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The Complete Guide to Becoming A Criminal Justice and Law Enforcement Teacher, Postsecondary
What the job really involves, how much it pays, and whether you have what it takes to teach the next generation of justice professionals
by Alumigogo Books
Chapter 1: What Does a Criminal Justice and Law Enforcement Teacher, Postsecondary Actually Do?
Let's start with a question that probably brought you here: what exactly does a criminal justice and law enforcement teacher, postsecondary do all day? The official government job description says "teach courses in criminal justice, corrections, and law enforcement administration." That is technically true, and it is also completely useless if you are trying to decide whether to spend the next six years of your life working toward this career.
The reality is that this job has three distinct layers, and you need to understand all three before you can make an honest decision. The first layer is the teaching itself — the hours you spend in front of a classroom, shaping how students think about public safety and justice. The second layer is everything you do to prepare for those hours, which takes far more time than the actual teaching. The third layer, the one almost nobody tells you about before you enter the profession, is the institutional work that keeps a college department running. Let's walk through each.
The Teaching: What You Actually Do In the Classroom
Picture a typical semester. You are assigned three or four sections of courses, usually called a "teaching load." A full-time load at most community colleges is five courses per semester; at a four-year university it is usually three or four, because you are expected to spend the saved time on research. The courses themselves will not always