Why study a degree in public safety studies in 2023?

Why study a degree in public safety? Public safety is a field that many people might underestimate. However, it is critical to the functioning of society as, without it, people won’t feel safe enough to carry out their day-to-day activities. If this is the case, society as a whole can collapse.

That means that those who choose to study a degree in public safety are critical to society. They should be considered heroes. From helping people to choosing from several exciting specialisations, here are some reasons why you should consider pursuing a degree in public safety.

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Reasons to study a degree in public safety

Public safety is a great field with many niches and an exciting career path after graduation. Here are some of the reasons you might choose to study a degree in public safety for 2023:

1. You can help people

The first reason to study a public safety degree is that you can help people. You can help society function properly by making sure that people feel safe. You can help prevent disasters and protect people from potential ones. You can also look out for people’s well-being.

You’ll get a major moral boost by working in this field and seeing how you positively affect people. Many students who pursue this degree aim to later help people through working at local, state or federal law enforcement organizations. They’ll get to jump into criminal investigation theory, crime prevention and juvenile justice. There are also many other areas where they can really make a difference.

2. Great career path after graduation

Getting a great career path after graduation is also a reason to pursue a degree in public safety. Studying a degree in this field can help you become eligible for many careers in many different fields. Common career paths you can follow might include police, detectives, firefighters, fire inspectors or public safety telecommunicators.

If you choose to study a master’s degree in the field, you might be able to work as an operations specialities manager, emergency management manager and administrative services and facilities director. The major and specialisation you can choose can affect the type of position you will work in. Other factors that affect this are previous experience, where you are geographically, and the industry you would like to work in.

There are a lot of career paths to choose from, and some pay higher than others. For example, emergency management directors make an average of 77,000 dollars annually. Detectives and criminal investigators make around 87,000 dollars a year. Police and sheriffs make around 65,000 dollars a year.

Whatever you choose, you’ll earn wages that are above the average for most occupations. This is due to the risky nature of the job. Salary depends on factors like your experience, your geographic location and the industry you are working in. These industries can range from healthcare to social services to education to government and insurance. You can also find work in many other sectors.

why study a degree in public safety — Public safety sign.

3. An advantage over those without a degree

If you want to work in the public safety sector but feel like you don’t need a degree to work in it, this is incorrect. It’s important to know that nowadays, most employers prefer public safety professionals with bachelor’s or master’s degrees. In fact, some positions actually need these degrees even to be considered for hire.

For example, Special agents working at the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) are required to have a bachelor’s degree to be able to join the workforce. A lucrative position, DEA special agents, can earn a salary $92,592 or more after working for only 4 years in the field.

FBI Agents and Correctional officers also require a college degree to work in the position. Emergency management directors also require a bachelor’s degree, if not a master’s degree, to be qualified for the position.

4. Become well-prepared to lead

Pursuing a degree in the field of public safety, whether you choose to study a bachelor’s degree or a master’s degree, will give you many benefits. This includes the lifelong benefit of preparing you to become a leader in the field. You’ll gain valuable career skills that you can carry with you during your career program. These might be both professional and soft skills.

You’ll also learn leadership from experts in the field. Classes are typically taught by retired police officers, lawyers and other experts in the industry. This offers students an exclusive first-hand experience better than any theoretical textbook can. This is a bonus, especially in such a practical field.

5. Many choices for exciting specialisations

There are also many choices for exciting specialisations if you choose to study a public safety degree. Criminal Justice is a popular specialisation that gives you a great overview of the criminal justice system.

Careers in this field include working as a criminal investigator, caseworker, child and youth worker, homeland security agent, police officer, and FBI agent. You might study courses related to topics like the juvenile justice system or legal issues in corrections. The program also includes courses in criminology, criminal investigations, crime in media and policing.

Additionally, there are specialisations like emergency management and Homeland security. These specialisations can give you a good understanding of the security and emergency management practices, theories and techniques that are currently at play in the field.

