How to Become a Private Investigator
Requirements for PI License & Jobs
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Want to learn the requirements to become a private investigator? Start your quest here for becoming a private investigator & getting your PI license
In order to become a private investigator, there are plenty of hoops you have to jump through.
And while some of them may not be strictly necessary--at least in the official, legal sense--you'd do well to jump anyway.
Becoming a private investigator can and should take a lot of hard work. You need to be trained in a variety of fields in order to become a success.
And even though you may not need a license to work as a PI in the state where you live, you may want to earn one anyway for the sake of looking better than the competition.
Why Become a Private Investigator
Because the truth is that job opportunities for PIs are growing, meaning that the number of people who decide to choose investigating for their career is also growing.
Like every worthwhile job in the world, the market for private investigator work is highly competitive.
But if you work hard, take your training seriously, and build up your education and credentials, then you will not have a problem if you want to become a private investigator.
Private Investigator Training
The requirements to become a private investigator vary from state to state and agency to agency. Most employers--both public and private--prefer their new hires to be as trained as possible.
How can you go about making your resume stand out above the rest?
- Get your license
- Take college courses in police science and criminal justice
- Earn a degree in either or both of those two fields
- Participate in training seminars whenever you have the opportunity
- Apprentice with a professional private investigator
There's training available to you from a number of different sources. You just need to make the time and put in the effort to become a private investigator the right way: with glowing credentials.
Private Investigator Jobs
The private investigator is capable of performing a vast variety of tasks and taking on a great many different assignments.
Some of the jobs a PI may be required to take on include:
- Surveillance
- Skip tracing
- Background checks
- Computer forensics
If you want to be a success in the PI world, you will need to make yourself not just a specialist in one area, but a jack of all trades.
Private Investigator Salary
If you want to become a private investigator, you can't expect to become rich overnight. It's not an incredibly lucrative career.
That being said, you can still make a better than decent living on average--just over $50,000 per year. And if you become a true success, with plenty of experience, positive references, and a great networking web, you can make over $100,000 a year.
How much money you make depends entirely on how well you can navigate the success of your profession. Put in the hard work and the long hours and you may just find yourself among the PI elite.
Private Investigator Software
In this ever-evolving digital world--where computers and the Internet are rulers--the private investigator needs to have an excellent grasp on new technology.
This isn't true just because plenty of criminals use computers to aid them with their illegal activities, but also because digital media are great resources for helping the PI do his or her job.
There are a number of different software programs, for instance, that can help the private investigator a great deal. These are designed for background checks, skip tracing, profiling, and more.
Private Investigator Equipment
Private investigators may work alone at times, but they never do everything by themselves.
The equipment a PI uses is a very important part of the work. Dictation recorders, surveillance devices, badges and identifications, and various software programs are just a few pieces of private investigator equipment that the PI needs on the job.
Private Investigators License
There are seven states in America that do not require you to get a private investigator license before starting the job. This may seem like a good deal, but it may be a huge disadvantage to you if you don't get one.
The job market for PIs is highly competitive--meaning you have to work extra hard to get the job you want. One of the best ways to do this is to make sure you have all the training, education, and credentials you can get your hands on.
Be prepared if you want to be a success.
Private Investigator Insurance
The one thing every private investigator needs--after training and education, of course--is insurance.
You need to have all of your legal bases covered before you open up shop as a PI.
Some of the coverage you'll need includes:
- Assault & Battery
- Personal Injury
- Care, Custody & Control
Badges for Private Investigators
You can buy a badge when you've become an officially licensed private investigator. The badge will help you assume authority on the job, and will help you identify yourself to those you may need to speak to.
The badge is a symbol of honesty, loyalty, and responsibility. If these are the hallmarks for your PI work, then you'd do well to represent them with a customized badge.
Private Investigator Career
Learning how to become a private investigator is one thing, but learning what your private investigator career may be like once you've received your training and credentials is a complete other thing.
As a PI, you will be required to participate in a number of different activities and you will be assigned many varieties of jobs.
You may be called upon to do some computer forensics, marital surveillance, or even the uncovering of family secrets.
Being a jack of all trades is an important part in becoming a successful private investigator.
Online Private Investigators
If you need to hire a private investigator, the Internet is a fantastic resource. There are pages you can visit that will tell you which ones operate the closest to your home, which are licensed, which have the most experience, and whether or not there are any consumer reports or professional references available for your perusal.
Likewise, if you are thinking about starting a career in private investigating, the Internet can also be beneficial.
You can do much of your training and schooling through web-based educational institutions. This will allow you to keep your day job as you change the course of your career, earning while you're learning.
Private Investigator School
If you want to become a private investigator, attending a school--whether online or on campus--that focuses on PI training is a great way to go.
There are a number of different online institutions that will help you get the training and experience you need before you attempt to get your license and open shop.
Go to private investigator school, build up your credentials, and your career will have nowhere to go but straight to the top.
Private Investigator Services
What kinds of services do private investigators offer? It's a good question. We have all heard of PIs, but our knowledge of what they do is mostly limited to what we learn from movies, television shows, and pulp fiction novels.
The real life private investigator performs a variety of services, including:
- Surveillance
- Personal Security
- People finding
- Background searching
Private Investigator Resources
One of the greatest resources for the private investigator is the Internet. This is because the Internet is able to point you in the direction of countless other resources you can have at your disposal.
Software, online forums, chat rooms, and web databases can all be found on the net. Don't worry--as a PI, you'll never be alone. Not when you have so many sources of assistance available to you with the click of a button.
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