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Criminal Justice and Law Enforcement Teachers, Postsecondary

Typical education: Master's degreeLower pressure

What they do

Teach courses in criminal justice, corrections, and law enforcement administration. Includes both teachers primarily engaged in teaching and those who do a combination of teaching and research.

Kinds of work

  • Social: Helping, teaching, caring for and supporting other people.
  • Investigative: Science, research, figuring out how things work and solving complex problems.
  • Conventional: Organizing information, following clear procedures and working with data and details.

Lower pressure: How much pressure workers in this job report: deadlines, conflict, dealing with upset people, the cost of mistakes, responsibility for others' safety, competition and long hours. It varies a lot from one employer to the next. Source: U.S. Department of Labor worker surveys.

Pay, tasks and more

Salary

United States $76,590 Median per year Most earn $45,000–$140,240

BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, 2025.

What you might do

  • Select and obtain materials and supplies, such as textbooks.
  • Compile bibliographies of specialized materials for outside reading assignments.
  • Participate in campus and community events.
  • Conduct research in a particular field of knowledge and publish findings in professional journals, books, or electronic media.
  • Evaluate and grade students' class work, assignments, and papers.
  • Prepare and deliver lectures to undergraduate or graduate students on topics such as criminal law, defensive policing, and investigation techniques.

Job outlook

United States
2% more jobs by 2035, slower than average · about 1,100 openings a year

Openings include new jobs and jobs left by workers who retire or change careers. Projections: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. "Bright Outlook": U.S. Department of Labor.

Where they work

  • Colleges, universities, and professional schools57.9%
  • Junior colleges40.6%

Share of all workers in this career. Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, National Employment Matrix.

Experience before this job: 2 to 4 years

Career path

How people usually get into this career, from school to their first job and beyond.

Typical education: Master's degreeExperience before this job: 2 to 4 years

This isn't an entry-level job. Most people need a master's degree and about 2 to 4 years of related work experience first, so the path usually takes roughly 7 to 10 years after high school. Many people work in the justice field while earning their master's, which can shorten the wait.

  1. Bachelor's degree in criminal justice or a related field

    4 years

    You learn the basics of policing, courts, corrections, and research methods, which builds the foundation for graduate study and for teaching later.

  2. Probation Officer

    2-4 years

    Working directly with the justice system gives you real-world examples to bring into the classroom and shows you how policies work in practice.

  3. Master's degree in criminal justice

    1-2 years

    This is the typical degree for teaching at the college level, and many students complete it part-time while still working.

  4. Criminal Justice Instructor

    Ongoing

    You teach courses in criminal justice, corrections, and law enforcement administration, and some instructors also do research.

Where it can lead

  1. Criminal Justice Department Chair

    3-5 years of experience first

    You take on leadership duties like scheduling, budgets, hiring, and curriculum planning for the whole department, often while still teaching some classes.

  2. Criminal Justice Program Director

    5+ years of experience first

    You oversee the overall direction of a degree program, including accreditation, course design, and coordination with other departments and outside partners.

What you can do now

Ideas for high school and college students.

In high school

  • Take social studies and government classesCourses in civics, U.S. government, psychology, and sociology build the background you'll need for a criminal justice major.
  • Join a debate or mock trial clubThese clubs help you practice explaining ideas clearly and thinking through legal arguments, which are useful skills for teaching.
  • Volunteer with a local courthouse, legal aid group, or youth mentoring programSeeing how the justice system works up close helps you decide if this field is right for you.
  • Strengthen your writing and public speakingTeaching at the college level depends on writing clearly and presenting well, so take English classes seriously and join a speech or presentation activity.
  • Look for a part-time job that involves working with the publicJobs like retail, food service, or tutoring build communication and responsibility skills that help in any justice career.

In college

  • Major or minor in criminal justice, with sociology or psychology as a supportA strong criminal justice major gives you the subject knowledge needed for graduate school, and related courses broaden your understanding of crime and society.
  • Take research methods and statisticsTeaching at the college level often includes research, so these courses prepare you for graduate study and for evaluating studies.
  • Work as a teaching assistant or research assistantHelping a professor grade, lead discussions, or collect data gives you early experience with teaching and academic work.
  • Get a part-time or summer job in a justice settingPositions like a campus security aide, jail or court clerk, or victim advocate give you the 2 to 4 years of field experience that schools often look for.
  • Join a criminal justice or pre-law student clubThese groups offer networking, guest speakers, and chances to lead, which helps you build a professional network early.

Tips for getting started

  • Talk with criminal justice instructors at your college or a local community college about what their jobs are really like, including the workload and the mix of teaching and research.
  • Get hands-on experience in a justice-related job, such as probation, corrections, victim services, or a police department civilian role, because schools value practical knowledge.
  • Look into research or teaching assistant roles during your undergraduate or graduate years so you can build a record of teaching and writing early.

Related jobs that often lead here

Related jobs a step up

Education, experience and related careers: U.S. Department of Labor. The step-by-step path, where it can lead and what you can do now were written by AI as typical examples; many people take other ways.

College majors that lead here

Majors: U.S. Department of Education and BLS (CIP–SOC crosswalk). Earnings and debt: College Scorecard, typical across U.S. colleges.

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