Despite the fact that you can hardly see them, there are actually thousands upon thousands of private investigators in the U.S. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, over fifty thousand private investigators held a stable and paying job in 2006, with a little under a third of them holding self-employed positions. Of the latter, a portion were doing private investigation as a second occupation. A third of the private investigators were employed by security and investigation services, as well as private detective agencies that actually pool investigators together in order to unite their individual investigative strengths.

Even department and general merchandising stores had their own private investigators, and they made up a little under a tenth of the total of all private investigators in the U.S. Other private investigators worked for law firms, their local government or state government, companies that acted as headhunters and employment go-betweens, and banks. Although it may seem that there are many job opportunities for private investigators, people who hope to enter this job market should be warned that competition is keen, and despite the fast growth in employment for private investigators, only a few are needed to keep the work going.

However, thanks to the increasing demand for private investigators and detectives, you can expect to find more jobs that will help you use your skills. This is due to the increasing criminal activity online, which can include harassment, illegal downloading of materials that are protected by international copyright laws, identity theft, and credit card theft. Moreover, as job markets expand, more employers around the world will need private investigators to do background checks on their prospective employees. The expanding global economy may also spur growth in the private investigator industry, as this can lead to more competition amongst firms, and thus a need for spying on each other to further trump one’s competition.

If you are looking for a job, you can start by asking at your local detective college about companies that constantly hire fresh graduates out of detective school. You can also talk to your local law firms, insurance firms, banks, and even credit and lending companies, since they employ private investigators regularly. These groups and institutions may even give you contact information for private detective agencies that can hire you. Lastly, you can check online for search engines tailored specifically for jobs, and use these search engines to find a job as a private investigator. Thanks to the power of the Internet, you have greater control over your job searching.

image credits to auntiep

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