Forensic Science Technician
Law & Public Safety
Collect and analyze physical evidence for investigations.
Why it matters here: County and state crime labs plus federal agencies hire locally.
Labor Market — DMV Region
Sourced from U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics OEWS releases (DMV metro and nationwide) plus MD, VA, and D.C. workforce agencies.
Local cost of living is why DMV pay often differs from the national median.
- DMV & state figures: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics — OEWS wage & employment estimates and Employment Projections, with OEWS area pay relatives for the Washington–Arlington–Alexandria metro, Maryland, D.C., and Northern Virginia · View source
- Occupation profiles & skills: O*NET OnLine (U.S. Department of Labor) · onetonline.org
All salary figures are published estimates for groups of workers, not offers or guarantees for any individual role.
Education & Career Pathways
Multiple ways to get here — pick the one that fits your life.
Career Progression
How you can grow — with expected salary at each step.
- Entry-level Forensic Science TechnicianLearning the role, supervised work, building core skills.$54,500
- Forensic Science Technician (experienced)Independent work, mentoring newer team members.$73,510
- Senior / Lead Forensic Science TechnicianOwning projects, specialization, higher responsibility.$102,460
- Manager or specialist trackSupervising a team or moving into a high-demand specialty.$122,952
Skills Required
What you'll actually do — and how you'll be judged.
Crime lab bench or crime scenes, shift or on-call work
Where you work
A controlled laboratory with instruments and evidence storage, or a crime scene under tents and lights.
Hours and schedule
Lab work is weekday; crime scene response is on-call, including nights and weekends.
Pace and pressure
Careful, documented and unhurried in the lab; scene work is long and meticulous.
Who you work with
You work independently on cases, with peer and technical review before results are released.
Physical demands
Bench work plus scene work in awkward conditions and difficult sights.
What people wear
Lab coat and PPE in the lab; full protective suit at scenes.
Remote reality
None.
Workplace culture: what's normal here
- Chain of custody is documented at every transfer, with no exceptions.
- Analysts testify in court, so notes must survive cross-examination years later.
- Backlogs are real, and prioritization decisions are made openly with prosecutors.
Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Outlook Handbook — Work Environment, with regional detail for the DMV.
Official data behind this career
Federal statistics for DMV Region, translated into plain language.
Washington–Arlington–Alexandria, DC–VA–MD–WV metro area
Source: U.S. Census Bureau — ACS 2019–2023 5-year estimates (tables DP03, DP02, DP05)
- The DMV functions as one labor market: workers routinely cross state lines to get to work.
- The largest employment destinations are D.C., Fairfax County and Montgomery County.
Top places these workers go to work
Source: U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis — BEA regional GDP and personal income, most recent published year
Private-sector payroll data from ADP. It is a supplemental near-real-time indicator and does not replace BLS government employment statistics.
Source: ADP National Employment Report — Most recent monthly ADP National Employment Report
- 1U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (OOH, OEWS, Employment Projections, CES) — Primary source for occupation wages, outlook, projected openings, education and training.
- 2U.S. Census Bureau — American Community Survey — Primary source for income, educational attainment, labor force and demographic context by place.
- 3Census LEHD (LODES / OnTheMap) — Primary source for where workers live versus where they work, and local workforce flows.
- 4U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis — Primary source for regional GDP, industry contribution, compensation and personal income.
- 5ADP National Employment Report — Supplemental near-real-time private-sector employment and pay indicator. Not a replacement for BLS.
Figures describe groups of workers, not any one person. Where an official figure is not published for a category, this page says “Data unavailable for this category.” rather than estimating.
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