Advice on joining Federal Law Enforcement?

[thom]

This is going to be a long one, so I'll say I appreciate anyone who reads this and offers advice in advance.

I'm 24. When I was out of high school I wanted to join the FBI, and started school angling for a Criminal Justice degree. But over time I was convinced that LE wasn't really that great and I ended up shooting for a Finance degree. "Models and Bottles" and "master of the universe" type stuff, or so I was told. I held a few jobs as a clerk during school, and thought I'd get in Investment Banking, right? Wrong. Turns out a 3.5 GPA, knowing absolutely everyone and going to a target school are minimum qualifications for IB. I kinda got bummed out then, and ended up settling for a degree in Accounting because it was supposed to be "stable, gainful employment." Still ended up with a Finance job though.

Now I've worked in retail finance since graduating last year and hate it. I work 40 hour weeks but honestly 12 of that is surfing the web, trying to look busy. My boss spends most of his day on reddit and his boss sometimes doesn't come back from lunch and plays golf instead. Corporate doesn't know or care, and I'm bored out of my mind here.

My one friend who did get into IB works 100 hour weeks, I'd kill for 100 hour weeks of (insert-non-reddit-activity-here). But, its likely never going to happen. Not unless every junior analyst in the world quits tomorrow (especially with my grades). That or I could work at Starbucks after my Finance job.

But yesterday I was reminded of that time I wanted to join the FBI, and it got me thinking. I looked up the FBI qualifications and the USMS as well, turns out I'd meet minimum qualifications but "minimum" often means "there will likely be people who meet more than this, sorry." Reading online, it seems most people think degrees are useless anyway, and experience in Law Enforcement would be preferable if I wanted to get into the USMS, or Accounting experience or legal work would help with the FBI. I'm kind of conflicted on the FBI, it seems to be all about spending years and years building cases and writing ops guides where as USMS seems more about actually getting out everyday and either moving convicts or catching them.

I'd only be 24 hours (two light load semesters, really) from a CJ degree, but I feel a GPA reset would help so a masters in CJ or Sociology appeals to me even as I read that its not worth it.

So, in your opinion, if I wanted to get into Federal Law Enforcement, given my background, what would be the way to do it? Get into a police academy, do some years as an local or state LEO? Finish that criminal justice degree? Would the master degree be worth it for anything?

I wish I knew someone in FLE right now, but I'm hoping until I can make some friends, this would provide some answers or make for better questions.

[sheridan93]

I don't know what the appeal of the FBI is, outside of the movies and TV shows that have glamorized them. I refer to them as the Fumbling Bunch of Idiots. If I was going to go federal, I'd check into the Marshal's service. I met representatives of both during the famous Tyson escape case in Arizona. I was a deputy sheriff in southern Arizona, and would prefer street patrol over other types of law enforcement The FBI is always looking for accountants, but who wants to get an Accounting degree to sit in an office and pore over ledger sheets 8 hours a day? I had a friend suggest I try out for Arizona DPS. I was a crime cop, and the thought of chasing taillights up and down one stretch of highway for a minimum of two years before applying to another portion did not appeal to me. What ever you decide to do, may you have the best of luck.