Who's a Detective?
Do you love reading detective novels and watching detective-based TV shows? Are you good at finding clues and piecing them together? Do you think you have it in you to be the next Sartaj Singh (from Sacred Games) or Sherlock Holmes? If yes, consider becoming a detective!
A detective is a professional who works on criminal cases. You will collect facts and evidence, analyse them, and then work on solving the case. Detectives go through a high level of training before they are qualified. You can avail of this training as a police officer, or as an agent with a law-enforcement agency.
As fascinating as the job sounds, you must also realise that you will find yourself in quite a few life-threatening situations from time to time. Think this is the career for you? Read on to know more about it.
What will you do?
Where will you work?
How do you get there?
What skills would you need?
Communication Skills
Communication skills are the ability to clearly express ideas, information, and feelings, both verbally and in writing, so others can easily understand. This includes listening effectively, using the right tone, and being aware of non-verbal cues like body language. These skills help you explain your thoughts clearly, build relationships, and work better in teams. Good communication is important in almost every job, from customer service to leadership roles, because it ensures that tasks are understood and done correctly, and it helps prevent misunderstandings. build this skillHow do you make it to the top ranks?
Police Inspector
Detectives either work for the government or work as private detectives. If you wish to pursue a career in the government, you will first be made a police inspector and later move on to detective training. As an inspector, your profile goes from Assistant Sub Inspector to Sub Inspector to Inspector to Deputy Superintendent before you can finally foray into detective work.
Trainee Investigator
If you wish to pursue this career through the private sector, you begin your training right after your graduation. Here, you will be asked to conduct investigations on a trial basis and display your skills while assisting senior detectives. This will prepare you for the next stage of your career, where you take charge of a case yourself.
Detective
You are required to pass an examination to become a professional criminal investigator or detective. Besides handling your own cases, you will also write reports, interrogate suspects, and collect evidence for your case.
Senior Investigator
By this stage, you mainly handle only the high-profile cases and overlook the work of other junior detectives on their cases. You may even be required to train a new batch of detectives. At a later stage, you can set up your detective agency and hire amateur detectives to work for you.
Pursuing your career locally VS abroad
Usually, detective training does not require a specific degree but aspirants prefer to complete their graduation before they enrol into a private academy or a government institution. To prepare you for the role, a course in a relevant area such as criminal justice, law or police science is ideal and can even boost your resume. A one-year diploma in Criminology costs between INR 5,000 and INR 25,000 even for the best colleges. Over the years of your training, you could also choose to upgrade your skills with a postgraduate degree or specialised course. A degree in M. Sc. (Forensic Sciences) can cost between INR 20,000 to 2 lakhs while fees for Ph. D. in Criminology can go up to INR 50000. Some of the best colleges in India to pursue this career are the University Of Mysore in Karnataka, National Institute of Criminology, and Dr B R Ambedkar University in Agra.
If you wish to be a detective for the government, your best options are in India. You need the citizenship of a country to practice there. If you have spent a significant period of time in another country, you can also set up your own private practice there or work for a private detective organisation. Job opportunities are highest in countries like USA, UK, France, Germany, Switzerland, Australia, and New Zealand, where crime rates are on the rise. Just like in India, you do not need a specialised qualification to enrol in a course to become a trainee investigator. However, it is ideal to have a graduate or post-graduate degree in a related field like law, criminology, or forensics coupled with knowledge of the latest technology. Fees for a basic course can barely amount to INR 50000 even in the top colleges and universities. If you plan to start your own practice, you could also look into acquiring some business skills.
How much would you get paid?
Your salary would depend on where you're working, your post, your experience, etc. However, we van give you a fair idea of how much you would make.
What are your career options?
Legal Investigation
Legal investigators work with lawyers. From processing and serving legal papers to collecting evidence for cases and interviewing eye-witnesses and other possible leads, you would aid lawyers in many ways. You might also work on cases involving personal injury or bodily harm, civil law, and worker’s compensation. You will help lawyers prepare their cases for litigation. You can work privately, but most legal investigators work under the government.
Corporate Investigation
Similar to a legal investigation, corporate investigation is related to matters dealing with corporates. You would conduct internal or external investigations of issues at the workplace. Companies might either hire you as an in-house employee or partner with your organisation. You would look into any kind of corporate fraud like embezzlement, financial theft, or intellectual property theft. Additionally, you could also handle matters like violence or sexual harassment at the workplace.
Insurance Investigation
Insurance investigators deal with matters relating to insurance fraud. This covers areas like life insurance, home insurance, health insurance, auto insurance, and more. You would check for the truth behind the claims made, conduct background checks, collect information, take interviews of eye-witnesses and other leads, gather evidence, and review the records for more information. You could be hired privately or work on a contractual basis with insurance companies.
Financial Investigation
This is one of the more up-and-coming specialisations of investigation. Due to its nature of dealing with technology, financial investigating will be a coveted profession in the future. You could work with lawyers on matters of financial litigation like tax evasion, where you would conduct a thorough analysis of the financial records of individuals or organisations. Using your technological expertise, you will have to locate, trace, and find the flow of money from account to account in cases of money laundering, corruption, bribery or any kind of accounting fraud.
Computer Forensics
Computer forensic experts cover all of the above fields but their work is limited to the digital medium. This makes computer forensics one of the most lucrative careers right now. You will be responsible for gathering and scrutinising digital information that can be used by lawyers in a Court of Law. Your investigation could focus on an individual or an organisation, it could be personal, criminal, or corporate by nature. For organisations, you can help track information regarding employee fraud, examine employee records, or help recover lost information that could be used in financial litigation.
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