There are plenty of ways that you can begin your own training and education now. First of all, get some exposure to the law enforcement community by volunteering at the local police department. Many towns have a Scouts Explorers program in which students work to educate themselves about law enforcement. The Boy Scouts of America also offers the Learning for Life program (https://www.exploring.org) for young men and women who have completed the sixth grade through age 20. The program allows them to explore careers in various areas such as criminal justice and law enforcement. You can also learn more about the field by visiting professional associations' Web sites, many of which feature industry news and publications, as well as talking with crime analysts about their careers.

Crime analysts try to uncover and piece together information about crime patterns, crime trends, and criminal suspects. Job duties vary widely from day to day and from one state and law enforcement agency to the next. At its core is a systematic process that involves collecting, categorizing, analyzing, and sharing information to help the agency that a crime analyst works for to better deploy officers on the street, work through difficult investigations, increase arrests of criminals, and solve long-term problems (ongoing trouble at a particular hotel or street corner, frequent accidents at the same intersection, etc.) that every law enforcement department faces.

Crime analysts collect data from a range of sources, including police reports, statewide computer databases, crime newsletters, word-of-mouth tips, and interviews with suspects. To be useful, this information is then analyzed for patterns. Crime analysts are constantly vigilant for details that are similar or familiar.

A crime analyst might study general factors such as population density, the demographic makeup of the population, commuting patterns, economic conditions (average income, poverty level, job availability), effectiveness of law enforcement agencies, citizens' attitudes toward crime, and crime reporting practices.

The responsibilities of crime analysts are often dependent upon the needs of their police department or law enforcement agency. One morning's tasks might include writing a profile on a particular demographic group's criminal patterns. On another day, an analyst could meet with the police chief to discuss an unusual string of local car thefts. Less frequently, the work includes going on "ride-alongs" with street cops, visiting a crime scene, or meeting with crime analysts from surrounding jurisdictions to exchange information about criminals who are plaguing the region. Occasionally, a crime analyst is pulled off of everyday responsibilities to work exclusively on a task force, usually focusing on a rash of violent crimes. As an ongoing responsibility, a crime analyst might be charged with tracking and monitoring "known offenders" (sex offenders, career criminals, repeat juvenile offenders, and parolees).

New computer technology has had a profound impact on the profession of crime analysis, helping it grow by leaps and bounds. In its earliest days, crime analysis simply meant gathering straight statistics on crime. Now these same statistics—coupled with specialized data analytics software and artificial intelligence—allow crime analysts to anticipate and prevent criminal activity.

The use of this analysis falls into three broad categories: tactical, strategic, and administrative. Tactical crime analysis aims at giving police officers and detectives prompt, in-the-field information that could lead to an arrest. These are the "hot" items that land on a crime analyst's desk, usually pertaining to specific crimes and offenders. For example, a criminal's modus operandi (M.O.), or method of operation, can be studied to predict who the likely next targets or victims will be. The police can then set up stakeouts or saturate the area with patrol cars. Tactical analysis is also used to do crime-suspect correlation, which involves identifying suspects for certain crimes based on their criminal histories.

Strategic analysis deals with finding solutions to long-range problems and crime trends. For instance, a crime analyst could create a crime trend forecast, based on current and past criminal activity, using software. An analyst might also perform a "manpower deployment" study to see if the police department is making the best use of its personnel. Another aspect of strategic analysis involves collating and disseminating demographic data on victims and geographic areas experiencing high crime rates so that the police are able to beef up crime prevention efforts.

Lastly, administrative analysis helps to provide policy-making information to a police department's administration. This might include a statistical study on the activity levels of police officers that would support a request for hiring more officers. Administrative work could also include creating graphs and charts that are used in management presentations or writing a speech on local crime prevention to give to the city council.