Also called: Hostage Negotiator, Crisis Negotiation Team Member
Talks with people in standoffs, suicide crises, or hostage situations to end them peacefully.
Negotiators may spend hours on the phone with someone barricaded with a weapon, listening, building trust, and slowly persuading them to come out. Most calls involve people in mental-health crises. Calm voices save lives here.
Approximate: anchored on Bureau of Labor Statistics data for a broader job group.
High school diploma, about 6 years after high school. Police academy plus several years as a patrol officer, then selection and specialized training. FBI or state negotiation courses.
Ways in: On-the-job training, Certification. Training cost: Get paid while you train.
Majors to look at: Psychology, Criminal Justice, Communications.
Growing about average (about 3% over 10 years). Police and detectives 2024-34 (approx.); specialty units are small.
Low risk for 10 years. AI may suggest wording or transcribe calls; building trust with a person in crisis stays human.
Classes: AP Psychology, Speech and Debate, Spanish, Sociology.
Official data: O*NET occupation 33-3021.
Career Universe is an early version. Pay, training and AI-risk figures are estimates to start your own research, not verified facts. The research was written with AI research assistants, checked by validation scripts and spot-checked by hand. Check anything important with schools, employers and official sources. How the numbers work.