Forensic Criminal Investigation Technician

The Certificate of Achievement-Advanced for Forensic Criminal Investigation Technician provides the foundational skills required to successfully gain advanced, specialized knowledge and skills for currently employed law enforcement officers and non-sworn personnel for positions within criminal justice agency crime scene investigation (CSI) units. CSI knowledge and skills are required at all levels of criminal justice enforcement and investigation and is a viable pathway for career employment providing a competitive salary and benefits.

 

Individuals desiring employment in this career path must have above-average communication and report development skills as they will be interacting with a wide variety of people in technical crime investigations, compiling detailed investigative reports, and testifying in court regarding their crime scene investigations.

 

Program Learning Outcomes: Upon completion, students will be able to

·       Conduct a detailed crime scene investigation of a wide-variety felonious crimes

·       Identify the responsibilities of a crime scene investigator to include the identification, collection, and processing of crime scene evidence

·       Knowledge and experience of the advanced skill set of investigative steps and the utilization of state-of-the-art investigative procedures and equipment

·       Knowledge and skill of completing a detailed, scientific criminal investigative report of the crime scene investigation

·       Ability to testify in a criminal court adjudication related to a broad spectrum of felonious crimes

24-48 annually

De Anza College’s Forensic Criminal Investigation Technician meets the needs of both students and employers alike. The program focuses on preparing active-duty professionals and students for employment within the criminal justice field as a forensic crime scene investigator (CSI) with advanced knowledge and specialized skills that are required for in-depth felony investigations. Students’ communities that would benefit from this certificate are non-traditional and underrepresented who do not desire traditional law enforcement employment such as adult learners, women, re-entering employment, career-changing, veterans, and non-degrees; research reveals that approximately 40% of undergraduate students are non-traditional. The De Anza College Mission Statement states that the college will strive to design course programs for the needs of the students’ communities we serve. Law enforcement agencies, due to reform movements and financial restraints, are looking to fill non-enforcement positions with non-sworn personnel.  This certificate will provide the required occupational skills required for CSI positions. The required courses are based on the recommendations of active CSI personnel currently in law enforcement agencies and a currently employed District Attorney Crime Lab Specialist.

Requirements	Dept. Name/#	Name	Units	Sequence
Required Core (27 units)	ADMJ 3	Concepts of Criminal Law (CP 2)	4	Yr 1, F
		also listed as PARA 3 and POLI 13
	ADMJ 61	Criminal Investigation	4	Yr 1, F
	ADMJ 75	Principles and Procedures of the Justice System	4	Yr 2, W
		also listed as PARA 75 and POLI 75
	ADMJ 84	Forensic Science	4	Yr 1, W
	ADMJ 90A	Legal Aspects of Evidence (CP 4)	4	Yr 2, F
		also listed as PARA 90A
	ANTH 7	Introduction to Forensic Anthropology	4	Yr 2, W
	PHTG 4	Introduction to Digital Photography	3	Yr 2, Sp
One course (5 units)	BIOL 10	Introductory Biology	5	Yr 1, Sp
	or BIOL 10H	Introductory Biology - HONORS
	CHEM 10	Introductory Chemistry	5	Yr 1, Sp

 

Course	Title	Units	Year/Semester (Y1 or S1)

NA

Research has been completed for other colleges and universities in De Anza College's service area and the Northern California region. No other college or university has a certificate for Forensic Criminal Investigation career path development. There are criminal justice programs at the A.A. and B.A. degree levels but none have a career technical education program that will offer this opportunity to non-traditional, underrepresented students in success for non-traditional law enforcement career employment in addition to currently employed law enforcement professionals.