How to become a homicide detective?

Detectives are a rank within a police department. You must join the department, gain experience, be promoted to detective, and then try to get into homicide. It is a very long road.

UK does not have detectives who exclusively work homicides. The detectives would not be doing much. You join a police service/ department. You work as a PC for some time. You eventually may be invited to test and/or go back to police college for detective training. Then you are a basic detective, a DC. If their is a homicide to investigate the local DCI picks a number of detectives, usually led by a DS, to investigate. No special classes or education are needed or required but just so you know the last 2 large groups hired and sent to police college to become PCs for the Met were all university graduates. No one cared what their classes or majors were.They simply did better on the entrance testing than others. Chances of making detective are much better with a larger service like the Met.

You don't actually need any qualifications in the UK to become a Police Officer, however you do need to go complete the police training. Police forces in the United Kingdom only recruit CID/Detective internally. Meaning you could only apply if you are already a police officer. Most ranks don't need formal qualifications however the police will train you and qualify you for your rank, for example: Inspectors need to take an Inspectors exam, etc etc etc... I would say join the Police Force of your choice and then go from there. You might even choose a different path when it comes to it. (i.e. Armed Police, Counter Terrorism, K9)

I am a detective in a specialist unit in the UK, and part of my work is on the Major Crime Team. They are the ones who investigate murders. There are MIRs - Major Incident Rooms - around the country, and many are purely there for murders, but we also deal with other crimes such as rapes, complex drug dealing and Serious Organised Crime. You'll now need to get the Police Certificate prior to being eligible to apply for the police - you'll need to look at the specifications for the each force you are interested in, because every one has different requirements at the moment. The College of Policing is trying to make it more consistent, so have a look there to find out more details. Your degree subject matter doesn't really make any difference - my background is in criminology, but I work with a mix of people who went to university and those who did not. A florist, a banker, Waitrose staff, plumber, gas man, door staff and journalist were amongst the people I joined up with. It took me 6 years to get onto the CID, then another 2 years to get onto the Major Crime Team, so you won't do it instananeously. I am the youngest in service on the whole department, so that was pretty fast (by over a year). The best thing you can do academically is get the best grades you can in subjects that interest you, but also have plenty of extra-curricular activities, including part time jobs that expose you to the public. I worked throughout college and Uni in cafes, shops, bars, restaurants, hotels and nightclubs; I was President of a sports club, I volunteered for charities and had good grades in class. This meant that when I came to apply for the police, I had a breadth of different experience and skills to show that I ws able to work with lots of people from all sorts of backgrounds and deal with confrontation calmly and safely. That was the biggest element that I found people had difficulty in evidencing. Good luck!

Keep working on your college and that is a first. The Military can help with college as well as sports for scholarships. Now you said you are 16, check with your local police department or sheriff to see if they have an active POLICE Explorer post. The explorers are young men and women from the ages of 13 to 18, who are looking for a career in Law Enforcement. Doing thing you will get an inside look at the department and how each office works together to solve community crimes. Reading books, on criminal phycology and having an understanding of what each detective has to perform within the department/ Know that within the unit of detectives you have a team of officers who work street crimes. So what I am saying here is you will need an active understanding of current Laws and how the courts work with evidence. Most likely, you will perform duties as street Police Officer or Sherriff deputy for 3 to 6 years before becoming a detective. Another 2 to 5 years as an investigator working street crimes. From time to time, if your work is good you will be asked to assist the lead detective on current or cold case homicides. Understand also the smaller the department, the smaller your opportunity. Check area department Law Enforcement City, County, Federal agency's as well as the US Military in the same areas. The US Army and Air Force may be two you would want to review as to the careers as a Military Police Officer. All areas within the areas above are good and you can learn a lot if you keep an open mind, work hard and read. One last point. Most forget this point as all officers should have excellent skills in written communication, As a police officer in any position you will write reports every day, for use in the court of law. Your integrity will always be questioned, so your skin will need to be extra thicker than most. You will need to be a person with true honor and a since of true right and wrong. It will take time, but you can do it, if you work hard at it with officers, with the same senses stated above. Check your area for Explorer post through the boy scouts of America. You have teacher, medical, fire and many other explorer post, for young man and women. The next step is your, first step. Enjoy your life and know anyone at anytime can do anything wrong. So always work to do the right thing every time and if you do not know ask someone who is in the know. The police officers shield, is not a free pass, it is given to officers by the general public as a symbol of public trust and can be removed at anytime. Know the Law and work hard at keeping your honor and integrity in check everyday and always do the right thing.

There is no such a thing as a homicide detective in the UK. You become a beat Officer for at least 2 years and then you can apply for CID. There are so many applying for CID that your chances are slim. My local force requires you to have a Law Degree.

You play LA Noire.

lestermount said it. You have to start as a rookie and work your way up to being a detective. Keep in mind that getting a degree in Criminal Justice means you'll have the same resume as almost every other applicant in the police force.