As the Bureau will tell you, there is no job specifically referred to as a “profiler.” It’s a term that everyone uses, but it’s not written on anyone’s business card or posted on someone’s office door. Supervisory special agents (SSAs) at the National Center for the Analysis of Violent Crime (NCAVC) are assigned to the FBI Academy in Quantico, Virginia, where they perform behavioral investigative functions. This includes examining evidence and information from preliminary police reports, crime scene photographs, witness accounts, medical examiner’s reports, victimology, etc. All of this information is carefully reviewed and analyzed in an effort to potentially develop a criminal profile or possibly provide some other investigative technique and/or strategy. Criminal profiles are used by investigators to help them narrow the search for violent criminals of unsolved cases and to assist both police and prosecutors in determining motive—a critical element in most prosecutions.
As a new special agent, you cannot immediately become a profiler. You must first serve at least five years as a special agent and, in addition, be assigned as a profile coordinator in an FBI field office. The job of the profile coordinator is to work closely with local and state law enforcement agencies in identifying cases with which the NCAVC may be able to provide assistance. As a general rule, profile coordinators do not have the overall training and authority to provide their own profiles. However, whenever there is a profiler position opening at the NCAVC, the profile coordinators are the first candidates that are considered for the position. These criminal profiling positions are very competitive, and it may take several years before you are even considered as a viable candidate.
The selection process is complicated. An education in Behavioral Science or Forensic Science is preferred. Investigative experience in violent crime is a real must, so a special agent’s experience with the Bureau should include homicide, rape, and other crimes of interpersonal violence. This experience may have also been obtained from employment prior to working for the FBI. This is a very subjective and highly competitive process. If your goal is to become a criminal profiler, you should be certain that being a special agent serving in some other capacity would be just as satisfying to you.
I don’t mean to discourage anyone. The field needs good people. If you understand the requirements and believe you have what it takes to work in this investigative field, please work towards that goal. There’s nothing like hard work to get you where you want to go, no matter what the odds tell you.
Do You Need a Particular College Major to Become a Profiler?
The answer to that is “no.” In regards to education, it is certainly necessary to have a bachelor’s degree as a foundation, as well as good verbal and writing skills, but there is no specific degree that would make someone much more or less qualified for this position than someone else. I might recommend a degree in the area of forensic psychology, but the people who have worked for me have had an assortment of different degrees from business management to psychology to even music. Therefore, you should choose whatever interests you the most.
At some point in your career you will have to get an advanced degree. However, when you are working towards your undergraduate or graduate degree, the most important factor that will separate you from everyone else is actually gaining hands-on experience in delving into the minds of criminals. To do that, you’re going to have to work or do research where you will personally come into contact with a variety of incarcerated felons. Remember, “In order to understand an artist, you must look at the art work.” The crime is a reflection of the offender.
For more information about a career as an FBI Profiler, as well as other career opportunities with the FBI and other federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies, please refer to my book “John Douglas’s Guide to Landing a Career in Law Enforcement”.
