High School

In high school, take classes in physics, mathematics, physical sciences, psychology, statistics, and computer science. You’ll need strong writing and oral communication skills, so be sure to take speech and English courses.

Postsecondary Education

The study of biometrics involves many academic disciplines. As a result, biometric systems specialists have degrees in a wide range of majors, including software engineering, hardware engineering, computer science, physics, and mathematics.

West Virginia University offers a bachelor’s degree in biometrics—the only school in the United States to offer an engineering-based program. Visit https://admissions.wvu.edu/academics/majors/biometric-systems-engineering for more information. A few schools, such as Purdue Polytechnic Institute, offer graduate degrees and certificates in biometrics.

Certification

Some colleges offer certificates in biometrics. For example, Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis offers a graduate certificate in biometrics. Classes in its program include Statistics, Pattern Recognition, Biometrics Computing, Intelligent Systems, Data Mining, Image Processing and Computer Vision, and Computer Graphics. Additionally, West Virginia University offers a graduate-level Information Assurance and Biometrics Certificate Program. Contact schools in your area to learn about available programs.  

Other Education or Training

The International Biometrics + Identity Association offers continuing education opportunities at its annual conference, as well as webinars. Recent webinars included Security of Biometric Data: Spoofing and Data Theft, Implementing a Large Scale Biometrics System, and Practical Applications of Biometrics. The International Biometric Society, American Statistical Association, IEEE Computer Society, and other professional associations also offer classes, webinars, and workshops. Contact these organizations for more information.  

Certification or Licensing

There are no biometric-specific certifications for biometric systems specialists, but there are some general credentials that may prove useful in this career. The IEEE Computer Society offers the certified software development associate credential (for graduating software engineers and entry-level software professionals) and the certified software development professional credential (for experienced software designers and engineers) to individuals who meet education and experience requirements and pass an examination.

Other Requirements

A background check is typically required, especially for companies working on biometric security technology.

Any experience one can obtain in biometrics—such as an internship, volunteering, or a part-time job—will be useful.

Biometrics systems specialists must have excellent organizational, time-management, problem-solving, and communications skills; creativity; ingenuity; a detail-oriented personality; strong knowledge of object-oriented design concepts, design patterns, and data structures; and expertise in programming languages such as C++, Python, and Perl.