Criminal Justice Resume—Examples, Objective, and Sample

Ready for new job opportunities? Do your skills and experience justice… on your new criminal justice resume.

Caio Sampaio, CPRW
Caio Sampaio, CPRW
Certified Professional Resume Writer, Career Expert
Criminal Justice Resume—Examples, Objective, and Sample

A criminal justice degree can be your ticket to various jobs, from law enforcement to the courtroom. As different as these jobs are, they all have one thing in common: 

To stand a chance of getting hired, you need an impressive criminal justice resume that proves your skills beyond reasonable doubt. 

In this guide:

  • A criminal justice resume sample better than most.
  • How to make the perfect criminal justice job description for resumes.
  • How to write a resume for criminal justice jobs that stands out.
  • Expert tips and examples to boost your chances of landing a criminal justice job.

Save hours of work and get a job-winning resume like this. Try our resume builder with 20+ resume templates and create your resume now.

Create your resume now

CREATE YOUR RESUME NOWcriminal justice resume example

What users say about ResumeLab:

I had an interview yesterday and the first thing they said on the phone was: “Wow! I love your resume.”
Patrick

I love the variety of templates. Good job guys, keep up the good work!
Dylan 

My previous resume was really weak and I used to spend hours adjusting it in Word. Now, I can introduce any changes within minutes. Absolutely wonderful!
George

Create your resume now

Take a look at our dedicated resume examples and guides for specific professions and scenarios: 

Criminal Justice Resume Example

Jane Williams

Senior Crime Analyst

361-713-7287

jane.williams@reslab.com

Linkedin.com/in/2jane.williams

Summary

Detail-oriented senior crime analyst with 9+ years of experience and excellent leadership skills, seeking to dedicate my expertise towards analyzing and preventing criminal activity for the City of Phoenix. In Tucson, developed accurate crime trend forecasts to inform hiring and resource allocation, increased team efficiency by 15% through more effective task division, and represented the city in relations with the public and with national criminal justice agencies to facilitate objective and appropriate intelligence sharing. 

Work Experience

Senior Crime Intelligence Analyst

City of Tucson, AZ

March 2018–present

  • Leading a 5-person team gathering and analyzing data to assist with ongoing investigations, preventative action, personnel education, and public relations activities. 
  • Monitoring regional and national crime trends to identify patterns and develop forecasts for hiring and resource allocation decisions. 
  • Acting as a liaison with the public and other criminal justice agencies to facilitate the sharing and distribution of appropriate intelligence. 

Key achievement: 

  • Increased team efficiency by 15% by allocating tasks based on the individual strengths of junior analysts and support staff, encouraging team members to develop specialized skill sets to boost productivity. 
  • Attended 6 regional law enforcement and criminal justice conferences, presenting at 3 to share information on crime patterns and data analysis methodologies in the Tucson area. 

Crime Analyst

City of Tucson, AZ

August 2013–February 2018

  • Collected, analyzed, and interpreted statistical data on crime patterns and department operations, compiling the findings into an average of 10 monthly preliminary reports. 
  • Created 60+ crime bulletins, charts, and maps illustrating relevant patterns and statistics for law enforcement training and information sharing between agencies. 
  • Assisted in the investigative process, preparing 100+ photo lineups for officers, responding to requests for additional information, and conducting specific research as requested by detectives. 

Key achievement: 

  • Contributed to identifying 47 suspects and solving 32 crimes through extensive research and data analysis. 

Education

Bachelor’s Degree in Criminal Justice

The University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ

September 2009–June 2013

Memberships

International Association of Crime Analysts (IACA)—Member since 2015

  • Prepared and delivered 4 webinars on qualitative crime data analysis and on using Excel for advanced data interpretation.
  • Attended 5 IACA conferences to maintain an up-to-date knowledge of trends and methods in crime analysis. 

Languages

  • English—native
  • Spanish—fluent

Key Skills

  • Evaluating and interpreting information
  • Trend analysis and forecasting
  • Investigative analysis
  • Public relations
  • Leadership
  • Task delegation
  • Presentations and public speaking
  • Team management
  • Communication skills
  • Critical thinking skills

Criminal justice professionals work in a range of jobs, including law enforcement, victim services, rehabilitation services, and the legal system. A criminal justice resume should show experience in your chosen profession and a skill set that matches the employer’s criteria. 

Here’s how to write a criminal justice resume that’s brimming with evidence of your achievements: 

1. Format Your Criminal Justice Resume Template

Police reports, case files, legal contracts—

No matter the direction of your career, you’re likely working with formal documents every day. So, you know the importance of sticking to accepted formats and best practices to ensure they’re readable to everyone concerned. 

Your job application needs to make immediate sense to the recruiter, too, so make sure to get your resume formatting just right: 

Criminal Justice Resume Format

As for the file format, consult the job ad—does it mention the company’s preferred file type for resumes? If not, submit a PDF. PDFs behave the same on every device, unlike Word docs, which can sometimes mess up your resume layout

2. Open With a Criminal Justice Resume Objective or Summary

Before describing your experience, open your resume with a strong profile statement: 2–4 sentences providing indisputable proof of the value you can offer to the new employer. 

