LIsa Black
Cape Coral, FL
Female, 49
I spent the five happiest years of my life in a morgue. As a forensic scientist in the Cleveland coroner’s office I analyzed gunshot residue on hands and clothing, hairs, fibers, paint, glass, DNA, blood and many other forms of trace evidence, as well as crime scenes. Now I'm a certified latent print examiner and CSI for a police department in Florida. I also write a series of forensic suspense novels, turning the day job into fiction. My books have been translated into six languages.
I had a bachelor's degree in biology when I applied to the coroner's office in 1998. They required a degree in one of the natural sciences, and there were no forensic science degrees back then. Only you can decide what you want to go to graduate school for, but as for career requirements you might look at the American Academy of Forensic Science and the International Association for Identification and look at their job vacancy postings to see what they require. As for other degrees with a bio major, there are many private labs for DNA, drug testing, paternity testing, water and food standards analysis, etc. as well as hospital labs that might require. Again, look at job vacancy postings in all these areas--they should be easily found online and they should state the educational requirements. It will also let you see in what areas more jobs are available.
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I'm sorry, I haven't had any experience with that.
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I don't see why not. I'm sure a coroner's or medical examiner's would love to have a pathologist trained in excavating buried bodies and crime scenes. However if you want to work as a pathologist but also do archaology work for other agencies or take leaves to work on archaeological digs, you'd have to work for an agency that would be okay with you working as a pathologist part time.
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Yes, about 60 times, and I may be going again this week. It's one of those 'doesn't rain but pours' kind of things. I might go twice in one week and then not again for months. It's incredibly frustrating, time-consuming, nerve-wracking and super not fun. You have no control over anything, not when you have to be there, not how long you have to be on the stand, not what kind of questions you'll be asked, and you get no warning of any of these things beforehand.
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That's a determination a pathologist is going to make, not me. But they have told me that drowning is sort of a process-of-elimination conclusion, since there may or may not be water in the lungs whether or not the person died of drowning.Sorry I can't be more help!
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Take all the science courses you can and any kind of forensic-oriented laboratory courses.
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As I said above, patience, attention to detail, a tolerance for the more tedious parts of the job, and an affinity for science. A strong stomach helps but I knew guys who were homicide detectives for twenty years and still got queasy at the smell of a dead body, so don't let that stop you.
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