Forensic Psychology

Is forensic psychology for you? Don’t be tricked by the sensationalistic media portrayals of the field as they are misleading and unrealistic! Do you enjoy

• Helping others?

• Changing environments?

• Teamwork?

• Continuing Education?

• Making a difference in society?

Did you answer YES to one or more above? If so, you need to explore this forensic field and find out about the exciting opportunities it has to offer.

Forensic Psychology is defined as the application of psychology to the criminal justice system. You can think of it as a combination of the two fields, psychology and criminal justice. Within this field you would examine various psychological perspectives as well as focus on legal issues, public policy and civil law. On the other hand, forensic science is the application of a much broader range of sciences to the legal system.

These degree programs combine psychology and criminal justice courses. Be prepared to study cognitive, clinical, motivational, criminal, social and developmental psychology as well as a number of courses in legal, law and criminal issues. Additionally, courses in research methods, statistics, written and oral communication are an essential part of a quality degree program.

To advance in this career you will need a masters or doctorate degree. While you can get entry-level employment with less education, in order to advance, become more specialized and enhance your criminal justice career you will need to pursue further education. Luckily, the number of online degree programs geared toward forensic psychology is growing.

There are a number of options for graduates with this type of degree. You can decide to focus solely on research such as examining eyewitness testimony, public policy work, academic training, jury consulting, criminal profiling as well as serve as an expert witness. Forensic psychologists are involved in civil suits such as personal injury suites, custody disputes or worker compensation cases. In criminal cases, expertise of a forensic psychologist may be called upon to assess pleas of insanity, issues of competency to stand trial, assessment of future violence potential as well as treatment of sex offenders and other kinds of crimes against society. Forensic psychologists can be found working in a number of different settings such as jails, prisons, state hospitals, law enforcement agencies (both federal and state), mental health centers, juvenile detention facilities, colleges and universities as well as in private practice. As you can see, the options are endless.

To be successful as a forensic psychologist, you must be patient, adaptable, work well with others and enjoy research. You must also have good communications skills and be able to present complex psychological theories in court.

Interested in criminal profiling? This is almost always done by law enforcement personnel as it is considered a law enforcement technique and not grounded in psychological principals and behavioral theory. If criminal profiling is your sole interest, than becoming a forensic psychologist may not be for you. Check out Criminal Profiling and Law Enforcement Careers for more details.

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