If you have relevant work experience, use a resume summary—a profile highlighting the most critical parts of your job application. Here’s how to write one: 

  1. Start with an adjective describing your work ethic (reliable, detail-oriented, data-driven, personable)
  2. Add your job title and years of experience (legal assistant with 2+ years of experience)
  3. Make an offer to the employer (eager to apply my expertise towards achieving XYZ for [name of company/organization])
  4. Outline a couple of your most relevant professional accomplishments (improved departmental efficiency by 10%, exceeded the average number of closed cases by 10 per year)

Take another look at the criminal justice resume sample. It features a summary written following this advice. If you don’t have much experience and would struggle to find professional achievements to mention on your resume, don’t worry—

You can start your resume with a resume objective statement instead. Lean on accomplishments from college, internships, placements, volunteering, or personal projects—anything that shows your passion for your profession and potential to learn and succeed. 

In any case, it’s usually best to write the profile last. Finish the other sections of your resume, and return to the profile at the end—it’ll be easier to identify your key accomplishments and skills. 

3. Turn Your Work Experience Into an Affidavit of Your Criminal Justice Skills

The most common offense committed on job applications? Submitting the same generic resume to different jobs over and over. (If you’re wondering about the most grievous resume crime, the answer is Comic Sans.)

No two roles are equal, even if they have the same title. Show the employer you’re the ideal candidate for their needs, and victory will be yours. This means tailoring your work experience resume section like this: 

  1. Outline your job history, listing your job titles, the names of the companies/organizations, and the dates you worked at each. 
  2. Go back to the job advertisement that you’re responding to. What specific skills does the employer want in the ideal candidate?
  3. Brainstorm examples of when you used those skills to impress supervisors or colleagues. For instance, if the employer wants presentation skills, can you think of a time when you delivered a particularly successful one? Perhaps you do it often and can brag about the many presentations you’ve given in a year? 
  4. Turn those examples into bullet points—up to 6 per job. 

And there you go—that’s how targeted resumes are made. By taking this approach, you’re proving you’re the ideal choice for this position, but without having to say it outright. Plus, you’re making your resume more ATS-friendly

Do the same in your resume skills section—use the required skills you’ve identified in the ad. List up to 10 skills, including soft and hard ones. Here are some examples of criminal justice skills to get you started: 

Criminal Justice Resume Skills

Expert hint: Career options in criminal justice are many and varied, requiring different skill sets. Make sure to tailor your choices to your profession. 

The ResumeLab builder is more than looks. Get specific content to boost your chances of getting the job. Add job descriptions, bullet points, and skills. Easy. Improve your resume in our resume builder now.

CREATE YOUR RESUME NOW

CREATE YOUR RESUME NOWcreate your resume now

Nail it all with a splash of color, choose a clean font, and highlight your skills in just a few clicks. You're the perfect candidate, and we'll prove it. Use our resume builder now.

4. Provide a Statement on the Details of Your Education

Even if you have decades of experience, your resume education section can’t go MIA—

With work experience to carry the bulk of your application, keep your education details to the minimum. That means listing your highest degree, where you got it, and when. There’s no need to mention your high school or GPA. 

The procedure will be slightly different for criminal justice resumes with no experience. In such cases, your education is your biggest asset—so it needs more attention. Include bullet points listing your relevant coursework, academic achievements, extracurricular activities, and projects. The idea is to show your passion for criminal justice, eagerness to learn, and transferable skills. 

5. Close the Case by Including Some Additional Sections on Your Criminal Justice Resume

Time for an appendix or two, and you’ll be all done—

Finish off your resume with a couple of additional sections. What you include will depend on your experience, role, and circumstances, but consider going with the usual suspects: 

As for an interests section on a resume, it’s only a good idea if 1. you don’t have much work experience and 2. your interests are relevant to your role to the point where they contribute tangible value to your job application. 

Before you go, there’s just one more thing—

Writing a convincing cover letter to submit with your resume. Use it to state your case to the recruiter, providing indisputable evidence you’re the best candidate for the job. 

Double your impact with a matching resume and cover letter combo. Use our cover letter generator and make your application documents pop out.

CREATE YOUR COVER LETTER NOW

CREATE YOUR COVER LETTER NOWcreate your cover letter now

Want to try a different look? There's 21 more. A single click will give your document a total makeover. Pick a cover letter template here.

Key Points

Here’s a recap of how to write a job-winning criminal justice resume: 

  • Use an accepted resume format and ensure your document is easy to read. 
  • Start your criminal justice resume with a profile paragraph that sums up your offer to the employer. 
  • Identify the most important skills required for the job and focus on showing them in your work experience and key skills sections. 
  • Provide an appropriate amount of detail about your education—more if you’re a recent graduate without much experience. 
  • Highlight additional information in optional sections at the end of your resume. 
  • Write a cover letter that shows appropriate skills and expertise. 

Thanks for reading! Do you have any unanswered questions about how to write a criminal justice resume? Perhaps you can offer some tips of your own for those writing a criminal justice resume with no experience? Start a discussion in the comments below. I’ll be sure to join in!

About ResumeLab’s Editorial Process


At ResumeLab, quality is at the crux of our values, supporting our commitment to delivering top-notch career resources. The editorial team of career experts carefully reviews every article according to editorial guidelines, ensuring our content's high quality and reliability. We actively conduct original research, shedding light on the job market's intricacies and earning recognition from numerous influential news outlets. Our dedication to delivering expert career advice attracts millions of readers to our blog annually.

Caio Sampaio, CPRW

Caio is an expert in professional development and holds a certification in resume writing. He has accumulated 4+ years of experience in this field. His approach is to merge entertainment concepts with resumes, thus making your application more captivating.

Was it interesting?Here are similar articles