IACP stands for “International Association of Chiefs.” Maybe it should stand for “It’s A Crowd Pleaser” because the convention we just attended in San Diego sure was. Stevenson University had a booth at the conference where we met lots of law enforcement professions–some with job opening (but more about that later). The show was amazing. About 15,000 local, state and federal officers come together once a year and see all the latest in law enforcement technology. We saw everything from tack strips police lay on the road to stop suspects during car chases to police cars that you can talk to and take directions to helicopters and mobile police command stations the size of a small house. It was really exciting and a great way for us to “show the flag” and get the school’s name out in the law enforcement community.
Speaking of jobs, I visited several dozen federal law enforcement booths while we were there. Almost all of them were excited to hear about our forensics programs. Some, such as the Coast Guard Investigative Service, have an open job announcement, but it will close soon. Others, like the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms, and the Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigations Division, have an internship program. In addition to those, check out these other federal law enforcement agencies for more information about career opportunities and possible internships: Air Force Office of Special Investigations; Drug Enforcement Administration; Defense Criminal Investigative Service; State Department Diplomatic Security; Federal Bureau of Investigations; Air Marshals; Naval Criminal Investigative Service; Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration; Army Criminal Investigations; Customs Service; Homeland Security; Environmental Protection Agency Office of Inspector General; Postal Inspection Service; Postal Inspector General; and U.S. Secret Service. Finally another organization, USIS, was at the conference and is often looking to hire people who can do background investigations.
Next year we’re hoping to attend the conference in Denver and continue developing relationships with these agencies so our graduates have a better chance of getting noticed and landing exciting and rewarding jobs. In the meantime, we’ll be getting ready to attend another conference this summer for the Association of Certified Fraud Examiners where we’ll meet more employers for those of you who might be interested in a private sector career in forensics. Stay tuned!
