Law and public safety
Every kind of lawyer, plus courts, police, fire, borders and corrections.
45 careers
Lawyers
12Corporate LawyerHandle the deals, contracts and rules that companies run on. Long training, long hours, serious money.$160kTypical pay7 to 8 yearsTo qualifyGoodDemandCriminal Defense LawyerStand between one person and the power of the state. Seven years of school, and the pay is nothing like television.$160kTypical pay7 to 8 yearsTo qualifyGoodDemandEmployment LawyerFirings, harassment, unpaid wages and discrimination. You act for the worker or for the company, and the two jobs look very different.$160kTypical pay7 to 8 yearsTo qualifyGoodDemandEnvironmental LawyerPermits, pollution and land. Most of the work is paperwork that stops a problem before it starts.$160kTypical pay7 to 8 yearsTo qualifyGoodDemandFamily LawyerDivorce, custody and adoption. You handle the worst week of somebody's life, over and over.$160kTypical pay7 to 8 yearsTo qualifyGoodDemandImmigration LawyerHelp people stay, work or become citizens, in a system where a paperwork mistake can end a life here.$160kTypical pay7 to 8 yearsTo qualifyGoodDemandIntellectual Property LawyerProtect inventions, brands and creative work. The patent side is the one law job that wants your science degree.$160kTypical pay7 to 8 yearsTo qualifyGoodDemandLawyerArgue, advise, negotiate and write. Seven years of school and one hard exam stand between you and the license.$160kTypical pay7 to 8 yearsTo qualifyGoodDemandPersonal Injury LawyerYou represent people hurt in crashes, falls and accidents, and you usually only get paid if they win.$160kTypical pay7 to 8 yearsTo qualifyGoodDemandProsecutorYou decide who gets charged with a crime and then you have to prove it. Government pay, courtroom experience nobody else gets this early.$160kTypical pay7 to 8 yearsTo qualifyGoodDemandReal Estate LawyerProperty is contracts, title and land law. You are the person who makes sure the deal actually holds.$160kTypical pay7 to 8 yearsTo qualifyGoodDemandTax LawyerWork out what the tax code actually requires, and argue it when the government disagrees. The training is long.$160kTypical pay7 to 9 yearsTo qualifyGoodDemand
Courts and legal support
10Court ClerkRun the paperwork that makes a courtroom work. A government job you can reach straight out of high school.$49kTypical payup to 2 yearsTo qualifyModerateDemandCourt ReporterCapture every word said in a courtroom at over 200 words a minute. Two years of school, no degree needed.$72kTypical pay2 to 4 yearsTo qualifyLimitedDemandJudgeTwenty years of law first, then you decide. There are only about 25,300 of these jobs in the whole country.$154kTypical pay15 to 25 yearsTo qualifyModerateDemandJudicial Law ClerkYou research the law and draft the decisions for a judge. One or two years that change the rest of a legal career.$65kTypical pay7 to 8 yearsTo qualifyModerateDemandLegal AssistantKeep a law practice running: files, deadlines, drafts and clients. A two-year degree gets you in the door.$63kTypical pay2 to 4 yearsTo qualifyLimitedDemandMediatorSit between two sides of a fight and help them settle it themselves, without a judge and without a verdict.$76kTypical pay1 to 10 yearsTo qualifyGoodDemandParalegalDo the research, drafting and case preparation that lawyers bill for, without going to law school.$63kTypical pay1 to 4 yearsTo qualifyLimitedDemandPrivate InvestigatorFind facts for lawyers, insurers and families. Far more records and databases than car chases.$51kTypical pay2 to 5 yearsTo qualifyGoodDemandProbation OfficerSupervise people serving sentences in the community, and try to keep them from coming back.$66kTypical pay4 to 5 yearsTo qualifyModerateDemandSheriffThe county's own law enforcement office: patrol, the jail, the courthouse and the paperwork nobody else serves.$76kTypical pay1 to 4 yearsTo qualifyModerateDemand
Police and fire