Another specialisation, fire sciences, gives you an insight into fire safety and management protocols. These might be how to fight fires, building codes in fire safety and concepts in fire prevention.

6. You can pursue an online degree

A reason to pursue a degree in the field is that you can pursue an online degree. This makes it flexible while you work at another job. There are many online degrees to choose from based on your interests and career goals.

Majors you can choose from online include the regular ones like criminal justice, emergency management and homeland security, fire science, law enforcement and public safety administration. No matter which specialisation you pick, you’ll get a great education in public safety and related courses if you choose to study an online degree in public safety.

7. Positive Job growth in the field

Why study a degree in public safety? There will also be positive Job growth in the field, according to the American Bureau of Labor Statistics. This is a great advantage to studying for a public safety degree. This means you’ll know you’ll be able to land a great job with an awesome salary.

There are predictions that the number of jobs in the public safety field will increase greatly over the next ten years. Positions that will increase positively in number include those like emergency management directors, police and detectives and public safety telecommunications. There will also be an increase for those who work as fire inspectors.

8. There are many scholarships available

There are also many scholarships available to encourage students to pursue degrees in the field. Some of these financial aid options include federal or state aid, scholarships, government-funded work-study degree programs and joint employer training programs.

Scholarships, grants, and loans may be offered by either public or private organisations. Sometimes, they may aim at students who want to study a certain specialisation in the field. Be sure to keep your eyes peeled for options suitable for you if you are interested in a scholarship.

9. Various professional organizations to join and benefit from

Finally, the fact that there are various professional organizations to join and benefit from is another reason to pursue a degree in the field of public safety. Joining these public safety professional organisations gives you many benefits during your study period. It can also benefit you during your career.

For example, you may get the opportunity to network with many people and meet professionals in the field that can give you a needed push in your career. It can also help you stay up to date on the latest trends and technologies in the field. You can also get access to exclusive training events, as well as conferences.

Many of them also host events that can help you learn best practices. You can get free training and courses and have access to exclusive job openings you might not otherwise have learned about. If you are planning to work and study in the US, here are some of the professional organisations you can choose to join:

American Society of Safety Professionals (ASSP)
Association of Public-Safety Communications
International Public Safety Association (IPSA)

Why is public safety important?

After you discover why study a degree in public safety in 2023, you might want to ask why public safety is even important. Having a high level of public safety helps society function better as citizens feel safe to live their lives to the fullest. There’s also been an increase in gun violence, which means that there need to be more safety procedures in place. More safety procedures require more professionals in the field.

Cyber attacks have also become more common. This means there also needs to be more cyber safety professionals working on the cases. Drug supplies have also increased, resulting in more intoxicated people and more violence. Gang violence has increased, and more illegal substances have been produced. There’s also been a surge in drug trafficking across borders.

All of these acts require public safety to be prevented. If they aren’t taken care of, they can create major societal issues. Society won’t be able to function, and financial and emotional turmoil will increase. There will be a high level of anxiety among community members. This is why public safety is so important to society and the world as a whole.

Public safety career salaries

You may also be curious about public safety career salaries if you find out why study a degree in public safety. Public safety professionals make about 70,000 dollars a year on average. How much they actually make depends on the job profession they have chosen. For example, public safety officers make around 40,000 dollars annually.

Firefighters make an average of 50,000 dollars yearly, while Sheriff’s patrol officers make around 60,000 dollars yearly. Software engineers make around 80,000 dollars on an annual basis. Fire chiefs make 80,000 dollars on average per year. Finally, probation officers make around 42,000 USD a year.

In conclusion, there are several benefits to studying a degree in public safety, from the emotional benefit of helping others to the monetary benefits of great salaries. You also get many career options to choose from and several specialisations that are exciting if you crave an exciting and dynamic career. There are also pretty great salaries, averaging at about 70,000 dollars yearly.

If you still don’t know what degree subject you want to study or why study a degree in public safety, it’s worth contacting the career experts at UniApp and asking them for a hand.

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Why study a degree in public safety in 2023?

Why study a degree in public safety in 2023?