Career field
Protective Service careers
Occupations in public safety, security, and protection. CampusPin lists 24 protective service occupations, with median pay ranging from $33,720 to $105,980 per year (U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2024). Median pay is occupation-wide, not a starting wage or a guarantee.
Occupations in this field
- First-line supervisors of police and detectives$105,980
- Detectives and criminal investigators$93,580
- First-line supervisors of firefighting and prevention workers$92,430
- Transit and railroad police$82,320
- Fire inspectors and investigators$78,060
- First-line supervisors of correctional officers$76,310
- Police and sheriff's patrol officers$76,290
- First-line supervisors of protective service workers, all other$74,960
- Fish and game wardens$68,180
- Transportation security screeners$63,360
- Firefighters$59,530
- First-line supervisors of security workers$58,610
- Correctional officers and jailers$57,970
- Bailiffs$57,050
- Forest fire inspectors and prevention specialists$52,380
- Private detectives and investigators$52,370
- Parking enforcement workers$47,150
- Animal control workers$45,830
- Gambling surveillance officers and gambling investigators$43,900
- Protective service workers, all other$41,600
- Security guards$38,370
- Crossing guards and flaggers$37,700
- School bus monitors$34,980
- Lifeguards, ski patrol, and other recreational protective service workers$33,720
Majors that lead into this field
CampusPin majors whose program maps to occupations in this field via the federal CIP–SOC crosswalk.
Occupation data is from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Employment Projections program (Employment Projections); wages are 2024 and projections cover 2024–2034. Figures are national, not institution-specific, and projections are estimates, not guarantees.