Homeland security is a new American term used to describe a national effort to protect the nation against threats such as terrorism and other emergency hazards. After the September 11 terror attack, homeland security started to become a career for many people. This means that the national effort to address threats is no longer a temporary measure but a permanent job.
This is evident in the creation of the Department of Homeland Security. According to FederalLawEnforcement.org, homeland security jobs may be best organized into areas such as mission support, law enforcement, immigration and travel security, prevention, and response. Nevertheless, here the five most common homeland security careers that many people enter into:
1. Immigration and Custom Officers
If there is one area that a country has to guard and protect is its borders. No matter how strictly the internal affairs throughout the nation are controlled, they would end up useless if the nation is easily infiltrated from the outside. There are a lot of homeland security careers in immigration and custom. One example is to work as a border patrol agent. Other jobs include inspectors and more. All of these are jobs that immigration officers perform.
2. Intelligence Officers
There is a saying that goes, “prevention is better than cure.” This is true not only in health, but also in national security. Today, the work of intelligence officers is very important so as not to repeat previous incidents. Knowing the threat ahead of time may reduce the probability that it may occur. This is a job that’s indispensable with homeland security.
3. Emergency Management Directors
Not all disasters can be avoided. When it happens, it is important that there are people or teams who are organized to respond immediately to emergency situation. The job of an emergency management director is to oversee and monitor the response effort. Moreover, it is also the job of an emergency management director to train people and create an emergency management program and prepare for contingency measures in the event of disaster.
4. Police Officers
The job of a police officer is not only about crime prevention. It also covers jobs that are similar with the ones performed by military officers. In fact, the military and the police work together for homeland security. Being a police officer is the most popular career in homeland security. Furthermore, the police also respond to emergency situations caused by natural calamities. In addition, they provide some community services to ensure that people are safe everywhere.
5. Emergency Medical Professionals
Safety can still be achieved even right after a disaster or emergency hazard when there are medical teams assigned to respond and work to help victims survive the disaster. Some emergency medical professionals provide first aid in the location where a disaster takes place. Others are organized inside hospitals. Doctors, nurses, paramedics, and laboratory technicians can work as emergency medical professionals. Even drivers can work as ambulance drivers. In fact, this is one of the most important jobs in medical emergencies.
Conclusion
Working in homeland security is challenging yet rewarding especially during emergency. Even if there is virtually no more security threat today or in the future, anything may happen along the way. Preparedness is the key to reduce the damage, and this is the job of homeland security personnel.
Related Resource: 5 Great Law Enforcement Careers
