Like any other profession, there are certain prerequisites to becoming a private investigator. The professional individual interested in this field is required to follow certain steps and accomplish various milestones to secure their chances in this prestigious and challenging occupation.

So if you have been asking around questions like “how many years does it take to become a private investigator?” or “how do I become a private investigator?” here are a few steps that will help you understand better:

Acquire A License

This is the first step an individual is required to take if he wants to be a professional in this field. No organization, firm or agency hires an unlicensed private investigator. Even if you wish to start your own business, you will need a license. The time it takes to obtain a license depends on the length of the course you opt for. Sometimes investigators get their license after a two-year long course.

Record Of Fact Finding

With the increased feasibility with technology, several individuals can minimize the length of their courses while sitting right at home. Individuals can become a detective online. They can take up courses and listen to lectures that help them understand the requirement and implementation of fact-finding. Once the theory is complete, its practical implementation becomes easier and shortens the time it takes to become a pi.

Science Degree

If you wish to become a private investigator, you need to obtain education in certain fields such as science. When it comes to the homicide and forensics departments of investigations, detectives are required to have the basic information to be able to identify the time and cause of death. This can be studied during the basic four-year bachelor’s degrees.

Police Background

To make their job even easier, some investigators can work under the police for a year or two. This introduces them to the basics of the enterprise of investigation. It simplifies their approach to be a private investigator. It teaches them the careful art of dealing with a finicky customer and gives certain finesse to the service they provide later in the investigative field.

Field Work

Becoming investigator is incomplete without a year or two in the field. This is often arranged so that newly taught investigators are trained under highly professional and esteemed investigators. This allows them to come up with their own style of functioning and helps them learn certain tricks and tips from the professionals.

Well-Educated

Being a Private Investigator requires the same kind of knowledge, study time and experience as does any other daunting and demanding field. Several individuals study the investigative field during their academic career. This helps them shorten the time of training and other theoretical requirements, as they are familiarized with the basics during the four years of their bachelor’s degree.

So if you are wondering what you need to be a private investigator, the above points will answer your concerns and questions in thorough detail. Make sure you have the education the field requires. Study on your own—look up cases on the internet that will familiarize you with the steps several professionals took during their career that lead to fruitful results. Eventually, obtain your training and license to increase clientele to a point that you are entrusted with public and commercial cases.

SIA Awards

This is the highest acclaim an investigator can achieve. A SIA award is a prominent demarcation of the kind of work an investigator invests during his learning and training period. If you are awarded with it, your job as a detective is done and all those years have paid off.