A criminologist performs research to examine the causes of crime and analyze criminal behaviours. This research can be published in academic journals and be ready for peer-review. They plan, organize, develop and implement crime intervention programs, crime victim intervention programs, crime prevention programs and other measures within their communities. A criminologist will find themselves working with social workers, city officials, law enforcement and members of the local community in order to create unified measures to address the causes of criminal behaviour. Duties of a criminologist may include:

• Examine areas experiencing crime to establish causes and patterns
• Conduct research into specific types of criminal behaviour to identify commonalities
• Publish articles and research papers in scholarly journals
• Perform large scale studies and focus groups to gather important information
• Design programs and measures in order to alleviate the causes of crime
• Create safe environments where people can work together to improve their communities
• Advise government officials and law enforcement regarding measures to deter criminal behaviour
• Provide people with the knowledge and tools to make their communities safer

There is a high degree of education required to be a criminologist. A diploma in criminology is usually considered the minimum requirement, with many job roles only available to those with a Master’s or Doctoral Degree. Additional degrees in related fields such as phycology, law, anthropology, sociology, and social sciences will be a strong asset.

Criminologists are recruited by the law enforcement, behavioural sciences, social studies and academic sectors.

The long-term employment outlook for criminologists is considered either fair or good, with a lot depending on location. Without a lot of concrete data, there are still predicted to be some available job roles for qualified applicants looking to enter the criminology profession.

A criminologist primarily works in an office setting, either in a law enforcement, academic or research setting.

According to the CNP code (national classification of occupations), here are additional and related titles for a criminologist:

• anthropologue
• archéologue
• géographe
• gérontologue
• historien/historienne
• linguiste
• politicologue
• psychométricien/psychométricienne
• sociologue