13911 DispatcherAnswer the worst call of someone's life, work out what they need, and send help while keeping them alive on the line.$53kTypical payup to 1 yearTo qualifyModerateDemandBorder Patrol AgentA federal law enforcement job patrolling the land between the ports of entry, mostly in the desert Southwest.$76kTypical pay1 to 2 yearsTo qualifyModerateDemandCorrectional OfficerKeep order inside a jail or prison. No tuition, paid training, and a job that asks a lot of you.$59kTypical payup to 1 yearTo qualifyLimitedDemandDEA Special AgentInvestigate drug trafficking for the DEA (Drug Enforcement Administration). An age window, four rounds of testing, and 14 weeks of training at Quantico.$94kTypical pay5 to 7 yearsTo qualifyLimitedDemandDeputy US MarshalTrack down federal fugitives, guard federal courts and protect witnesses for the United States Marshals Service. Most people get in after police work or a graduate degree.$94kTypical pay4 to 8 yearsTo qualifyLimitedDemandFBI AgentInvestigate federal crimes for the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI). You need a degree, real work experience first, and patience with a long hiring process.$94kTypical pay6 to 9 yearsTo qualifyLimitedDemandFire InspectorCheck buildings before they burn, and work out why when one does. Most people come to it after years on a fire engine.$76kTypical pay2 to 6 yearsTo qualifyModerateDemandFirefighterRun toward the thing everyone else runs from, and spend most shifts on medical calls instead.$59kTypical pay1 to 3 yearsTo qualifyModerateDemandPolice DetectiveTake the cases that patrol officers hand over and work them until they close. You patrol first, for years.$94kTypical pay4 to 8 yearsTo qualifyLimitedDemandPolice OfficerHired first, trained second, paid from the first day of the academy. No degree required in most of the country.$76kTypical pay1 to 4 yearsTo qualifyModerateDemandSecret Service Special AgentProtect the president and other leaders, and investigate financial and cyber crime, for the United States Secret Service. Expect a long hiring process and years of moves.$94kTypical pay4 to 6 yearsTo qualifyLimitedDemandState TrooperYou patrol the highways and the rural areas no town police department covers. The state hires you first and trains you at its own academy, paid.$76kTypical pay2 to 4 yearsTo qualifyModerateDemandWildland FirefighterFight fire in forests and rangeland with hand tools, chainsaws and water. Seasonal, brutal, and the hardest job to walk away from.$59kTypical payup to 1 yearTo qualifyModerateDemand
Military and security
10Coast Guard MemberSearch and rescue, law enforcement and pollution response on American waters. You can enlist straight out of high school.$44kTypical payup to 1 yearTo qualifyModerateDemandCode Enforcement OfficerKnock on doors about unsafe buildings, illegal work, junk lots and zoning. The city's rules only exist if somebody enforces them.$81kTypical payup to 4 yearsTo qualifyModerateDemandCryptanalystMake and break codes for the NSA (National Security Agency). A math or computer science degree, a polygraph, and work you cannot talk about.$127kTypical pay5 to 8 yearsTo qualifyLimitedDemandEnlisted Service MemberJoin straight out of high school, get trained and paid from day one, and sign away several years of your choices to do it.$44kTypical payup to 1 yearTo qualifyGoodDemandGame WardenA sworn police officer whose beat is the woods and the water. Armed, alone, and usually the only one out there.$74kTypical pay2 to 5 yearsTo qualifyLimitedDemandGreen Beret (Army Special Forces)Join the Army's Special Forces, small teams that work alongside other countries' forces. You pass a 24 day selection course, then a year-long qualification course that includes learning a new language.$47kTypical pay2 to 3 yearsTo qualifyGoodDemandIntelligence OfficerCollect and make sense of information governments need. A long hiring process, a polygraph, and a job you cannot talk about.$94kTypical pay4 to 6 yearsTo qualifyLimitedDemandMilitary OfficerLead service members, take legal responsibility for them and for the mission, and sign away years of your own choices to do it.$66kTypical pay4 to 5 yearsTo qualifyModerateDemandNavy SEALJoin the Navy's SEAL (Sea, Air and Land) teams, small special operations units. In the Navy's own words, few attempt the training and fewer make it through.$47kTypical pay1 to 2 yearsTo qualifyGoodDemandSecurity GuardWatch, patrol, report. You can be licensed in weeks, and it is a doorway into a lot of other jobs.$38kTypical payup to 1 yearTo qualifyGoodDemand