Also called: Tactical Team Commander
Leads a police tactical team during hostage situations, armed standoffs, and high-risk warrants.
SWAT commanders plan raids using building blueprints, coordinate snipers, negotiators, and entry teams, and make life-or-death calls in real time. Between call-outs, they run constant training.
Approximate: anchored on Bureau of Labor Statistics data for a broader job group.
High school diploma, about 15 years after high school. Long police career with years on a tactical team; command rank.
Ways in: On-the-job training, Military. Training cost: Get paid while you train.
Majors to look at: Criminal Justice.
Growing about average (about 3% over 10 years). Police and detectives 2024-34 (approx.); specialty units are small.
Low risk for 10 years. Drones and robots scout buildings first; planning raids and making life-or-death calls stay human.
Classes: PE / strength training, Psychology, Geometry, JROTC.
Official data: O*NET occupation 33-1012.
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.