How hard is it to become a police detective?

It is moderately hard to become a police detective. Police detectives are law enforcement officers who specialize in investigating crimes, gathering evidence, and building cases for prosecution. The career path to becoming a police detective typically involves 4 to 7 years of training and experience.

How To Become A Police Detective: What It Is and Career Path

What is a police detective and how to become one

Updated January 8, 2025

2 min read

Quoted experts

Dr. Durmus Alper CAMLIBEL Ph.D.,

Jodi Gill

There is more than meets the eye when it comes to being a police detective. For example, did you know that they make an average of $25.04 an hour? That's $52,087 a year! Between 2018 and 2028, the career is expected to grow 3% and produce 20,600 job opportunities across the U.S.

What general advice would you give to a police detective?

Dr. Durmus Alper CAMLIBEL Ph.D.

Assistant Professor, University of Wisconsin - Oshkosh

They need to avoid being overzealous officers. They should not put their career at the center of their life. They need to spend quality time with their family. In law enforcement, good relations with the public and colleagues are essential. They need to develop good relationships with the people and their colleagues and expand their professional network. They always try to be a "problem solver officer" rather than a "problem creator officer." If someone asks for help from them, they should treat this person with dignity and respect. They should avoid being arrogant in their interaction with the public. Because arrogance is the worst plague, and Humility is the greatest virtue.

ScorePolice DetectiveUS Average

Salary

4.1

Avg. Salary $52,087

Avg. Salary $59,228

Stability level

10.0

Growth rate 3%

Growth rate 0.3%

Diversity

2.3

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 1.37%

Asian 1.78%

Black or African American 10.53%

Hispanic or Latino 15.48%

Unknown 3.93%

White 66.91%

Gender

female 12.64%

male 87.36%

Age - 47

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 3.00%

Asian 7.00%

Black or African American 14.00%

Hispanic or Latino 19.00%

White 57.00%

Gender

female 47.00%

male 53.00%

Age - 47

Stress level

10.0

Stress level is very high

7.1 - high

Complexity level

7.3

Complexity level is challenging

7 - challenging

Work life balance

4.6

Work life balance is fair

6.4 - fair

Key steps to become a police detective

Explore police detective education requirements

Most common police detective degrees

Bachelor's

50.6 %

Associate

24.8 %

Master's

9.5 %

Start to develop specific police detective skills

Skills	Percentages
Patrol	10.93%
Law Enforcement Agencies	9.28%
Criminal Cases	8.54%
Local Laws	6.53%
Evidence Collection	6.25%

Complete relevant police detective training and internships

Accountants spend an average of 6-12 months on post-employment, on-the-job training. New police detectives learn the skills and techniques required for their job and employer during this time. The chart below shows how long it takes to gain competency as a police detective based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data and data from real police detective resumes.

Research police detective duties and responsibilities

Plan, manage, develop, implement and revise the training FTO program, as needed.
Complete applications for arrest, subpoenas, search and seizure warrants, etc.
Serve criminal and civil subpoenas, confer with attorneys and assist in the preparation of cases for trial.
Maintain and repair department issue firearms.

Prepare your police detective resume

When your background is strong enough, you can start writing your police detective resume.

You can use Zippia's AI resume builder to make the resume writing process easier while also making sure that you include key information that hiring managers expect to see on a police detective resume. You'll find resume tips and examples of skills, responsibilities, and summaries, all provided by Zippi, your career sidekick.

Choose from 10+ customizable police detective resume templates

Build a professional police detective resume in minutes. Browse through our resume examples to identify the best way to word your resume. Then choose from 10+ resume templates to create your police detective resume.