Challenging Forensics Careers

Exciting Jobs include CSIs, Forensic Accountants, and Pathologists.

Jan 23, 2008

Forensic Science has a multitude of opportunities for those interested, so many in fact, that only a few can be mentioned here.

Careers

College students, law enforcement officers and personnel, as well as those with seemingly unrelated professions, can find a wide array of careers to choose from in the fascinating field of Forensic Science.

Some of the careers available today are forensic odontologists and dentists, psychiatrists, anthropologists, pathologists, plumbers, fingerprint experts, firearms and ballistics analysts, tool marking experts, and the familiar crime scene investigators (CSI's), etc.

In the 1970's, a forensic odontologist was able to establish a link between a murder victim and her murderer. Bite marks on the victim were used to establish a link that played a key role in the conviction of serial rapist and killer, Ted Bundy.

Forensic psychiatrists are sometimes used to evaluate prisoners who have committed serious crimes, and to search the minds of murderers for answers, with the hope that one day crimes of this nature can possibly be avoided by knowing what types of people are most likely to commit these crimes.

At Columbia University, Forensic Psychiatrist, Dr. Michael Stone, has developed what he calls his “Scale of Evil,” which is used to place those who have committed the most heinous crimes on a numbered scale to determine who the most evil people are.

Forensic analysis of bones is performed by forensic anthropologists, who try to identify the remains of people that law enforcement officers believe have died in a mysterious manner. The anthropologists study the bones of the dead to determine the gender, race, and age of victims at the time of their deaths, as well as to estimate the length of time the person has been deceased, and other possible clues that may help investigators find the cause of death.

The barrels of firearms typically leave striations on bullets, which occurs during the explosion caused by firing. Forensic ballistic analysts use the striations to determine exactly which firearm was used during the commission of a crime. The ballistic analysts perform tests on the firearms and bullets found at crime scenes to see if they're a perfect match. The marks left on the bullets are also commonly referred to as, 'Lands and Grooves.' The 'lands' are the flat marks, located between the striations, or 'grooves,' which are left behind after the weapon is fired.

Forensic tool-marking experts are used to identify the specific tools, such as hammers, crowbars, screwdrivers, knives, etc., that left tool marks found at the scenes of crimes.

Sometimes, in order to locate missing persons or to identify victim's killers, forensic accountants are called in to examine the financial records of murder victims and missing persons. The accountants fine- tooth comb the financial records of people who stand to gain financial profit from the deaths of missing persons, and murder victims as well.

Today, there are even forensic plumbers, who help identify the perpetrators of crime. In one case, a forensic plumber found that a woman, whose death was originally thought to have been a suicide, had actually been drowned in a toilet by her husband. The plumber found marks on her neck that matched the inner and outer rims of the toilet bowl, as well as an exact impression of a necklace that the victim usually wore.

Examine Your Options

If you are interested in a career in Forensic Science, be sure to examine all of your options because there are many opportunities to choose from. For other legal careers, see Legal Career Profiles by William L. Pfeifer, Jr.

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The copyright of the article Challenging Forensics Careers in Forensic Science is owned by Peter Moser. Permission to republish Challenging Forensics Careers in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.