Robin B. Arslanian
Professor Long
English 122
12 October 2011
How to Succeed in Becoming a Crime Scene Investigator (CSI)
The career as a Crime Scene Investigator, better known as CSI, can be very rewarding. To help catch the “bad guys”, to me, can be very satisfying. My goal is by the end of this paper you will learn how to become a CSI, the first steps to take once you get to a crime scene, what to expect in the courtroom and hopefully how much fun a career as a CSI can be. Being a CSI is definitely not for the faint at heart, some crime scenes can be gruesome. If you think being a CSI is like you watch on television you are sadly mistaken. Television glamorizes the long hours it takes to get DNA results or fingerprint identification. These types of results can take days to weeks. This can be very frustrating to the investigator who is being pressured by the prosecutors, the lead detective on the case and by the families for information. How you analyze the crime scene and what you find out in the lab can mean the difference between a conviction and an acquittal. Your education is the most important quality and resource you can have in any career. However, for a CSI it is of utmost importance. You will need at the very least an Associate’s degree in either Criminal Justice with a forensics background, or better yet a Bachelor’s degree in Forensic Science. It is suggested that if you have a Bachelor’s degree you should go for your Masters; it will make you a more desirable employee and earn you a greater salary. The best schools to attend are John Jay College of Criminal Justice, Michigan State and Boston University. Of course, there are others and online schools and as well (Crime Scene Investigator). There are other courses you can take as well, such as forensic pathology and forensic toxicology. I believe that obtaining the most education