people...
4. IFCI Expert Cybercrime Investigator's Course
Protect your network - Put cybercriminals in jail. Learn computer forensics, malware analysis and hacker investigations...
5. Threat Investigation
If you are an associate-level cybersecurity analyst who is working in security operation centers, this course will help you understand how threat-centric SOC must prepare for analyzing new and emerging threats by implementing robust security investigation procedures • By the end of the course, you will be able to: • Understand cyber-threat hunting concepts • Describe the five hunting maturity levels (HM0–HM4) • Describe the hunting cycle four-stage loop• Describe the use of the Common...
6. Investigating Epidemics like COVID-19: An Analyst's Guide
Do you want to learn how to detect, identify the cause, and decrease the morbidity and mortality from outbreaks or pandemics like COVID-19? Are you considering a career in public health practice, but aren’t sure how health departments collect and use outbreak data? Are you working in public health, but interested in moving into analytical and/or technical roles or curious how health departments investigate outbreaks? If so, this course is for you. After taking this course you be able to define...
7. AML Case Investigation Skills
A guide to conducting AML case investigations, writing quality case narratives and the submission of STRs (STR filing)...
8. Digital Forensics and Cyber-Crime Investigation
Computer Forensics...
9. International Law in Action: A Guide to the International Courts and Tribunals in The Hague
International Law in Action explains the functions of each international court and tribunal present in The Hague, and it looks at how these institutions address contemporary problems. On the basis of selected cases, and through interviews with judges and lawyers, you will explore the role of these courts and tribunals and their potential to contribute to global justice. The first module of the course will investigate how judicial settlement is different from other more political forms of...
10. Using Custom Fields in Looker Explores
This is a Google Cloud Self-Paced Lab. In this lab, you will learn how to utilize custom fields in Looker Explores queries. Looker provides the ability for non-developer users to create and utilize ad hoc fields for richer data analysis. This is done by creating custom measures, custom dimensions, table calculations and using custom groupings to narrow down data to match specific conditions. Using ad hoc fields gives non-developers the ability to create new fields, as opposed to regular fields,...
11. Forensic accounting, fraud investigation and fraud analytics
The 14 hour course(50casestudies) helps to understand fraud examination, forensic audit,financial crime, data analytics...
12. Digital Forensics Masterclass: Forensic Science 2023 DFMC+
Learn digital forensics and be computer forensics investigator / Certificate after completing course / DFMC+ / DFIR 2023...
13. Criminology and Criminal Psychology Certified CSI+ Course
Learn Criminal Law and Start your career with certification of Criminal Law and Criminal Psychology, Learn Criminology...
14. Cyber Crime Analyst Part 2
Cyber Forensics Investigator...
15. Check Point CCSA
Learn all about Check Point firewall administration. Master to deploy Checkpoint blades efficiently. Upgrade to R80.30...
16. Forensic Psychology - ACCREDITED CERTIFICATE
Become a specialist in criminal investigations and forensic profiling, start your career and add certificate to resume!...
17. Criminal Law in 120 Minutes: A Fast Track Course
A 2 hour fast track summary of Criminal Law, targeting all common law LL.B examinations!...
18. Cyber Crime Analyst Part 1
Types of Cyber Crime...
19. Customer Service
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20. Digital Forensics and Electronic Evidence
An introduction for legal professionals and other individuals with an interest in computer forensics...
Top 10 most affordable universities for field investigators
The most affordable schools for field investigators are SUNY Farmingdale, california state university - bakersfield, and usf sarasota-manatee.
If the best universities for field investigators are out of your price range, check out these affordable schools. After factoring in in-state tuition and fees, the average cost of attendance, admissions rate, average net price, and mean earnings after six years, we found that these are the most affordable schools for field investigators.
