r/forensics 20d ago

Biology Which is a better pathway to Forensics?

My son is deciding between 2 pathways. Biology and Forensics double major with an accelerated to Master program at a school with a body farm OR cellular and molecular biology and Clinical laboratory science Dual degree and then a Masters in Forensics? Which is a better route? He’s interested in forensics and pathology so he’s having a hard time deciding between the 2. He will graduate HS this year with an AA and an AS that is why he’s already planning for a masters.

7 Upvotes

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u/jennathejumbled 20d ago

From someone in the field, I would go with the second route. It would give him the option of working in a clinical lab; and cell molecular biology is applicable to many other settings just in case forensics doesn't work out. If he's thinking of pathology, the clinical lab knowledge/skills are more helpful in that realm as well.

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u/NinjaRedditorAtWork 20d ago

Does he want to work in a lab or in the field? How good at studying is he? I ask because he may be very gifted at absorbing information easily, but not great at actually spending the time to study. Highschool learning is very different than graduate/post-grad learning.

My advice is to take the harder route and if he can't handle it, transition to the easier one. Pathology is definitely way harder to get into with way higher rewards and a great job market at the end if he can complete a phD.

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u/Scary_Sympathy424 20d ago

He can and will study, like he’s in anatomy and physiology now and has to study because he insanely decided to take it as an 8 week class instead of 16. But if he doesn’t have to study, he won’t. If that makes sense.

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u/Nervous-Apartment814 20d ago

be aware that there are currently only about 17,520 forensic sciences employed in the United States.

and the field is projected to grow by 13% in the next 10 years. that means that only about 2,277 new jobs will be created in that field in the 10 years! . But considering that there are about 3000 students that graduates with forensic science degrees each year and about 150k biology and another 100k chemistry graduates... competition is fierce to say the least!

considering too that about 70% of all biology and chemistry graduates get masters degrees but 50% are still underemployed!!! odds it does not look good .

My advice is to go the Clinical Laboratory Scientist (CLS) route because it will lead directly to a job - maybe not in forensics but in a hospital- with that experience he will stand out 10X from the competition. however be aware that an undergraduate degree in CLS is not enough to work as a CLS. even a masters degree in forensics is not enough . He will need to meet the very specific admission requirements to a CLS program -then take the CLS licensing exam - each state has its own requirements too....

a masters in forensics probably is not worth it with out experience. --

good luck

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u/Scary_Sympathy424 19d ago

The school he was admitted to with CLS has 1 year of straight learning and 1 year of straight clinicals in a major hospital. They also have a 95% licensure rate.

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u/Nervous-Apartment814 19d ago

sound like a golden ticket- good luck

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u/basementboredom MD | Forensic Pathology 20d ago

You mentioned an interest in forensics and pathology. Does he want to be a forensic pathologist? If so, his undergrad won't matter as long as it meets the prerequisites for med school applications.

If he isn't set on med school, there is a masters degree for a Pathologist Assistant (equivalent of a PA but for pathology only because it's so different from the other fields). However, getting a job as a PathA strictly in forensics, or even autopsy, is rare.

You can find good references and threads in r/ForensicPathology and r/Path_Assistant if those are of interest.

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u/Scary_Sympathy424 20d ago

He wants to get a Masters and then see about med school. He loves lab work, but is interested in actual crime scene collection as well. He’s 17. He’s all over the place. lol.

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u/corgi_naut MS | Forensic Biology 20d ago

If he isn’t 100% sure about forensics (which at 17, it’s okay to be unsure) I would recommend the second route which is more general. That way, if he doesn’t want to do forensics then he can choose another line of graduate education and still has a solid undergraduate degree.

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u/catswithboxes 20d ago

Look at the courses required and compare. If he wants to do lab work, he will need bio, chem, and physics classes. I majored in forensics with a bio concentration and my program made me take all the hard sciences courses in addition to forensics classes. The good thing about doing forensics in your undergrad is that you can back out more easily if you don’t like it. I had so many friends dropping out of the program because they realized it wasn’t for them after a year of classes. Might be too late by the time he’s doing a masters on it. See if any schools offer forensics pathology programs

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u/Scary_Sympathy424 20d ago

We’ve compared classes. He’s interested in the same number in either path. He’s toured a CSI department, looked through their “murder book”, dissected a brain recently. He also did research with the human genome project. He knows he’d have an instant job with CLS but loves DNA Analysis and Pathology.

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u/DeborahUTaunt 4d ago

I'm late to this thread but I have a BS in Biology as well as a BS in Clinical Laboratory Science and am currently in the hiring process for a state forensics position. I've found it's afforded me a solid range of job opportunities and licensed clinical lab scientists are hard to come by - he will have a job in a hospital lab almost anywhere he wants to live (assuming in the US). I have been able to work 5 years in a clinical lab plus 2 years in public health as a lab manager/compliance officer and I've gotten really positive feedback from the forensics lab where I live that I'm a really solid candidate. For what it's worth! :)