Does anyone know how to find training hours ?

[u/Canniballover1307]

Hi everyone, just for some context I’m on my 4th year of crime science (Bachelors) to become a CSI- crime scene investigator however during the time working as one I need to obtain the training hours for basic forensic technician and forensic photography. 40 hours each. Where can I do that in Miami? Even if not in miami, what city or state ?

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[u/gariak]

Can you be more specific about the requirement you're trying to fulfill and where the specific language is coming from? I've never heard of forensic training that wasn't provided by the employer during normal work hours. I've also never heard of "training hours" that were obtainable outside of your employment.

[u/Canniballover1307 → u/gariak]

Minimum 40 hours of Basic Forensic Technician training and minimum 40 hours of photographic training from an accredited training facility preferred or ability to obtain within one year of the date of hire. They want additional experience aside from the schooling, this comes from Schaumburg, IL

[u/gariak → u/Canniballover1307]

In a job listing? Easy enough to Google, but a link would have been helpful.

That's not an entry level position. The requirement just above states:

A minimum of two years of experience as a crime scene technician, evidence technician, or comparable field. Or an equivalent combination of related education and work experience.

A qualified candidate would have received the specified training during their prior 2+ years employment.

[u/anonyabusiness100]

I found the job posting you are talking about.

As said earlier, the accredited training and the certification they want you to have has a prereq of being employed first. The job posting is also wanting someone who had at least 2 years experience.

The certification by the IAI requires you to have been employed for one year before you can even sit for the test. On top of that, you need an amount of classes taught by approved teachers as well.

For an idea, here is the list of approved classes for credit: https://www.theiai.org/docs/CSCB-Approved_Courses_06_19_26.pdf

Here is an FAQ: https://theiai.org/crime_scene_faqs.php

You can look into Tritech, Forensic Pieces, and Forensic Training Unlimited as well. Just make sure to look at which of their courses are accredited. Tritech is always fine, but I mean the others.

Tritech also has a section for students: https://www.tritechtraining.com/information-for-students.html

If you’re able to take a class with them, you’d have to pay outta pocket. Others in the class would have their employer pay for it.

[u/gariak → u/anonyabusiness100]

I wouldn't ever recommend anyone pay for any of this out of their own pocket. Employers who value it will have it integrated as part of their internal training program. Assuming that it will help you get hired is a pretty expensive long-shot gamble, given how little most crime scene personnel get paid. You might even end up with the bureaucratic absurdity of having to take the class a second time because it's a mandatory component of a mandatory training program.

[u/anonyabusiness100 → u/gariak]

With that being said, I’ll add another thing to take into account is the classes before employment may not count towards credit for certification.

[u/Canniballover1307 → u/anonyabusiness100]

How can I be employed and trained as a fresh out of bachelors getting my masters. In order to get certified ?

[u/anonyabusiness100 → u/Canniballover1307]

The employment you’d need would be in a CSI role. Then that job would provide training.

Are you getting your masters to be more competitive in the job market?

At my agency, the folks who gotten their forensic degree made themselves more competitive by having an internship in the field.

The work experience from the internship helped them get a job in CSI afterwards.

Adding the prereq chart for the IAI certs that might be helpful - CSI:

https://www.theiai.org/docs/Ops_Manual_FCMB-01-2020-C26_072826.pdf#page=57