I thought I would share some of my thoughts and experiences on becoming a
private investigator to help people who are interested. Please note that what is contained
on this page is my own experiences and opininons, it is not gospel! Although I have
offered advice on this page I take no responsibility if something goes wrong if you take
this advice, they are merely my own thoughts and opinions.
MY OWN EXPERIENCES
I had been interested in becoming a private investigator for a while but something kept
stopping me. I kept hearing that it was hard to get jobs in the industry, that there were
too many people out there with licenses but little work, that companies were not willing
to hire new investigators, etc.. I decided to give it a go anyway. I did my course
with the Australian School of Security and Investigations and got my license. I then
started looking for companies to sub contract me. Yes, there were a lot of companies that
said I needed experience (and some simply couldn't as they were one man companies), but
there were some that were willing to give me a go. One company gave me a few unpaid
investigations, another three companies gave me paid surveillance jobs. One particular
company has given me an abdundance of work and I am still working for them today.
The way I see it, although there are a number of companies who employ experienced
investigators only, there seem to be a few who employ new investigators. My advice is, if
you are interested do the course and don't give up with getting work. Also once you have a
job to do, give that job your best shot. The PI business is not a full time job. If you
make a mistake, you might not get paid. Sometimes you might get heaps of work whereas
other weeks it might be rather quiet.
HOW TO BECOME A PRIVATE INVESTIGATOR (IN VICTORIA)
First you need to undertake a Certificate III in Investigative Services. There are a
number of places that do this course. I did mine at the Australian School of Security and Investigations.
This was all done online with the exception of a three day surveillance workshop and a one
day interview and statement taking workshop. Another place that offers the course is the Australian Institute of Public Safety (which is where I
originally did my Criminal Justice degree). There are many other places that offer the
course however I thought I would list the two places that I have been involved with. I
think it is best that I do not list providers that I have not had any involvement with on
here. Perhaps a good idea would be to do some homework and decide where to do the course.
Look at the various places that offer the course, perhaps talk to them and talk to other
people who have completed the course. I personally chose ASSI as it was online and not
face to face, you may prefer face to face contact.
Once you have done the course you then need to apply for you license. In Victoria you apply for your license through the Victoria Police Licensing Services Division. On that website there is an application form you need to download and fill out.
Once you recieve your license you then need to get as much experience as you can. Do not knock back any investigations, even if they are unpaid, the more experience you can get the better. Ring up as many PI firms as you can and state that you are a new investigator looking to get started. A good place to look for PI firms is the phone book or the Australian Institute of Private Detectives. The best ones to ring are the large ones that have a lot of work and a number of different investigators. Some will want you to see them in person and if that goes well they will offer you an investigation to get started with. Some may offer for you to go out with an experienced investigator at your own expense first and see how you go. Get as much experience as you can, the more you get the more jobs you will get in the future. Sometimes it may feel like things are not going well but do not give up, it takes dedication and persistence. Sometimes you may feel like you have rang 1000 firms and no one is interested, but keep going. Once you get your foot in the door there is no turning back.
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Email: llake@ozemail.com.au