Whats the difference?

[Guest original13]

Ok..maybe i'm a little young to be on this forum (I'm in grade 9) but i have a question. I've been watching the show CSI and now in the future all i want to be is a CSI. But I've been searching around on the internet and I'm confused. Is a CSI a Forensic Scientist, or are they different? Or can anyone (if they watch that show) tell me what the characters on the show are ( CSI or Forensic Scientist)?

 

Thanks so much.

Laura

[BrainMan]

I don't remember the show exactly (I have seen it though), but I am quite sure that forensics is the major thrust of what they do. That along with good old detective work beyond forensics.

[5614]

csi are crime scene investigators. they just look around crime scenes for any evidence as to motives, murderer etc... basically they do what their name suggests.

 

forensic scientists are similar, except that they are more the scientific side. scientific tests etc. they try to work out facts for law courts.

so in your program the guy who does all the DNA scans and fingerprint things will probably be a forensic scientist, whereas the people who look around the scene for the gun and stuff are crime scene investigators (CSI).

[UCF-Forensic]

Well wouldnt you like to know??

 

I will be enrolled in a forensic science program at the University of Central Florida in January of 2006. Right now i'm finishing up my sophomore year at my present college in Sanford Florida. Since I am transferring to UCF, I am completing the A.A. requirement for transfer. To start getting into the program, I have centered my studies in Criminal justice (2 elective classes), Psychology (3 elective classes), and Anthropology (1 elective class). The program is heavy in biochemistry and there is more lab work than you can shake a stick at. I am going to be enrolled in UCF's Forensic Science B.S. Program, and then later into the M.S. Forensic science program. This is one of 6 accredited Forensic track programs in the nation. If you can't get into one of those 6 schools, it is highly suggested you center your major in biology or chemistry, and then go from there. My personal advice is to find a school with an accredited forensics program and get in as quickly as you can, their programs are hard to get into, and EVERYBODY wants to study forensic science nowadays. Also, i suggest watching such shows as "The new detectives: Case studies in forensic science" as well as the other shows available on TLC or Discovery.

 

It also will help to find out what you want to do in the forensic field, there are many specialties. Mine is Toxicology -The study of chemicals, toxins, and poisons and their effects on the body. A representitive from a NJ crime lab conference instructed me also to get training in the DNA/genetics areas, they are in high demand in the field.

 

Any questions, shoot me a PM, or AIM me: Shad0wk24. The O is a zero.

 

Oh yeah, UCF's website is http://www.ucf.edu Search for their forensics BS degree, I guarantee that you won't be dissappointed!

 

~Steve

[swansont]

Ok..maybe i'm a little young to be on this forum (I'm in grade 9) but i have a question. I've been watching the show CSI and now in the future all i want to be is a CSI. But I've been searching around on the internet and I'm confused. Is a CSI a Forensic Scientist' date=' or are they different? Or can anyone (if they watch that show) tell me what the characters on the show are ( CSI or Forensic Scientist)? [/font']

 

Thanks so much.

Laura

 

I suspect much of the drudgery is omitted, and I don't imagine that any crime lab in the country is so well-equipped. Keep in mind that it's a TV show, so real life as a CSI isn't going to be quite like that. But that's not meant to talk you out of it - I might have studied forensic pathology if stuff like that didn't make my knees turn into jell-o.