Investigator vs senior investigator

The differences between investigators and senior investigators can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 4-6 years to become an investigator, becoming a senior investigator takes usually requires 1-2 years. Additionally, an investigator has an average salary of $71,406, which is higher than the $61,240 average annual salary of a senior investigator.

The top three skills for an investigator include law enforcement agencies, management system and customer service. The most important skills for a senior investigator are senior level management, local law enforcement, and claims handling.

Investigator vs senior investigator overview

	Investigator	Senior Investigator
Yearly salary	$71,406	$61,240
Hourly rate	$34.33	$29.44
Growth rate	6%	3%
Number of jobs	5,085	4,525
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 62%	Bachelor's Degree, 66%
Average age	44	44
Years of experience	6	2

What does an investigator do?

Criminal investigators play an essential role in criminal justice and law enforcement. Their job entails solving open cases that may take them weeks or even months to accomplish. Collecting evidence, interviewing witnesses, and arresting suspects are among their many tasks. They work at every level of criminal justice and law enforcement. For criminal investigators to succeed in their profession, they should have sound judgment, strong communication skills, ethical standards, physical fitness, and empathy. They also benefit from strong job prospects, in addition to an exciting and rewarding job.

What does a senior investigator do?

As a senior investigator, you will be responsible for managing investigations for crimes, including corruption, organized crime, and fraud. You will work closely with the district attorney and law enforcement to investigate and solve these crimes. This role will require you to perform other additional duties, including collecting DNA samples from the crime scene, suspects and victims, organizing live training on risk, compliance, and ethics, and testifying in criminal and civil courts, civil service hearings, and ethics commission.

Investigator vs senior investigator salary

Investigators and senior investigators have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Investigator	Senior Investigator
Average salary	$71,406	$61,240
Salary range	Between $42,000 And $119,000	Between $35,000 And $105,000
Highest paying City	San Francisco, CA	Frederick, MD
Highest paying state	California	Maryland
Best paying company	Apple	DLA Piper
Best paying industry	-	Finance

Differences between investigator and senior investigator education

There are a few differences between an investigator and a senior investigator in terms of educational background:

	Investigator	Senior Investigator
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 62%	Bachelor's Degree, 66%
Most common major	Criminal Justice	Criminal Justice
Most common college	California State University - Bakersfield	-

Investigator vs senior investigator demographics

Here are the differences between investigators' and senior investigators' demographics:

	Investigator	Senior Investigator
Average age	44	44
Gender ratio	Male, 56.6% Female, 43.4%	Male, 65.4% Female, 34.6%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 13.5% Unknown, 5.8% Hispanic or Latino, 19.2% Asian, 4.7% White, 56.5% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.3%	Black or African American, 11.8% Unknown, 5.0% Hispanic or Latino, 16.8% Asian, 2.8% White, 62.9% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7%
LGBT Percentage	8%	9%

Differences between investigator and senior investigator duties and responsibilities

Investigator example responsibilities.

Participate in and lead the controlled purchase of illegal narcotics and firearms to apprehend suspects.
Manage all business reporting to include; payroll, taxes, client billing, account reconciliations and compliance reports.
Manage corporate-wide document production relative to complex litigation cases.
Receive multiple letters of commendation for effective investigations that lead to successful prosecutions.
Collaborate with federal agencies, including the FBI, DEA, ATF and IRS.
Write a detail case report, and attach all supporting documentation necessary to write up SAR's where necessary per BSA.

Senior investigator example responsibilities.

Investigate allegations of suspect FWA / prioritize and manage case load / maintain comprehensive case files.
Receive multiple letters of commendation for effective investigations that lead to successful prosecutions.
Create budget friendly evidence collection boxes for investigations and patrol officers.
Send specimens to laboratory to obtain DNA.
Participate on committees and teams supporting GMP compliance programs.
Collect possible DNA samples from the scene, victims, and suspects.

Investigator vs senior investigator skills

Common investigator skills

Law Enforcement Agencies, 7%
Management System, 6%
Customer Service, 5%
Criminal Justice, 5%
Senior Level Management, 4%
Child Abuse, 4%

Common senior investigator skills

Senior Level Management, 13%
Local Law Enforcement, 9%
Claims Handling, 8%
Court Proceedings, 8%
Data Analysis, 4%
Management System, 3%

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Investigator
Investigator vs Senior Investigator

Updated January 8, 2025

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