1. SUNY Farmingdale
Farmingdale, NY • Private
In-state tuition
$8,306
Cost of attendance
16,091
2. California State University - Bakersfield
Bakersfield, CA • Private
In-state tuition
$7,309
Cost of attendance
16,714
3. USF Sarasota-Manatee
Sarasota, FL • Private
In-state tuition
$5,587
Cost of attendance
13,043
4. California State University - Dominguez Hills
Carson, CA • Private
In-state tuition
$6,942
Cost of attendance
14,469
5. Brigham Young University
Provo, UT • Private
In-state tuition
$5,620
Cost of attendance
18,136
6. Minot State University
Minot, ND • Private
In-state tuition
$7,064
Cost of attendance
15,576
7. SUNY Polytechnic Institute
Utica, NY • Private
In-state tuition
$8,238
Cost of attendance
21,567
8. Florida International University
Miami, FL • Private
In-state tuition
$6,556
Cost of attendance
19,434
9. Clayton State University
Morrow, GA • Private
In-state tuition
$5,419
Cost of attendance
17,697
10. Florida State University
Tallahassee, FL • Private
In-state tuition
$5,656
Cost of attendance
21,623
Top 10 hardest universities to get into for field investigators
The hardest universities for field investigators to get into are Boston University, Stanford University, and Northwestern University.
Some great schools for field investigators are hard to get into, but they also set your career up for greater success. The list below shows the most challenging universities to get into for field investigators based on an institution's admissions rates, average SAT scores accepted, median ACT scores accepted, and mean earnings of students six years after admission.
1. Boston University
Boston, MA • Private
Admissions rate
22%
SAT average
1,420
2. Stanford University
Stanford, CA • Private
Admissions rate
4%
SAT average
1,497
3. Northwestern University
Evanston, IL • Private
Admissions rate
8%
SAT average
1,508
4. George Washington University, The
Washington, DC • Private
Admissions rate
42%
SAT average
1,380
5. SUNY at Binghamton
Vestal, NY • Private
Admissions rate
40%
SAT average
1,376
6. University of Tulsa
Tulsa, OK • Private
Admissions rate
41%
SAT average
1,321
7. Syracuse University
Syracuse, NY • Private
Admissions rate
50%
SAT average
1,284
8. Boston College
Chestnut Hill, MA • Private
Admissions rate
28%
SAT average
1,429
9. University of Denver
Denver, CO • Private
Admissions rate
56%
SAT average
1,300
10. Northeastern University
Boston, MA • Private
Admissions rate
19%
SAT average
1,466
Top 10 easy-to-apply-to universities for field investigators
The easiest schools for field investigators to get into are Nyack College, notre dame college, and gwynedd mercy university.
Some schools are much easier to get into. If you want to start your career as a field investigator without much hassle, check out the list of schools where you will be accepted in no time. We compiled admissions rates, average SAT scores, average ACT scores, and average salary of students six years after graduation to uncover which were the easiest schools to get into for field investigators.
1. Nyack College
New York, NY • Private
Admissions rate
98%
SAT average
999
2. Notre Dame College
Cleveland, OH • Private
Admissions rate
90%
SAT average
994
3. Gwynedd Mercy University
Gwynedd Valley, PA • Private
Admissions rate
92%
SAT average
1,031
4. Wayland Baptist University
Plainview, TX • Private
Admissions rate
98%
SAT average
1,003
5. University of North Texas at Dallas
Dallas, TX • Private
Admissions rate
83%
SAT average
992
6. Curry College
Milton, MA • Private
Admissions rate
93%
SAT average
1,026
7. Felician University
Lodi, NJ • Private
Admissions rate
81%
SAT average
999
8. Presentation College
Aberdeen, SD • Private
Admissions rate
97%
SAT average
1,050
9. Manor College
Jenkintown, PA • Private
Admissions rate
94%
SAT average
898
10. Oklahoma Wesleyan University
Bartlesville, OK • Private
Admissions rate
68%
SAT average
964
Average field investigator salary by education level
| Field investigator education level | Field investigator salary |
|---|---|
| Master's Degree | $42,958 |
| High School Diploma or Less | $33,064 |
| Bachelor's Degree | $41,291 |
| Some College/ Associate Degree | $32,563 |
Field investigator education FAQs
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Updated January 8, 2025
Updated January 8, 2025