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Growing Federal Jobs: Homeland Security

Represtenting the centralization of hundreds of smaller US Government industries, Homeland Security emerged as a new, extremely important industry after Sepember 2001, and has been growing very rapidly ever since. Homeland Security encompasses a broad range of activities and occupations including:

- Emergency preparedness and response
- Border and transportation security
- Infrastructure protection
- Information analysis
- Homeland defense

Many homeland security jobs and career opportunities are with federal, state, and local government agencies, but there are also plenty of additional opportunities with private companies and nonprofit organizations.

In Demand Occupations

Emergency Medical Technicians
Projected Salary: $40,000
Employees Needed: 42,000
Projected Growth: 27%
Average Education Level: Some College or Higher
Who’s Hiring: Air Force, Navy, Department of Defense, Department of Homeland Security

Security Guards
Projected Salary: $25,000
Employees Needed: 387,000
Projected Growth: 9% – 17%
Average Education Level: High School | Some College
Who’s Hiring: Department of Justice, Department of Homeland Security, Army, Air Force

Detectives and Criminal Investigators
Projected Salary: $43,000
Employees Needed: 42,000
Projected Growth: 18% – 26%
Average Education Level: College or Higher
Who’s Hiring: Department of Interior, Department of Homeland Security, Department of Health and Human Services

Transportation Inspectors
Projected Salary: $43,000
Employees Needed: 13,000
Projected Growth: 9% – 17%
Average Education Level: High School | Some College
Who’s Hiring: Department of Transportation, Department of Transportation

Fire Fighters
Projected Salary: $40,000
Employees Needed: 152,000
Projected Growth: 9% – 17%
Average Education Level: Some College or Higher
Who’s Hiring: Department of Homeland Security, Department of the Interior, Air Force

How to Prepare

The ASIS International 2005 report, Career Opportunities in Security, describes selected entry-level and mid-level security positions for a number of security fields, including several that are represented the Homeland Security industry.

Information on careers and employment with the various agencies under the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) is available at the DHS Website.

Information Compiled from CareerVoyages.gov and 2006-16 BLS Projections.